2004 Volvo C70 Base Convertible 2-door 2.4l on 2040-cars

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Volvo's oldest model earns IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award [w/video]

Volvo ought to be tooting its horn over this one. The XC90, an SUV that has essentially been on sale for over 10 years, just captured a Top Safety Pick+ award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The TSP+ is a new title, reserved for cars that earn "Good" or "Acceptable" ratings on each IIHS crash test.
This is a difficult feat for a new car - Toyota's new Corolla infamously failed to net a Top Safety Pick+ earlier this year - largely because of the new small overlap front tests, which have left many automakers struggling. But Volvo, somehow, was able to conquer the tests with a car that predates the original iPhone by a few years. The XC90 earning a Top Safety Pick+ is like Betty White taking the gold in the decathlon. With Volvo in the midst of working on the XC90's replacement, we're curious to see just how well a more modern version does in crash testing. Take a look down below for the crash test video and a press release from IIHS.

Car subscription services: A slow, expensive start — but the potential is huge

Americans are used to paying for subscriptions — to magazines and cable television, for instance — but experience shows they'll cancel when the price of admission gets too high, or there are more tempting alternatives. Cord cutters ditched nearly 1.5 million pay-TV subscriptions in 2017, according to a survey by Leichtman Research Group. Cable TV started out cheap with basic offerings, and then got expensive. The auto industry's subscription offerings are new, but they're starting out costly, and not price-competitive with traditional leasing. The upside is that they take the hassle out of car ownership for busy people by letting the service take care of maintenance, insurance, licensing and taxes. And they give consumers choice, often allowing relatively painless switches between different cars in the automakers' lineup. Subscription services also point the way toward an ownership-free auto experience, and offer an easy transition to a potential world where ride- and car-sharing will be dominant. Subscriptions are here to stay, but consumers may take a while to "get" them. Lincoln's subscription service for lightly used 2015 to 2017 models, offered through the Ford-owned Canvas beginning this year, got off to a slow start. Many early subscribers canceled. Last month, Cadillac announced it would " temporarily pause" its $1,800-per-month Book subscription service for "adjustments" as of December 1. According to the Wall Street Journal, "Snags with the back-end technology used to support the service made some customer-service functions tedious and time-consuming, adding costs for the company." The challenge for automakers is to come up with a strategy that offers consumers a compelling, affordable option to regular ownership, and one that can also make a profit. I think they'll find that sweet spot, but they're not there yet. Jack Nerad, former executive editorial director at Kelley Blue Book and author of " The Complete Idiot's Guide to Buying or Leasing a Car," points out that "A lot of people expected that subscriptions would be very valuable for people who wanted inexpensive transportation, but the reality is quite the opposite. Subscriptions are offering more choices for the wealthy.

Volvo agrees to transfer tech to new parent Geely

Following the acquisition of Volvo by China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group in 2010, we definitely saw this news coming. The two companies have signed an agreement that will give Chinese automaker Geely access to key technologies developed by Volvo, and in turn, the deal could help the Swedish automaker lower its production costs.
As a part of the "technological cooperation agreements" signed by both companies, Automotive News China reports that Geely will be able to tap Volvo for three much-needed technologies, including the use of a midsize platform, Volvo's proven safety innovations and interior air quality systems. The latter two technologies are important to improve the crashworthiness of Geely's cars, along with helping isolate vehicle occupants from China's often severe air pollution. The report says that Volvo tech will likely be used on a premium car brand that Geely is expected to create.
Volvo, on the other hand, is to benefit from the "local market exploration experience and cost control experience" of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, which is technical way of saying that Volvo will be able reduce its costs by tapping into Geely's established supply chain.