It’s official. The legendary 240, the poster child of station wagons for most of the last half-century, has been usurped as the best-selling Volvo of all time by the XC60 compact SUV. It’s a milestone for which the Swedish brand cites two reasons: representing the shift from station wagons to SUVs as “the obvious family pick,” and the new standards for “what customers want and need” from their daily drivers. And rather handily, it ignores recent price hikes.
- Base Trim Engine
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2.0L I4 Turbo
- Base Trim Transmission
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8-speed automatic
- Base Trim Drivetrain
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All-Wheel Drive
The XC60, first launched in 2008 and now in its second generation, has consistently been among Volvo’s strongest sellers each year. There were 230,853 examples of the small people mover sold in 2024, representing more than 30% of the brand’s total global sales. It has now surpassed 2.7 million sales worldwide. This is thanks in no small part to the XC60 becoming the first Volvo to be mass-produced in China starting from 2014 onwards.
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What Contributed Towards The XC60’s Sales Record
Alongside its position as a premium (and cheaper) alternative to the likes of the Audi Q5, BMW X3 and Mercedes-Benz GLC, Volvo also claims that the XC60’s all-round versatility and its high safety standards, both key selling points at one point for the 240, have helped the XC60 earn its new crown. The SUV was the first Volvo, for example, to feature low-speed, automatic emergency braking in 2008, and it debuted lane keep assist in 2017, both of which are now standard safety systems across Volvo’s current lineup.
“Growing up in Sweden in the 1980s, the Volvo 240 was the iconic family car– you could spot one in almost every driveway. Today the XC60 has taken over that position in two ways. Not only as the family favorite, but also becoming our all-time top-seller, which in itself is the ultimate proof point of a successful car. And now, with the latest updates, it gets even better.”
-Susanne Hägglund, Volvo Head of Global Offer
The new record also underpins the motoring industry’s seismic shift towards compact and midsized SUVs. Volvo itself currently sells only two station wagons in North America – Cross Country models of both the V90 and V60 – and only one sedan, the S60. But the company currently features nine different hybridized and/or fully-electric SUVs.
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The Volvo 240 And Its Safety Legacy
You can expect a sizable bollocking from Volvo were you to call the 240 design boxy. Indeed, ahead of the sedan’s debut in August 1974, the angular design – which even Volvo admitted was not a head-turner – was more cost-effective and outstanding for passenger safety. The elongated hood and larger bumpers allowed Volvo to incorporate crumple zones into the design to help absorb kinetic energy in the event of an accident. Though tame by today’s standards, the car’s crash safety standards were so impressive that the 1976 Volvo 244 was used as the benchmark in the United States by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), given the protection it offered its occupants.
These flat surfaces also meant that passenger head and legroom in the cabin, as well as space in the cargo area, were plentiful, and families dutifully snapped up both the 240 sedan and the 260 Series station wagon. Produced for 19 years at Volvo’s facilities in Sweden and Belgium, a whopping 2,685,171 examples of the 240 were built until production finally ended in 1993. The final example rolled off the line in Torslanda on May 5, 1993.
Source: Volvo
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