Customers are fleeing to competitors because Volvo in England dropped the station wagon from its model range. And that was a mistake, the importer now says.
Volvo in the UK admits that it was a mistake to stop selling estate cars. Customers disappeared, which made the carmaker reconsider the decision.
Two years ago, Volvo decided to discontinue sales of its V60 and V90 estate models in the UK. This decision was met with massive criticism and prompted many reactions from Volvo enthusiasts.
The Volvo importer said it wanted to focus the business more on electric cars and SUVs. But just a year later, it changed course and resumed selling station wagons.
Now Robert Deane, sales manager at Volvo in the UK, admits that it was a mistake to stop selling estate cars. He regrets that they left the market.
Deane explains that many Volvo customers chose other car brands when the estate models were removed from the range. This was an advantage for competitors such as BMW, Audi, Mercedes and especially Volkswagen, which sold 4,353 estates in the UK last year.
The reaction from customers and the emotional ties to station wagons made Deane think twice. Today, the result is quite obvious that the importer has regretted the decision.
"We discussed the possibility of bringing back estate cars. When I saw that customers wanted them back, I took action," Deane says in an interview with Auto Express.
He contacted the factory to investigate whether it was possible to resume selling station wagons in England. After some time, approval came.
Something that made it easier for Volvo to say yes is that the police's special orders for the cars have never been stopped.
Today, Volvo offers three different station wagon models on the way to the English market. Here in Denmark, however, there are far between them. Both the V60 and V90 models have long since disappeared.
The V90 disappeared when Volvo stopped selling pure gasoline and diesel cars in Denmark in September 2022. The electric car ES90 is also on its way here. But it's a sedan.
