The story
Founded by Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf Larson in 2010, in Gothenburg.1
1927–1999
Volvo was founded upon the concept of safety in 1927, in Gothenburg, Sweden:
Cars are driven by people. The guiding principle behind everything we make at Volvo, therefore, is and must remain, safety.
The company was created as a subsidiary to SKF. Assar Gabrielsson was appointed managing director and Gustav Larson technical manager.
The trademark Volvo (which is Latin for 'I roll') was first registered by SKF on 11 May 1915 with the intention to use it for a special series of ball bearing for the American market but it was never used for this purpose (however in the application for the trademark, it was also designated for the purpose of automobiles). The SKF trademark as it looks today was used instead for all SKF products. Some pre-series of Volvo-bearings stamped with the brand name 'Volvo' were manufactured but never released to the market, and it was not until 1927 that the trademark was used again, now as a trademark and company name for an automobile.
The first Volvo car left the assembly line on 14 April 1927, and was called the Volvo ÖV 4. After this the young company produced closed top and cabriolet vehicles, which were designed to hold strong in the Swedish climate and terrain. In the registration application for the Volvo logotype in 1927, it simply made a copy of the entire radiator for the ÖV 4, viewed from the front. The round logo with the arrow pointing to the right (♂) is the Greek alchemical symbol for iron.
Presented in 1944, the Volvo PV444 passenger car only entered production in 1947. It was the smallest Volvo yet, but became Volvo's most produced car, and spearheaded Volvo's move into the profitable American market. The first Volvos arrived in the United States in 1955, after the hardware wholesaler Leo Hirsh began distributing cars in California. Later, Texas was added, and in 1956, Volvo themselves began importing cars to the US. North America has consistently provided Volvo with its main outlet since.
In 1963, Volvo opened the Volvo Halifax Assembly plant, the first assembly plant in the company's history outside of Sweden, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. In 1964, Volvo opened its Torslanda plant in Sweden, which currently is one of its largest production sites (chiefly large cars and SUVs). Then in 1965, the Ghent, Belgium plant was opened, which is the company's second largest production site. This was also Volvo's first location producing cars within the European Economic Community. In 1989, the Uddevalla plant in Sweden was opened, which was jointly operated by Volvo Car Group and Pininfarina Sverige AB from 2005 to 2013.
In the early 1970s, Volvo acquired the passenger car division of the Dutch company DAF, and marketed its small cars as Volvos before releasing the Dutch-built Volvo 340, which went on to be a big seller in the UK market in the 1980s. In 1986 Volvo sold 113,267 cars in the US marking a record year for the company. The appearance of Japanese brands like Acura and Lexus and the growing popularity of Subaru station wagons in subsequent years meant the loss of a significant market share for Volvo, one which it has never regained.
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Volvo's long-time CEO Pehr G. Gyllenhammar saw early on that Volvo was too small to survive in the future, and attempted several times to merge with other manufacturers. Volvo nearly merged with Saab in the late seventies, while in 1978 an aborted affair would have seen the Norwegian state take over 40 percent of the company. In return, Volvo would receive 200 million SEK and a ten percent concession in the Oseberg oil field. Major institutional actors in Sweden opposed the deal and blocked it. A deal to merge with Renault was blocked in 1993, mainly opposed by a Swedish stockholders' association.
A collection of Volvo's most important historical vehicles are now housed in the Volvo Museum, which opened in a permanent location in Arendal at Hisingen on 30 May 1995. For several years, the collection had been housed at the Blue Hangar, at the then closed Torslanda Airport.
In 1999, Volvo Group decided to sell its automobile manufacturing business in order to concentrate on commercial vehicles, and to buy a 5% stake in Japanese automaker Mitsubishi Motors (with which Volvo Group along with the Dutch government had participated in a joint venture at the former DAF plant in Born, Netherlands since 1991). Ford saw advantages in acquiring a profitable prestige mid-size European automobile manufacturer, renowned for its safety aspects, as an addition to its Premier Automotive Group. The buyout of Volvo Cars was announced on 28 January 1999, and in the following year the acquisition was completed at a price of US$6.45 billion. As a result of the divestiture, the Volvo trademark was used by two separate companies:
Volvo Group – a manufacturer of trucks, buses and construction equipment (among others) owned by Swedish interests
Volvo Car Group or Volvo Cars – a manufacturer of automobiles owned by Ford Motor Company
Volvo Group completed its 5% deal with Mitsubishi in November 1999, but sold its stake back to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in March 2001.
Ford era (1999–2010)
Volvo Car Group was part of Ford Motor Company's Premier Automotive Group (PAG), along with Jaguar, Aston Martin and Land Rover. While part of the PAG, the company significantly expanded its range of vehicles. Ford, in turn, attempted with little market success to leverage synergies from Volvo, namely by sharing a re-engineered platform and many safety features from the Volvo S80 with the Ford Five Hundred (et al.).
After Ford sold Jaguar Land Rover to Tata Motors of India in 2008, the company initially decided to keep Volvo Cars despite mounting losses and major economic downturns. Ford decided to restructure plans for Volvo Cars, pushing it further upmarket, alongside the lower end of Mercedes and BMW sedans, wagons, and SUV crossovers. The outcome was the luxurious second generation Volvo S80 and the new small premium crossover Volvo XC60.
When the global economic crisis of 2008 threatened US automakers, Swedish authorities became concerned about the fate of Volvo, should Ford file for bankruptcy. These concerns mounted after repeated mass layoffs at Volvo. In December 2008, Ford announced that it was considering selling Volvo Cars. Initially, a sale price of US$6 billion was reported. Ford said it was also looking into the possibility of spinning off Volvo as an independent company. The Swedish government was asked to look into a possible state ownership of Volvo, or a financial bailout for Volvo Cars and SAAB of GM. Former parent AB Volvo agreed to help Volvo cut costs through partnerships, and suggested taking part in a shared ownership of Volvo Cars, as part of a larger consortium. Other rumored candidates to purchase Volvo Cars included BMW AG of Germany, Investor AB of Sweden, Chinese investors, and Russian investors.
Although it was rumoured that Volkswagen would buy Volvo Cars, and despite initial denials, the company Geely Holding Group was ultimately selected to take over the Swedish automaker. Geely Holding allegedly bid about US$1.5 billion to take over Volvo, with Goldman Sachs investing HK$2.59 billion (US$334 million) in the holding company.
Geely era (2010–present)
Ford Motor Company offered Volvo Cars for sale in December 2008, after suffering losses that year. On 28 October 2009, Ford confirmed that, after considering several offers, the preferred buyer of Volvo Cars was Geely Holding Group, the parent of motor manufacturer Geely Automobile. On 23 December 2009, Ford confirmed the terms of the sale to Geely had been settled. A definitive agreement was signed on 28 March 2010, for US$1.8 billion. The European Commission and China's Ministry of Commerce approved the deal on 6 and 29 July 2010, respectively. The deal closed on 2 August 2010 with Geely paying $1.3 billion cash and a $200 million note. Further payments are expected with a later price "true-up". It is the largest overseas acquisition by a Chinese automaker.
Stefan Jacoby, formerly chief executive of Volkswagen of America, became Volvo Car Group's president and chief executive on 16 August 2010, replacing Stephen Odell, who became chief executive of Ford Europe. Li Shufu became Volvo Cars' chairman of the board. His board members include vice-chairman Hans-Olov Olsson, a former president and chief executive of Volvo Cars, and Håkan Samuelsson, formerly chief executive of MAN.
Under Geely ownership, Volvo has refocused its product lineup. The manufacturer has developed a new line of 3- and 4-cylinder diesel and petrol engines while eliminating larger engines. It has also developed a new vehicle platform, the Scalable Product Architecture (SPA), and re-introduced an expanded -90 series of models, including the S90 sedan and Volvo V90 wagon in addition to a redesigned XC90 SUV.
In 2015, Volvo sold more than half a million cars for the first time in its 89-year history.
Volvo reported strong sales from all three core global regions. Sales in Europe rose 10% in 2015 to 269k, representing over 50% of total global volume. Volvo's revival in the US gained momentum, with sales up 24% in 2015, while China was flat amid a challenging sales environment, but sales were up 11% in the fourth quarter.
In July 2017, the automaker announced that beginning in 2019, all of its new models will include an electric motor in their powertrain. Implementation of the announcement could mean Volvo becoming the first manufacturer to end production of internal combustion-only vehicles, with all vehicles hybrid or electric powered. Between 2019 and 2021, Volvo plans to launch three electric cars under the Volvo brand and two more under the Polestar performance brand.
Volvo is one of the proponents of autonomous vehicles. On 20 November 2017, Uber announced that it planned to buy up to 24,000 Volvo cars designed to accept autonomous technology between 2019 and 2021. This non-binding intent includes a plan for Uber Advanced Technologies Group to design and build the self-driving system in the XC90 SUV. In 2016, the companies announced that they planned to collaborate on the design and financing of cars with self-driving systems. Such vehicles require a different type of steering and braking mechanism, as well as sensors. The CEO of Volvo Cars, Håkan Samuelsson, made this comment in an interview: "We get support developing this car... It’s also a big commercial deal."
Also in 2017, Volvo announced a vehicle subscription offering called Care by Volvo, which offers the Volvo XC40 for a monthly payment that includes insurance and maintenance. Care by Volvo is offered in several European markets, such as Germany, the UK and Italy, as well as in the U.S.
In February 2020, Volvo and Geely announced that it had started formal discussions about a merger of business. Geely had owned 100% of Volvo, but Volvo Cars had largely been allowed autonomy with its resources. These merger talks were later halted, and 18% of Volvo Cars shares were listed on the Nasdaq Stockholm stock exchange in October 2021.
In early 2021 the company announced plans to completely stop selling fossil fuel-based cars by 2030, switching to electric-powered cars. The plan includes phasing out fossil-fuel-only cars by 2025, manufacturing only electric cars or hybrids.
In June 2021, Volvo Cars and Swedish battery developer and manufacturer Northvolt announced its intention to establish a 50/50 joint venture consisting of a battery gigafactory and R&D (research and development) center. In December 2021, it was revealed the battery R&D center would be located in Gothenburg. In February 2022, Gothenburg was also chosen as the location for the battery gigafactory.
In 2021, Volvo Cars set up a joint venture with Geely for its hybrid engine operations. The new business, Aurobay will develop and market powertrain solutions, and as of 2022, includes Volvo Cars' engine plants in Skövde and Zhangjiakou, together with its powertrain research and development operations in Gothenburg.
In June 2023, Ukraine blacklisted Geely due to its refusal to leave the Russian market. In this regard, the Swedish authorities began to discuss the possibility of a boycott of Volvo Cars. The discussion was initiated by the Ministry of Defense of Sweden.
In November 2023, Volvo Cars announced the launch of an Energy Solutions business, beginning with a vehicle-to-grid (V2G) pilot programme in Gothenburg along with local power utility Goteborg Energi.
In 2023, Volvo removed conventional engines as an option, meaning mild hybrids are the base engine option in the US.
In 2024, Volvo Cars scrapped its goal of becoming fully electric by 2030, adjusting its strategy due to industry challenges.
In November 2024, Volvo Cars announced the sale of its 30% stake in Lynk & Co to Zeekr, at a price of RMB 5.4 billion.
On March 30, 2025, Volvo Cars announced the reappointment of Samuelsson as CEO starting from 1 April, succeeding Jim Rowan who had been CEO since January 2022. Volvo said Samuelsson would be serving a two-year term while the group prepares to appoint a long-term successor. In September 2025, Volvo Cars announced that Klaus Zellmer, then CEO of Škoda Auto, would succeed Samuelsson as CEO no later than October 2027.
From Wikipedia’s article on Volvo Cars, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4