VOLVO XC40 PHEV

REPORT 5

£42,305/£48,105/£630

WHY IT’S HERE

Does the baby Volvo work with added eco gubbins?

DRIVER

Sam Philip

UNEXCITING PHOTO UPDATE alert! This month I have mostly employed the XC to lug large volumes from one place to another which means you all get treated to some truly arresting shots

So how does the XC fare as a load lugger? The good news is it has a good shaped hole Not all crossovers are this way A year or so back I ran a Mazda CX which according to the o cial stats is actually slightly more capacious seats down than the XC Not if you want to transport a selection of long handled garden implements and a couple of lawnmowers it isn’t

Of course if you’re really bothered about moving large and awkward objects I suspect most of us would still be better o with a good old fashioned estate But you’ve heard that argument enough times now right?

Ollie Marriage

This probably tells you what you need to know. When the DS5 went back, the opening lines read as follows: “Should you buy a Citroen DS5? I can’t in good conscience recommend it.” It’s one of the most damning verdicts I’ve delivered. But here was a car where the designers understood what was needed, but the engineers didn’t.

It looked right – coolly different and slightly raised – but the way it drove... “It was as if Citroen had the money to buy the components, but then ran out of funds to actually develop it,” I wrote, going on to criticise the ride, powertrain, gearbox, steering and so on.

Looking back now I have few fond memories: commuting frustration that had nothing to do with traffic, but quite a lot to do with the DS 5’s refusal to use e-power and economy that rarely bettered 35mpg. I’d grown up with Citroen CXs. This in no way lived up to those memories.