Volvo Cars Veteran to Retire After Thirty-five Years

Volvo Cars Veteran to Retire After Thirty-five Years

After thirty-five years of distinguished service in leading positions at Volvo Car Corporation, Hans Gustavsson (58) has decided to retire, effective December 31, 2004. 

Hans Gustavsson has always been a true car buff and a whole-hearted ambassador of the Volvo brand. He joined Volvo in 1969 as a twenty-three year-old engineer. The first car he was assigned to work with was the 1800, the sports coupe. This in a way came to characterize his entire career with Volvo Cars: pace, performance and a flair for sportiness.

In his thirty-five years with the company, Hans Gustafson's spirit, drive and enthusiasm were instrumental in creating the modern Volvo cars. He was the project leader for the 760, launched in 1982 and as head of Product Planning he was a very important person in the development of the 850 series. The cars that turned Volvo Cars around technically and image wise.

A fast, keen and skilled driver himself, he also brought Volvo back to the racing circuits in the 1980s. Without him there would never have been any ETC (Group A) victory in 1985 or BTCC championship in 1998.

In 1999, when Volvo Cars was acquired by Ford Motor Company, Hans Gustavsson was Senior Vice President of Research, Development and Purchasing. Two years later he was chosen to head the technical development at PAG siblings Jaguar and Land Rover. When Hans left Volvo Cars for Jaguar and Land Rover, he had a most distinguished service record after having served as head of Product Planning, as head of After Market and also as President of the Nordic Sales Organisation.

50250/CR