Re-VOL-ution of 5 Door Hatch – Volvo V40 Car Review

New fun and vigor was DRIVEN into our recent weekend courtesy of Wearnes Automotive! In a nutshell, we “traded” our cars for perhaps one of the most fun-to-drive and sleekest-looking hatches in the market now!

Why Cars Matter to Both of US

To close friends & family, they know what a car truly means to US despite the hefty COE hurdle.

This is because of the interminable commitments we hold from our own full time work to attending back-to-back lifestyle events peppered across the island after work. This continues on even during our ‘free’ time on weekends. In fact for my job as a Business lead, I need to travel frequently on a daily basis to hold important business discussions around town.

Because of all these commitments, personal transport forms an integral part of our life to help us manage all the happenings in our life. Hence, we do appreciate a fun, swift, comfortable, sleek-looking car that can fetch us relentlessly from day to night and from work to prestigious lifestyle events!

Collection Point & Exterior

This time around, the car brand we engaged in has long-recognized with safety as their middle name: Volvo!

If you still stick to traditional thinking that safety is all there is to Volvo cars while compromising on the fun drivability & sleek look, you might wanna think again after this post.

The first car that greeted us at the showroom (located at 249 Alexandra Rd, 159935) with its sharp suit was exactly the one we will be driving off in: the V40 T2!

This foxy-looking, sharp suit comprised of a long bonnet that is kept low with a wide, mesh grille complimented by that proud Volvo badge on the nose of the V40 T2! Flanking two ends of the grille are two automatic headlights while LED Daytime Running lights are available in the higher line ‘R-Design’ specs.

Nonetheless, we immediately fell deep in love with its exterior looks! This is exactly the car we want to drive to and show off at all our events! Haha!





One of the Key(literally) features we recognized on the V40 T2’s exterior is this Keyless Entry which can be conveniently activated with the slightest touch at all four doors! I find this a plus point in relativity to as my own Japanese 2.0L luxury executive sedan which only have keyless entry on the front two doors.

This makes it easier and faster to access the back seats of the car be it to put in or fetch thing out!





We thought no colour on the body of V40 could outdo this shade of Flamenco Red. We were proven when we received our weekend test drive car in its “Flamingo Red” suit (below)! In all respect for subjectivity, this colour will keep growing on you!

We already had a plan in mind for its first stop: Bring it to one of our posh lifestyle events located at the Dempsey Hill ! Let’s see how it blend in with the air of luxury and old world charms of Dempsey Hill!





The dashing, gentlemen look could not be fully completed without the presence of this sleek hot hatch!





Retractable side view mirrors upon locking of the car accompanied with ground lighting & tilt function.





The back of the V40 T2 with its signature curvature lining the rear lights. Comes with a useful ‘Rear Park Assist’ to give accurate gauge of distance from the car behind it.





A reasonable boot space for a hatch which can easily fit 6-7 big bags of clothes!








Wheels: 16” Alloy wheels, Matres, well supported with Michelin tyres of the profile 205/55 R16.





For the SECOND day, I wore something more sporty and casual. Even better, one that matched the exterior colour theme of the V40 T2! From the Premium, exquisite look coupled with my bespoke outfit a day before, NOW the V40 has transformed into a sporty-looking hot hatch to fit my second day’s #OOTD (hashtag with abbreviation for ‘Outfit of the Day’)

Just love how versatile the exterior fits the driver in ALL occasion!





Drivability

Just a simple comment on the drivability of V40 as we make our way to Dempsey Hill: These wheels combined with both the Front suspension with spring struts (McPherson) and Active multi-link independent rear suspension to give comfortable, minimal thumps over bumps.

The suspension is not too stiff. In fact, I rate it better than my own ride. Wind roar is also nicely suppressed but there can be a slight tinge of road noise when the road surface becomes particularly bad.

Generally, I feel Volvo has tuned the V40 T2 engine to pump out a lot of torque from low revs, achieving a 220Nm @ 1,600-3,500 rpm. Together with a 1.5L Turbocharged engine, these gave a great impact to its drivability!

On big stretches of expressway, it becomes apparent that the V40 T2 could easily swallow vast distances with sheer ease. Whereas on busy small lanes, it makes me feel I could zipped past any cars effortlessly with its perky, responsive 6-speed automatic transmission!

All in all, I will give its drivability a good 4/5 rating.

Interior

The dashboard looks expensive, nicely complimented with full leather upholstery and a wide array of function buttons. Most of these buttons are convenience features such as the Engine Start/Stop button & the Keyless Start button where the car whispers into life at the push of it!








Steering wheel-mounted stereo controls and Cruise Control option. Another favourite feature I like about this car is its light but surprisingly-crisp steering!





A trademark feature of Volvo cars is this signature centre Control Panel which spans a series of control buttons eg. Electronic Climate control (ECC) with pollen filter (allow you to c,














Back space may not be super spacious but it has more than enough head and legroom to accomodate 3 adults at the back comfortably. The difference from V40 backseat to other sedans out there is their seat. Don’t you think it looks like the seat in front too?





The interior is also spruced up with two-tone leather upholstery








This includes a City Safety system, which can stop you running into the car in front in stop-start traffic.

Other Features

V40 T2 tempts with a suite of premium features, including start/stop feature, cruise control with nifty steering-mounted switches, Bluetooth hands-free phone connection and Volvo’s range of active and passive safety systems.





An upmarket hatch that is giving its equivalent German rival a run for their money with its good looking inside out, torquey, remarkable control on the road.

If you want your V40 to look and feel sportier there’s the R-Design spec, which adds larger wheels, more aggressively styled bumpers, front sports seats and fancy digital instruments.

Alternatively, there’s the Cross Country version, which has a more rugged look.


..is definitely an understatement for this car!


Volvo also matches Audi and Volkswagen in offering a warranty that lasts for three years or 60,000 miles, whichever comes first