2008 Volvo XC70 Test Drive: Off-Road Luxury Gets Real

Volvo’s 1997 Cross Country wagon, like the original 1996 Subaru Outback, helped shape the direction of the current crossover vehicle craze. These earlier versions were rugged, all-wheel-drive wagons with raised suspensions for increased ground clearance and imposing bodywork that looked like the perfect mix of rally car and 4x4. Yet they were essentially tall cars, so they packed all the practicality of a station wagon, too. Well, for 2008, Volvo has completely remade the XC70. Now in its third generation, Volvo’s beefiest station wagon offers more refinement, more capability and, because it’s a Volvo, more safety.

Our test drive, on the back roads and timber trails in Montana’s northern forests, offered the spectacular scenery of Glacier National Park—and the perfect place to test the rugged capabilities of this handsome wagon. All XC70s come with a normally aspirated 3.2-liter inline six-cylinder engine that develops 235 hp, replacing the turbocharged inline five-cylinder in the previous model. We’d like a bit more oomph for a car of this size. After all, the XC70 is longer, wider and heavier than before. But with a slick six-speed automatic transmission, performance is more than adequate for normal driving. For lead-footers, we hear a turbocharged model may be coming down the line at some point. Let’s hope so.

On the rough roads around Glacier, the Volvo displayed its luxury-car credentials. On the washboard surfaces that dominate the dirt roads, the vehicle didn’t completely “glide” over bumps like a 1970s Cadillac. But body shake, shudder, squeaks and rattles were nearly nonexistent. This is one smooth-riding all-roader. And you can thank the strength and design of Volvo’s safety cage for the solid feel on those back roads.

But take the XC70 off-road and you quickly experience its rock-solid SUV credentials. It even has a slope-descent system (controls downhill speeds to a 6 mph crawl when engaged). The system works in Forward or Reverse—something you can use on on a trail or, more important, on a steep, snow-slick driveway.

We were most impressed by the interior, which was noticeably quieter than those of more traditional SUVs and even than that of the last-generation XC70. Inside, the feeling is luxurious thanks to plenty of leather and wood. Even better is the handsome layout of the instrument panel, with its sweeping horizontal lines, precisely placed controls and easy-to-read instruments. Rear seats fold down flat into the floor, offering an SUV-like 72 ft. of cargo space. In the cargo area, aluminum rails on the floor offer attachment points where items can be secured in place.

New, too, are booster seats for the two outboard rear-seat passengers. Designed to hold youngsters, the seats raise their occupants up to a level where the inflatable side curtains provide head protection in the event of a collision. And those curtain airbags now extend lower for better head protection of all passengers.

A huge option list includes a Premium package (leather, wood, sunroof), Convenience package (12-volt power outlet, park assists, power tailgate), Climate package (heated front and rear seats, headlamp washers) and an Audio package (premium 650-watt amplifier, Sirius satellite radio, headphone jacks). And, yes, a navigation system and dual-screen rear-seat entertainment system are available as stand-alone options.

With a starting price of $36,775, the XC70 offers the best attributes of many luxury crossovers—without the added heft, height and fuel-economy penalty of a traditional SUV. —Jim Dunne

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All-new, offers powerful V8, all-wheel drive, sumptuous cabin.

Bodystyles: 4-Dr Sedan;
Engines: 4.4L V 8; 3.2L Inline 6;
Transmissions: 6 Speed Automatic;
Drivetrains: All Wheel Drive; Front Wheel Drive;

Introduction
With the introduction of the all-new S80 at the top of the range, Volvo makes one giant leap for Swedish automotive history with its first V8-powered luxury sedan.

Yes, it's the same, exact V8 engine that powers the much larger and heavier XC90 SUV, but with a thousand pounds of weight taken off its narrow little 60-degree shoulders, the transversely mounted 4.4-liter V8 becomes a real performer. To manage that much power, the V8 comes with the proven Volvo Haldex computer-controlled all-wheel-drive system.

The V8 engine installation is certainly the biggest single news item about this car, but there's also a completely new 3.2-liter inline six-cylinder engine for those customers who don't want or need monster torque. The new six-cylinder, the largest inline-6 Volvo has ever built, is rated at 236 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque, great leaps above the old 2.9-liter engine. Unlike the V8, the I6 will be available with front-wheel drive as well as all-wheel drive.

The chassis, body and interior are brand new from stem to stern for the 2007 model year, blended into a careful evolution of what Volvo calls a Scandinavian luxury car, an evolution best understood and appreciated when the old car and the new car are parked side-by-side.

As you would expect, the S80 is absolutely packed with safety equipment, building on its worldwide reputation with more still safety systems, from the interesting and talented new key fob out to the structure and the chassis systems.

The all-new S80 is designed to compete directly against such market favorites as the Acura RL, the Infiniti M35 and M45, the Lexus GS, the Audi A6, the BMW 5 Series, and the Mercedes E-Class. The S80 has moved a bit more upscale and is priced higher than before, but the new car has more standard equipment and more powerful engines.

Lineup
The 2007 Volvo S80 is available with the V8 engine and all-wheel drive, with the six-cylinder engine and front-wheel drive, or with the six-cylinder and all-wheel drive.

Option packages for the S80 include the Sport package with 18-inch alloy wheels and 245/40R18 tires and speed-sensitive steering with three-way adjustable steering effort. An audio upgrade includes a six-CD changer, MP3 player, auxiliary input and USB. Other options include satellite navigation with remote control, adaptive cruise control, front and rear park assist, dual-screen rear-seat entertainment system, run-flat tires, pearl or metallic paint.

The safety package on the S80 is simply world-class, from the patented body structure to the ABS, traction control, yaw control; front airbags; the new dual-chamber side airbags, with one chamber for the hips and one for the chest; radar adaptive cruise control that can brake the car without driver action; the collision warning system with pre-braking: and the new optional BLIS or blind-spot information system that senses vehicles in the right and left blind spots and delivers a warning if there's something there. The headlamps are now active xenon lamps that follow the road around curves. Also included in the safety roster is the Personal Car Communicator, a new electronic key fob design that can lock or unlock the car from distances up to 110 yards, and can tell you what state the locks are in. It can activate the alarm, and can sense the presence of a human heartbeat inside the car. A traffic distance warning system on top of the dash triggers a flashing red light and an audible warning, both of which can be defeated by the driver if desired.

Walkaround
It may look similar to the previous model, but the 2007 Volvo S80 is all new on the outside. The new S80 features a much larger grille opening, a sporty bumper and under-grille treatment, larger headlamps, a domed hood, a whole new rear end treatment with larger taillamps and a sportier bumper, a redesigned roof that works better in the wind tunnel, and body sides that are free of moldings.

While the overall length is the same as last year's car, the 2007 S80 is taller and wider. It also rides on a longer wheelbase and wider front and rear track, which yields more interior space, especially in the rear seat, and less overhang for improved stability. The new S80 sports a drag coefficient of only 0.29, among the very best in the class.

Interior
The interior is all-new for 2007. The general shape of the instrument binnacle has been retained, with the traditional Volvo trapezoidal shape, wide at the bottom and narrow at the top. The freestanding center stack that connects the dashboard to the console was borrowed from the smaller S40 and V50 models and upgraded accordingly, adding a measure of Bang & Olufsen elegance to the interior design.

The switches, controls and instruments all follow traditional Volvo design themes, but everything is new, including the redone tachometer and speedometer, more classic and less industrial than the previous design. The navigation system, when ordered, pops up out of the dashtop, either by using the new steering-wheel-mounted controls on the right rear of the wheel or the provided remote control, which stores in the console. We found the steering wheel controls a bit fussy at first, and hard to use, but owners will figure them out quickly.

A menu system tailors the seats, rearview mirrors, climate control, audio, navigation, and, the amount of steering wheel feel in the car's speed-dependent power steering system.

The sumptuous surroundings in the new S80 are amplified by the wonderfully comfortable seats and the extra front and rear legroom that Volvo hopes will help to put the new car squarely into the luxury class. The seats are available plain, heated, or heated and cooled.

The 160-watt, eight-speaker sound system will play MP3 files and has an auxiliary input for iPods and other players. Volvo will also offer a five-channel, 13-speaker Dolby Pro Logic II surround-sound system developed in-house with Bang & Olufsen and Dynaudio.

Driving Impressions
We were very impressed with the overall behavior of the V8 engine, which sounds quite a lot like a Corvette V8 when first fired up in the morning, then settles down to a nice, smooth idle. This engine is a Yamaha-designed 60-degree V8 with balance shafts, so it doesn't sound like a conventional 90-degree V-8. It's smooth and creamy all the way up the rev range to 6500 rpm, and for its relatively small displacement, it pulls very well and can easily sustain speeds of 135 mph on the open road. At high cruising speeds, the cabin is quiet, with a bit of wind noise off the tires and a bit of tire noise coming in.

The Volvo chassis system underneath the new S80 is an evolution of the 4C chassis, with adaptive shock absorbers changing second by second according to inputs from the road and the car itself. The system has been upgraded with three different settings instead of just two on the previous S80, Comfort, Sport, and Advanced.

Speaking of settings, we tried the new dashboard-adjustable steering effort control, and found the firmest setting to be ideal for our tastes. Hefty and solid, the way we like our steering. With the steering set this way and the Advanced settings plugged into the chassis system, the Volvo was a paragon of driving for the sheer fun of it, taut, quick to react, and flat in the corners, with the V8 engine always ready to play.

We experienced the adaptive cruise control system, which worked as advertised to maintain our preset distance to the car ahead in the fast lane, and we heard and saw the collision warning system mounted directly in front of the driver on the dashtop, a system which we quickly silenced on the crowded two-lane roads.

We also had the opportunity to test the ABS brakes a number of times from very high speeds, over 100 mph, and they were as powerful and quick and positive as you could want.

Summary & Specs
We think this is the best overall car ever to come out of Sweden, slick, modern, pretty but understated, quick and powerful. Its surefooted stance and solid performance, 0-60 in about 6.5 seconds, should please most buyers, especially when the weather turns bad and the all-wheel-drive V8 can shine. As part of the introduction program, Volvo did a live crash test, with an S80 slamming into an 800-ton steel barrier head-on at 45 mph. When the smoke cleared and the broken glass was swept up, all four doors opened normally, a very convincing performance for a car that's so much fun to drive. While we wouldn't go as far as to call the new S80 an out-and-out sports sedan, it's closer than a Volvo has ever been before, and there simply aren't any rough edges on this package anywhere.

NewCarTestDrive.com correspondent Jim McCraw performed his test drive of the S80 in Sweden.

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Safe and superb sedans and sport wagons.

Bodystyles: 4-Dr Sedan;
Engines: 2.5L Inline 5; 2.4L Inline 5;
Transmissions: 5 Speed Automatic; 6 Speed Manual; 5 Speed Manual;
Drivetrains: All Wheel Drive; Front Wheel Drive;

Introduction
The Volvo S40 continues to enhance Volvo's reputation as a maker of superb sports sedans. The S40 looks and acts like a sports sedan. The Volvo V50 is the wagon version and our impressions carry over here. The V50 looks like a sport wagon and drives like one, which is to say it drives just like the sedan.

Volvo is a leader in safety engineering and it's clear the company put a lot of effort into building a structure designed to protect its occupants. The S40 and V50 models come loaded with active and passive safety features to help drivers avoid accidents, then protect them if there is a crash. This may be the safest car in this size class. Smaller than most luxury sedans, the S40 is much easier to park in tight spaces and it's easier to maneuver on narrow roads.

On the open road, the S40 and V50 are stable and relaxed. They can easily run with the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes C-Class, even at high speeds.

The S40 T5 comes with a turbocharged engine that's wonderfully smooth, offering quick but linear acceleration performance. The entry-level 2.4i engine feels nearly as quick and is just as smooth. The five-speed automatic is smooth and responsive. The suspension is firm but not jarring, offering an ideal balance of ride and handling, and the brakes are excellent.


The design is clean and elegant, Scandinavian simplicity. Inside, the S40 represents a sharp departure from previous Volvo designs, but above all is comfortable and full of convenience features.

New for 2007: Dynamic Stability Traction Control comes standard on all models. All 2007 models get a new overhead console. Volvo V50 and S40 T5 models come standard with the five-speed automatic Geartronic engine. Options packages have been revised.

Lineup
The Volvo S40 2.4i ($24,240) and V50 2.4i ($26,690) use a five-cylinder engine making 168 horsepower and 170 pound-feet of torque at 4400 rpm, on premium fuel. The S40 2.4i comes standard with a five-speed manual, and an optional five-speed automatic transmission called the Geartronic with an Auto-Stick that allows clutchless manual shifting. The V50 2.4i has the five-speed Geartronic as standard equipment.

Standard equipment includes air conditioning and power windows and door locks, cruise control, leather steering wheel with audio controls, tilt/telescoping steering wheel, 16-inch alloy wheels, remote entry, in-dash CD system, theft-deterrent system and two cup holders in the center tunnel console and two in the rear seat armrest.

The Select option package (S40 $1,975; V50 $2,025) includes an eight-way power adjustable driver's seat, power tilt/slide sunroof, a premium Dolby Pro-Logic surround sound stereo system with six-disc in-dash CD changer and 12 speakers, a trip computer, simulated wood inlays, and for 2007, auxiliary input and MP3 capability. The Sport option package ($875) includes Dynamic suspension, and sport alloy wheels. A Climate package ($675) includes rain-sensor wipers, heated front seats, and headlamp washers. Stand-alone options include a variety of metallic paints, five-speed automatic for the S40 ($1,250), leather seating surfaces ($1,200), dual integrated child booster seats ($300) for the V50, and Sirius satellite radio ($295). New for 2007 is a Body Styling package ($1,195) with front, rear and trunk-mounted spoilers, side skirts and lower door edge molding.

The S40 T5 ($28,390) and V50 T5 ($29,590) use a slightly larger 2.5-liter turbocharged version of the engine, making 218 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque over the wide range of 1500 to 4800 rpm. The T5 adds as standard equipment fog lights, a power driver's seat, leather gearshift knob, and trip computer. Standard are 16-inch alloy wheels; 17-inch alloys are optional. For 2007 both models come standard with the five-speed Geartronic automatic, which replaces the six-speed manual transmission.

Option packages for the T5 include a Premium package (S40 $2,350; V50 $2,395) with a power tilt/slide glass sunroof, leather seating surfaces, eight-way power adjustable passenger seat with lumbar support, and memory for the power driver seat. For 2007 the Premium package adds an auto-dimming rearview mirror with compass and Homelink transmitter. The appropriately named Dynamic Trim package ($1,995) increases the dynamics and the dynamic look of this model with a front chin spoiler, rear lower valance spoiler, trunk-mounted spoiler, side skirts, and 17-inch Scotia alloy wheels. For 2007 Volvo adds the Dynamic suspension to this package along with a sport steering wheel and gearshift knob. The Audio package ($895) includes a 325-watt Dolby Pro-Logic II surround sound system with 12 speakers and an in-dash six-disc CD player. A Climate package ($675) includes rain-sensor wipers, heated front seats, and headlamp washers. Stand-alone options are similar to the base car's except for the notable additions of bi-xenon headlamps ($700), DVD-based navigation system ($2,120). New stand-alone options for 2007 include Sirius satellite radio ($295), keyless drive ($450) and 17-inch Zaurak ($1,495) and Sagitta wheels ($550).

The S40 T5 AWD ($28,990) and V50 T5 AWD ($30,190) feature an electronically controlled all-wheel-drive system. T5 models come standard with a six-speed manual; the five-speed Geartronic automatic is optional ($1,250). The same packages and stand-alone options as above are available.

Safety is a top priority at Volvo, and all S40 sedan and V50 wagon models come with side curtain and side-impact airbags, projector-type headlamps, a rear fog light, and anti-lock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution. The addition of Dynamic Stability Traction Control (DSTC) for the 2007 models adds some peace of mind to winter motoring. If the system detects any sign that the car is starting to slide, it will try to correct for the skid.

Walkaround
The design of the Volvo S40 is lovely, subtle and original but mostly very clean: Scandinavian simplicity at its artistic best. Clearly, Volvo doesn't do boxes any more with its sedans. The S40 looks somewhat like an Audi A4 from a distance, and that's its competition, but when you look again you appreciate the unique soft snub nose. Form followed function, as short overall length was a primary engineering objective. Sexiness was a styling objective, and the S40 achieves both.

Rounded front corners (but mostly the engine package) enable this shortness, and the rear corners are pushed in as well, giving the S40 an overall stylish shape. The lack of chrome adds class, with the normal bits, from window trim to ding guards, all being black or body colored. The doors are slightly convex, as opposed to the previous concave shape, and high shoulders make occupants feel protected.

The S40 is a Volvo from any angle, but head-on it's unmistakable with its dark eggcrate grille with the diagonal Volvo slash in center. The headlamps bend horizontally from the sweetly flared fenders toward the grille, with three visible lamps: one rectangular, one round and one trapezoidal. The front air dam is divided by two splitters into three neat sections.

Viewed in profile, the sharp rear end and soft front end gives the car direction. The rocker panels are slightly wider in the rear, giving the illusion of forward rake and more motion. More dramatically, the sloping roofline quickly meets an abrupt and lipless rear deck; the distance between the bottom of the glass and the 90-degree edge of the deck is not much more than a foot. Yet all the lines, including the rear hips, cascade smoothly together. The optional alloy wheels look really good and add to the S40's presence.

Viewed from the rear, the license plate indent is clean, unlike many others. The smooth rear bumper rides over two stainless exhaust tips, pointing conspicuously and curiously down toward the ground; if they point down just to look cool, it works. The huge red taillights are trademark Volvo, each with a clear plastic band containing its backup light.

The V50 Sportwagon shares the attractive front styling of the S40 sedan. From the side, the wagon body style is achieved by simply extending the roof line and belt line back to the tail, with a slight diagonal angle from the roof down to the beltline. It's only from the rear that the V50 differs from the S40. Volvo has taken the same style of tail light, but then extended it up the side of the wagon all the way to the roof, giving the wagon a slightly awkward look from the rear. The only consolation is that the tall tail lights may help warn drivers behind you when stopping quickly.

Volvo's primary goal for the S40 was to stuff the levels of safety found in the flagship S80 luxury sedan into the S40's small package. To that end it was designed using something called VIVA, for Volvo Intelligent Vehicle Architecture. What appears to be an unprecedented amount of time, research, testing and detail went into the construction of the chassis and body in the interest of crash protection. There are several zones of deformation upon impact, built with different strengths of steel depending on that zone's function: conventional, high strength, extra high strength and ultra high strength steel.

Interior
The interior of the Volvo S40 and V50 models looks great. It's also intuitive and easy to use.

The seats are comfortable. The instrument panel is clean and simple and workmanlike, with a big speedometer and tachometer, white numbers on a black background with red needles.





The center stack is only an inch thick, like a computer monitor with a flat screen. Behind it is a storage bin. Simple, clever, practical, handsome, Swedish. You have to reach around the back of the stack to gain access to that shallow storage space, but it's better to have it than to waste it because there is a distinct lack of cubby storage in this car. The center stack curves gracefully upward behind the beautifully minimalist shift lever to link the console with the instrument panel. One problem we had with the thin stack, however, is that during hard cornering, of which the S40 is eminently capable, our right knee rode hard against the edge, and it hurt.

Audio, climate and other control buttons are arranged vertically. There are four round knobs at the corners. One of those knobs is a menu control that easily accesses more detailed information and controls. Above the buttons is an information screen.

The T5 comes with brushed aluminum interior trim, which is perfect from a style standpoint. Not too much and in all the right places, including the whole center stack. The 2.4i comes with dark wood trim, which isn't nearly as good-looking.

Storage space in the S40 is severely lacking, however. The center console has a tiny bin. The door pockets are thin with most of the space taken up by speakers. Mesh pockets are located on the leading edge of the seat bottom, in front of the driver and passenger seats, but most people won't notice or use them, though they will hold a cell phone. Everything is carefully compact in the interior, including the strong stubby door handles, easy to grab and pull. Two good cup holders forward of the center console work well.

The S40 and V50 are surprisingly roomy given the exterior dimensions, highlighting Volvo's efficient use of space. And Volvo has created intelligent ways to use that space, benefiting from some of the ideas gleaned from designing the XC90 SUV. The rear seat is a 60/40 split and the seatbacks open up to the trunk when dropped. The front seat folds as flat as the rears, creating an unprecedented open floor space and 38.4 cubic feet of cargo space, a lot for a small sedan.

The chopped-off rear end makes the trunk opening small, but it leads into a deep forward well, with 12.6 cubic feet of luggage space, about average for most mainstream sedans. Below the floor of the trunk is a space-saver spare tire and a first aid kit. The trunk lid was cleverly designed to open and close smoothly and easily.

The V50 wagon offers 27.4 cubic feet of luggage space with all seats upright, and a substantial 62.6 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats and the front passenger seat folded down, which compares favorably to many mid-size wagons by other manufacturers.

Volvo leads the auto industry in environmental awareness, and there's an emphasis on environmentally compatible cabin materials and systems, such as trim materials with low PVC content.

Driving Impressions
We've driven all the S40 and V50 models, with the 2.4i normally aspirated engine and with the T5 turbocharged engine. We found the 2.4i models an excellent choice for drivers who want a safe car with excellent driving dynamics but don't demand a lot of power. The T5 adds to this package with better acceleration performance and handling.

We were impressed at how well the base 2.4i held its own against the T5. The 2.4i model offers a nice balance of ride and handling. It's smooth and delivers adequate power though not enough for some drivers. Mash the pedal all the way down, though, and it delivers decent acceleration performance. The 2.4i is a modern dual-overhead-cam engine with variable camshaft timing. This model responds well in corners yet soaks up bumps well.


The turbocharged engine in the T5 version is wonderfully smooth. Its acceleration is quick and linear, with a broad power curve allowing it to evenly gain speed throughout the rev range. At 80 miles per hour, with the five-speed automatic transmission, it's only loafing along at 2500 rpm, so there's a lot of power to spare. The T5 is comfortable at high speed, very stable and relaxed, something we found on some wide-open California desert roads. The T5 feels ready and eager for spirited driving. This is one small car that can be a great highway cruiser, able to run with BMWs, Mercedes and Audis. It was so stable at high speeds it didn't feel like a front-wheel-drive car.

We couldn't have been happier with the electronically controlled five-speed automatic transmission. The upshift from fourth to fifth gear was so smooth that we only knew it was happening by observing the tachometer needle drop. The automatic features a manual shift mode called Geartronic, and in the manual mode, it actually let us control what gear we wanted to be in, without stepping in and overriding our wishes.

We drove for a stretch at 30-40 mph over a terrible surface with a lot of big rough patches, and the suspension felt firm but never jarring. We could feel the wheels moving, but it wasn't getting to our hands or the seat of or pants, or the body of the car. We drove up into the mountains over a fast, smooth and winding road, with lots of hard braking and abrupt changing of direction. In that situation the suspension approached its limit and stiffer would have been nice; but that situation was already faster than 95 percent of drivers will take even the T5. The S40 suspension wasn't made for that, as it shouldn't be; if it were, it would have been uncomfortable on the slower and rougher surface. Every suspension has a range, and the S40's range is right on the money.

The Dynamic Sport Suspension option has slightly stiffer springs and bushings for sharper handling. We found the ride to be punishing when we drove a V50 with the Dynamic Sport Suspension and 17-inch wheels. With a standard suspension that turns in and hugs the road as well as this one does, it doesn't seem to make sense to pay more for a stiffer, less comfortable ride.

The steering is electro-hydraulic with light, distinct and controlled feedback. It feels firm and tight, offering the right amount of resistance. The torque steer normally inherent in front-wheel-drive cars was minimal to the point of insignificance.

We used the brakes a lot, and they were strong, smooth and true. The ventilated discs are plenty big for the size of the car, at 11.8 inches front and 10.9 inches rear. We performed a panic stop at 75 mph, and the ABS dragged the car to a stop in a direct and confidence-inspiring manner.

Summary & Specs

The Volvo S40 is a superior small sedan. The body and chassis boasts excellent crashworthiness, and the size is both compact outside and spacious inside. Its smooth exterior lines are distinctive, even unique, and beautiful. There are many good new cars nowadays for $25,000, but if you went down the list comparing features, qualities and components, the Volvo S40 would be difficult to beat. Upgrading to the T5 with its turbocharged 2.5-liter five-cylinder engine puts you into the same levels of performance as the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C-Class, and Audi A4. The V50 packages all this into a practical sport wagon.

NewCarTestDrive.com correspondent Sam Moses filed this report from California; with Mitch McCullough reporting from Charlottesville, Virginia.

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Fun convertible that turns into a coupe.

Bodystyles: 2-Dr Convertible;
Engines: 2.5L Inline 5;
Transmissions: 5 Speed Automatic; 6 Speed Manual;
Drivetrains: Front Wheel Drive;

Introduction
The Volvo C70 is a four-seat coupe that turns into a convertible with the press of a button. Its retractable hardtop help started a trend of coupe/convertibles. The sleek steel top retracts into the trunk in 30 seconds.

The C70 is based on the S40 sedan, but has a wider track and more luscious lines. The engine, suspension and transmission are proven Volvo components, while the chassis has been fortified and re-figured to increase rigidity over the previous generation C70, and meet Volvo's industry-leading safety standards.




We found the C70 to be an excellent highway cruiser, smooth and steady at high speeds, quiet with the steel top up. Its stereo sounds superb. The C70 feels like a sports car. It has a solid feel and strikes an appropriate balance of responsive handling with a smooth, well-controlled ride quality and fade-resistant brakes. We liked it best with the six-speed manual, but the five-speed automatic is crisp and responsive.

The styling is brilliant, with elegant coupe lines, and the retractable hardtop is an engineering masterpiece. The cabin features comfortable seats, the latest in Volvo interior styling and fabrics, and a clever cubby behind the center dash.

Everything operates as it should, and it's a beautiful piece of work. Nothing else on the market offers what the C70 does, priced under $40,000.

Volvo completely redesigned its C70 in 2006, and it remains relatively unchanged for 2007 save for a few audio additions.

New for the 2007 C70 are a few key audio features, including a standard auxiliary audio input plus MP3 playback capability from the in-dash CD changer, and optional Sirius satellite radio.

Lineup
The 2007 Volvo C70 comes as one model ($39,090). The retractable hardtop is standard. The C70 comes standard with a six-speed manual; a five-speed automatic is optional ($1,250).

Standard features include power front seats, leather steering wheel with controls, and an in-dash six-disc CD changer that includes new MP3 playback capability with eight speakers and four amplifiers.

Optional packages include leather interior with HomeLink ($1,395), and a climate package with heated front seats, headlamp washers and rain-sensing wipers ($675). The Dynaudio sound system ($1,550) features 14 speakers, five amplifiers and two subwoofer amplifiers blasting 910 watts via Dolby ProLogic II Surround Sound. Standalone options include high-intensity discharge headlamps ($700), navigation system ($2,120), silver metallic paint ($475) and pearlescent white paint ($625). The 17-inch Sadira alloy wheels come standard, while 18-inch Mirzam alloy wheels are optional ($995).

Safety features include electronic stability control with traction control and anti-lock brakes with brake force distribution. In addition to the required front airbags, there are side airbags in front, and air curtains which activate upwards from the doors, even with the windows rolled down. The Rollover Protection System, a pop-up rollbar, is activated by a pyrotechnic charge, which will smash the rollbars through the glass when the roof is on.

Walkaround
The styling of the C70 revolves around the roof, developed in Italy by Pininfarina. Its roofline is that of a coupe, and it is the most handsome of coupes, with a solid upward sweeping A-pillar and delicately thin and downward sweeping C-pillar. Stand close enough, and you can spot the two seams that enable the roof to stack into thirds and drop into the trunk, but otherwise there's not a hint of compromise in the graceful roofline.

The roof lands on the rear deck at a point higher than it takes off from the hood, because of the rear wedge and elevated rear sills for safety. A soft ridge at the beltline carries all the way from headlight to taillight, accentuating the wedge, which is conspicuous but not bulky; the C70 was not given a fat butt in order to fit the roof under its skirt.

The trunk (its lid is aluminum) contains 12.8 cubic feet of cargo space with the roof up, and 6 cubic feet when it's retracted: enough room for two sets of golf clubs, says Volvo.

When viewed from the front three-quarter angle, it's clear how short and smooth the hood and nose are, and how aerodynamic the package truly is. When you pay attention to the lines, the brilliant job by John Kinsey hits home. Five full inches have been removed from the nose of the previous generation C70, and the edges have been softened, resulting in a two-inch narrowing of the front shoulders, despite an increased overall width.

Unlike Audi, which seems to be following the Dodge Ram in-your-face school of design, the grille of the C70 is smaller and quieter. The headlamps gently lean inward toward the grille, as the foglamps under the headlamps surround the opening in the smooth fascia/bumper. The hoodline tapers elegantly down to the bottom of the fascia, inches above the road. The effect of the lower three openings is like a reflection of the headlamps and grille, in a pond. Surprisingly, or maybe not, the shape of the C70 was dictated more by aerodynamics than styling.

It's rare for a designer of a car to also do the wheels (a sore point with designers), but Kinsey did these as well, and the symmetry and standard shows. They look like what they are: made for the car. The optional 18-inch "Mirzam" alloy wheels are stunning. We would say they're worth it for the way they cap the gorgeous styling, but the standard 17-inch "Sadira" alloy wheels are beautiful too. They look like premium wheels.

As the roof retracts, it first elevates, and then slides back and stacks itself in its three sections before quietly submerging into the rear deck. Presto: with one button on the console, it's gone in 30 seconds. Up or down, it takes the same time, and the same index finger.

Many C70s were crashed at the high-tech Volvo Cars Safety Centre in Sweden, to determine the optimum deformation structure in both the nose and tail. Volvo even T-boned the driver's door with one of its own XC90 SUVs: Double the data.

The structural safety features of the C70 take thousands of words to describe in detail. From top to bottom, front to rear, side to side, the chassis has been strengthened, tweaked, and made crushable where possible to dissipate energy in a crash. The C70 more than compensates for the loss of rigidity with a fixed roof; it's stiffer and safer than the previous C70 coupe. The reinforced B pillars, normally connected by a roof, are connected on the C70 by one of five transverse frame members. This dissipates crash forces. The door sills are laser welded, and raised behind the B pillars. The doors have diagonal steel beams. The A-pillars use extra high strength steel, and extend all the way down to the frame rails.

The C70 is built on the S40 platform, and uses the same wheelbase but the S60's wider track, for more stable cornering. But it needs that width between the wheels, to carry the extra weight. Because of the strengthening of the chassis, and the retractable hood mechanism, the C70 weighs 3,772 pounds, which is 468 more than the S40 and 201 more than the larger S60.


Interior
Top up or top down, life is good inside the Volvo C70. The front bucket seats are ergonomically shaped and very comfortable. The Flextech upholstery that comes standard is a stylish synthetic material with a wetsuit-like feel. Its quality is way beyond cloth, and it feels as nice as leather against the skin.



The front seats slide forward with the touch of a button to ease the boarding of passengers into the two rear seats. There are a number of storage compartments in the cabin, some of which are lockable, useful when the car is parked with the roof down. Other compartments can be locked with a separate key, when leaving the car with a parking attendant, for example.

Volvo's flat-panel center stack fits in a world of flat panel computer monitors and television screens. It features a horizontal information screen over a column of buttons for radio and climate controls. Four big knobs dot each corner, all swathed in sleek aluminum trim. A clever storage bin behind the panel offers a place for a purse. The panel is unique to Volvo. Overall, though, storage space is in short supply.

The trunk gets crowded with the top down, also. Golf club bags have to slide under the roof, so there's an electric mechanism called Load-Aid, which lifts the roof sections and window glass eight inches. There's also a hatch between the rear seats that allows long things like skis to be carried in the trunk, extending into the passenger compartment. There's no room for a full-size spare tire, but buyers can choose between a temporary spare or a compressor bottle with sealant touted to plug a quarter-inch hole sufficiently well to last 120 miles at 50 mph.

In the rear seats, the C70 has more legroom than the Audi A4 and BMW 3 Series (1.5 and 1.9 inches more, respectively).

We found the Dynaudio system vivid and all there. With the top down, as the speed of the car climbs, the volume automatically increases. It doesn't forget to back off when you do.

New for 2007 is a standard auxiliary audio input for iPods and other MP3 players, plus MP3 playback capability from the in-dash CD changer. Sirius satellite radio is also available.

Driving Impressions
The Volvo C70 seems to be made for high-speed cruising. The acceleration isn't neck-snapping, but the top speed is a mind-boggling 150 mph, and electronically limited at that. The car is very smooth and steady at freeway-plus speeds. And with the steel top, there's no ragtop racket at high speed.

The C70 is front-wheel drive and Volvo's well-proven turbocharged five-cylinder engine. It's 2.4 liters with dual overhead cams and variable camshaft timing, tuned to the same 218 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque as the S40; that's 10 horsepower more than the base S60, so the acceleration is about the same as the S60 sedan. Volvo estimates 0 to 60 at 7.6 seconds with the six-speed manual gearbox, and 8.0 seconds with the five-speed automatic. It's respectable performance, but certainly not scintillating. (We consider eight-second 0-60s to be roughly the dividing line between quick and average performance.)

The C70 requires premium fuel, and is EPA-rated 20/29 mpg City/Highway.

The standard six-speed manual best complements the C70's sports car feel, and also allows snappier acceleration. It's such a good gearbox, smooth and tight, and we've praised it in other Volvo models. If it's good enough for the high-performance S60R, it's great for the C70.

We found the five-speed automatic to be a fine, crisp transmission. And for those who want a little extra control at times, the automatic features a satisfying and obedient Auto-stick mode.

The brakes work well and we found them to be resistant to fade on a winding road that overheated the brakes on some lesser cars.

The C70 doesn't feel heavy when you flick it around in the curves. The rack-and-pinion steering is power-assisted and electro-hydraulic, and provides a solid feel. We wouldn't call it light or nimble, but turning the C70 doesn't require a lot of effort. It simply gives good feedback through the healthy leather-wrapped steering wheel. Solid as a Swede.

The same could be said of the ride. The chassis is stiff, a key to crisp handling and a smooth ride. The current C70 doesn't shake like many convertibles, including the previous-generation C70.

Summary & Specs
The Volvo C70 is gorgeous. Its safety is unbeatable. The engine, transmission and suspension are proven to be smooth and reliable. The price for this four-seat hardtop convertible is a bargain. It's fun and convenient.

NewCarTestDrive.com correspondent Sam Moses filed this report from Maui.

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