Volvo XC90 inscription v VW Tourareg

[Computastar]

Originally Posted by Wizzpop

As I have said before, one of the reasons I have stayed with Volvo is the excellent dealer we have here. It is not one of the multi dealerships driven by bean counters. One of the technicians at our Audi dealer told us that he was always expected to find something extra to charge for, despite the car being perfectly OK. That may not happen at all multi dealerships, but the pressure is there.
Oh, and of course, I am pleased with my V60. Good build quality, adequate performance, comfortable.

And you are lucky to have this, but with the likes of Stoneacre, Marshalls and even Volvo Cars UK taking over, these days are number, reduce competition of sales and service. Here in South Yorkshire all the Mercedes dealerships are operated by JCT600 as Mercedes Benz - %Location% so there's no point going to Doncaster, Sheffield or even Chesterfield as it just one price that's it take it or leave it.
Unfortunately it's the way the retail motor industry now operates and Volvo will be exception.

[gaby]

I am a fan of Scandinavian design in general: sober and functional.
The infotainment system and dashboard design of the current Volvo cars
(very few buttons) pleases me much more than the VAG design which is,
in my opinion too flashy with a high wow-factor. I feel that Volvo made
an impressive statement with its infotainment system and interior design
in general and is ahead of (most?) other manufacturers, VAG included.

[Computastar]

Originally Posted by gaby

I am a fan of Scandinavian design in general: sober and functional.
The infotainment system and dashboard design of the current Volvo cars
(very few buttons) pleases me much more than the VAG design which is,
in my opinion too flashy with a high wow-factor. I feel that Volvo made
an impressive statement with its infotainment system and interior design
in general and is ahead of (most?) other manufacturers, VAG included.

No point being nice to look at if it doesn't work properly, form over function is not a good quality in a car, hence the thread on random City Break Assist, and this is my point, Volvo need to really tighten up their testing, especially if they are going to push nonSensus as a premier feature, all the other manufactures in this respect are much further ahead than Volvo

[gaby]

Originally Posted by Computastar

No point being nice to look at if it doesn't work properly,...

That's correct, but it does work properly, faultless even.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by gaby

That's correct, but it does work properly, faultless even.

indeed it does in 99.5 ( or there abouts ! ) cases out of 100 except for the rare odd case car where it is easily fixed , the mechanical unit you see in the dash has no problems whatsoever ... I wouldn't be surprised now after 5 years that some of these cars are not having the latest software added anymore due to neglect ..

[Computastar]

Originally Posted by Clan

indeed it does in 99.5 ( or there abouts ! ) cases out of 100 except for the rare odd case car where it is easily fixed , the mechanical unit you see in the dash has no problems whatsoever ... I wouldn't be surprised now after 5 years that some of these cars are not having the latest software added anymore due to neglect ..

My car is MY19, due for service, so any updates will be welcomed, but you only have to browse this forum to see the amount of random unpredictable faults the software has. The simple fact is the software has not been tested thoroughly enough, and updates seem to cause unintended consequences, I also don't believe this is Volvo, this is the Chinese influence, get the MVP out there and we'll worry about getting fit for purpose later.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Computastar

My car is MY19, due for service, so any updates will be welcomed, but you only have to browse this forum to see the amount of random unpredictable faults the software has. The simple fact is the software has not been tested thoroughly enough, and updates seem to cause unintended consequences, I also don't believe this is Volvo, this is the Chinese influence, get the MVP out there and we'll worry about getting fit for purpose later.

A forum by it's nature attracts people with faults , the vast majority of the 60000 new volvos sold in UK last year are fine .. can you imagine 60000 people collecting here or flooding the 120 dealers and there are 5 previous years of production so a potential 500,000 cars or so with problems with their sensus systems since 2015 ? It doesn't happen .
The customer is the ultimate tester of course , pressing random buttons , multiple buttons together, one button 3 times in a row , or holding it down for 5 second etc . etc etc 😊

[Discoman]

Originally Posted by Computastar

Not sure where you are getting £15k more for the VW.
Volvo XC90 B5d R-Design Pro - £61,185
VW Touareg Black Edition (V6 286) - £61,345

And that's with a proper V6 in a 2.5 Tonne car, not a highly strained 4 pot.

I expected a fan boy response, of course you like you cars, but there are better at a better price out there. The Volvo is not bad car, if it was I'd have swapped it out by now, its just not there with the competition.
I find find it strange that no one has commented on my outlook for the dealership network, Volvo UK are one of the last not to adopt the multi dealership group approach, believe me things will change and the nice little touches you appreciated will be gone.

Personally I was just stating the price differences for the two cars I would have bought. I have a Momentum XC90 as I cannot see value in what they give you extra with the Inscription or R Design and I found the R Design driver's seat very uncomfortable. For the Touareg, extras were expensive especially the twin screen set up and I refused to take the analogue instrument panel when my wife's much cheaper Golf has digi dials as standard.

FWIW I am quite happy to be critical of Volvo if I feel necessary as it's my first Volvo and will be my last if I don't like it over the next few years. All good so far!

[Discoman]

Originally Posted by Computastar

No point being nice to look at if it doesn't work properly, form over function is not a good quality in a car, hence the thread on random City Break Assist, and this is my point, Volvo need to really tighten up their testing, especially if they are going to push nonSensus as a premier feature, all the other manufactures in this respect are much further ahead than Volvo

The City Break Assist has never kicked in on my Volvo whereas my VWs keep seeing a tree I will crash into on a corner near my house. All these tech features are really quite basic.

[Dastardly Diesel]

Originally Posted by Whyman

When I worked for the Police we kept on pressing Volvo to produce a V6 or straight 6 diesel to compete with BMW. The D5 was updated but never caught up with BMW.

The last I heard was they were producing a D6 as an alternative to the D5 but it only materialised as a mild sort of hybrid and then was never seen again.

When the D5 was finally updated to 200 BHP it had close on the power of the single blower 3 litre BMW 6 pot, with 20Nm more torque, with lower emissions, so until the demise of the D5 altogether they had very much caught up with BMW. Not only that, they did it for a lot less money and better operational availability.

The only thing we really envied BMW for were the M3's brakes back when we had the S60R - as supplied they'd overheat and catch fire surprising easily in a pursuit, which had us using Octavia VRs's until the S60's were replaced with V70's.

Going back to the original post, the XC90 scores highly in one very important area - it isn't made by an organisation founded by Hitler, with a 75 yeae history of lying, deceit, and death, whenever they thought they could get away with it.