Volvo C30 1.6 DRIVe

The DRIVe C30 has taken in many a long trip. Trekking to other countries, heading as south as Dover, as far north as Cumbria and a fair few places in between. While I expect a Volvo to be comfortable on long journeys, you would be forgiven for doubting that this would be as comfortable as say a Volvo C70. Well having driven one of these bigger Volvos earlier in the month, I’d say my Volvo C30 was better and less wallowy. Large doesn't always equal luxury.

The suspension provides a soft, comfortable ride over most of the country roads I endure en route to work, and it gobbles up motorway journeys with comfort and ease.

I don’t make a habit of stalling cars but when I first took ownership of the Volvo C30, I found I was quite frequently. I still do it occasionally now – I blame the tall gearing. You get used to it though, and have to pick a lower gear than you would normally. Sometimes coming into a roundabout, second is just too tall and you have to snick into first. Not ideal, but then this is the price for tall gearing and those low, low, low emissions and consumption figures.

The flipside is that long journeys are whisper quiet and unstrained. Engine noise is quiet, and the comfy ride and seats soften the back and bum ache you can sometimes endure on longer journeys.

resoures : car