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Photo by Muffy Aldrich
Muffy Aldrich's SALT WATER NEW ENGLAND
Muffy Aldrich
Muffy Aldrich, Editor of Salt Water New England: The Thing Before Preppy, since 2010. And a 12th Generation New Englander.
- Original Photographs.
- Timeless, Preppy/Sloane Clothing.
Most Items Sent By Vendors
I greatly admire this restrained, sensible, and attractive car design, seemingly alone against the current onslaught of vehicular ugliness.
ReplyDeleteAt some point in time - what's old is new again.
ReplyDeleteThere are very very few choices available today. My wife loves the Mercedes 350 wagon. She just bought a new one (E450)and unfortunately, it’s not quite right. I’m not going to tell her that. The Volvo stands alone
ReplyDeleteI totally agree, but only the Old School!
DeleteI know! My wife drove her new E450 into Darian the other day and the police stopped her and told her leave town and drive immediately to Scarsdale.
ReplyDeleteDarien
DeleteThe first gen XC90s were/are really good, especially in the 2.5 and 3.2 engines. Ours is nearly 20 years old and still hauling dogs, kids, and construction materials.
ReplyDeleteThey aren't nearly as distinctive as the long roof wagons, especially the v70/XC70, but they've had staying power. When a design gets minimal changes for a decade or more, that's usually a sign that the maker got that model right.
I still have my mid 1990's DL black wagon. My mechanic is a champ, I might add. Everyone wants to buy my precious darling ... but there is no way that I could ever part with this stalwart. Not fond of the new school Volvos whatsoever, they feel to me to be no different than Honda Pilots. I do have a spare MB in the driveway, but I rarely drive it; it's just not me. Collars up !!!
ReplyDeleteThat’s our issue, no good Volvo mechanic near us
DeleteWe have a Honda Element. It’s not treated with kid gloves. Everything and anything from garden tools to skis and bicycles fit in the back. My mechanic told me “you can fit à full size washer and dryer in the back.” Have yet to try that. The vehicle has over 230,000 miles on it. It runs as smooth as a sewing machine. Our Volvo S90 is 28 years old. It also runs like a sewing machine. It has 112,000 miles on it. It’s not quite mint, but it’s in excellent condition. Since it’s our Sunday car, we do try and treat it with kid gloves. It has lots of chrome. In another life the Volvo might be in daily use as a taxi in Beirut sharing the road with ‘70’s Mercedes diesels. They also run forever.
ReplyDeleteThey still have nice, high end interiors, drive reasonably well, and feel solid and safe. They long ago ceased to be the reliable car you could drive a few hundred thousand miles; somewhere along the way, Volvo started having persistent problems with electronics. Too many problems.
ReplyDeleteIf you want that kind of reliable family hauler today & don't want a something that doesn't feel too much like a big truck, new or newer model-year Subaru Outbacks and Foresters. Check the touring trim if you favor a higher-end interior. Toyota Highlanders too, except those have gotten pretty large.
@andrew aside from replacing the alternator and voltage regulator that goes with it at 180k, I can't say we've ever had an electric issue with our XC90. However, ours is from before the sale to Geely, and just about every piece (except for the Japanese transmission) was made in western Europe.
DeleteI’ve been very pleased with my Outback Onyx XT. I did test a Highlander, but it felt rather like maneuvering a tank, albeit a somewhat flimsy one. I excused myself from Toyota and wandered over to Subaru. Volvos are charming, of course, but the Subaru struck me as a touch more solid.
DeleteVolvo and Audi wagons/mid SUVs are very nice, very solid to drive, & they both have higher-powered engines than any Outback. We preferred Audi's Q5 to Volvo, not even considering Volvo's declining rep for reliability. Can't complain about my spouse's Outback Touring. Five years in, great vehicle. She loves the tanned leather seats.
DeleteChina's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group acquired Volvo Cars from Ford Motor Company in 2010. The deal was finalized on August 2, 2010, marking China's biggest acquisition of a foreign automaker at the time.
ReplyDeleteWonderful they make great cars !
DeleteI still miss my Volvo 850
ReplyDeleteI miss my Cross Country…my daughter totaled it, only fatality was the telephone pole she struck. Never found another I loved as much.
DeleteThis looks like a 2007 since that was the first year the XC had square reverse/signal rear lights. We had an 06 XC which ran to 206k then departed this world…sadly I might add. We have an 07 XC with a V8, great car as well with 247k My daughter’s main car. I would take this car to NYC and back from Boston any day. A reliable workhorse no doubt! A nod to Volvo - my family began driving Volvos in mid 1980s with the Swede Fridge 240 wagons and we have many since then. They have always started in any type of weather, memorised I95 between Boston to DC, colleges and beyond along the way, not one problem! My wife drives a 2019 xc60 built during Chinese ownership, 125k on it, not a single problem. No I don’t work for Volvo, so I praise as an independent consumer. Show these Swedes the love and you get that Lagos in return. :)
ReplyDeleteWhich current vehicle models, besides the usual suspects (Subaru Outback/Forester, Volvo), do you consider SWNE cars? When I look around the car market, I'm filled with dread. Even Volvo has largely lost its appeal for me.
ReplyDeletePraise be people on this stellar blog people still talk about cars. In 36 states the largest selling vehicle is a full size pickup truck. Look where that has got us.
DeleteMy husband had a Ford Explorer, hunter green, tan leather interior. That car rivaled my Volvo.
DeleteNew Volvos have the best feature I’ve ever seen on a car. There’s a location on the underside of the rear end. When your hands are filled with groceries you kick gently that spot and the rear door opens. Genius.
ReplyDeleteSuperb vehicles over the years!
ReplyDeleteI landed on an ACURA MDX. Made in Ohio, has looked basically the same since it was invented (and under the radar), and bulletproof naturally aspirated V6.
ReplyDeleteSigh. Sometimes the burden of instructing Muff's disciples over and over again on what is and what is not True Prep can be exhausting. I only do this because my ancestors were Cirquitors. Circuitors were monks selected by the abbot to watch other monks and selectively punish those who, in the sole opinion of the Circuitor, were not behaving properly. There it is. So, with a fearsome fatigue and at the risk of repeating myself, there are only eight acceptable cars for True Prep to drive. In no particular oder they are: IH Scout, 1978, with 4,390 miles, garaged in Sconset and only driven into town a few times a year to purchase gin; Defender, 1997, with 44 miles and garaged somewhere in Marblehead; 1994 Oldsmobile with 125,214 miles on it and registered to Steve Forbes' wife in Far Hills, NJ; 2001 RR 30th Anniversary Edition garaged somewhere in the Berkshires and used for the sole purpose of driving to Bowdoin men's lacrosse games; 1960 Jag XK 150 White with red leather interior - nuff said; 2001 911 Turbo, Violet Chromaflair, black leather; 1995 E320 Wagon with several Andover and Yale window stickers; and, my favorite, 2000 XKR in Racing Green with 3,200 miles housed in Brookline and used only to attend you daughter's field hockey games at Emma Willard.
ReplyDeleteI would edit this to read "Defender, 1997, with 44 miles and garaged everywhere in Marblehead"
DeleteSo was it you who posted in the past as Circuitor in the past ?
DeleteIt had to have been at at least 12 years ago. Whether or not it was you it’s interesting that you are from a long line of monks. Sounds like some of the monks got around
Perhaps
DeleteYes, it was I those long years ago. You may recall that I passed away briefing during that period and my spirit adopted Cirquitor. As for the randy Monks of the Middle Ages, what can I say?
DeleteFerd - you forgot the 70's and 80's Jeep Wagoneer/ Grand Wagoneer
ReplyDeleteGreat car. But even better is the Volvo V 60 and even better than that is the V 90, a true luxury wagon. Yes, the Vs are actual wagons, not SUVs like the XCs. Wagons, in 2025!
ReplyDelete