Volvo C30 3 door hatch
The Volvo C30 hatch was one of the stand-out cars at this
year’s Bangkok International Motor Show. Compact and yet
very stylish, something that you do not immediately think of
when discussing Volvos, which, for my money, have always
been very ‘ordinary’ - but the C30 is different.
Volvo
C30 Hatch
This opinion was shared by GoAuto in Australia which tested
the new C30 last week. “This Volvo has an obvious and
definable character. In the new C30 T5, finding something
ordinary requires you to look at the car’s inner schematics
(it shares many components with the fine Ford Focus),
because this car brims with a personality both corporate and
individualistic.”
Take the styling, a mixture of several Volvos past - the
nose is the 1998 S80 redefined; the profile recalls the
480ES Coupe of the late ’80s; the rear a combination of
contemporary Volvo Estate for the tail-lights enclosing a
1960s P1800ES glass hatch.
This combination seems to work brilliantly on this little
Swedish alternative to an Audi A3, BMW 1 Series and
Mercedes-Benz C-class hatch - and perhaps the Mini Cooper
and Subaru Impreza WRX.
Volvo
C30 Hatch
As GoAuto has said in the past, the dashboard really lifts
the Volvo as far as function, aesthetics and perceived
quality are concerned. It is an extremely elegant and simple
solution to using the various climate and audio controls
without having a bewildering number of buttons or switches
scattered throughout the car.
The C30 in T5 guise as tested is deceivingly well equipped
too. Sited discreetly within driver’s reach are niceties
like a comprehensive trip and car-function computer, climate
control air-conditioning, auto-on headlights, cruise
control, six-stack CD/MP3 audio, heated front seats,
driver’s electric seat adjuster, and auto-on for the Xenon
headlights.
We like the chunky quality feel of the switches in this car,
and they have the added bonus of not looking like they are
aping the established leader in this field, Audi.
And as with all Volvos of late, the cabin feels well made,
cocooning from the outside world, and long lasting. Only the
lower-console drink holder receptacles jar with the look of
the rest of the interior.
While the high-shouldered waistline, big wheel arches and
weighty doors give the C30 a masculine look and feel, there
is a fetching floral pattern set against the metallic
console finish that suggests otherwise.
Similarly, a pleasantly light six-speed manual gearshifter
soothes the rorty sound of the turbo-charged five-cylinder
engine.
And while there is the space efficiency of front-wheel drive
at play in this hatchback’s pronounced cab-forward shape,
the rear seats in the T5 are twin individual buckets (that,
sadly, don’t recline), much like you may find in a coupe.
While we’re in the back here, the side windows don’t open
either, but there is an armrest, a couple of storage areas
and ample support on offer.
Our only major gripe concerns getting in and out from back
there: the front occupants’ seatbelt cuts across the path,
which could lead to feet and knees becoming tangled up (but
this is the norm for most rear passenger entries in two door
cars - Dr. Iain).
The hatch aperture is not especially large either, so
maneuvering larger objects in or out can be tricky. But
while the floor is quite shallow (a space-saver spare lives
under there), the cabin itself is quite long - an upshot of
the C30 using exactly the same 2640mm wheelbase (and
MacPherson strut/independent multi-link suspension) as the
S40/V50 models.
Better still, that glass hatch makes reverse parking simple,
since you can actually see stuff through the twin rear seats
as you are reversing.
Moving forward, the C30 is surprisingly easy to drive - and
also deceptively fast. While the 2.5 liter five cylinder
engine’s turbo does take a moment to spool up, it does
deliver its 162 kW of power forcefully through a wide rev
range, accompanied by a sizeable increase in speed and that
appealing engine note we mentioned earlier.
Keep your foot down and the velocity just keeps on rising -
right up to the 7000 rpm redline. 5000rpm is where power
peaks, but the oodles of torque on tap (320 Nm of it in
fact) climaxes from just 1500 rpm.
This is the Volvo engine found in the Focus XR5 Turbo, and
so you might have some idea of how punchy it can be -
particularly as the C30 weighs a significant 130 kg less
than the Ford.
On the other hand, you pay for having this much performance
at your disposal. We averaged only around 12.2 to 12.6 L/100
km, although we did often revel in the racy engine’s
abilities.
With so much torque going through the front wheels, you
might expect the T5 to be a tyre scrubbing mess, but in fact
this car is more about swift and smooth progress rather than
rubber-burning.
It certainly turns in eagerly enough, and cuts a fine line
through a fast corner, aided by a nicely measured feeling of
weight from the steering wheel. And even when you go really
hard, the T5 just keeps on turning cleanly, with an
impressive amount of body control and stability there for
the driver to exploit.
But there isn’t terribly much feedback for a keen person to
revel in, while the steering doesn’t egg you on to find a
set of sharp turns in order to carve up. At least you are
also spared unwanted feedback, like wheel shake or
torque-steer tugging.
In keeping with the Volvo’s discreet nature, the ride is
firm but not hard, with the suspension doing an admirable
job in soaking up larger bumps and humps.
Even on really bad road surfaces, and with tyres as low and
wide as these, the T5’s chosen line is kept straight and
true. And the brakes stop the car with no drama.
We liked the value, styling, cabin fittings, safety,
equipment, dynamic capability, but disliked the fact it was
light on luggage space, a four-seater only cabin, and the
rear-seat entry hindered by front seatbelt.
(That’s not a bad report card for something that looks as
good as the C30 - Dr. Iain.)
Natter Nosh and Noggin
The monthly car enthusiasts meeting will be at
Jameson’s Irish Pub on Soi AR next to the Nova Park
development. The car (and bike) enthusiasts meet on the
second Monday of the month, so this time it is Monday
(December 10) at Jameson’s at 7 p.m. This is a totally
informal meeting of like minded souls to discuss their pet
motoring (and motorcycling) loves and hates. We’ve just had
the Bugatti Veyron in Thailand, but none of us could raise
the 165 million baht to buy it, so bring along any
magazines, photos of old vehicles, old girlfriends or any
interesting car or bike trivia for us all to lust over!
Autotrivia Quiz
Last week I asked what was the first diesel
engined private car? Not trucks or buses. The correct answer
was the Mercedes-Benz 260D of 1936. The first British diesel
example was the Standard Vanguard Phase II of 1954. No
wonder the British automotive industry went down!
So to this week. Who built a “wonder battery” for cars and
said it would put the petrol cars out of business. Clue: it
was the beginning of the 20th century.
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be the first correct
answer to email [email protected] Good luck!
A fang in a kart
I was invited up to the Bira Kart circuit to
discuss some business, but while I was there, the offer was
made to try one of their rental karts. Just coincidentally,
I just happened to have my crash helmet in the car, with
face mask and gloves and boots, and the kart rental people
(www.easykart.net) through their Pattaya circuit manager
Serge Forest supplied me a suit and a Rotax engined kart.
As always, driving a kart is fun, but what was outstanding
was the cleanliness of the venue and that of the rental
karts themselves. Absolutely spotless. I have to admit that
I hate finishing a session and find I am covered in chain
grease, or that I have been sitting in it! This did not
happen.
The track at Bira Kart is constantly changing, having been
designed to have many different circuit layouts on it, and
it will take you more than a couple of laps to settle in and
‘find’ the right line. The karts were also more than
powerful enough, with marketing and sales director Peter
Klein (an ex kart racer from Germany who has also raced
against a certain M. Schumacher) saying that the rental
karts are only one second slower than the out and out racing
Rotax karts.
The Easykart people will also arrange corporate and group
events at Bira Kart circuit (Highway 36) for 10 to 1,000
persons, give Peter Klein a ring on 089 072 7447 or email
[email protected]
Bira Kart is open from 10 a.m. through to 6 p.m. every day.
Put your money on
batteries
There is much discussion as to the future of the
gasoline engine. The ‘greenies’ are saying that the end is
nigh (and with oil at $100 a barrel this is a
self-fulfilling prophecy). Hydrogen and battery power are
being touted as the next wave, but where hydrogen needs
expensive refilling stations, with batteries you just plug
the charger into the home socket. Cheap and easy.
But
not these sort of batteries!
Now comes the news that VW is among the founding members of
an alliance of German industries that will invest a combined
420 million Euro (21 billion baht) to develop
high-performance lithium-ion batteries.
Announced last week at the Innovation Congress in Berlin,
the project will strive to substantially increase the energy
and performance density of the batteries and to accelerate
its use in production. The other companies participating are
BASF, Bosch, Evonik Degussa, Li-Tec and STEAG Saar Energie,
along with the German Ministry for Education and Research.
“In the future, there will be parallel use of various
automotive drive systems, all the way to purely electric
drive - (and) a high-performance lithium-ion battery as the
energy carrier will be a key technology,” said Volkswagen AG
head of group research Juergen Leohold. “Therefore, it is
sensible and necessary to combine the potentials for the
research and development of this battery in an alliance for
innovation … For Volkswagen, this initiative is an important
step on the way to zero-emission operation of vehicles.”
Earlier this month, Volkswagen unveiled the Tiguan HyMotion
at the 2007 Bibendum Challenge in Shanghai, China, a
prototype SUV demonstrating the company’s latest development
work in hydrogen fuel cell drive. The system uses a 6.8Ah
lithium-ion battery as an auxiliary energy storage device.
VW betting on both horses in the race!
