The Weavers of New Castle, Kentucky are Volvo enthusiasts. Collectively, the family has had eight Volvos between them. If this were a “nine-lives” story, we would be one car away from the unthinkable. Fortunately, this is a Volvo For Life story.
Richard Weaver will tell you he is convinced that his family would not be complete today if they had owned any other brand of car. He is a Volvo For Life believer, and his family’s experience would make for compelling reality TV viewing.
All things considered, the Weavers would seem to be unlucky. Considered another way, the Weavers can be considered a very lucky family indeed. Their son went off the road and down a steep slope - and survived. His wife's car flipped over - but she was unhurt. A tree fell on the front of his Volvo - but it was still drivable. What are we to make of all this? If your family is accident-prone, don’t drive anything other than a Volvo?
"We would like to thank Volvo for helping to protect our lives," says Richard Weaver. Like all optimists, Weaver believes only in good fortune and credits Volvos for protection in three potentially life-threatening accidents.
In 1994, Jeremy Weaver, son of Richard, was just 17 and doing local pizza deliveries. He was driving his first car, a Volvo 240, recently purchased and prized as an indicator of his independence and maturity. On a routine pizza delivery that dark and rainy night, he lost his bearings and drove off the road. More accurately, he “plunged” off a steep slope, all 70 feet of it. Out of control, his Volvo began to accelerate. Braking was futile. His brief life flashing before him, he instantly prepared for the worst, but some trees halfway down the slope brought his trusty Volvo to a halt.
"As he climbed out of his car, he grabbed hold of something. It was a memorial cross. Someone else had died in an accident at the very same spot," recalls Richard Weaver.
It took two tow trucks to winch his Volvo up the steep slope. Back on a level surface, he got back in and tried the ignition. The car started! Upon further inspection, the Volvo suffered so little damage that he continued delivering pizzas with it. Jeremy is 30 years old today. He is no longer a pizza delivery man, but he does still drive a Volvo - an 850.
More recently, Richard's daughter who lives in Dallas was visiting home in New Castle with her son. At the end of their stay, they were being driven to the airport by Nancy, Richard's wife, in a Volvo S70, another lucky Weaver vehicle. Suddenly, the traffic on the freeway ahead screeched, skid and slid to a halt. Nancy stomped the brakes, losing control and flipping over at around 65 mph.
"The car was a total loss. My daughter's head hit the window on the passenger side, but all three of them were able to get out and walk away from the car," remembers Richard.
A few days prior to this, Kentucky had been hit by a series of violent storms. The wind uprooted a large tree, and it fell right onto the family's other Volvo, a 1985 740 GLE. The hood took the brunt of the blow, but the windshield shattered as well. Luckily, none of the Weavers were in the car at the time.
"That was a really bad week for us. Still, even though the tree fell onto the hood, that Volvo started and it was still drivable. It was the apple of my eye and eventually racked up almost 500,000 miles before I let it go,” says Richard.
Down by two Volvos, Richard and Nancy Weaver were not going to be without their guardian angel brand for long. Richard’s first move was to borrow their daughter's 240. He flew to Dallas and took 14 hours driving it back to Kentucky. Then it was off to Atlanta to purchase a black 1998 Volvo V70R. Bringing that one home took him eight hours.
"I'm honored to drive Volvos. Your company has helped to protect my family. I think you make the best cars in the world for the money,” states Richard Weaver. “Your slogan, ‘Volvo for Life’ means what it says."
