A Volvo agency rep, on the one hand, was excited by my emphasis in last weekend’s review that the new V60 sportswagon comes right out of the old Torslanda factory in Gothenburg, Sweden. That cheers longtime Volvo faithful, who aren’t certain where lies the future of the Swedish company.
On the other hand, said Malena Silva, while near the end of the column I correctly attributed a quote, “Our Swedish heart is beating strongly,” to Volvo North America CEO John Maloney, it wasn’t made clear that Maloney has since been replaced as CEO by Tony Nicolosi.
Okay, it is now.
The Torslanda plant, which has housed Volvo headquarters, has produced more than 6.8 million cars in its 50 years of operation.
Rolling off the line on opening of the factory in 1964 was the Volvo Amazon, followed shortly by the P1800 sports car, which today is a sought-after classic. Production of the Volvo 140 began in the fall of 1966.
Torslanda launched in 1974 a sensible, safe, sturdy model which would identify Volvo Car Corporation ’round the world for 20 years – the 240. In August 1979, I reviewed in The Post the ’79 Volvo 242GT, with which “thicker-than-standard front and rear stabilizer bars and stiffer springs have isolated most road harshness away from the steering feel.” A turbocharged version was added to the 240 line in the early 1980s and the 760 showed up in 1982.
Torslanda tooled up for an all-new vehicle in 1991 – the Volvo 850. It was the first Swedish-developed, front-wheel-drive Volvo ever, and was equipped with a transversely mounted 5-cylinder engine. Also produced at the factory were the 940 and 960, larger and more traditional models.
Torslanda entered the modern era at the turn of the century with production runs for the S70, V70 and the luxurious S80 sedan. Based on the S80 technology, the XC70 was added and continues in popularity today.
Torslanda paid heed to the sport utility vehicle craze with launch of the XC90 in 2002. Fifteen thousand orders had been received before the first one came down the line.
Manufactured today at Torslanda are the S60, V60, V70, XC70, S80 and XC90. A redesigned XC90 will be added later this year.
Torslanda factory rolls on four years after Zhejiang Geely Holding Group of China bought Volvo from Ford Motor Co.
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