2004 Volvo V40 Base Wagon 4-door 1.9l on 2040-cars

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Next-generation Volvo XC90 interior revealed

Volvo has officially kicked off the slow burn that will lead to the eventual unveiling of the next-generation XC90, in August. Its initial foray into the public eye will be with these, a series of 20 images of the new three-row SUVs interior, which is very, very Swedish (there are even the most adorable little Swedish flags on the seats).
In all, it looks like a positively sumptuous place to sit, with sharp looking woods and a crystal shifter, crafted by Orrefors Glassworks in Sweden. It's a clean, minimalist design that we imagine will age quite nicely.
Featured quite prominently - and the main part of the cabin that doesn't strike us as minimalist - is the very large touchscreen. Aligned in a portrait layout, which hasn't been done by too many automakers, it will be home to a new type of infotainment system that will make its debut in Volvo's flagship SUV. It also looks like we can expect digital gauges when the XC90 finally arrives.

Volvo blames EU tariffs as it lowers its 2024 sales forecast

STOCKHOLM — Volvo Cars cut its full-year retail sales forecast on Thursday, blaming European tariffs on EVs made in China that will hit one of the Swedish automaker's key electric models until it shifts production to Belgium. While reporting better than expected second-quarter results that sent its shares up 6% in morning trade, Volvo lowered its forecast for sales growth this year to 12%-15%, down from 15%. "It's really driven by tariffs," CEO Jim Rowan told Reuters. "It's a short-term issue for us, but it is an issue and we're just going to have to deal with that." Rowan said that while Volvo still hoped for 15% growth, it was now providing a range given the uncertainty. "We wanted to put a floor on that for the markets to say we're still going to grow but there are some headwinds," he said. Earlier this month, the EU announced provisional tariffs of up to 37.6% on imports of EVs made in China, saying they benefited from unfair subsidies — an allegation Beijing rejects. Volvo is majority-owned by China's Geely and faces a 19.9% tariff on its Chinese-made fully-electric EX30. Rowan said the Swedish automaker faced a "minimum of six months" of tariffs until it moves EX30 production to Belgium, which is expected to start early next year. Volvo said the main ramp-up of EX30 production at its factory in Ghent was expected during the second half of 2025. Bernstein analysts said in a note that the new sales guidance was "sensible given todayÂ’s macroeconomic situation." Major automakers have seen slowing demand for EVs, driven in part by a lack of affordable models and the slow rollout of charging points. Meanwhile, U.S. and European automakers have reported strong sales of hybrids, and are rolling out more such models to meet demand. Volvo said it saw a "modest decline" in orders for fully electric models in the second quarter, but noted "demand for hybrid cars remains very strong". "We will continue to invest in this line-up and these cars form a solid bridge for our customers not yet ready to move to full electrification," Rowan told analysts in a conference call. Volvo produced 211,900 cars in the second quarter, more than it sold amid the decline in European demand for EVs. Its operating income, which includes its stake in loss-making Polestar, rose to 8 billion crowns ($758 million) from 5 billion crowns a year earlier. That topped the 6.7 billion crowns expected by analysts, LSEG data showed.

Junkyard Gem: 1998 Volvo S90

Volvo began selling squared-off, rear-drive-equipped sedans and wagons here starting with the 140 in the 1968 model year, and continued selling those safe and sensible bricks all the way through 1998. The very last Swedish Brick models sold new in the United States were the 960 sedans and wagons, badged respectively as the S90 and V90 during the last couple of years here. We've seen one of those V90s in this series, and now it's time for its corresponding sibling. I found this very clean '98 S90 in a Silicon Valley yard last December. It hurts to see a well-cared-for European luxury sedan get this close to 200,000 miles and not quite make it.  The only body damage I could find appeared to have been inflicted after this car entered the used-parts ecosystem. There's not the slightest hint of rust, of course; this car shows every sign of having spent its entire life in California. The interior is just beautiful, too. This is almost certainly a one- or two-owner car that got every maintenance item done on the dot and spent its downtime parked out of the sun in a garage. Dig this top-shelf AM/FM/cassette/CD player with remote disc changer, a $485 option in the 1998 S90 (about $850 in 2022 dollars). The MSRP on the car itself started at $34,300 (around $60,200 now). So, why is this car in the junkyard? My guess is that some major component (e.g., engine, transmission, differential) failed and a quick comparison between real-world resale value and cost of repair resulted in a call to Pick Your Part. High-end European machinery isn't cheap to fix, and 25-year-old Volvos aren't worth much. While a small but significant fraction of American buyers of the 140, 240 and 740 preferred cars with three pedals, that fraction had shrunk to insignificance by the late 1990s. A four-speed automatic was the only transmission available in the final-year S90 and V90 here (Europeans could get a manual version). Interestingly, Volvo stuck with the old three-digit numbering system (first digit indicates series, second digit indicates number of engine cylinders, third digit indicates number of doors) for internal company use, decades after ditching it on customer-facing surfaces. This car was a 964 in Goteborg. Volvo brought back the S90 name for the 2017 model year, and you can buy a new one right now, but it's neither rear-wheel-drive nor brick-shaped.