Photo: Volvo
If you think that European cars are made in Europe, you've probably not heard of BMW and their super-huge factory in Spartanburg. However, Volvo is also getting in on the action by assembling its all-new S60 sedan in South Carolina and moving it across the Atlantic.
The announcement was made today. Although the S60 is by no means the most popular Volvo, yet it's interesting to think Swedes might buy Swedish cars made by Americans. Why? Because Volvos have little Swedish flags on the seats. With Honda closing its Swindown factory and maybe making the Civic hatch in North America, the writing is clearly on the wall: Europe is not the most affordable place o slap on a pair of wheels.
The S60 is an all-new car, barely half a year old. It will be shipped to the Belgium port of Zeebrugge to connect with distribution centers in Ghent that feed the European retailer network in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, UK, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czech, Slovenia and Poland.
Ridgeville is expected to make just 50,000 vehicles during its first year, over half of which will go towards export. Until the end of 2018, the S60 was produced in Ghent, Belgium, as well as Sweden. Of course, China also has a huge factory cranking out long-wheelbase versions.
In 2022, the plant will begin producing the next generation XC90 sports utility vehicle, by which time it should have a capacity of 150,000 cars. Build them where you sell them!
"We began commercial production of the S60s just six short months ago here in South Carolina, and we’re excited to be building cars for customers around the world,” said Jeff Moore, vice president, Manufacturing, Americas. “Export markets are critical to the long-term success of our plant and we're on track to deliver vehicles to our customers worldwide."
The S60 is an all-new car, barely half a year old. It will be shipped to the Belgium port of Zeebrugge to connect with distribution centers in Ghent that feed the European retailer network in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, UK, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czech, Slovenia and Poland.
Ridgeville is expected to make just 50,000 vehicles during its first year, over half of which will go towards export. Until the end of 2018, the S60 was produced in Ghent, Belgium, as well as Sweden. Of course, China also has a huge factory cranking out long-wheelbase versions.
In 2022, the plant will begin producing the next generation XC90 sports utility vehicle, by which time it should have a capacity of 150,000 cars. Build them where you sell them!
"We began commercial production of the S60s just six short months ago here in South Carolina, and we’re excited to be building cars for customers around the world,” said Jeff Moore, vice president, Manufacturing, Americas. “Export markets are critical to the long-term success of our plant and we're on track to deliver vehicles to our customers worldwide."
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