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沃尔沃在中国新东家手上华丽转身

来源:可可英语 编辑:shaun   可可英语APP下载 |  可可官方微信:ikekenet

Record sales in the American auto industry have left the biggest carmakers flush with cash, which they are pouring into new models on display this week at the annual North American International Auto Show here.

美国汽车行业创下销售记录,为那些规模最大的汽车生产商带来大笔收入。它们将资金投入研发新车型,并在本周举行的一年一度的北美国际车展(North American International Auto Show)上进行展示。

But even the smallest auto companies are flourishing in the booming American market, none more so than the tiny Chinese-owned, Swedish-run luxury brand Volvo.

不过,就连规模最小的那些车企也在繁荣的美国市场蓬勃发展,尤其是由中国人拥有、瑞典人运营的小众豪华品牌沃尔沃(Volvo)。

While General Motors, Ford Motor and others held lavish news conferences, Volvo showed off a new sedan, the S90, and won recognition for its flagship sport utility vehicle, the XC90, as the best truck introduced in 2015.

通用汽车(General Motors)、福特汽车(Ford Motor Company)及其他一些品牌举行了奢华的新闻发布会,而沃尔沃则展示了新款轿车S90,其旗舰款运动型多功能车XC90也获得了2015年度最佳新款卡车大奖。

It illustrated how even the littlest car companies — Volvo has just 0.3 percent of the American market — can succeed when demand soars.

这说明了,当需求飙升时,即便规模最小的车企也能成功。沃尔沃在美国市场仅占0.3%的份额。

Bought from Ford in 2010 as part of that automaker’s retrenchment during the financial crisis, Volvo has been expanding under its new owners, Geely Auto of China, whose ambitions include Volvo’s first factory in North America.

2010年金融危机期间,福特将沃尔沃卖给中国吉利汽车集团,以此作为削减开支举措的一部分。有了新东家后,沃尔沃不断扩展。吉利的目标包括建造沃尔沃在北美的第一座工厂。

While overall industry sales increased about 6 percent last year in the United States compared with the previous year, Volvo’s sales rose 24 percent to 70,000 vehicles, according to the research firm Autodata.

调研企业汽车数据公司(Autodata)的报告显示,美国汽车市场去年的总销量同比增加了6%,而沃尔沃的销售量飙升了24%,增至七万辆。

“We have always placed great significance on our presence in the U.S.,” Hakan Samuelsson, the company’s chief executive and president, said. “That is why we decided to present our S90 to the public for the very first time at the Detroit show and why we have begun to build a Volvo factory here.”

“我们一直非常重视在美国市场的发展,” 沃尔沃首席执行官兼总裁哈坎·萨缪尔森(Hakan Samuelsson)说。“因此我们决定在底特律车展上首次公开展示S90,并且开始在这里建造沃尔沃工厂。”

Other smaller brands that benefited from the surge in consumer demand included the Japanese automaker Subaru, which reported a 13 percent increase in sales, and Land Rover, the British maker of sport utility vehicles owned by Tata Motors of India, which posted a 37 percent increase.

从消费需求激增中获益的其他小品牌包括日本汽车生产商斯巴鲁(Subaru)和英国SUV生产商路虎(Land Rover)。前者通报销量增加了13%,印度塔塔汽车(Tata Motors)旗下的路虎品牌的销售增长则达37%。

“Those brands and their new owners have all gone on and have really started to flourish,” said Matt Degen, senior editor with Kelley Blue Book. “It took Volvo longer to do so, but we’re seeing it reimagine itself, and it’s really starting to connect.”

“这些品牌及其新东家都取得了进步,真正开始蓬勃发展,”汽车调研公司凯利蓝皮书(Kelley Blue Book)高级编辑马特·德根(Matt Degen)说。“沃尔沃花的时间要长一些,但我们看到它对自己重新有了构想,的确开始良好运行了。”

Under Geely, Volvo has emphasized the brand’s long reputation for safety and quality and its distinctive Swedish styling.

归吉利所有后,沃尔沃强调该品牌长期以来在安全和质量方面享有的盛誉,以及它独特的瑞典造型。

Geely was able to build on those attributes and prevent Volvo from joining discontinued brands like General Motors’ Saturn and Ford’s Mercury in the automotive graveyard.

吉利能够在保持这些特性的基础上推动沃尔沃发展,防止它像通用土星(Saturn)和福特水星(Mercury)等品牌一样,从市场中消失。

The hot-selling XC90 wagon and S90 sedan, for example, have given new momentum to the automaker’s transformation and return to core values, Mr. Samuelsson said.

萨缪尔森表示,热卖的沃尔沃XC90货车和S90轿车为公司进行转型、回归核心价值带来了新动力。

The S90, a four-door coupe that was unveiled at the show here, will go on sale this summer with a base sticker of around $47,000.

在北美车展上发布的S90四门轿跑车将于今年夏季开售,起步价在4.7万美元 左右(约合31万元人民币)。

In another outgrowth of the automaker’s renewed ambitions, Volvo has broken ground on its first automotive manufacturing plant in North America, a $500 million facility in Ridgeville, S.C., that will build the next generation S60 sedan and employ 2,000 workers over the next decade.

公司的新目标带来了另一项发展成果:沃尔沃投资五亿美元在北美地区的第一家汽车制造工厂破土动工。这家厂位于南卡罗来纳州里奇维尔,将生产下一代S60轿车,并计划在未来十年雇佣2000名员工。

The plant will give Volvo a manufacturing presence in its three main regions of Asia, Europe and the United States.

它将让沃尔沃在三大主要市场——亚洲、欧洲及美国——拥有生产基地。

“The turnaround is pretty remarkable,” said Jessica Caldwell, senior automotive analyst for Edmunds.com. “New designs and features are coming together to create more interest in the brand.”

“这种转变相当出色,” Edmunds.com高级汽车分析师杰茜卡·考德威尔(Jessica Caldwell)说。“新设计和功能配合起来,使得这一品牌更具吸引力。”

Volvo is also embracing its reputation for producing safe vehicles, joining what has been a rush by automakers to introduce technologies that enhance safety. With its latest technology, Volvo has articulated a goal of having no crash fatalities or serious injuries in a new Volvo by 2020.

汽车生产商们纷纷引进能够提高安全性的技术,沃尔沃也加入这一行列,重拾自身注重安全的声誉。拥有最新技术的沃尔沃明确了目标,即到2020年实现旗下产品无致命或严重伤害事故。

“At one point Volvo ruled the safety world,” Ms. Caldwell said. “They walked away from that a decade or so ago. Now, they’re pushing the safety element, but are more mainstream, a little less quirky.”

“沃尔沃一度在安全领域独领风骚,”考德威尔说。“他们在大约十年前放弃了这一策略。如今,他们又在强调安全元素,但变得更为主流,没那么怪异了。”

The safety technology in the S90 will, among other things, detect pedestrians, cyclists and, Volvo says, large animals.

沃尔沃表示,除了其他特性外,S90的安全技术将能探测到行人、骑自行车的人及大型动物。

The car also offers new autonomous features like steering assist at high speeds and a feature that automatically maintains a set speed or distance to the vehicle in front. The car will be available in gasoline and hybrid versions.

这款轿车还提供了一些新的自主功能,比如高速转向辅助功能,以及自动保持设置的速度或与前面车辆的距离。它将拥有汽油版和混合动力版。

Geely has left the management of Volvo to its Swedish executives and given Volvo the billions of dollars it needs to develop new vehicles and technology.

吉利将沃尔沃的管理工作交给了瑞典高管,并为它提供了研发新车和技术所需要的大笔资金。

“We’re now seeing the results of those investments,” Mr. Degen said.

德根表示,“我们现在看到了投资成果。”

By the end of this decade, Volvo will have renewed its entire lineup, better positioning it to compete with global competitors. Autonomous drive technologies will be a focus. The automaker also plans to develop its first all-electric vehicle and adopt a global small-car strategy.

到2020年,沃尔沃将会完成所有产品线的升级工作,占据更好的位置来与全球对手展开竞争。自动驾驶技术将会成为重点。沃尔沃还计划研发第一款纯电动汽车,推行全球小型车战略。

It is a starkly different look from 2009, when Ford did not even have a buyer for the flagging automaker. “They’ve come a long way from their lowest point,” Ms. Caldwell said, “when it was uncertain whether the company would continue to exist.”

这与2009年的情况迥然不同。当时,福特甚至没有找到一个愿意购买这家陷入低迷的车企的买家。“他们挺过了最低谷,取得了很大进展,”考德威尔说。“那时候根本不知道公司是否还能继续走下去。”

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