To Sell Volvo, or to Say You're Selling Volvo - by Todd Lassa
Ford is in the same position with Volvo that GM is with its Hummer division. Volvo's sales in the U.S. this year have been nearly as dismal as Hummer's. And it's not doing that much better in Europe. Now that Ford has made the most of sharing the Volvo's S60/S80 platform with cars like the Taurus, Flex and Lincoln MKS, Ford is ready to return to simple, streamlined roots, concentrating on Ford, Lincoln and Mercury. That last brand will be essentially a collection of trim bits and grilles on Ford models, designed to keep Lincoln dealers happy with high-volume, low-priced models. No matter what you think of Mercury's future, its cars are cheap to build and necessary in keeping Lincoln from going further downmarket. So this is the best possible time for Ford to sell Volvo. It's also the worst, in that it won't find the kind of buyer it needs: a full-volume automaker that can build Volvos with shared parts from its low-priced lines. Rumors that BMW was interested a few years ago were nothing more than rumors; it doesn't build low-priced cars, and after nine years owning Rover almost brought BMW down, it doesn't need another semi-premium front-wheel-drive brand. Both Renault and Fiat could attract buyers with Volvo who wouldn't consider Renaults or Fiats, but Fiat already has its hands full trying to reverse the decline it brought on for the reputation of its Lancia brand. Renault/Nissan's Carlos Ghosn already has dismissed the idea of buying or merging with other automakers in the current economy.
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