It's the ultimate package when you look at it. The Volvo C70 is a four-seater with a folding hard roof that makes the car look good with it up and even better with it down. With this D5 turbocharged diesel engine it has the blend of power and economy that means you can afford to run it, and with Volvo's reputation for passenger protection it's one of the safest cars on the road.That's the reason I took it down into Cornwall for a couple of weeks with two of my children as fellow testers. Close on a thousand miles of mixed motoring later we had a better idea of what the car was all about, but for some reason we never properly bonded with it.This top-of-the-range SE Lux version looks sexier than a Volvo should with the sweeping lines of the roof, rising and falling over those clean flanks, the bulging wheelarches cupping the 18" alloys shod with Pirelli P-Zero tyres.Unlocking the door with the keyless system is as easy as thought – just grab the handle and tug. Then, as you swing into the leather seat, you'll see that the interior is quietly gorgeous with the clean and functional looking controls and instruments and that fabulous, slimline centre console that looks like the knobs and switches have just been glued to a bent strip of metal.Rather than stabbing a button to start the engine, you either turn a removable knob in the dash or, if you prefer, stick the key-like plastic protrusion on the blipper into the same slot and give it a turn.Putting the roof back takes about 30 seconds if you've prepared in advance. There's a load separator in the boot, under which you must have all your luggage because unless it's locked in place the roof won't open. When it does, though, it's a jaw-droppingly complex transformation. The roof breaks into three sections that shuffle themselves like cards into a single pack and slip under the bootlid.Don't expect to get into the boot when the roof's down, though. Trying to get an address book I'd left in the bag, I lifted the lid to be faced with the package of metal and glass and barely a gap to get past it. There's a button on the boot lip which raises the gubbins about eight inches but it only helps marginally. I had to put the roof up again to get access to the bag.Slot the selector for the Geartronic automatic gearbox into D and try to pull away hard and there's an un-nerving momentary hesitation before the gear locates and the car surges forwards. The diesel engine gives a surprisingly macho growl though as it rises under stress but when it changes gear again it just feels ponderous and sluggish. Even the semi-manual shift doesn’t speed things up much. Sporting it ain't and I'm sorry but I just don't like the box.Roaring off down the motorway is great with the top down . . . if you're in the front. In there the seats are comfortable with their built-in heating and comprehensive electronic adjustments but the back seats have very little leg and foot room unless a front seat is pushed forward. The daughter was also being whipped mercilessly by her hair, caught up in the vortex beyond the protection of the windscreen. To save myself from being prosecuted for cruelty I put the roof up for most of the trip.With the roof up, it was cosy and comfy, even for the girl in the back who'd negotiated with her sister a halfway position for the seat in front of her. We listened to CDs stacked into the multichanger as the miles clicked by and stopped for refreshments just as the rain came on.Fed and watered, we came out of the service station in a downpour. Getting into the car was a slow process for the kids – they pulled the handle to tip the seat then stabbed a button on its shoulder to slide it all forwards electronically. All the time the rain dribbled off the roof and right onto the main seat adjustment switches.I was hoping nothing would short out and my eldest child wouldn't end up as a toasted sandwich between the folded leather baps of the seat. Opening the window in the rain caused a similar problem, but this time the water ran onto the window switches.While we're on those switches, the back-seat passenger complained there was no switch in there for her to open her own window – the back windows could only be opened at the gift of the driver. Odd.Over the next couple of weeks the kids helped me work out how to use the sound system and the onboard sat-nav which turned out to be quite instinctive once I'd got used to them. I can't help feeling some of the technology was a bit superfluous, though.Take the keyless entry system. The blipper is massive, and with the plastic plug-and-turn protrusion at one end, it's a lot bulkier than the key I have for my ancient Toyota. I also had a hard time trusting that the car was locked. Theoretically, all you do is stab a button on the doorhandle and that's it, but once I came back and it was inexplicably unlocked. There was one other morning I went out and found all four windows were wide open, though the car was locked.There were days when the C70 was a dream to have - sunny afternoons flitting along dappled lanes ripe with wild apples and blackberries, sunset evenings cruising through coastal villages looking cool and smiling at the lieges - but all these miles later I can't help but feel a bit let down by it. Give me a good manual gearbox and a traditional key/blipper and I'd smile a lot wider. The boot access issue I could learn to work around and I'd treat the interior as a spacious 2+2 rather than a cramped four-seater. Engine 2400 cc, 5 cylinders Power 180 bhp @4000 rpm Torque 258 ib/ft @1750 rpm Transmission 5 speed semi-auto Fuel/CO2 38.7 mpg / 193 g/km Acceleration 0-62mph: 9.5sec Top speed 140 mph Price From £31596.00 approx Release date 01/08/2006
Our Rating
