Most ridiculous thing you've heard about Volvos

[jblackburn]

Here's a classy one

[RedVolvo36]

Sorry for the, uh, ridiculously named thread, but it's something that keep popping in my head so I have to let it out

I've owned my Volvo for 6 years. Some of you have owned yours for more. We know our cars pretty well now, but what was the most ridiculous claim you heard people made about Volvos (or more specifically, the 850) before you knew any better?

This is my version: before I bought mine, I did a bit of research/look around to see what (bad things) people say about 850. One claim was that because the headlight switch is turned on/off together with the ignition, it makes you lazy not to turn it off. Consequently the light is turned on more often than usual, and in turns it leads to premature bulb failure. And bulbs are expensive, so you spend a fortune (or maybe a lot more, can't remember the exact wording) frequently changing headlight bulbs.

Now that I think about it (and I do think about it, occasionally ), it is such a weird, if not crazy, claim, right? I see the on/off linking as a convenience (no longer have to worry about it), and the lights don't burn out that often. I can't remember when it was the last time I had to change headlights (only once). And when I did, it was only like $10 (can't remember exactly). An expense of $10 over 4-5 years is a fortune? I don't think so.

What about you? What have you heard about these cars that turns out to be untrue?

Lext,

This is a bit irrelevant because it carries no weight whatsoever, but one time some kid came out of the woodwork and called me a trucker because of the Volvo brand. I understood where he was coming from but it did make my stomach drop a bit. I hope that kid grows up to be a scrub...

[jblackburn]

I saw a comment just the other day on one of my videos on Youtube (where I was seafoaming my car) that was insulted by some redneck with a Dodge Ram that can do "a 1/4 mile in 12 seconds and that I wouldn't believe the smoke it made", and was wondering why I even bothered with my "old grandma car" when I could buy a big truck like his and over-compensate wildly for something...

Idiot.

[lext]

Lext,

This is a bit irrelevant because it carries no weight whatsoever, but one time some kid came out of the woodwork and called me a trucker because of the Volvo brand. I understood where he was coming from but it did make my stomach drop a bit. I hope that kid grows up to be a scrub...

Pls excuse my density, but I'm not quite sure where trucker comes into the picture here Why would he call someone owning a Volvo a trucker? Because they're too big and slow?

And to elaborate a bit on what I said earlier: after I bought the car, I still had that fear instilled in me. You know, headlight failing in the middle of the night, cop stop, $200 fine. How pleasant would that be? So I bought all the different light bulbs, got myself ready, and every time I drive I'd tell myself: any day now, any day now ... You know, with the same religious fervor as that "serenity now" folk in Seinfeld

Thanksfully I started to let it go after a few months

[ArchieBrown]

Volvo drivers are fat.
All of em.

Thats pretty ridiculous.

Something funny some Australian comics did a while ago: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8NacmjdE0I

[RyanGLT]

I've never heard anything. Actually...and I never thought of this til now... I daily drove a 1965 Corvair for the longest time (supposed to be "unsafe" which is completely wrong), and then sold it and bought what is supposed to be the safest car....

And all by accident! But I love my Volvo. I just wish it was faster.