Where do you see Volvo against other marques?
 

I'm looking at getting my first Volvo, changing from Mercedes. Everyone I've spoken too, considers this a DOWNgrade.

Where do you see the Volvo brand compared to the likes of MB, BMW , Lexus etc?

Whatabout if you throw the likes of Ford into the equation?

Is it fair to call Volvo a premium brand ?

Volvo is not a premium brand and never has been IMO!
Personally I don't think any mass produced car is "Premium".
I think if anything Volvo has lost some, if not all of its identity in recent years, simply because they are trying to be too much like all the others. They used to be considered by all to have bullet proof reliability, be massively practical and do exactly what it says on the tin. Now though, they are another European mass produced car that is having to offer the same as every other manufacturer to compete!
UK customers seem obsesed by labels, although in the case of cars this is changing. After all ther are some damn good offerings that are very well made, safe, reliable, good looking and practical, coming from the East.
The only thing that holds them back (with some people), is the badge!

I can't see any current manufacturer knocking the big 3 German makes off their pedestal. As you say in the past certain marques specialised certain things and Volvos like Saab was safety and practicality. Now manufacturers have to encompass all aspects of car design to be ahead of the game, so all that is left for consumers to put the money against is brand and lifestyle.

Our MD has brand new Audi A8 and it's a damn nice place to be. But then it did cost nigh on £100K and Volvo don't offer anything at that price point. Therefore until they do they'll never be a premium brand. Looking back though Audi started out as quirky brand who's offering was only 4x4 with aerodynamics, when did they become premium? I guess you need to launch a flagship barge with a big price tag. VW tried it with the Phaeton.

I think Mercedes has always been premium but have lost their way a little over the last 15 years, which allowed Audi and BMW to step in.

I guess you call RR, Bentley, etc as Hyper Premium?

Modern Volvo has a good build quality and a lot of good equipment from the factory in the base price (unlike Audi). It is hard to say, where they are situated precisely. Def. not in the budget class. Ford/VW/Vauxhall isn't the right group. Nor though is Mercedes/Audi/BMW. I'd put Volvo between both groups with the tendency facing towards Audi (not BMW or MB).

Volvo is trying to make themselves sporty and emotional (kind of like Alfa Romeo) but doesn't offer proper sporty vehicles.

It really is a little hard to decide on where to put Volvo. Yes, it IS a downgrade vom Mercedes but then again, Mercedes build quality has been dropping. The last C220 CDI (Facelift) I drove, drove well, but it rattled and shattered all the time. My 5 year old C30 doesn't do that.

Volvo is improving. I'd say they'll soon (maybe 2014!?) be up to Mercedes/Audi level.

Btw.: Volvo's nickname here in Germany is "Sweden Benz" - that is still from the time, as the old 760 was compared with the W124 260E and was called the better Mercedes...

When Volvo then went to FWD (400, 800, S80, ...) the quality rating went down. The quality was then being compared with Rover (a class of its own). That is how German press rated the build quality of the late 90ies. Now the cars are compared with VW, Audi, BMW and every so often Mercedes. So I'd say Volvo is slowly picking up again...

New Volvos are poor value for money. There are better cars on the market at a lower price.

That applies to every car brand on this planet.
You can buy a Lada Niva instead of a Porsche Cayenne. The Lada will get you further, cheaper and more efficient.
You can buy a Dacia Sandero instead of a VW Polo for less and have a reliable car.
You can buy a Chevy Cruze instead of a Vauxhall Astra, for less and will have the same chassis as the Astra, the same engines and the same build quality for a lower price.
You can buy a Ford Focus instead of a new Volvo V40 for less and will have the same chassis, but not the same engines or build quality.
You can buy a Daihastsu Trevis instead of a Mini and get the same size, same styling and cheaper price.

I think it's clear from all the car review mags that Volvo are not yet troubling the likes if MB , BMW or Audi . But as was said they don't belong in the like of Ford, or Vx. So they're in a group of their own ? Difficult to raise your game when there's little opposition

I'm looking at a change from MB due to having built quality issues on a car that cost ne early £40k. Eg, loose exterior trim, interior door handle falling off . These are things I don't expect ANY new car to have, let alone one that costs 40k!

Maybe I'm going to be disappointed by Volvo (especially as after I've picked my options the car is approaching the thick end of 40k). Who knows.

Personally I do kinda see Volvo as being the 4th member of tha that exclusive 3 car group. Maybe it's lack of numbers on the road that's making the association more difficult than it needs to be.

I guess they're at the same level as Alfa but for different reasons. I certainly wouldn't put Alfa down with Vx and Ford but they ain't up there with the Germermans either.

Some comments above are indicating different levels of build quality between different manufacturers!
Having installed/replaced/repaired many pieces of kit in most of the European and some American car factories (it's what I do for a living), I can assure you that all the European companies use basically the same machinery, using the same software to control said machinery. The only thing that is different is the building they are housed in (the factory) and the people who actually do the building of the cars in question (the employees).
Therefore in reality the build quality of my S60 is no better than that of a similar aged Ford Mondeo. They are both assembled in big factories in Belgium, from components brought in from a company other than (in this case) Ford or Volvo and screwed together by assembly workers on similar salaries and using machines that are identical.
The badge is the thing here that is making the difference to most people.
Remember even BMW, Mercedes Benz and VAG cars are build using the same machinery as Ford Vauxhall Volvo etc..

i think volvo are coming back good there is little other swedish offering now because tbh you do not change and you end up in saabs position broke....

focusing on the v40 for a minute i really think they have an offering that will put something and make people think twice at least before buying a german manufacturers car.

to be fair the hunk of **** that is my relatives golf has been more troublesome than both our volvos, and an even older micra! i think the v40 is aimed towards this and the A3 in honesty.

for me personally i ignore cost to a degree because when i discovered how much their golf was (basic) i nearly died, the options list for what you get in a v40 is bloody expensive if you can equip them (german car) to the same level (then the price is pretty much the same if not more). In addition, their dealership are a bunch of ignorant ****s my relatives are in their 80's for god sake show no respect and brush them off it took my dad doing a 400 mile round trip just to get them to fix the problems when it arrived (punctured tyre with less than 100 miles, DSG box that would stall at stupid moments the list goes on - oh in a car that somehow passed PDI)!

Merc dealers and cars do not get me started, modern mercs well best left saying nothing.

BMW dealers have heard varying things as well as their cars.

VAG well see above, i have heard more sh*t about this lot than anything (probably due to numbers but it does not take away the fact the way they handle problems).

Alfa brilliant sadly did not buy one when i bought the c30 and would be the other brand i would consider to buy a car from plus one of my friends had some issues with a new car (fine i know there should be none but things happen to me it is how they handle it and alfa are handling very well unlike what the VW dealer did to my relatives.)

I am sorry to anyone who likes VW in anyway but i will never set foot in a VW dealer with my own cash to by a car honestly, and as for the VW/Skoda/Seat UK well they are bunch of so and so to.

Ignoring some things i think to me personally i do it by do i like the car and do i like the dealer and local support around it, i do not want to be dealing with a bunch of tools.