Volvo C70 COLLECTION Special Edition
The
Volvo C70 Collection offers membership to a very exclusive owners club. Steve Ghosley finds out if being a member is worth the joining fee.
Having last year achieved their best sales figures with the C70 convertible since the car was launched, Volvo have celebrated this fact by bringing out a very limited edition called the Collection. With only 300 units being made, owners will be members of a very exclusive club.
Limited editions usually mean that the buyer purchases a car whose specification is largely dictated by the manufacturer. With the C70 Collection, however, a purchaser can choose from three exterior paint finishes, two interior leather upholsteries and three engine options. In addition, they can equip their Volvo C70 Collection with a more luxurious GT specification called The Convenience Pack, so instead of being like everyone elses Special Edition, customers have a chance of creating their very own unique model. The cars overall silhouette is one of its greatest strengths, thanks to uncluttered lines surrounding a hood that slips neatly beneath a metal tonneau cover.
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The Collection comes with unique 17-inch Otrera polished alloy wheels, which provides the car with its distinctive signature. The choices of Titanium Grey Pearl, silver metallic and Black Sapphire paintwork all help to add to the exclusive nature of this car. British Designer Peter Horbury joked that it's the best looking topless Swede since Sixties movie star Anita Ekberg: you may not necessarily agree with this comparison but youll be able to appreciate where hes coming from. Two sumptuous and exclusive interiors are available in either Toscana Tan soft leather with aluminium inlays or Off Black leather with carbon fibre inlays. These are both augmented by decorative inlay stitching on the seats, door panels, sun-visors, centre armrest and steering wheel. With the Off Black interior the stitching is in a contrasting colour whereas with the Toscana Tan the stitching matches.
Other attractive touches are the silver bright finish to the air vent and handbrake lever knobs. Heated front seats complete the interior package along with and Off Black sports steering wheel and matching luxury floor mats.
"customers have a chance of creating their very own unique model."
Customers aiming to pamper themselves even more can opt for the Convenience Pack. Priced at £900, this gives the Collection owner an SC901 RDS 3xCD radio cassette, 4x100W amplifier with Dolby Pro Logic Surround Sound and 9-inch subwoofers. Now if that doesnt impress you, you also get an auto-dimming rear view mirror, front cup holders and an Information Centre as well.
Volvo claims that the electrically folding roof is one of the most technologically advanced available.
It's operated via a single dashboard button: no hooks, no attachments, no broken fingernails or grazed knuckles. Just a silent transformation that occupies just thirty seconds. With the hood up, the only problem is a lack of visibility through the rather small rear window. Better to fold it down at every opportunity, a process which conceals the soft-top and its glass electrically-heated rear window out of sight behind the rear
seat.
One item where there is no choice is with the roof colour which only comes in black. An optional wind deflector (well worth specifying) can also be fitted behind the front seats. The wind deflector isnt the cleverest looking thing, but its undoubtedly effective. Three different engines are available.
The entry-level 2.0T is good for 163bhp with prices starting at £26,583, the 2.4-litre light pressure turbo engine develops 200bhp and starts at £28,283, while the 2.3-litre fully-blown turbo in the T5 GT version manages 245bhp - good enough for rest to sixty in 7.
5s on the way to 146mph and weighs in with a starting price of £29,983. This being a Volvo, safety has come in for considerable thought, the result of which has been a Roll-Over Protection System (ROPS). This ensures that if the car is about to turn over, hoops behind the standard rear headrests spring into place above head height. This works in conjunction with side impact and anti-whiplash systems borrowed from the S80.
In addition, this is the first convertible car to be fitted with automatic seatbelt pre-tensioners on all four seats. This car actually benefits from considerable British influence - and not only from the design team. The original project was master-minded by Tom Walkinshaw Racing and if theyd had similar success with his Arrows F1 team, they may now have been challenging for a podium position. TWR, you may remember, were also the team that took the boxy Volvo 850 and turned it into a race-winning force in the British Touring Car Championship.
The Kidlington-based operation specialises in chassis engineering; drive the C70 Collection and it shows. The enthusiastic driver will find plenty to entertain, without any of the temperament that's exciting on your favourite twisty country lane but irritating just about everywhere else. Turn-in is crisp; only the ride quality could be slightly better. To be fair, since the C70 Coupe is more a Grand Tourer than a sportscar, it would be unreasonable to expect anything different from its soft-top stablemate. Lazy steering and a manual gearbox that doesn't like to be hurried discourage really over-enthusiastic use - though there's very little body-shake over uneven surfaces. This car is almost certainly at its best in cruising mode. The 2.4-litre model with automatic transmission would probably be an ideal choice.
The C70 was never destined to muscle its way in on markets dominated by Mercedes CLK Convertible or Audis A4 Cabriolet, but as a niche market player, it does have something to offer both in looks and performance, providing the owners requirements are dictated by a more relaxed and effortless life style. With the UK being the C70 Convertibles second biggest market behind the US, its important for Volvo that the car continues to appeal to British motoring tastes of quality, style and value-for-money. With the C70 Collection, Volvo look to have scored three out of three.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Volvo C70 Collection Convertible range
PRICES: £26,583-£29,983 on the road
CO2 EMISSIONS: 226-236g/km
INSURANCE GROUPS: 15-17
PERFORMANCE: [T5] Max Speed 146mph/ 0-60mph 7.5s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [T5] (urban) 19mpg / (extra urban) 25mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin airbags, side airbags, ABS, SIPS WILL IT FIT INTO YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Height, 4720/1820/1410mm
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