2002 Volvo V70 2.4 Wagon Automatic 4-door Wagon Low Miles on 2040-cars

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2022 Volvo C40 Recharge priced, goes on sale late 2021

Pricing for the 2022 Volvo C40 Recharge is out, and in consistent coupe crossover fashion, it’s a little more expensive than the traditionally-styled XC40 Recharge. The starting price is $59,845, including the $1,095 destination charge. ThatÂ’s $4,760 more than a base 2022 XC40 Recharge. ItÂ’ll be limited to just a single fully-loaded trim called “Ultimate” initially — there will be no additional options, Volvo says. Volvo lets you choose a lower “Plus” trim with the standard XC40 Recharge, but the cheaper starting price also carries less standard equipment. Sweetening the deal for C40 customers is an Electrify America partnership that starts all owners off with 250 kWh of complimentary charging. This comes with the regular XC40 Recharge, too, but it must be a 2022 model year vehicle. One should also take into account any federal or state tax incentives on offer when running the number — Volvo is still eligible for the full $7,500 federal tax credit, so your effective net price could be closer to $50,000 depending on your location. Unfortunately, EPA-rated electric range on a full charge was not included in this announcement. Volvo announced the C40 with a 260-mile range estimate, but the real EPA number will surely fall below that figure. The XC40 Recharge, which the C40 shares all of its vital parts with, is EPA-rated for 208 miles on a full charge. Deliveries are scheduled to start in the fourth quarter this year for folks who pre-ordered the C40 online in March. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

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 working to allow groceries delivered to your car, even when you aren't there

Volvo cites research showing that 60 percent of online shoppers had problems with their deliveries in 2013, and that missed first deliveries cost the industry roughly one billion euros ($1.37B US) in re-delivery costs, as impetus for its "Roam Delivery Service" that delivers packages to your car. The service uses Volvo On Call and Sensus Connect car-connectivity and telematics apps already installed in vehicles, and a digital key with a timed window of operation.
The car owner is notified if delivery to or pickup from the car would be the best option, which they then have the option to approve or decline. If approved, the position of the vehicle is sent to the delivery driver, as well as a digital key that can open the car. Once the delivery has been made, the owner is notified and the digital key is erased, leaving only a time stamp to record when the car was opened and then locked.
The technology will be shown to the public at the Mobile World Congress later this month. There's a video and a press release below with more on the details.