SUBJECT to many Governments approving the deal, Ford will hand over the keys to Volvo and China's Geely will start building the most comfortable driving experience available to the average man.

Whenever there is a big industry change like this, fans for the brand and opportunists always wonder what this means to prices.

With luck, in the long-term, it will mean Volvos become more affordable to the masses - China brings scale and scale reduces cost. But in the meantime, Volvos up to four years old will remain pricey.

It's not all bad news though, at five years plus they are already surprisingly cheap. Take a look at these three.

It floats along like a boat. Bad news for sporty drivers, but amazing over pot holes and along motorways. Wonderful cabin design and front seats.

2.0 D

2.0 P

18

Three year old S40s (2.0 P) will be around £10,000 (half price compared to new) with 34,000 miles but a five year old car will be around £7,000 with just 42,000 miles.

State of the art estate. Plenty of space of course and only now are values starting to drop to truly affordable levels. Very comfy and practical.                

2.4 D

2.4 D

18

Over the first three years, the V70s lose around a quarter of their value, dropping to £15,000. But they lose another 30% over the next two years, taking them to £10,00 with just 70,000 average miles.

A Volvo estate with more ground clearance and lot more style. All the 4 x 4 most will need so the demand has been spectacular. Prices remain firm but a sensible way to spend money on a 4x4.   

2.4 D

2.4 D

9

After three years the prices have only dropped to £23,000 after five years however they are below £15,000 and average mileage is only 53,000.