The Swedish firm has certainly made a car that turns heads and it comes in a unique shape.
It comes with a bodykit, which transforms the C30 into a stylish and sexy looking car, the kit includes a roof spoiler, alloy wheels and unique R badging.
Interior
On the inside, the car has been fitted with quality materials giving the interior a luxurious feel. Even though the floating aluminium with a carbon fibre-effect finish central console has been out for a few years, it is central to the cabin and looks like a space age design.
It is practical too as there is a small cubby-hole behind the console which is large enough to hold a pair of glasses or plenty of loose change for the parking meters.
The seats look as if they have come from a fashion magazine – they are thickly padded and are covered in two-tone cream and black leather, while the steering wheel is also wrapped in hide.
Practicality
The C30 is not the biggest car on the road and it is the practicality stakes where it fares worse. Four adults will sit in the car in relative comfort, however legroom is cramped and boot space is minimal for this size of car. When it comes to measuring the boot potential buyers will be surprised as it has only got 233 litres of space – that’s the same room that you would get in a Ford Fiesta.
On the road
Under the bonnet, the C30 R-Design has a 1.6 diesel engine which has an output of 109PS, giving it plenty of speed. The car has 240Nm of torque at 1750rpm – the engine is punchy and this makes overtaking easy. Volvo claims the C30 will do the zero to 60mph sprint in 11.3 seconds –while the top speed is 118mph.
Ford is Volvo’s parent company so the C30 shares its underpinnings with the Ford Focus but unfortunately it doesn’t handle as well as the Focus.
The C30 is a comfortable cruiser on UK motorways but take it onto the B roads and the car is not as planted as the Focus. It does have an accurate steering but there is a numbness – if Volvo enhances the weighting on the steering then the car be much better when on the road.
The test car returned 50.9mpg on the combined cycle and it is quite eco-friendly as the C30 1.6D in UK specification emits 129g/km
The C30 1.6D R-Design is a gorgeous looking car, its eco-friendly and returns a decent mpg – this car is perfect if there’s just the two of you, otherwise you’ll want to use it as a second car.
