http://www.hotwired.com/Coin/Spnsrs/Volvo/Safety/index.html (The Risc Disc Volume 2, 10/1995)

Volvo - Building a Reputation of Safety

Every day, in Volvo showrooms from coast to coast, potential customers walk in with questions, "What makes a Volvo so safe on the road?" "What makes a Volvo last so long?" "What makes a Volvo look different from other cars?" "What makes a Volvo ideal for families?" "What makes a Volvo the car for the 90s?" "What makes a Volvo right for me?"

The questions may be simple, or sophisticated. Spoken, or unspoken. But they all resolve to a single issue: What makes a Volvo?

Just as every Volvo is built of many parts, systems, structures and design innovations, the Volvo story is also a multitude of stories.

Company Story

Volvo: The Name
Perhaps you've wondered where the name "Volvo" originated. The place is Sweden - but the language isn't Swedish, it's Latin. In Latin, volvo means "I roll."

Volvo: The Symbol
You may also be wondering what the well-known Volvo logo symbol signifies. Recently, you'll find this symbol only as a design element on the front grille of our vehicles - but it has remained in use for generations. The Volvo circle-and-arrow trademark was created to represent strength, taking its graphic shape from the traditional chemical symbol for iron ore. Combined with our name, the Volvo graphic identity is "rolling strength" - an apt expression of our unique approach to building cars.

Volvo: The Beginning
The first Volvo automobile was produced in 1927 - the same year Charles Lindbergh (whose father had been born in Sweden) became the first solo flyer to cross the Atlantic. Volvo itself crossed the Atlantic officially in 1956, offering model PV-444 to Americans through a small network of Volvo dealers. Today, there are more than 1,200,000 Volvo automobiles on the roads of North America. We're proud of every one of our cars - and of every year in our ongoing 65-year effort to advance the technology, comfort, pleasure, and above all, the safety of driving.

Volvo: The Commitment
The reputation for safety that Volvo enjoys is the result of decades of dedication to the details which help protect those who drive our cars. We invite you to look at the many facets of Volvo's commitment to making automobiles that are solid in every sense of the word.