I See Car People

Some Things Are Just Worth Waiting For

2011-04-21T19:35:00.000-07:00

According to lead Volvo engineer Ichiro Sugioka, the Volvo Plug-in Hybrid is worth the wait. Volvo recently released its first production Plug-in Hybrid, the V60, for the European market, but it was many years in the making. “I work at the Volvo Concept and Design Center in Camarillo, where we have been working toward this car since 1990. We have been experimenting with the necessary technologies as they became available, and it’s only recently that we found technology good enough to make a practical car,” said Sugioka.

While the lithium ion battery is a key element; Sugioka believes the electric motors also can be improved quite a bit. “It’s not just about, ‘does it function?' It is also about, 'How much does it cost? How long does it last?’ That’s why it takes so long. We are not going to put a product out on the road that is a science experiment,” he added. When you work for a world class company like Volvo and are designing a vehicle to be road-worthy, it is quite different from a typical university project. “There’s a big difference in what we do and what they do. For a college student, if it breaks, they learn something. If one of our cars breaks, that is not a good thing. Our cars must be safer and more affordable; and that is what my job is right now.”

Sugioka was born in Japan, and when he was seven years old his father was transferred to New York City. After he graduated high school, he attended Caltech Pasadena for his undergraduate degree and received a master’s degree from MIT. “I went back to Caltech for my PhD, and I’ve been here ever since,” he said. When you ask him how he got into designing cars, he chuckles and says, “I’m really a rocket scientist! My thesis is applicable to rocket engines.” After the Cold War ended and the Soviet Union collapsed, there were very few jobs for people who design missiles. Sugioka ran wind tunnel testing at Caltech for many clients, which included several car companies in an effort to help make cars more efficient. Volvo was among many car manufacturers he worked with back in 1989, and in 1994 Volvo hired him to work at its Monitoring and Concept Center. “I can’t believe I’ve been here 17 years!” he said.

Sugioka worked on the first S80 that was ultimately produced in 1999. This took five years. “It takes that long to get a car on the road,” said Sugioka. After that, he worked on the first S60 and the first XC90 and finally began working on electric cars. “I was the project leader for the 3CC, 2004 electric car, and it was a vey significant step for us. It was one of the first cars with lithium ion batteries on the road. This experience eventually led to the pure-electric C30 battery electric car that is now available in Europe. It’s a luxury electric car, so it’s pricey. It’s not for the mass market. It’s for people who ‘just have to have one.’ We put emphasis on making it safe and working in subfreezing weather, which is not something other electric cars can claim to do,” said Sugioka. “The lithium ion battery is really a new technology; it didn’t exist when I joined the company. We don’t want to rush into anything too fast and get our customers into trouble,” he added.. As always, Volvo focuses on the safety of the driver and designs its cars to perform during the worst possible situations. With electric cars, special care has been taken to encapsulate the battery in such a way that protects it and the driver in the event of an accident. The “three-cars-in-one” Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid is the kind of car that Volvo will ultimately produce for sale in the United States. The “Pure,” “Hybrid” and “Power” buttons on the center console allow the driver to choose an electric car, a hybrid or a higher horsepower “fun to drive” mode.

“The one that we are producing right now is made for the European market with a diesel car so we can learn as much as we can about the first product and see how the car is used in normal driving situations. A diesel car does not meet California emissions standards, but we have a really heavy mandate by Europe to produce this car. If you travel to Europe we recommend you take a test drive in one and experience the ‘three-cars-in-one’ experience.” You can’t really compare the Volvo Plug-in Hybrid with any of the hybrids sold here in the United States, because it is a completely different car. European drivers are much different than American drivers. Europeans accelerate harder on the freeways, and in Germany there is no speed limit, so you don’t get the same fuel economy as you would get here in the United States. “Because people in Europe drive so fast, you need a different kind of car, a different kind of engine; and the Prius is not it. Most people don’t realize that a hybrid runs on its engine power once you are in highway speed; then it’s not running on the electric power anymore,” said Sugioka.

Volvo is also looking at a wheel motors technology. Similar to the seatbelt technology that Volvo developed but deliberately didn’t claim exclusivity for so that other car companies would use it, Volvo developed wheel motors technology and made it available for other car companies. “We aren’t making it exclusive to Volvo, because this is something that can help others make cars run more efficiently,” said Sugioka. With the wheel motors technology, the experimental C30 plug-in hybrid has 400 horsepower total with each wheel producing 100 horsepower. It is currently undergoing testing in the UK, and, according to Sugioka, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done to improve durability and cost. “We are doing a lot of durability testing. After a few thousand miles, they fix it and make it last longer. On the plus side, this technology allows software to make the car do almost anything,” he added.

Stefan Jacoby, President and CEO of Volvo Cars, summed up the theory behind the Volvo second generation hybrid when he said, “In order to get true car enthusiasts to think green, you have to offer them the opportunity to drive with low carbon dioxide emissions. That should not, however, take away the adrenaline rush that promotes genuine driving pleasure.”

The Adventures of Dwight and Loretta Lindholm

2011-03-04T13:49:00.000-08:00

Dwight and Loretta Lindholm have decided that it’s time for another adventure. So they are taking advantage of the Volvo Overseas Delivery Program and will fly to Sweden in April to take delivery of their 2011 Volvo XC70. This is their second overseas delivery with Volvo. The first time was January 2004 when they picked up a Volvo V70 wagon and drove 2500 miles throughout Europe in snowstorms.

For most folks, the idea of travelling to another country to take delivery of a new car may seem like a big adventure, but for the Lindholms, now both 80 years old, it pales in comparison to the extended cruise they took to the South Pacific with their five children and two dogs in the early ‘80s.

“It was just a lark,” said Dwight. “I woke up at six o’clock in the morning on Oct. 24, 1976, and the idea of putting my family on a boat and sailing around the world just occurred to me. I thought about it for an hour; then I nudged my wife and thought this would make short work of the idea. She listened and said, ‘That sounds like a good idea. Let’s do it!’”

The next step was to tell all five children. “They all happened to be at our beach house at that time. We took each one aside and told them about the idea. Children 17 years and younger will agree to anything five years down the line. I told them to give me two to three days before I commit to a date, and within a few days, we chose June 12, 1982.”

What makes this story even more unusual is that Dwight had never set foot on a sailboat, and Loretta doesn’t even know how to swim. “It took us five and a half years of preparation before we left. I had never been in a sailboat until I was 47 years old. I decided to take the trip before I ever got in a sailboat!” said Dwight.

They say the devil is in the details, and the Lindholms knew how important it was to master the art of sailing before attempting a trip of this magnitude. A four-month run to Mexico in the Golden Viking II 51’ Force 50 sailboat would serve as a test of their sailing skills. Dwight chose the name “Golden Viking” as representative of his home and his heritage. “’Golden’ was for the state of California and ‘Viking’ was for my heritage; I’m from Minnesota. Originally my relatives came over in 1868 from Sweden. In fact, they came from a place close to Halmstad which is about 100 miles south of Gothenburg called Långaryd. We have relatives there. We are part of the largest “mapped” families in the world according to the Guinness Book of World Records with over 100,000 names.”

Golden Viking I was a 29’ Erickson which the Lindholms kept on charter with the Calipso Fleet in Marina Del Rey. “As I look back on it, Golden Viking I was almost like child’s play. We went back and forth to Catalina on weekend trips; and this included six trips in small craft advisory bad weather. In October of 1978 we ordered the Golden Viking II to be built in Taiwan. After that, the whole project took on a magnitude of damn serious business. As it was being built, I spent my weekends in marine stores, reading. During the week I devoured all of the yachting magazines and must have read fifteen or twenty books. A lot of office time was taken up in telephone calls, exploring different types of equipment and system strategy on the boat. In the two and one-half years that followed before we left for Mexico on December 16, 1981, Golden Viking II went out eighty times including sixteen overnights on anchor out at the Channel Islands.”

There was much to do to prepare. Dionne (Dee Dee) and Dwight got qualified with advanced licenses in Ham radio, and Loretta received a general license. It took four and a half months to get a general license and another four and a half months to get the advanced license.

Dwight insisted that everyone take Scuba Diving lessons, which consisted of seven three-hour sessions for each of them and another seven ocean dives. “Finally, six of us, excluding Loretta who didn’t swim, were certified scuba divers. Kathy at age 11, was the youngest to have ever been certified by the school. That almost broke my back. It seemed like every week, one or the other of the kids wasn’t up to speed with the pool work or the ocean dives, and I had to come in in the middle of the week to have them do the lesson over to keep them up to speed with the group,” said Dwight.

Dwight and Loretta took the Coast Guard Auxiliary Seamanship course followed by a Coastal Pilot course, followed by another examination that, according to Dwight, “only half the class passed.” Douglas and Dwight took a 25-hour private tutorial course in celestial navigation. They would not have the luxury of any fancy electronic navigation systems.

It was Dwight’s concerns about pirates that determined his choice in a guard dog. “At that time there was some danger of pirates for fisherman along the coast of Mexico, so before we went to Mexico for the ‘shakedown cruise’ for four months, I investigated guard dogs and brought a Rottweiler puppy. She was on the boat the entire time.”

As with all best laid plans, there were a few hiccups. The Golden Viking II arrived in April but without its main mast, which had been mistakenly dropped in Oakland by the carrier ship. “All of this delayed the thing six weeks before I got this half-ton mast trucked down here to Los Angeles. I might say, getting it off the ship in San Pedro and all twenty-six tons trucked up to Oxnard was quite a major undertaking.”

On July 1, 1979 Golden Viking II was put under sail and was moved out from the dock 25 out of 26 weekends.

“Getting down to the wire, we’d overlooked first aid, so one month before we left in May 1982, I took a twenty-four hour three-day weekend crash course in offshore emergency medicine. I was intrigued by the fact that of the twenty students in the class, I was the only one who had immediate plans to take an offshore voyage. And only one other person in the class had ever been off shore,” said Dwight.

The big day had finally arrived. On June 15, 1983, Dwight and Loretta and their five children: Douglas (22), Dionne (21), Jeanne (18), Philip (14), Kathy (13) and the two dogs, Asta and Tammy, set sail for an extended cruise that lasted over 13 months. It took an entire month at sea to reach French Polynesia and the family spent two and a half months visiting six inhabited islands of the Marquesas which has no tourist accommodations. “This is a place you only visit by private yacht,” said Dwight. “The Marquesas Islands are very mountainous but hunting and fishing are good. The islands vary from very pristine, barefoot, horseback, outrigger canoes and living off the land to a little more advanced with a few cars, jeeps and small stores. We visited Hiva, Oa, Fatu Hiva, Tahuata, Ua Pu, Nuka Hiva and Ua Huka.”

They spent seven weeks in the Tuamotu group and five months in Tahiti’s Society Islands (from November 20, 1982 until April 19, 1983). “We were at sea 26 days going down and 40 coming back,” said Dwight. Despite no major mechanical failures until the transmission went out at the very end of the trip, the Golden Viking II survived seven tropical cyclones while in the French Polynesia and five were hurricane strength.

When asked what prompted a trip of this magnitude, Dwight says he is pretty sure he was experiencing a mid-life crisis. “I think in looking back, and at the time I joked about it, but I think it was a midlife crisis. I was 46 years old and considered myself a failure …I wasn’t a complete failure as I had just become a biographer in the 1946 edition of “Who’s Who in America.” Moreover, having come to California in 1957 with very little, I had made enough money to finance this great sabbatical. It was just that I had big objectives for my life, and I had accomplished none of them; and that is what a midlife crisis is about. You are not going to become the president and the CEO of the company. It doesn’t mean you are a failure, but in your mind’s eye you have to give up the thing or things you have been shooting for all your life; and that is what a midlife crisis is. Women have them more than a generation ago because they are also in competitive positions.”

Dwight is keenly aware that he is married to a very special woman. It is hard to believe that Loretta agreed to live on a boat with her family for more than a year without ever knowing how to swim. Dwight just chuckles and said, “I wanted to get a life insurance policy on her, and she said ‘no life insurance policy is a good insurance policy for me.’ As I look back on it, I sometimes don’t believe we did it.”

What does this once-in-a-lifetime adventure mean to Dwight and his family? Dwight writes: “We have experienced joy, love, hate, sorrow and terror together. Anyone could have quit and gone home. Each one at one time or the other felt like it. All stayed to the end.”

28 years later, the Lindholms have 13 grandchildren and continue to be grateful for the time they spent together on their South Pacific voyage. While many of his children would like to have a similar adventure with their respective families, it “doesn’t seem to be on the radar screen for any of them. This is something that not very many people can do.”

Picture: 1982 The Golden Viking at Ensenada Grande Island, just north of La Paz (3/13/82)

Picture: 1982 Easter Family picture at San Diego Harbor

If you are looking for an adventure and are not quite ready for an extended cruise to the South Pacific, you might want to consider the Volvo Overseas Delivery program. Here are just a few benefits:
A huge savings off the MSRP compared to taking delivery of a Volvo that has already arrived here in the USA.
Roundtrip tickets for two to Europe
One free night at the Radisson SAS, a first class hotel in Gothenburg, Sweden, home of Volvo
Fifteen day European Car Insurance coverage including Swedish temporary registration of your new vehicle
Tour of the Factory Delivery Center in Gothenburg, Sweden and a complimentary Swedish Meatball lunch
Travel packages and much, much more

Give us a call at 818/577-2500 and get plans underway for your adventure of a lifetime.

A Very Special Overseas Delivery

2010-09-24T16:55:00.000-07:00

For Christina Walsh, taking an Overseas Delivery of their 2010 Volvo S40 was a bittersweet experience.

On July 6, 2010, Christina along with her husband, Michael, and their son, Ethan, set out for Goteborg, Sweden. Christina was exciting and sad at the same time. On some level, it felt like she was coming home because she has such a strong connection to Sweden.

Christina’s mother, Maja Lisa Carlsson, was born in Sweden,. For the last six years of her life, she suffered from Alzheimer’s, so she wasn't able to visit her homeland, and last year she passed away. Christina wanted to fulfill her mother's wish to be buried in Sweden, but because the winters there are so long and the ground stays frozen, she had to wait until spring to take her mother’s ashes to her final resting place.

It was actually her mother’s best friend, Brit Burton, who convinced Christina to take the Overseas Delivery of their Volvo since they were in the market to buy a new car anyway. Brit knows a lot about Volvo, because her father, Gustav Larson, along with his business partner, Assar Gabrielsson, founded the Volvo line of cars in 1924. Larson was a technician at a ball bearing company and Gabrielsson was an economist. Somehow they met and launched the Swedish line of cars known as Volvo.

According to the Volvo Museum Brochure, Gabrielsson and Larson coined the expression “Building Cars the Volvo Way” because they were designed and built to be different from other automobile manufacturers.

So Christina took the advice of her mother’s closest friend and planned an Overseas Delivery of a 2010 Volvo S40 and brought her mother’s ashes along with her to Sweden. The experience felt like nothing less than a fairy tale.

The Walsh’s were very impressed with the royal treatment Volvo provides its Overseas Delivery customers. “When we got off the plane, there was a limo driver waiting at the airport with our name on a card. Then we were whisked off to the factory for an amazing breakfast and a tram tour of the factory. Fascinating! We saw the James Bond Volvo! We got to see the 550 robots that actually put the cars together. The robots themselves are made in another part of Sweden. They do 99% of all the welding on the cars. It was so amazing to see so much, but we weren’t allowed to see everything because there were curtains in the paint area. So there’s so much more research going on there,” said Christina.

The following day, the Walsh family visited the Volvo Museum, which is not far away from the factory. “I highly recommend going to the Museum. We saw the wind systems in the water that power Volvo Factories; and green renewable energy. I was impressed with their attitude and way of thinking about things. If they have an idea, and they try something and it doesn’t work, they just move on and build on what they learned. I’ve actually started to bring this line of thinking into my own projects I’m working on here in my efforts to clean up the Rocketdyne site. It’s a different perspective,” said Christina. Building on core values of “Quality” and “Safety,” Volvo has been a pioneer in environmental policy since 1972 and over the years has made this a major priority.

While in Sweden, Christina reunited with her mother’s 86 year old sister, Margrit Larsson, who lives in Stockholm. They also received a slightly escalated tour due to her connections with the founders. “My son got to drive a giant Volvo bus, and I got to drive a truck on the private Volvo track. Did you know Volvo Trucks owns Mack trucks? It was such an education for all of us. Did you know that Volvo was the first car company to invent the seatbelt but chose not to patent it so that it could be open to the world immediately? Did you know Volvo was also part of the aerospace industry? There’s a whole segment in the museum dedicated to Volvo’s involvement in marine and aero engines and trucks.

Over the course of her trip, the Walsh’s put 1265 miles on their new Volvo. Christina said it had been over six years since her last visit to Sweden, but vows that she will travel there more often with her family. “I got to see ‘my rock’ that my grandfather dedicated to me when I was seven years old and showed my son where my name was carved into it. It was so great that my son was able to really get in touch with his Swedish heritage.”

Here are just a few benefits of the Volvo Overseas Delivery program:

A huge savings off the MSRP compared to taking delivery of a Volvo that has already arrived here in the USA.
Roundtrip tickets for two to Europe
One free night at the Radisson SAS, a first class hotel in Gothenburg, Sweden, home of Volvo
Fifteen day European Car Insurance coverage including Swedish temporary registration of your new vehicle
Tour of the Factory Delivery Center in Gothenburg, Sweden and a complimentary Swedish Meatball lunch
Travel packages and much, much more

If you are interested in taking an Overseas Delivery of a Volvo, call our sales department at 818/577-2500, and get your plans underway for an adventure of a lifetime.

Seven Volvos and Still Counting!

2010-07-17T14:13:00.000-07:00

For Linda Lott, DDS, “VOLVO FOR LIFE” is truly a lifetime commitment.

Linda is a Pediatric Dentist and has been driving Volvos since 1971 when she was still a graduate student at UCLA. “I’ve owned seven Volvos since 1971. The first one was a fuel injection 142E two-door coupe with a manual transmission. I didn’t know how to drive a stick, so my friend had to help me to learn so I could drive my car back to UCLA,” said Linda. This first car captured an official “300,000 Mile” certificate from Volvo for driving the car over 300,000 miles. “I just drove that car everywhere!” Linda said with a laugh.

Her next Volvo was a 1985 745 grey station wagon with black leather interior and fuel injection; then she bought a two-door 760. Linda says the most important reason for choosing a Volvo for her is safety and then comfort. “We always chose top of the line, loaded Volvo’s. They are just so comfortable.” In fact, Linda’s dad tried to convince her to buy a Volkswagen when she was a student, and she told him, “Not on these freeways!”

In 1988 Linda bought two Volvos; one was a white 980 station wagon and the other one was a 780 Limited Edition Bertone two-door coupe, which was her favorite. “It was a special design that particular year because it was designed by Nuccio Bertone, an Italian designer who worked for Maserati. I really wanted to keep that car."

The white station wagon got Linda through AYSO soccer with all three of her kids, and when her youngest daughter was ready to get her license she felt very confident riding with her and letting her drive. Linda remembers Halloween 2000 when another car got impatient with traffic and literally jumped across the lanes of traffic on Beverly and La Brea Avenues and t-boned her Volvo. “All we could do was bear down. The air bags discharged, and the whole front end was demolished. My Volvo was totaled, and it had over 200,000 miles on it.”

Linda’s next Volvo was a 2001 XC70, and she quickly fell in love again. “It was espresso brown with tan interior. I loved that car. The interior was like butter,” said Linda. While travelling between her mother’s house in Camarillo and her home in South Pasadena, she quickly put 157,000 miles on that car, so she bought another XC70 - a 2007 with less than 15,000 miles on it. Her son took over the 2001 XC70, and that car currently has 156,000 miles on the odometer and is still going strong. In fact, Linda’s sister borrowed her station wagon so many times that she finally bought herself a V70 2.4T station wagon.

Linda says she really does try to give other car manufacturers a chance. “I tried to make a change, but when I’m in doubt, I always go back to Volvo. Every time I go out of town, I lease a Toyota Prius, and I drive it around, and I am impressed with the mileage. I really wish Volvo could figure that out, but after all the bad PR about Toyota, I won’t be buying one.”

It goes back to her priorities which are safety and comfort. “I’m just comfortable with a Volvo. I appreciate the thoughtfulness that went into the engineering. For now, I’ll just have to pay extra for the gas.”

For Linda, Volvo has been such a big part of her life, she can’t imagine driving anything else. “I’ll always have at least one Volvo in my family.”

2010-06-17T15:26:00.000-07:00

Spring Break 2010 has forever changed Tara O’Malley, 18, from Thousand Oaks, California. A freshman at the University of Arizona, Tara and a few friends were excited to attend a concert in Ventura, and Tara agreed to be the designated driver.

The concert lasted longer than expected, and by the time Tara dropped off each of her friends it was nearly 3 o’clock in the morning. Her last stop was to drop off her boyfriend in Moorpark just a couple exits from her house. Her mom called to check on her and Tara told her that she would be home in 15 minutes.

She remembers getting on the freeway and heading home and because she was so tired, she made sure she was driving exactly 65 miles per hour. “I remember seeing the sign ‘Olsen Road 1 Mile,’ and the next thing I knew, I woke up and my car was flipping over and over. I found out later that I had hit a light pole and the impact must have jolted me awake,” said Tara. According to Tara’s dad, Robert, the car had flipped end over front several times because the Highway Patrol officers found five areas of impact. Tara’s car continued to flip down a 50-foot embankment onto the freeway ramp below and landed upright. By this time, Tara was in total shock. “It was so dark. I had no idea where I was. I couldn’t open the doors because they were stuck shut, and I couldn’t find my cell phone. The sunroof was smashed but there was an opening; so I took off my seatbelt, stood up through the opening and screamed for help. I looked to my right and saw a car driving toward me. It was a police officer. He had heard the car crash so he rushed over to make sure I was okay and then called the paramedics.”

After checking to see if Tara had any neck pain or trouble moving, the paramedics helped her get out of the car through the passenger side door, and she actually walked to the ambulance. While inside the ambulance, someone had found her cell phone that was wedged between the windshield and the dashboard and they asked her if she wanted to call her mom. “I was just so flustered. I was bawling and crying. I couldn’t even use the phone, so I asked them if they could please call her for me, and just as they were looking for her number, my mom called to see where I was. Then my boyfriend called to see if I had gotten home okay.”

Tara was taken to the hospital, and as a precaution, they ran blood work and X-Rays. Amazingly, she had a small gash on her head and her eye area, a large bump, her thumb was swollen and she had a bad bone bruise to her shin. The doctors determined later that she suffered a concussion.

The California Highway Patrol officers who arrived at the scene of the accident after Tara’s ambulance had already left were shocked to see Tara sitting up and talking with her family in the hospital. “They asked me if I remembered hitting the light pole, and I hadn’t even seen the pole. Then they asked me if I had been drinking, which I hadn’t at all,” said Tara. They told my parents, ‘I can’t believe your daughter right now. When we showed up at the accident, we thought the person in that car didn’t survive.’ One of the officers said that his cousin had just been in a similar accident but didn’t make it.”

After a few hours, Tara was released from the hospital. Later that day, Tara’s parents were the ones in shock after seeing the wrecked Volvo. Robert O’Malley summed up their feelings, “We are very grateful that we still have her. We thank God and Volvo!”

Tara only missed one week of school. She just completed her freshman year at the University of Arizona and is looking forward to the summer break. “I’ve been telling everyone I know that I’m going to drive a Volvo for the rest of my life.”

Volvo is SAFE and GREEN

2010-04-28T16:48:00.000-07:00

While Volvo doesn't officially have a "Hybrid" vehicle to sell, it offers "Partial Zero Emissions Vehicle" options on four models: The Volvo S40, V50, S60 and V70

PZEV meets today's cleanest emissions standards for gasoline-powered vehicles, and that's not all. Volvos are designed to be 85% recylable. Since 1989, Volvo has marked all plastic components over 50 grams with the Universal Recycling Symbol.

Here are some PZEV Facts:

Vehicles with a PZEZ rating emit about two pounds of hydrocarbons during 100,000 miles of driving. This is equivalent to spilling a pint of gasoline!

Did you know that some HYBRIDS do not even meet the PZEV standard?

A PZEV-rated vehicle would have to be driven more than 2,100 miles to be equal to mowing your lawn for one hour using a 5.4 horsepower lawn mower.

If you grilled one hamburger in your backyard, you would produce the same smog-forming emissions as driving a PZEV car for three hours or 180 miles.

Call 1-800-GO-VOLVO for more information.

Freecreditreport.com is NOT

2009-11-05T13:34:00.000-08:00

I always wondered how a company like Freecreditreport.com could afford all those fancy television ads and provide a free service to consumers. If it's "free," who pays for the ads? This falls under the category "If it sounds too good to be true, it is."

The folks at Experian, the company that owns Freecreditreport.com, didn't flat out lie or anything . You do get a copy of your credit report at no charge but only after you enroll in a $14.95 a month credit monitoring service.

Turns out the Federal Trade Commission has been working for years to try to force Freecreditreport.com to more clearly disclose that "free" refers to the one time credit report you receive AFTER you sign up for their credit monitoring service. It was reported that the FTC fined Experian twice for deceptive advertising - once for $950,000 and another one for $300,000. Meanwhile, London based Experian posted earnings for 2009 at $3.9 billion. Even when you consider the costs for the Freecreditreport.com ads are estimated at $58 million dollars a year, these fines amount to nothing more than a light slap on the wrist.

The good news is that there is a way to get a TRULY FREE credit report. It's called AnnualCreditReport.com. By Federal law, consumers are entitled to receive a FREE copy of their credit report once a year from all three credit reporting agencies: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax.

You can also protect yourself against identity theft by putting a freeze on your credit. Instead of paying $200 a year for a credit card monitoring service, just sign up online with all three bureaus and freeze your credit. The charge to freeze or "temporarily thaw" your credit by using a personal identification number (PIN) is typically less than $10 per bureau depending on where you live.

Here are a few websites to get you started:
https://www.freeze.equifax.com/
http://www.experian.com/consumer/security_freeze.html
https://annualcreditreport.transunion.com/fa/securityFreeze/landing

Consumers should always be cautious when signing up for anything that claims to be "free." Rarely are there no strings attached. It's important to always read the fine print especially with cleverly designed online ads. You can also check the Better Business Bureau for a list of complaints.

EDUCATION PAYS

2009-06-06T12:30:00.000-07:00

Volvo Cars of North America is helping Educators with their new car purchase by offering a $1500 discount off the purchase or lease of eligible Volvo vehicles.

Eligible vehicles include all new XC90, XC70, S80, V70 or C70 models.

Customers must be a member of the National Education Association – the largest membership organization for education professionals in the United States, a NEA employee or state Affiliate employee to qualify. For instance, for California, the state Affiliate is the California Teacher’s Association.

All you need is your school ID (members) or business card (employees) and the NEA discount coupon in order to qualify for the program.

Call 1-800-GO-VOLVO (800/468-6586) for more information.

Like all good things, this promotion will end soon, so call today and take advantage of this great benefit before Sept. 30, 2009.

DUST OFF YOUR PASSPORTS!

2009-04-19T17:53:00.000-07:00

May Husk taking delivery of her new Volvo C30 in Sweden

Are you in the market for a new Volvo?

Have you always wanted to travel to Sweden?

The timing couldn’t be better to take full advantage of the VOLVO OVERSEAS DELIVERY program.

Here are just a few benefits:

* A huge savings off the MSRP compared to taking delivery of a Volvo that has already arrived here in the USA.
* Roundtrip tickets for two to Europe!
* One free night at the Raddison SAS, a first class hotel in Gothenburg, Sweden, home of Volvo. For a limited time, if customers take delivery of a 2009 in-stock vehicle, Volvo offers an additional free night.
* Fifteen day European Car Insurance coverage including Swedish temporary registration of your new vehicle.
* Tour of the Factory Delivery Center in Gothenburg, Sweden and enjoy a complimentary Swedish Meatball lunch.
* And much, much more…

According to Steve Johnson, Volvo of Calabasas Overseas Delivery expert, this is the best way to buy a new Volvo. Johnson traveled to Sweden in March 2009 to take delivery of the 2010 Volvo XC60. “Go hungry,” said Johnson. The most amazing thing about the Raddison SAS is the breakfast. You have never seen so much food in your life… every day … free,” he said.

As “2008 Salesman of the Year” for Volvo of Calabasas, Francisco Rodriguez earned a factory trip to Sweden. “Volvo treats you like royalty. You feel like you are part of the Volvo Royal family the minute you get off the plane,” he said.

But don’t take our word for it. Just ask Norm and May Husk, Volvo of Calabasas customers who took delivery of their 2009 Volvo C30 in October 2008.

“Our experience with the Volvo Overseas program was truly remarkable. Absolutely every detail was taken care of. The flights were perfect. The accommodations at the Radisson were beyond what we expected. And, yes, the food was outrageously delicious! We spent a week after delivery of the Volvo just traveling by train to Stockholm then back to Denmark. This is an opportunity every prospective Volvo owner should take advantage of. Thank you, Volvo, and Steve Johnson, for this once in a lifetime experience!!!"

Warm regards, Norm and May Husk

For more information, give us a call at 1-800-VOLVO! Or visit us at www.volvoofcalabasas.com

Why Do I Need GAP Insurance?

2009-04-17T17:00:00.000-07:00

Guaranteed Auto Protection (GAP) is insurance for car buyers who are financing their vehicle and is available only at the time of sale. It is especially beneficial if you don't plan to make a significant down payment or you are financing negative equity from a traded vehicle. GAP benefits come into play in the event of a total loss. Your primary insurance company may pay the actual cash or market value of your vehicle. However, you may owe your bank more than the market value of your vehicle when you consider tax, title and license fees. The difference between what you owe your lender and what your insurance company is willing to pay is the amount GAP insurance pays. And most GAP insurance policies will pay your primary insurance deductible up to $1,000.

Here's an example: Say total amount financed for your vehicle is $30,000 for 60 months, and your vehicle is involved in an accident and deemed a "total loss" by your insurance company. At the time of the total loss, your loan balance is $28,000, but your primary insurance company agrees to pay you $20,000 based on the current market value of your vehicle. You would be responsible to pay $8,000 to cover the "gap" between what you owe your lender and the amount your insurance company is willing to pay.

For a small monthly fee, you can have peace of mind that you won't be asked to pay for a car you can no longer can drive.

That's the GAP advantage.

FROM SWEDEN WITH LÖV

2009-01-20T19:36:00.000-08:00

With the tour of the 2010 XC60 just underway, Volvo has redefined its customer ownership experience, and by the sounds of some of the reviews, it’s LÖV at first sight!

The 2010 Volvo XC60 Crossover takes safety to a whole new level. The car even stops itself! It’s called “City Safety,” and it is standard equipment on all XC60s along with Standard Bluetooth, HD Radio with SIRIUS Satellite Radio (comes with a complimentary six month subscription), Dual Zone Climate Control, Leather Seating Surfaces and both USB and AUX input jacks.

For all pre-orders taken prior to March 31, 2009, Volvo is offering a complimentary lifetime SIRIUS subscription. An additional standard feature offered only during the launch is complimentary two-panel Panoramic Sun Roof. Optional packages include navigation, heated seats, a factory installed rear park assist back up camera and much more.

After 80 years, Volvo continues to live up to the slogan “Volvo for Life” with the addition of the XC60 to its already superb lineup. When you add Complimentary Factory Scheduled Maintenance and a Turbo Charged engine that uses regular gasoline, you might be thinking “It doesn’t get any better than this!”

Volvo is convinced that this vehicle will not only bring in new customers but will also be an attractive switch for its already loyal customer base. And Volvo customers are among the most loyal I have ever seen.

Time and time again customers tell me that they wouldn’t drive any other brand. One customer even confessed that she thought she might be missing out on something, so she tried another manufacturer and couldn’t wait to get back into a Volvo. “I won’t make that mistake again,” she said.

The XC60 is considered a Small Premium Utility vehicle and competes with the Acura RDX, BMW X3, Infiniti EX35 and the Lexus RX350. The XC60 utilizes a Volvo engineered 3.0 liter, 281 horsepower T6 engine. With All Wheel Drive, Instant Traction and a six-speed Geartronic™ automatic transmission, this car could already be ahead of the competition.

But Volvo doesn’t rest on its laurels when it comes to safety. By far the most compelling feature of the XC60 is City Safety. According to talking points from Volvo Cars of North America , City Safety is the “world’s first standard equipment driver support system aimed at preventing or mitigating collisions occurring at speeds of 19 MPH or less. These represent about 75% of all collisions with about half occurring in city traffic situations.” But what does that really mean?

Say you are driving along in normal stop-and-go traffic and the car in front of you slows down to a crawl. City Safety is active at speeds from 2 to 19 miles per hour and uses a "closing velocity sensor" that is mounted ahead of the inside rear view mirror to determine whether a collision is likely. So when the car in front of you slows down to 9 MPH or less your XC60 recognizes the slowdown and immediately reacts to prevent or lessen the impact of a rear end collision. At the same time, it prepares the restraint system to optimize protection in the event of an unavoidable collision.

The XC60 also offers stand alone safety options like integrated second-row child booster seats, trailer stability assist, Blind Spot Information System, Volvo's Personal Car Communicator with heartbeat sensor and keyless drive.

Technology packages will feature a 650-watt Dynaudio surround sound audio system, a six-disc CD changer, navigation with real-time traffic and a rear view camera.

According to Volvo of Calabasas General Manager Mike Abell, the XC60 will quickly become a best seller at his store. "I drove the car and was really impressed at how well it handled. I was amazed at how well the City Safety feature worked. It's also loaded with the amenities everyone asks for like built-in bluetooth and HD Radio, which are standard," he said.

The first batch of XC60s will be six cylinder Turbos with All Wheel Drive and a base price of $37,200. Base models will follow shortly thereafter, but when you throw in all the standard features, I think you will agree that this car is definitely an affordable alternative to others in its class.

Call 1-800-GO-VOLVO for an invitation to a sneak preview of the 2010 Volvo XC60 at Volvo of Calabasas in mid-February. This is an "invitation only" event, and space is limited, so call today. Customer deliveries will begin in March 2009.

You can also go to http://www.volvocars.us/new%20XC60 for more details.

I Always Pay Cash For My Cars

2009-01-19T17:24:00.001-08:00

Some customers insist that paying cash for their new vehicle saves them money in the long-run. This is not necessarily true in every case, and I’ll explain why.

First of all, in times of economic uncertainty like we face now, why would you tie up a large amount of expendable cash on a depreciable asset like a vehicle? Unless you are purchasing a rare car that is projected to have a higher resale value in years to come, you will most likely lose money in depreciation alone.

Second, most manufacturers offer significant “incentives” or “rebates” to customers who lease. In some cases, this could be worth between $5,000 and $10,000 depending on the make and model you choose.

“But I don’t want a monthly payment.” Fair enough. For this customer, I suggest a “prepaid lease” that offers all the rebate offers of a traditional lease except you pay the entire 24 or 36 months upfront instead of monthly payment. Here is an example:

The total drive off to pre-pay a 24-month lease for a $39,450 vehicle is $11,126.06. They have no monthly payments for two years as if they had paid cash for the car. An added benefit to a prepaid lease is that at the end of the lease they have two choices: 1) turn in the keys and take delivery of a new vehicle or 2) purchase the vehicle at a reduced residual value that is locked in at the start of the lease.

For customers who want to build good credit, paying cash for a vehicle does absolutely nothing for their cause. In fact, when the time comes to make a large purchase on credit like a house, “no previous auto credit” becomes a disadvantage.

I’ve run across several cases where the parent wants to shield their son or daughter from a car payment. In one instance, the 23 year old son is actually going to make monthly payments to the parent, but it’s “interest free.” In the long run this is really doing the young adult a disservice because they are robbing him from the opportunity to build credit. He’s making steady payments, but he’s not getting credit for it. Where cash is available at the time of purchase, I suggest that instead of paying for the entire car upfront, go ahead and finance it with one of the parents as a co-signer. Then put the money in an interest bearing checking account and set up automatic payments. This way the customer is building auto credit, there’s no chance of late payments and the assets are still liquid in the event of an emergency.

Let’s get back to leasing. Here is a real-life lease situation from December 2008. This customer chose a 36-month lease and wanted her payments to be less than $350 a month. This is how it worked:

Vehicle MSRP: $31,150
Customer cash down: $ 2,000
Manufacturer Rebate and Incentives: $ 5,750
Monthly Payment including tax: $ 344

At the end of 36 months, Ms. Customer can purchase her vehicle at 43% of the MSRP or $13,394.50 plus tax! Or not. At the end of three years, she has the option to turn it in or purchase it. Either way, she paid a total of $14,384 (36 monthly payments plus her cash down) to drive a $31,150 car for three years. Not bad, huh?

If she had paid cash for the car, she would not have qualified for the $5,750 manufacturer rebate and dealer incentive, and she would have paid thousands of dollars in upfront sales tax based on the total sale price of the vehicle. Not to mention that a good portion of her available cash is no longer available.

I’m not claiming that leases are for everyone. Some manufacturer rebates are better than others. They change the rebate and incentive programs each month, and they are only offered on certain models. Each customer has individual needs when it comes to owning or leasing a vehicle including their personal preferences and driving habits, so the “deals” vary depending on the manufacturer, the model you are considering and, most importantly, your credit score.

That being said, leases are definitely worth thinking about.

I Don't Think I Need an Extended Warranty

2009-01-17T10:45:00.000-08:00

I hear this a lot. Consumers seem skeptical of purchasing extended warranties in general because they believe it's just another way to increase profits for the store. This may be true for some electronic products but high tech cars are especially vulnerable to high cost repairs.

Chances are your vehicle came with a great warranty package that covers most mechanical breakdowns and repairs. But, like all good things, this coverage will come to an end eventually, and the responsibility for repairs to your vehicle will fall on you.

The time to extend the original manufacturer warranty is well before your factory warranty expires. This will save you money over time compared to having to pay for repairs as they happen. Warranty premiums are calculated by age of vehicle and miles, so the newer the car and the fewer the miles the less you pay in premiums. I compare this to life insurance which is cheaper to buy when you are young and have no health issues.

Most vehicles today have very sophisticated computer systems that could fail without notice, and while the part itself may not be that expensive, the labor alone to remove a dashboard to get to that particular part could result in a $4,000 repair bill. Major components like an engine or a transmission will cost between $4,000 and $5,000 to repair. The more high tech features you enjoy like navigation, park distance control, cruise control, rear seat entertainment, etc., the more components you have to worry about failing. These repairs can cost thousands of dollars per visit in parts alone - not including labor. Take a look at the Edmunds.com website where they publish a “True Cost to Own” for most vehicles, and you will see for yourself the average cost for maintenance and repairs.

This is especially important when you purchase a used vehicle that is close to the end or past the original manufacturer warranty. For example, if you purchase an extended warranty for approximately $3,000, on average you will receive up to THREE TIMES the value of the premium in car repairs alone.

And that’s not all. If you decide to sell or trade your vehicle, you can cancel the warranty and get a pro-rated refund based on time and miles. You have nothing to lose and will enjoy peace of mind that your vehicle is protected long past the original warranty.

TRUE STORY: Don’t make the same mistake as one customer. She didn’t see the point in extending the warranty on her vehicle despite the fact that she absolutely loves her car and has now owned it for over 10 years. To date, service records confirm that she has paid over $30,000 in maintenance and repairs. But if she had invested in an extended warranty and maintenance plan, she could have avoided most of these bills!

CAUTION: Be wary of unknown warranty companies that solicit you at home or even on your cell phone. In most cases, this is a scam and chances are, they will collect your premium over the phone with your credit card, and you will never hear from them again or they won't be around when you need to file a claim for a repair.

Be sure to check with your local dealer, and discuss the plan to best fits your driving needs. For instance, if you drive 20,000 miles a year, you should choose a warranty with less years and the most miles. If you don't put a lot of miles on your car, opt for the most years and the least total miles. Be sure to choose the plan that offers the most comprehensive coverage instead of basic engine, transmission, suspension plans. Sure, you will pay less for the basic warranty plan, but in the end you could pay more in repairs because - it never fails - the particular item that breaks on your vehicle isn't covered.

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