William Maley
Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com
August 28, 2013
Once upon a time, the Volvo lineup had three compact cars; the C30 hatchback, S40 sedan, and V50 wagon. All three went off to the great parking lot in the sky and the V40 hatchback took their place. There was one problem, because of the poor sales of those three models in the U.S., Volvo decided not to sell the V40. Volvo executives and dealers in the U.S. want to see a change in that decision.
"The V40 is a great small vehicle, and we would love to have it here. It is not currently in our plan but that does not stop me. I am constantly talking about making that a reality," said Tassos Panas, head of marketing and product development at Volvo Cars of North America.
Now this push by Volvo executives and dealers has worked before. Consider the Volvo V60 wagon. Originally the V60 wagon was not coming to the U.S. However the pressure of dealers and executives in the U.S. cause Volvo to rethink and at the New York Auto Show, announced the V60 would be coming to the U.S. next year.
There is a huge problem for the V40 though. Unlike the V60 which could be easy homologated thanks to the S60 sedan, the V40 would have a much tougher path to be sold in the U.S. For example, the engine lineup of the V40 would have to be tested for emissions.
"That is one of the significant hurdles," said Panas.
Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)
William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.
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