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Volvo vows to charge subscriptions only for major updates

Volvo Cars Chief Operating Officer Bjorn Annwall   BMW veered into a public-relations mess this year when it started charging car owners monthly subscription fees to warm their behinds. Volvo Car won’t be making similar moves. “If you are to charge for software updates, it must be a step change in consumer benefit,” VolvoÂ’s Chief Operating Officer Bjorn Annwall said in an interview this month. “We will not ask people who have bought a car for 1 million kronor ($96,500) to pay another 10 kronor to get extra heat in the seat.” While BMW will no doubt have other manufacturers follow in its footsteps — Mercedes-Benz recently started asking buyers of its EQ electric vehicles to fork over $1,200 a year to unlock quicker acceleration, for example — the auto world has started to second-guess just how much money there is to be made from the rise of software within their hardware-intensive business. In a 91-page deep dive into the topic last month, analysts at UBS pegged the total addressable market at $700 billion by 2030. ThatÂ’s no pittance, but pales in comparison to the $2 trillion opportunity they anticipated previously. Annwall sees Volvo generating little additional revenue from software until mid-decade. Only if major upgrades become available — a self-driving mode, for example — would Volvo charge extra. “You donÂ’t have to hold the steering wheel — now thatÂ’s a step change in user benefit.” Annwall was speaking at the opening of VolvoÂ’s new tech hub in Stockholm, where the manufacturer builds software for selling and marketing cars online. The company, which last month unveiled a battery-powered sport utility vehicle to succeed its gasoline-era flagship, intends to cease making combustion cars by the end of the decade. ItÂ’s going to be an uphill push: EVs made up just under a fifth of the companyÂ’s shipments last month. Bloomberg spoke with Annwall about VolvoÂ’s tech efforts, the software issues that have plagued some of its competitors and the ongoing supply-chain issues holding back the industry. Here are highlights from the conversation, which have been edited for length and clarity: Large automakers including Volkswagen have had problems with their car software. Have you experienced similar obstacles? I wonÂ’t hide the fact that we have had some problems with our software in the car as well. But weÂ’ve been good at correcting them fairly quickly.

Volvo pranks newest valet on the Italian Riviera

Being a valet on the Italian Riviera seems like a pretty sweet gig for a young guy. Not only do you get to watch beautiful people coming and going all day and night, but there's the opportunity to get behind the wheel of a plethora of exotic sports cars. Of course, being responsible for those expensive vehicles has to be pretty nerve wracking to get used to on the first day.
In a new commercial, Volvo pranks a new valet at the San Remo Casino to see how he would handle a surprise showing up on the red carpet. If the look on his face in the screenshot above doesn't show it, he's pretty shocked by what he sees. We don't want to spoil the reveal, so just watch the ad to find out. Afterward, if you're interested in the details behind how Volvo made it happen, you can check out a short, making-of documentary, here.

Volvo teases refreshed XC90, EX90 updates and 'a surprise or two'

Volvo will show the world the updated XC90 crossover on what the company is calling "90/90" day, which to the rest of us is simply September 4th. The day will also "mark a big moment in the launch of the EX90," which accounts for the second "90." But what's far more interesting was the cryptic teaser Volvo tacked onto the end of its announcement, suggesting that "there might be a surprise or two …" in store for us too. Well, then.  The announcement was accompanied by an equally cryptic teaser image that appears to depict the hoods of the EX90 (top/right) and XC90 (bottom/left). There's not much to see here apart from the differentiating hood creases and some details in the headlights. From what we can make out, the updated XC90 will have a different take on the "Thor's Hammer" LED signature. Anything else is merely speculation. While Volvo hasn't officially put a sunset date on the XC90, we expect this will be the last major update before it is put out to pasture in favor of its all-electric sibling. The writing has been on the wall since Volvo originally unveiled the EX90 in 2022.  As for Volvo's surprises? We're not really sure what to expect. With the EX30 launch dragging on much longer than expected, Volvo is unlikely to be in a position to announce any major new product introductions for the U.S. market. We can't rule out the possibility of some Polestar Engineered variants of existing models; Volvo has already demonstrated a willingness to offer them on crossovers, so why stop now? In any event, we've only about a week to wait. Plus, you'll be able to watch the whole thing live on Volvo's 90/90 Day microsite.