Volvo Cars, previously owned by AB Volvo but acquired by Ford in 1999, was founded in Sweden in 1927. The Volvo group decided to sell the brand in order to focus more on commercial vehicles, the name now being jointly owned by Ford and Volvo.

Volvo has been highly influential in the development of several modern safety devices and throughout its history has pioneered many important features. In 1944 Volvo cars first introduced laminated glass and a safety cage, while in the late 1950s the company invented the modern seatbelt. 1966 saw the invention of a ‘crumple zone’, which protected passengers by absorbing the impact of a crash.

As well as establishing 2,500 car dealerships in 100 markets across the world, Volvo has become the world’s second largest bus manufacturer with factories on five continents. The group also owns three leading truck companies and an aircraft development firm.

Volvo cars are generally regarded as higher class, with Ford choosing to market them in their premium range in competition with the likes of BMW and Mercedes. This luxury image is encouraged by the organisation of round the world yacht races and sponsorship of golf tournaments.

Despite 60% of Volvo’s car sales coming from Europe it has received few awards in that market. However in America the XC90 received the 2003 North American Car of the Year award, albeit in the truck category, while the S40 was one of three finalists for World Car of the Year in 2005.

EuroNCAP Safety Ratings for Volvo cars
The European New Car Assessment Programme produces reports on the safety of vehicles based on the results of several crash tests. As well as measuring how the car will hold up in a crash the risk to a pedestrian struck by the car is assessed. The star ratings (maximum 5) of key Volvo models are shown below.