Volvo C70 Coupe Convertible
On sale mid March 2006

We live in a very complicated world and there are times that I long for the simpler pleasures of life. However, much of today’s technology does help to make our leisure time more enjoyable. For instance, the new Volvo C70 Coupe Convertible has a total of 670 moving mechanical parts and that is just for the roof and boot mechanism. It works in an extremely clever way and at its launch last week, we were assured that it had been tested for over a year and nothing had gone wrong.

The mechanism is actually very simple to operate and really I don’t care what goes on underneath the chassis, just so long as it works. The three piece retractable steel roof was designed and developed by Volvo and Pininfarina and folds up or down in 30 seconds. It really is a work of art to watch, layering one piece on top of another. By lowering into the boot, it takes up luggage space, but the boot will still hold a couple of overnight bags. As the steel roof layers are presumably quite heavy to lift, there is a yellow button at the side of the boot, which when pressed, automatically raises the roof layers so that you can get easy access to the luggage space.

The fact that the new C70, which goes on sale in the UK in mid March, is a coupe as well as a convertible, will mean it will appeal to a much wider market. A colleague of mine bought a convertible several years ago and after having had the top slashed with a knife several times, vowed never to buy another. This second generation C70 will appeal to the user choosers of the fleet market, previously denied the choice of a convertible. It has a hard steel roof and a host of security and safety features.

In fact the new Volvo is so popular that the number of models forecast to be sold this year, have already been sold. It has an attractive exterior design, which retains the typical Volvo rounded front corners and shoulders with shapely rear lights.

The interior has a clean Scandinavian design with a floating centre console, which provides extra storage space. There are three trim levels, Sport, SE and SE Lux, with prices ranging from £26,200, but even the basic model has a wealth of standard features and there is plenty of space for putting bags and other bits and pieces. The seats in the rear will adequately accommodate two adults, making it a practical four seater.

Of course, one of the mandatory items when buying a convertible has to be a good sound system. Volvo is introducing a high quality digital amplifier which creates a very natural sound quality, and adjusts the sound experience to the conditions, speed of the car or outside noise.

But if the music doesn’t relax you, then the suspension will. At the launch of this premium car, I drove nearly 500 miles in one day and still felt refreshed when I got out at our final destination. It is great for long distance driving, although I have to admit that most of my journey was over very smooth desert roads. Potholed roads in the UK may be an entirely different matter.

Volvo says it has designed its new coupe convertible with safety in mind. Obviously much of this is attributed to the hard top, in comparison to the soft top rivals, which include the Audi A4 Cabriolet and BMW 3 series. Every model features an anti theft alarm including immobiliser and volume sensor as standard and there is a large lockable glovebox.

At its launch, the only engine available to drive was the top of the range T5, which costs £33,225 for the SE Lux trim. It is quiet and unassuming, but when I put my foot down to get in front of a herd of camels about to step into the road, it showed a clean pair of heels. The other petrol engine is the 2.4i, and in the Summer this year, Volvo is introducing a 220bhp diesel engine.

The new Volvo C70 Coupe Convertible will certainly be a car I would choose to drive if I wanted to escape the complexities of life, if only for a couple of hours.

By Sue Cooke