She Said/She Said: 2008 Volvo C30
One of the most overlooked new cars to come out this year is the uber-stylish Volvo C30 hatchback. Amanda Wegrzyn and Beth Palmer – two young, city-dwelling Cars.com staffers — spent a week with the car to find out why it is still overshadowed by the Mini Cooper. If they are the intended market for the C30, it seems Volvo has done its job with the little hatch.
Amanda: Let’s start by discussing the most obvious element of this car: the hatchback. I think Volvo did a really good job with it. Somehow it made the hatchback sporty. Plus, this car is distinctive and unique without being ugly. And I was stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic behind a Pontiac Aztek one afternoon, so I had a lot of time to think about this.
Beth: Agreed — I really like the way this car looks. My only complaint about the hatch was its utility: Just the glass lifts up, which looks cool but leaves a pretty narrow opening to a small cargo area. Also, the version we drove didn’t have any grocery hooks or cargo nets back there. Factor in the gap between the two rear seats, and you’ve got a grapefruit rocketing around the backseat during a drive home from the grocery store.
Amanda: Yeah, I doubt I’d use the C30 for carting around more than groceries, but that’s partly why it appealed to me as such a fun car for the city. I parallel-parked the heck out of this thing in very congested neighborhoods, and I had a hard time finding a spot I couldn’t pull into with ease. The rear pillar on the driver’s side limited my visibility a bit when I was backing up, but it was more of a minor inconvenience than a major issue. And, to be honest, the turbocharged engine more than made up for any concerns I had about the rear pillar.
Beth: Amen again. Really, my mentioning a less-than-perfect aspect of the C30 is just a nod to a thorough analysis – I was completely taken with the non-essentials in this car. The first thing I noticed was the sumptuous leather on the steering wheel; the minute I put my hands at 10 and 2, I was taken with how soft and luxurious it felt and determined to find an equivalent cover for the steering wheel in my Civic. Fantastic. The seats were comfortable, but not so cushy you’d end up with an aching back on a long road trip, and the rearview mirror has an auto-dimming feature, which for some reason is one of my favorite features in the new cars we test. I even loved the reading lights on both the driver’s and the passenger’s side. There is definitely a sense of luxury inside this car.
Amanda: It still seemed like a “young” luxury though, which I suppose is what they were going for with this car. And I appreciate that they took some chances with the design of the interior, such as with the center controls. Although the metallic, one-inch deep center console may turn some folks off, I loved the idea of the open storage area behind it, even if my purse didn’t stay put when I stashed it there. And it was a relief not to be inundated with a million buttons. All the controls seemed really pared down, which I liked in a streamlined, iPod-clickwheel sort of way.
Beth: I wish Volvo hadn’t pared down the seat adjustments quite so much, though. Most are fine, but the knobs that adjust the backrest and lumbar support have to go. Not only are they hard to use, they’re hard to reach. That said, I must acknowledge that the C30 has the first auto-manual mode I have ever enjoyed driving. Is it as fun as a standard manual? Of course not, but push the gearshift to the right when you’re in Drive and you can shift up or down with just a nudge in the corresponding direction. The night I drove the C30, I started out stuck in heavy traffic and sheepishly grateful for the automatic, and ended it cruising around empty neighborhood streets and glad to be able to rev the engine higher. I’ve always thought auto-manual modes were a ridiculous compromise, but the C30 very nearly sold me on the concept.
This review is part of an ongoing series in which other voices from the Cars.com staff will share their experiences with new cars we’re given to test. Beth Palmer is one of Cars.com's copy editors. Amanda Wegryzn is Cars.com's advice section editor. You can find our expert review of the 2008 Volvo C30 here.
Previous
Subscribe to our feed
Email us your tips!
The reason this car is not as popular as it should be is: the price - getting into it for under $25k is HARD and MPG - it isn't particularly efficient. Something this size should get over 30mpg easily.
As far as oogling over the interior - it's the same as the dated S40/V50....it's not breakthrough or new anymore. Though, it's still quite attractive.
I wanted to buy one of these, but just as LM mentioned, I was shocked at the MPG on a car this small. If I am going to downsize from a sedan, I expect better mileage, not worse.
I enjoyed this evaluation very much....non-techy, viewed from more of a functional standpoint and not adding up the horses and not giving me a detailed description of torque for once. And I like the car.
What bothers me is the last paragraph, in particular, the last sentence: "You can find our expert review of the 2008 Volvo C30 here."
That last sentence, implies that the writers were not experts....just a couple of people yadda yadda-ing perhaps. And this is immediately AFTER their fine credentials and place of employment are revealed to the reader. So, these weren't experts writing this article??? I gather from their job descriptions that they live and breathe automotive fumes...all day. Oh, I get it, they're WOMEN.
Geraldine,
Actually the term "Expert Reviews" stems from the fact that our staff reviews run side by side with consumer generated reviews. not because we think less of Beth and Amanda.
The fact is we're opening this blog up to the staffers who don't review cars as part of their jobs, both men and women. Perhaps I should have added caps to the Expert Review part?
Very profesional real-world review. These reviewers should be promoted.
a car this small has no excuse to give the driver visibility problems (unless it can run with a Lotus, in which case it can do whatever it wants)!!!
I really want to like this car, but the fuel economy and lack of rear seats kills it for me. We'll be having babies soon and will need the 5 door model. For those who plan on buying it, look into picking it up from the plant in Sweden at no extra cost!