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Fun Volvo?Story by Jeff Feldsher - October 27,2007 Widely acknowledged as the worlds “safest” carmaker, Volvo has always been expected to provide impeccable security and crash protection. In fact low speeds accidents involving the Sherman tank-like Swede have often been proven to result in major structural damage to the other vehicle, while the Volvo is left with nothing more than a small blemish.
Volvo is now ready to leverage this reputation, and step out of the box with their new 2008 C30 3-door hatchback. All it takes is one look to see this is not your typical Volvo. The classic front-end is clean and purposeful borrowing design elements from its brethren the S40 sedan, from there the styling is all new and fresh. The car begins to slant downward culminating in an SUV-like door and odd shaped hatch window The sporty hunkered down rear and optional 18 inch alloys will no doubt will appeal to a more youthful crowd dominated by hot hatch buyers - although the C30 still includes a refined leather-clad interior offering abundant space for 4.
Motivational force is provided courtesy of a 2.5L 20-valve DOHC inline 5 that sends power to the front wheels. The turbocharged engine generates 218hp, and a substantial 236lb-ft of torque available at a paltry 1500rpm. With the fast spooling turbo at full boost, the 2900lb C30 scoots to 60mph in just 6.2 sec, and crosses the quarter mile in the high 14 sec range. This places it right at the top of its class, and nipping at the heels of cars costing thousands more, including the Mazda RX-8 and Subaru Impreza WRX. The standard 6 speed manual transmission has a somewhat rubbery feel, but does a decent job offering precise shifts with minimal effort.
While its probably not quite ready to dethrone the superbly engineered and perennial favourite Volkswagen Gti, make no mistake Volvo is now a serious player in this sector, offering unexpected looks, scorching performance, and oh yeah, just a little bit of safety.
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