After months of research I finally decided to go with a new XC90. It helped as Volvo was having an 50th anniversary sale and all packages were half off and that with the tax free option we U.S. personell get here in Europe I was able to save a bunch. I was really only looking at european made vehicles as we are retired U.S. military and still work and live in Germany and it has been my experience that only the european manufactored vehicles hold up to the constant plus 100 MPH speeds and harder braking due to the faster driving conditions.

My new XC90 was supposed to be built and delivered the second week of December 2006 but as of today (31 December 2006) I still do not have it. My local dealer has informed me that due to a problem that was found on one of the vehicles (not mine) during the inspection phase right after the lot rolled off the assembly line, the entire lot has to be reinspected with a fine tooth comb to ensure no other vehicles have a problem. Now they are saying I should have it by the end of the first week in January 2007. Of course I am not overly happy about my 90+ day wait being longer, I do take comfort in knowing that I will be getting a vehicle that has been inspected and reinspected. My local dealer has been very good in keeping me informed and due to the delay has thrown in a couple of small freebies.

After all that my question is this.... The XC90 Navigation System went to a hard drive versus dvd map system this year. In the past you could purchase the dvd maps for the region you needed... e.g. U.S. or Europe. Does anyone know or have any experience if the European maps are preloaded on the U.S. models along with the U.S. maps and if not how I can go about getting them loaded. So far my dealer says cannot answer this question. My newer TomTom portable GPS unit has both areas preloaded on it and it. For the record even though I work and live in Germany, my XC90 is 100% U.S. specifications as it will be driven in the U.S. some day.

Thanks in advance for any help and thanks for this board, a wealth of info