Volvo C70 Convertible
Some cars are destined to befuddle one. The C70 is a case in point. Volvos seem to have two main target markets, the safety seeking minimalists and the executive brigade actively avoiding the Teutonic Triumvirate. Safe and boring or, well boring and boring. Well made, understated, safe and seemingly everlasting. These are the brand values typifying Volvo and their clientele. Then Volvo goes and confuses us by building the excellent C30 hatchback that breaks moulds and is cool and has thrilling for a hatchback dynamics and the XC60 which redefines cool SUV and is a very decent drive. C70 is a good looking car, but Volvo is all about understatement, and isn't the point of a good looking convertible to be seen in? Make a statement?
Certainly the example I had with its loud maroon two-tone interior made a serious splash and was certainly very noticed. Then there are the dynamics. This car seems defined by pronounced scuttle shake with the roof down. Unusual for a modern, well engineered convertible. Unusual and very un-Volvo like that. With the roof up the chassis is 15% stiffer.
I wouldn't know if this cured the scuttle shake, because the foldable tin top was so damn noisy and rattly that I drove it permanently roof down. Taking the roof down or putting it up is another surprise, while the 30 second delay is about standard, the fact that the car needs to be motionless is a nuisance.
Totally motionless, things grind to a halt if you so much as creep forward. Perhaps a rethink is in order, I am sure the roof will not be torn asunder in a 5km an hour crawl? On to the engine, 169kw and 320Nm should feel fast, and the auto is claimed to do the ton in 8 seconds flat. It feels slower, much slower. It does have some unique safety features, the most striking one if you pardon the pun is the automatically deployed roll over system.
In the event of rollover these two probes ensure they hit the tarmac rather than your head, and they do this by popping up. If the roof is up, they still pop up and hardened steel protrusions are designed to smash through the rear glass windscreen! Don't get me wrong, this isn't a dud car, but I am just not sure who it is meant for. A cruiser for the Volvo enthusiast certainly, but the T-5 designation is saved for the performance derivatives, and if going fast is your thing, then this car isn't.
Poser's convertible? Well that is hardly Volvo's place in the world. At R529 000 it is well priced for a large true four seater coupe-convertible, I am just left feeling it could so easily have been so much better, and I am left with the echo of the words that so often graced my school report cards: “Shows much promise but must try much harder next term.”
