????It became huge news recently when Volvo Cars signed an endorsement deal with Knicks basketball sensation Jeremy Lin to cash in on the booming market for upscale cars in China.
????Days later, Lin suffered a season-ending knee injury, and the Knicks were blown out of the playoffs in the first round.
????Coincidence? I don't think so. Lin's accident is just one of several mishaps suffered by Volvo since it was bought by China's Geely in 2010 -- and a continuation of the disappointments it has endured since its most popular and long-lived model went out of production 20 years ago.
????I call it the Curse of the Volvo 240. The simple, homely car was an enormous success, but Volvo has spent years trying to forget it.
????Introduced in 1973, the 240 was the ur-Volvo, with the front grille of a Peterbilt and the rear compartment of a Mayflower van that ingested enormous amounts of cargo. Huge front and rear crumple zones headed its list of innovative safety features.
????The 240 came in several model variations, but station wagons accounted for a third of its sales. Its funky functionality made it amazingly popular. More than 2.8 million 240s and related models were sold during its production run.
????People developed attachments to the 240 back in the day -- and they still do today.
????When you hear that Volvos last nearly 20 years, the reference is probably to the 240. Owners keep them forever and roll up astounding amounts of miles, extolling their homely virtues and ignoring their obvious drawbacks, like a pokey four-cylinder engine.
????Driving a 240 has become an anti-status symbol, a conspicuous sign of inconspicuous consumption. Web sites overflow with testimonials from ecstatic owners, as this sample from Edmunds.com indicates:
????"My 1993 240 Wagon has 330,000 miles on it and has been a great car. No plans of replacement with a newer one."
????"[I] have a 1982 Volvo 245DL wagon with 298,968 miles on it. The car runs great when I can get it started."
????"I live in NYC (Manhattan) where the subway is a favorite mode of transportation. About 13 yrs ago, I bought a 1993 Volvo 240 sedan. I hardly ever use my car BUT I hate to give it up. It's a work of art. I love the boxy lines and aesthetics. I'll never sell this car. It's a welcome addition to my family. "
