Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

Good looking car, glad you didn’t opt for the hearse black paint

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyldCW6fxAA

any Volvo XC-40 owners in the audience?

What do you want to know?

Is it specific to the XC-40?

I owned an S90 so can speak on the infotainment, controls, etc. And I'm picking up a V60 tomorrow. Researched the hell out of both the XC40 and XC60 and test drove both (but a couple of years ago when I opted for the S90 due to more favourable finance and quicker delivery).

Need more photos of the E30 to the left ;)

Really boring Skoda Octavia Estate on its way.New, leased, two years. Stop-gap car.

First car I've ever 'bought'.

Dull accessories now required; roof rack for bikes, child seat. Such excite.

I've got an xc-60 as velocio says there's lots of crossover between the two models. So may be able to help.

@Bobbo @Velocio

i'm taking this shiny boi for a test spinikins on monday. just wondering if you've been generally happy with your vulvonic experiences thusfar. Reliable? Comfry? Boring? Manual? Auto? Regrets?

i don't drive a heck of a lot so not too fussed about mileage / fuel efficiency.

Bon Voyage !...
Saw this in my street yesterday. I hadn't seen a C15 in ages despite them being mentioned recently.
I can't even imagine how dirty the interior is...

There is another car enthusiast round the corner working (outside) on an old classic. Will try and go have a chat and upload a pic at some point.

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Correct call, go to the top of the class,,,,, dont forget seat covers,,,,, enjoy

I'm not sports obsessed, I want cars that prioritise safety and a degree of a luxury feel with a solid and durable build. For me, Volvo have been perfect.

No regrets for the S90 I had, but I did find it a fraction too large.

I loved the way it felt, drove, the experience of the infotainment systems, the comfort on long rides, that it had speed when I needed it but exuded comfort.

I found the same to be true of the other cars I test drove, XC40 and XC60... I only chose the S90 originally because the finance deals and discount actually made the S90 a lot cheaper to buy... but I would've probably gone for the XC60.

This time around I had put the XC40 at the top of my list, and that was what I was going to order... but again I let the degree of discount via Car Wow, and the favourable finance APR steer me towards the V60. I only went Polestar because I wanted the PHEV drivetrain.

I seriously think the XC40 is one of the best small cars out there, and I loved everything about it.

If I had to try and find flaws to look for: Well, if you want sporty, you're going to find that there's a delay after you floor the pedal and that it's not going to have a quick pick up from a standing start. But then, I found it's acceleration over 30mph to be perfectly good for overtaking, and that even the standing start isn't slow, it's just not going to throw you back in your seat (which is perfectly fine by me). I also found that if you want to use your phone for navigation it's only going to use half the screen (so order the larger screen if it's an option).

On the upside though: OMG those seats are comfy for super long journeys and short journeys alike. The safety is superb. The visibility excellent. There's a great feel for the road even though computers do so much. It is precise on turning, easy to park and manoeuvre. Everything from a driver perspective is where you want it to be without it being cluttered. Feels understated in all the right ways. And hey, I love the design of Volvos.

Well I'm sold. I'm probably gonna pay cash if I go down this road, obviously going to have to sell the defender beforehand.

Would I be fucking mad to take a car for a test drive, commit to the model and then buy the exact same car, just not the one test driven previously, at a later date?

Used, obvs.

my fucken golf has just let me down for the first time ever. bastard.

the central locking is being a turd - it is deadlocked, so i can get into the car with the key, but the internal unlock switch doesn't work and i can't get the key in the ignition. no fuel cap opening, boot locked, etc.

any ideas?

Battery in the fob wants replacing?

neither key is working, nor the button in the car

fuse gone/loose? give them a wiggle / in n out

spinikins

DTM

go to the top of the boring but functional class

my fucken golf has just let me down for the first time ever. bastard.

the central locking is being a turd - it is deadlocked, so i can get into the car with the key, but the internal unlock switch doesn't work and i can't get the key in the ignition. no fuel cap opening, boot locked, etc.

any ideas?

Pull the leads off the battery, leave it for ten minutes, power it back up and see if it's seen the error of its ways?

i'm taking this shiny boi for a test spinikins on monday.

That link now says "no longer available" for me, so might be worth calling ahead on Monday before you leave.

I'd second everything that @Velocio says and add that the whole interior experience is in my eyes about as good as you're going to to get for the price range (eg without spending 7 series money). Volvo, unusally for a volume car manufacturer, standardise the interior layout and switchgear on their cars meaning that their R&D costs are spread across the range so by spreading that cost you get a really good experience with great attention to detail. As an example of the attention to detail the heads up display actually works with polarised sunglasses something I've not found on any other car I've driven.

Also I regularly drive up to Scotland to visit family and the only other car I've found close to it for eating up the miles in as much comfort is my dad's S class Merc. I bought mine as an ex demonstrator and have had 0 problems with it.

Edit. It's also very child friendly! Despite their best efforts my kids have failed to break anything inside or outside the car and the upholstery is so good at not getting stained I'm considering asking Volvo if they will make me my next sofa!

Hmmm. I'll give them a call tomorrow. Snooze you lose!

/edit link's working now

It’s child friendly because the brainstorming sessions were full of women who are mothers - they had a say in nearly all of the aspects of the design process. Apparently

Interested to know more about how taking a finance deal and then paying it off early works out - am contemplating buying a car from a dealership and can potentially buy outright. Do the dealers get commision on finance regardless of whether it's paid off early?

Rather boring for this thread, but new rear shock absorbers, front pads and discs for the Astra.

Slightly annoyed to find out the connector on the bank 2 lambda sensor I bought isn’t the right one. The sensor only cost about £15 and return postage to Germany would be a whack anyway. I’m half tempted to splice the new sensor onto the old connector, but I’ll be scuppered if that doesn’t work.

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