European Cars Sink!

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1X83Z

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Last week in the English Channel, a Norwegian cargo ship which was carrying about 2,500 luxury cars including Volvos, Saabs, and BMWs sank when it collided with another ship...

...the real news here is that slightly under 400 Volvo XC90s sank along with the ship, so now Volvo is going to up production of the SUV a bit.

Volvo has already sold 9,000 XC90s; around 4,700 of them in the United States.

So there.
 
Yes, i heard about that. Very sad, it was also hit by the Nicola, which rhymes with the name of the actual ship carrying the cars (Tricola). :(
 
slightly under 400 worthless and ridiculous SUVs are slowly rusting under the seas? perfect! let's do the same with all the others on this planet!

okay, so this is bad news for Volvo, Saab and BMW... any ideas of how much they actually lost in the process?
 
All of them weren't "SUVs" you know....:(
 
The highlight was that while the French Navy was minding the wreck to ensure no-one hit it, someone hit it.

Nice work.
 
Originally posted by PunkRock
slightly under 400 worthless and ridiculous SUVs are slowly rusting under the seas? perfect! let's do the same with all the others on this planet!
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The XC90 is a good SUV. Not like most of the rest of the SUV's. :)

okay, so this is bad news for Volvo, Saab and BMW... any ideas of how much they actually lost in the process?
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I'd estimate slightly below $11,000,000 altogether, but it's probably closer to $10,000,000 depending on the number of cars each manufacturer had on the boat (2500 total, but if there were more Saabs and Volvos than BMWs, it stands to reason the losses would be less).
 
The best bit is that where the ship sank it's only 25 meters at low tide.... the ship is 30 meters wide so sticks out the water.

So BMW and Volvo get to see their cargo slowly rusting away.


:lol:
 
I looked for more details on this story,and all I found was like a two paragraph write up on it. Nothing about the cars that were lost, or what companies had to say about it.
 
Originally posted by M5Power


The XC90 is a good SUV. Not like most of the rest of the SUV's. :)

[/B]
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bah, to me, any SUV is a worthless thing. :p
 
Originally posted by vat_man
The highlight was that while the French Navy was minding the wreck to ensure no-one hit it, someone hit it.

Nice work.
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Do you expect better from the French navy? You should be thankul it wasn't hit more than once.
 
Originally posted by M5Power


The XC90 is a good SUV. Not like most of the rest of the SUV's. :)

I'd estimate slightly below $11,000,000 altogether, but it's probably closer to $10,000,000 depending on the number of cars each manufacturer had on the boat (2500 total, but if there were more Saabs and Volvos than BMWs, it stands to reason the losses would be less).
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The shipment would have been insured though right? :D
 
There were actually 1000 Saabs, all of them the new 9-3, full option.

There were 1500 Volvos, XC-90, V70, S60,...

And finally 365 BMW Z4.
The newspaper interviewed someone from the Volvo factory where the cars were made and the people who work there are desparate: They already were behind on scedule and now they would even have to work harder.
 
Originally posted by PunkRock
bah, to me, any SUV is a worthless thing. :p
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Most American SUV's are worthless because they are produced with the fact in mind that nobody who buys them will take them off road - they are underpowered road cars. Get a Japanese 4x4 like the Landcruiser or the Patrol and see the difference.

Take my Patrol for example. It's got around 230hp from a 4.2 litre turbo diesel I6, around 260 ft/lbs of torque, a manual transmission, decent ground clearance and it's manufactured to be taken off road. Put this up against an American SUV and you'll see the true meaning of false advertising ;).
 
Originally posted by Sludge Slide
Most American SUV's are worthless because they are produced with the fact in mind that nobody who buys them will take them off road - they are underpowered road cars. Get a Japanese 4x4 like the Landcruiser or the Patrol and see the difference.
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:lol: You've clearly never ridden in or driven an American SUV. One of the only things the Wrangler, Liberty, Grand Cherokee Laredo, Explorer 4wd base, Trailblazer, etc. are good at is going off-road. Namely, they offer little else. But they certainly do their job off-road.
 
Originally posted by M5Power
:lol: You've clearly never ridden in or driven an American SUV. One of the only things the Wrangler, Liberty, Grand Cherokee Laredo, Explorer 4wd base, Trailblazer, etc. are good at is going off-road. Namely, they offer little else. But they certainly do their job off-road.
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I have driven a Jeep Wrangler, Jeep Grand Cherokee and a Ford Expolrer and they arent a patch on my Patrol. I've done quite a lot of four wheel driving over the last 8 years and none of the cars listed above can match what the patrol can do. The Jeep range is fair quality but the Explorer, it's just a heavy, soggy, over-styled bucket of pus.

They may be fine to drive to work or to take somewhere on a dirt road but once you hit something soft, they aren't that good. Take a Patrol or Landcruiser (not a Prado) off road and you'll see what I mean.
 
Originally posted by Sludge Slide
I have driven a Jeep Wrangler, Jeep Grand Cherokee and a Ford Expolrer and they arent a patch on my Patrol. I've done quite a lot of four wheel driving over the last 8 years and none of the cars listed above can match what the patrol can do. The Jeep range is fair quality but the Explorer, it's just a heavy, soggy, over-styled bucket of pus.
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I'm going to have to second that: almost all of South Africa lives in the Toyota Land Cruiser. They say good things about the Wrangler, Cherokee, and Ranger Rover Defender, but the Toyota just lasts...well, forever. If you need to go on an expedition, then perhaps the RR Defender will go farther, but if you need something every day, the Land Cruiser is the way to go. Similar things are being said about the Patrol: it's all that it needs to be and nothing else. Simple, reliable, and off-road-worthy.
 
Why, if your idea of fun driving is plugging up and down a hill-side in a slow, heavy off-road monstrocity do you read the Gran Turismo website forum. You are in a minority if you think SUVs are anything other than ugly, expensive, pants to drive and worthless.
 
Originally posted by sinbad
Why, if your idea of fun driving is plugging up and down a hill-side in a slow, heavy off-road monstrocity do you read the Gran Turismo website forum. You are in a minority if you think SUVs are anything other than ugly, expensive, pants to drive and worthless.
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:rolleyes:
 
I second that, M5Power.

Sinbad, you just wait 'till I come accross you in a car park and accidentally monster truck your mum's station wagon with a "tofu" sticker on the side of it.
 
Originally posted by Sludge Slide
I second that, M5Power.

Sinbad, you just wait 'till I come accross you in a car park and accidentally monster truck your mum's station wagon with a "tofu" sticker on the side of it.
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I remember Monster Truck Racing from 1998 or so. Fun game. Fully open map, mostly off-road, and rather interesting handling for something that was 20 feet tall, 62" wheels, and 2,000HP. Might make an interesting matchup between the current Bigfoot and some hopped-up R34 Skyline on Autumn Ring Mini....
 

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