Volvo Aims at a Younger Crowd With New 2000 40-Series
Ever since Sweden’s native son John Ericsson proved safety through weight by armoring the Union battleship Monitor (it dueled to a draw with the Merrimac in 1862), Volvo engineers have been building heavy and excruciatingly boring strongboxes to deliver us from the evils of rear-enders, rollovers and moose strikes.
The scurrying, pretty, almost lightweight 2000 Volvo S40 and V40--introduced here last month and poised to enter American showrooms next month--deny that history.
Not a moment too soon.
And still in time to rescue Volvo, which has been tripping over the success of a fine but limiting manufacturing concept since it first decided to build them heavy, style them square and design them to survive for years if not forever.
Today, the company says, there are 1.5 million Volvos on American roads, with a median age of 17 years. As there is perception in numbers, the motoring public knows only what it is still seeing, and that’s a population of Volvos that are boxy, ponderous and professorial. And quite expensive.
These older Volvos are also mirror images of their sober demographics, which involve owners who still remember Al Gore, rent foreign movies without subtitles, undress in the dark but have 2.5 children anyway, rescue dogs from the pound and tithe to the Sierra Club.
Fact is, people still look at Volvos and decide nobody needs to be that married.
Truth is, Volvo hasn’t deserved that rap for several years.
Certainly not since ‘97, when the thoughtful wizards of Goteborg sent the 750 and 850 series to the crusher and introduced the 70 class as an image-busting clutch of coupes, convertibles, sedans and wagons with the availability of turbocharging and all-wheel drive.
They have shapes that purr with layers of luxury that smell of Lexus and Jaguar. There’s also a new and stunning standard-bearer, the S80, with all the performance and refinement of its mates from BMW, Acura, Lexus and Saab. But at less cost.
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Now comes the jelly on the youthful regeneration and sensual revival of Volvo: the S40 sedans and V40 wagons, which fit the unusual category of luxury compact.
With its Euro look--a quick, sloping hood, cab-forward crouch and ducktailed butt--the sedan, in profile, is styled very close to current darlings of the younger lot, the Volkswagen Passat and the BMW 3-Series. The wagon most certainly isn’t just a four-door with a box welded to the back for weekend antiquing and camping stuff, although it is roomy enough for both. At $22,900 for the sedan, $23,900 for the wagon, they are also the least expensive items in the Volvo lineup.
Most significant, the 40s are priced for Volvo’s younger, brasher, target audience--those still into relationships (not marriage), men and women in equal numbers and just into their 30s who drive to the coast on Friday night whims (no children or baby-sitters to worry about), and who are beginning professionals whose choice of car must represent a sense of self because what does a Daewoo Leganza tell potential clients about the verve and creativity of the young marketing consultant they are thinking of hiring?
Yet with the chromed slash across its upright grille (the Mark of Volvo, if you will), handling biased toward the deliberate and a firm grip of the road and all its imperfections, not a drop of the Swedish heritage has been spilled. Side air bags, “smart” front seats to temper whiplash, optional traction control and an occupants cage that would resist intrusions by an elephant--all say that the traditional strength and safety of the species has not been compromised.
Let’s not forget that Alfred Nobel, Swede of Peace, had a destructive personality. He invented dynamite. The V40 and S40 come with similar flaws. Too shiny, obviously faux walnut trims the interior. Even with front seats ratcheted forward, there’s not a ton of room to prevent pretzeling of rear-seat riders. Despite spunky performance, even an optional sports-plus package with rear-deck spoiler, the only transmission is a four-speed automatic.
Standard equipment is several cuts above normal and includes anti-lock disc brakes, power steering, a set of handsome alloy wheels, cruise control, tilt steering, power windows, cargo nets and belts, daytime running lights, CD changer and automatic climate control. Not bad for $23K.
Power comes from a 1.9-liter, low-emission four-banger that is turbocharged to put out 160 horsepower. That sounds a little on the wimpy side. Trust me, it’s good enough for zero-to-60-mph times of 8.5 seconds and a top speed of 126 mph. That won’t exactly bring tears to your eyes or tickets to your glove box. But it’s still quicker than the Audi A4, the BMW 323, Acura CL, just about all others in the four-cylinder class and a few equipped with V-6 engines.
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As we plunged through and around Washington’s Cascade Mountains and scenery to be remembered from “Northern Exposure” and “Twin Peaks,” the traits and qualities of the S40 and V40 were noticeable and constant. Great balance and well-managed weight transfer, although the steering is a little doughy at slow speeds. Only a quiver of torque steer from this front driver, no noticeable turbo lag and an overall performance package that is not inclined to do anything naughty at any speed.
For the S40 and V40, Volvo is promoting a pretty impudent Web site: http//www.swedenrules.com.
With the S40 and V40, we think it just might.
