Engineering Volvo’s top selling point
Whatever skill set Volvo has in its workforce it’s been bottled because this carmaker continues to create absolute jewels when it comes to motor vehicles.
It’s not just the international accolades that Volvo keeps collecting; although they are tangible evidence of how highly regarded its product is. But ignoring those kudos, time spent driving this new age Volvo product simply reinforces why it rates among the best on the planet.
Not long ago the XC60 SUV was named world car of the year. Hot on its impressive heels comes the smaller version — the XC40 — which has already been named European car of the year. So what is it that Volvo’s doing that overshadows others in the business?
It’s probably down to one thing above all else: high-end engineering. It’s the sort of expertise that is a hallmark of its vehicles and the XC40 continues that excellence.
The XC40 T5 R-Design we drove, epitomises all the characteristics of the brand. This is top shelf product, as long on equipment levels as it is on focus on safety, and packaging it up in a vehicle that seduces the senses. There isn’t a weak spot in it.
Volvo has built the XC40 on what it calls “compact modular architecture”. It’s a high falutin’ title and is all about being more efficient in terms of space. But don’t think the XC40 is a downsized version of the XC60 because it isn’t.
The T5 R-Design has a base price of $72,900 but our tester
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came with some of the options which bumped the price up to $80,750. These included the driver support pack (360 degree camera, adaptive cruise control, pilot assist and the parking assist) costing $200. And it also added the $5000 “lifestyle” pack which gets you a premium sound system, panoramic sunroof, power folding rear head and backrests and tinted glass. Another $450 fits heated front seats. Then there was the $400 which brings the XC40 off in Lava interior highlights. This last mentioned won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. It’s a bright orange coloured flock that doesn’t lie there so much as shout out. For the faint of heart there are more conservative colour finishes.
The XC40 has a number of different drive modes you call dial in, from every-day comfort through to off-road and Dynamic. This last one lets you wring every last bit of performance out of that motor via its eight-speed auto transmission.
There are no issues with the ride or handling and you can set the steering “feel” to three different settings, from a light through to firm. As for road noise, Volvo has all but eliminated it in the XC40. Sure, you can’t help but get some noise from the coarse road chip but there is absolutely no wind noise that we could detect.
The XC40 T5 R-Design presents a very impressive package. From some of the quirkiness of its cabin to the safety equipment and above the overall finish, it’s as good as it gets.
It’s the sort of SUV other manufacturers need to aspire to.
$72,900 ($80,750 as tested) 2-litre 4-cylinder turbo petrol 182kW at 5500rpm, 350Nm from 1800-4800rpm
8-speed Geartronic AWD MacPherson strut (front), multi-link (rear) Discs (front vented)
ABS, EBD, ESC
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4425mm long, 1863mm wide, 1652mm tall, 2702mm wheelbase 20-in alloys, 245/45 tyres
54 litres