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I've been pondering a switch from my '94 940 to an '02-'05 V70 or V70XC.
I've read somewhere that Geeley will no longer be providing parts for cars older than 10 years. This is kind of troubling, as the longevity of Volvos is one of their primary value propositions.
Here are my questions:
1. Is anyone else worried by this? Or do you think the aftermarket no-OEM part availability will be sufficient to keep these cars on the road for the foreseeable future?
2. Has the new ownership by Geeley influenced anyone to switch to another make of car?
3. Does anyone have any hard data about the quality of the made-in-China parts? I read comments that this is a negative and am concerned about product quality just like the next person, but perception is one thing, hard data is another. Perhaps its simply too early to have any meaningful data on long term durability of the made-in-China parts.
--
'94 940, '92 240, 40 linear feet of vintage jazz, r'&'b, funk and soul, engaged in the so-called 'spiritual' side of things, too. Interested in bamboo and Japanese landscaping...
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I purchased a 2012 S60 (OSD) last August anticipating Geeley takeover and figuring there wouldn't be much Chinese influence. The only parts "made in China" that I have found so far are the 2 C pillar windows. I was hoping for less.
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FWIW, I make a concerted efforted effort to avoid Chinese parts for my 98k, three owner '98 S70....last set of front rotors(Brembo) I got from my local independent(hearty shoutout to European/Midtown in syracuse NY), were made in China, and they are absolute crap....
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Sadly, ensuring parts for only 10 years is the norm for the industry.
Volvo used to be the exception when Volvo was owned by Volvo, but the pipeline has only a finite capacity. Ironically, it seems that the older, pre-Ford ownership models, thanks to Volvo's original policy and fabricators of collectible car parts, have benefitted from more parts availability than newer, run-of the mill models.
Example include the OD relay for my old '84 (recently junked), and the overvoltage protection relay that has rendered one of my two '93 240's ABS system inoperative. Imagine the "old" Volvo company letting parts run out for such an important safety feature, and thus leaving it inoperative -- I can't imagine that it would ever have happened.
I've heard, on this forum, other complaints as well.
But this absence of adequate stocking of enough parts for such (otherwise) long-lived cars as the 240 seems to be routine for Ford, and subsequently for Geeley!
These 240s will be my last Volvos (I'll miss this forum, btw), and I plan to get two new cars (of another make) this spring.
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Of course the Chinese parts are "inferior," what do you expect?
Just my opinion based on seeing the same, and having tons of that stuff break on me in the field etc. in all areas of life.
A lot of the Meyle brake parts carried by FCP are chinese, although Meyle is German.
I recently ordered these and was extremely disappointed. I kept the rotors cuz I needed to finish the job (my front rotors were Brembo - Italy) but sent the emergency brake parts back (car didn't really need em but considered them a downgrade anyway).
PS: If you really are thinking of parting with your 940 I'm interested if it is a 945T or just a T.
: )
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If the market demands high quality parts, someone will provide them. 850 spring seats suck, XC90 ones are much better. Much of IPDs business is making parts that exceed OEM in one way or another.
I'm not worried about the new ownership as of yet. Any changes they're implementing will take a few years to come out in the cars. Since I can't afford a Volvo until it ages, it will be even longer until it'd affect me. Geely acquired Volvo in MY2011, I'm willing to bet the S60 redesign was still under Fords call.
I'm hoping the acquisition brings diesels and hybrids to the US market. VWs just don't fit me as well as a Volvo.
--
If you're not driving it "like its stolen," are you really driving?
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What could be worse than Ford ownership? Geeley infused much needed money, there are no factories to build Volvos in China, yet. Most of the WORLD's parts come from China already, so that should not be an issue.
As to the rumor that parts will no longer be supplied by Volvo after 10 years, check the list of parts that are actually made by Volvo. Volvo stopped making parts for the 240/740 a long time ago. It is a gem to find NOS items. I wouldn't worry about a newer XC, just make sure it is 2003 or younger.
--
My name is Klaus and I am a V♂lv♂holic
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They actually do build S60s in China already. For that market.
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My experience with parts from China is bad. Two broken axels which were difficult to remove, plus other tools. Afraid Japan or Germany will make my next cars. Ford far exceeds China in my opinion.
dick
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For those worried about a Chinese built Volvo - think back to when we were kids and we used to joke about "Made in Japan". Boy, did we end up eating crow! It may take them a while to figure it all out, but I bet they will. From what I read it's not real clear when we will actually see any China Volvos here in the U.S., so we we may be spared the "learning curve" cars.
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Hope you are right. Deming influenced Japan production methods so much they surpassed the US in quality. Will China have the common sense to listen and watch? I remember shortly after WWII when the first toys came in from Japan; they were made from pop cans, could still seen what was in the can. The Germans used to dominate the optics market, but Japan caught up and improved. Still believe the US has the most creative minds, but we sure have problems with our products, hence I own Volvo's, yet.
Enough old man rambling,
dick
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I remember, as a kid, I had a little metal toy car made in Japan. One day I decided to take it apart. On the inside of the metal body you could see that it was made out of a Pennzoil can. Of course the outside was nicely painted - with lead based paint no doubt.
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Not that the Chinese couldn`t produce high quality products but like many, I have yet to experience anything but mediocrity.
I am thinking that my wife & i have one more non Chinese Volvo left in us. Of course, that is an assumption that Geeley won`t be building "made in China" Volvo`s for at least a few more years.
Rich
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