Why no Volvo Wagons anymore (XCs don't count)

[Chapel]

My wife has been waxing poetic about Volvo wagons lately and I mentioned that Volvo doesn't sell a wagon in the US anymore, just 1 crossover (XC60), 1 old ass FWD jacked up piece of garbage that the rest of the world tossed in the bin a year ago (XC70) and a truck (XC90)

Then I showed her what the rest of the world gets:


WHY DON'T WE GET THIS!?

Volvos are synonymous with 'Wagon'... and we've got ****.

[nm+]

American consumers are dumb.
Also, 40 years of soft, slow big 3 wagons didn't help.

[classicjetta]

Because America

It does make me sad too though

[Brickx3]

I am utterly saddened by the choices of wagons these days now that im in my 30's and actually in the market for one. God forbid you want that wagon with a stick.

[l88m22vette]

We have plenty of wagons in this country, but they are jacked up and called CUVs. Baby boomers (the initial/primary market) can't stomach being like their parents, but they needed the same utility, so that's the result. SUVs were the original stand-in, but between mileage, truck-based driveability, and not needing almost all the abilities, CUVs were the result. Don't worry, my generation hates 99% of these vehicles, so I'd say within 5-10 years there will be actual wagons again, aside from the scarce few out there. It boils down to needing to be different, even though that just ends up exaggerating similarities (sound familiar?)

[Chapel]

blech.
CUVs are NOT wagons... to me they are the new soccer-mom-mobile

cool people drive wagons.

[l88m22vette]

4dr? Check. Extended rear cargo area? Check. Der rigor for Moms and suburbanites? Check.

Difference? 1960s vs. 2012. Its the same thing with a different coat of paint and suspension, I hate CUVs as much as you but our kids will want a Juke as much as we want a Vista Cruiser or 240 wagon, just because they are a middle finger to the establishment. Funny how we use the typicals as tools of rebellion later on...

[BetterByDesign]

Because Ford wants Volvo to market more to career women and Subaru owns the northeast
Subaru took a lot of Volvo's core group a while ago

[NoDubJustYet]

Because Ford wants Volvo to market more to career women and Subaru owns the northeast
Subaru took a lot of Volvo's core group a while ago

What does Ford have to do with anything?


They sold off PAG a whie ago...

[Oliver@triplezoom]

SUVs were the original stand-in, but between mileage, truck-based driveability, and not needing almost all the abilities, CUVs were the result. Don't worry, my generation hates 99% of these vehicles

Uh huh.

[VR6boi65]

More expensive than CUV, with less cargo room. And big SUV drivers refused to step down to them when the gas crunch came in. So the CUV was born, and sells 100000x more. Thus, no point in even selling the wagon, sadly.

The only reason the Jetta sportwagen sells so well is because there's no Tiguan TDI in the states.

[TangoRed]

Don't worry, my generation hates 99% of these vehicles, so I'd say within 5-10 years there will be actual wagons again, aside from the scarce few out there. It boils down to needing to be different, even though that just ends up exaggerating similarities (sound familiar?)

HA! I'm in my twenties. If we're talking about the same generation, then I beg to differ. People are still snapping up CUVs left and right and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. I don't know anyone who dislikes them.

Uh huh.

[Fettes Brot]

It's a really stark contrast between North America & Europe on this. Our dealer only sold about 10-12 P3 V70's, compared to the hundreds of XC70's we've sold. When I was in Gothenburg, XC70's were a rare sight, while V70's were the most common car on the road.

[patrikman]

If there was ever anyone when Rutledge was needed, it is now.

[Turbio!]

Then I showed her what the rest of the world gets:


WHY DON'T WE GET THIS!?

I do agree that we should get more old-school Volvo wagons - reasonably priced, cavernous cargo capacity, good for rough road work, ideal for hauling dogs and camping gear and so forth.

However, the above is none of those. It's just another cookie-cutter "sportwagon" that trades utility for styling and a fast roofline. They can keep that ****, because with a roofline that fast and overhang that short, I might as well just buy a friggin' sedan with folding rear seats.

[ATL_Av8r]

Bring back the Country Squire!

[Son]

Also, why are Volvos so swoopy these days? They have only one real wagon left, the V70 (I'm not counting the soon-dying V50).

That said, I think I like the V40, but yeah, it's a hatchback, not a wagon.

[Oliver@triplezoom]

However, the above is none of those. It's just another cookie-cutter "sportwagon" that trades utility for styling and a fast roofline. They can keep that ****, because with a roofline that fast and overhang that short, I might as well just buy a friggin' sedan with folding rear seats.

Oh come on... It's no 940 but the roofline isn't that fast. The shape of the rear side window exaggerates the sleek-ness of the design.

Looks to have a decent amount of space for a smaller wagon. About on par with the 3-series.

[2.0T_Convert]

Because wagons are silly to most people. If I want extra cargo space then I also want some good ground clearance and AWD to boot. A CUV meets all of these needs and I can see better over the traffic in front of me.

[Oliver@triplezoom]

If I want extra cargo space then I also want some good ground clearance and AWD to boot.

That seems like a combination of requirements that may be desirable to lots of people people but cargo space and ground clearance/AWD certainly can be mutually exclusive.

Personally I like driving a car but the utility offered by a wagon is necessary on a regular basis.

[CBJ]

We have plenty of wagons in this country, but they are jacked up and called CUVs. Baby boomers (the initial/primary market) can't stomach being like their parents, but they needed the same utility, so that's the result. SUVs were the original stand-in, but between mileage, truck-based driveability, and not needing almost all the abilities, CUVs were the result. Don't worry, my generation hates 99% of these vehicles, so I'd say within 5-10 years there will be actual wagons again, aside from the scarce few out there. It boils down to needing to be different, even though that just ends up exaggerating similarities (sound familiar?)

I'm pretty sure it isn't the baby boomers. They bought wagons out the wazoo. The oldest of which are soon going to be 70. Their parents were, for the most part born pre-war (WWII) and most of them are the better part of 90 now. Wagons weren't huge in the 40s either. I'm pretty sure you're annoyed at my generation, GenX. We're in our mid-40s now and, if you believe the hype, to slack to buy anything, wagons or not.

I just sold my wagon because it was cramping my style. I'm partial to blue flannel and the Subaru was red. The fact that it wouldn't make it down the dirt street we live on now is besides the point.

[Saintor]

Because wagons are silly to most people. If I want extra cargo space then I also want some good ground clearance and AWD to boot. A CUV meets all of these needs and I can see better over the traffic in front of me.

Yeap for most families a SUV makes more sense, no matter what some wagon elitists will say. And these days, you give up much less driving them than in the past.

[2.0T_Convert]

That seems like a combination of requirements that may be desirable to lots of people people but cargo space and ground clearance/AWD certainly can be mutually exclusive.

Personally I like driving a car but the utility offered by a wagon is necessary on a regular basis.

Then buy a hatchback. I suspect my GTI has more room inside than some swoopy designed compact wagons.

We have plenty of wagons and I suspect Volvo doesn't bring any here because Volvo isn't interested in a niche markets right now with questionable growth potential.

[clutchrider]

V60. Love it. Would give it serious thought as my next purchase when I upgrade in a few years. But it's not available in the U.S.

But "America" pretty much sums it up. They don't like wagons because they are not high enough to give you that commanding view of the road

[MCTB]

I do agree that we should get more old-school Volvo wagons - reasonably priced, cavernous cargo capacity, good for rough road work, ideal for hauling dogs and camping gear and so forth.

However, the above is none of those. It's just another cookie-cutter "sportwagon" that trades utility for styling and a fast roofline. They can keep that ****, because with a roofline that fast and overhang that short, I might as well just buy a friggin' sedan with folding rear seats.

Hate to tell you this but wagons, hatch backs, and SUVs all have severely sloping rear profile removing utility.

[4-Dr-W-a-T]

HA! I'm in my twenties. If we're talking about the same generation, then I beg to differ. People are still snapping up CUVs left and right and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. I don't know anyone who dislikes them.

I dont dislike them, I just prefer wagons

[Phil Pugliese]

No Subie wagons either. The Impreza is not a wagon. You can do all of your wagon shopping in a good afternoon. One of my favorite cars that I regret selling was my 06 Legacy wagon.

[zhenya00]

Because Ford wants Volvo to market more to career women and Subaru owns the northeast
Subaru took a lot of Volvo's core group a while ago

To be fair, Subaru no longer sells wagons in the US, either. Volvo had niche in the NE as more upscale than Subaru, but without the image of a BMW. Now that they've moved on to making only SUV's that get no better than 23mpg, that (admittedly small) market is open again.

Oh come on... It's no 940 but the roofline isn't that fast. The shape of the rear side window exaggerates the sleek-ness of the design.

Looks to have a decent amount of space for a smaller wagon. About on par with the 3-series.

Look at the side-view and the swoop cuts out a big portion of the utility of the wagon. It's like a 2nd-floor bedroom where the sloping roof intrudes. Sure, the size of the floor is the same, but you've given up what you can use that space for.

[SoSuMi]

Because wagons are silly to most people. If I want extra cargo space then I also want some good ground clearance and AWD to boot. A CUV meets all of these needs and I can see better over the traffic in front of me.

Come on, what good does a couple of inches of ground clearance do ya around 99.9% of North America? It's not like trekking to WalMart is the equivalent of crossing the Darian Gap. Getting a few more vertical inches might give one the sense of having an all-seeing eye but it comes at the expense of reduced handling limits. I'll take a wagon with its lower center of gravity any day.

But then I roof top a kayak around. Getting toys on and off a roof rack on a wagon is way easier than the same task on a jacked-up cute ute.

And I get it that most gringos prefer the looks of 'utes but to me they just look like pre flatulence station wagons.

[BetterByDesign]

To be fair, Subaru no longer sells wagons in the US, either. Volvo had niche in the NE as more upscale than Subaru, but without the image of a BMW.

That's news to me.

http://www.quirkworkssubaru.com/new-...cetbrowse=true

[zhenya00]

That's news to me.

http://www.quirkworkssubaru.com/new-...cetbrowse=true

Sorry, notawagon.





(If the new Outback is a wagon, so is the XC70)

[MK5golf]

Although the wagon is one of my favourite body styles, the market dictates what gets sold here. People dont want to buy wagons because they have a bad image. At first, I never really understood that, but when I look at those big boats the big 3 were selling years ago I can see why theyve got such a bad reputation on this continent.
People like their cuvs and what not, sure. Im not going to call anyone out here, but for 100% of driving needs, a wagon exceeds or even surpasses what the equivalent CUV is capable of. Being "higher" off the ground is the only advantage I can see, and even then it is a minute one, especially as compared to most real SUVS. My mom has an outlander, and its not really much higher off the ground than any wagon ive been in, at least not enough to justify a purchase.
Also, people think AWD is like the holy grail from the car gods. No. Nobody needs awd either. If you live in the snow belt just put winter tires on. If you really think you need awd for these situations you are so wrong, I doubt anyone lives in a harsher climate than me (unless your in the arctic circle or winnipeg) and I get along just fine with my Rabbit and winters. In fact, its often 4wd trucks I see stuck on the side of the highway.
PS, if im not mistaken, I do believe North America will be receiving the wagon you posted up, next model year perhaps.

[bwlupus]

Honestly, if Volvo sold the V60 here in the states i would have brought one. THe V60 R-design is pretty sharp.

As others said, CUV's and SUV's are what teh free market is dictating.

I cant see how a SUV makes more sense for families. Realistically for most familes, a Minivan is a better choice. Most don't even go off-road, more often then not has a higher interior volume and rides better, but dat sitgma that goes along with it.

Hoping Volvo can get permission from geely to at-least allow it as a special order one day.

[BostonB6]

The lines are becoming more blurred everyday. As an XC60 owner, my XC60 auto registration lists it as a station wagon, not an SUV. Used to be that an SUV was a body on frame vehicle but even that is no longer true. You can't look at AWD vs FWD either as many crossovers offer both.

So in the end, does it make a difference at all what we call something as long as the person buying it finds that it meets their needs?

[KahviVW]

If people can get into small hatchbacks (Fit, Mazda2, etc) then people will also overcome the station wagon image. The trick is to offer a station wagon that give people an appealing reason to ditch their overloaded CUVs. Wagons need to have high utility, better handling, and better fuel economy.