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Autocar takes a look at the Volvo C30 Polestar concept
The Volvo C30 Polestar concept is a car that comes with a lot of expectations from a lot of people. Granted, the hype won’t be settled until after we see it out on the road, but thanks to Autocar, we’re getting an early look on what people are saying about Volvo’s emphatic answer to the Ford Focus RS. Ironically enough, both the C30 Polestar and the new Focus RS come with the same 2.5-liter Volvo T5 engine, although Volvo will be quick to point out that their version has been quasi-tweaked to beat anything and everything the Focus RS can offer, including a 0-60mph time of just 4.6 seconds. Whether there’s truth to that will be answered as soon as the car is released. In the meantime, check out Autocar’s test run of the C30 Polestar to get a closer look at the car the Focus RS should begin worrying about. Video: A comprehensive walk-through of the Volvo Polestar C30
Obscenely long name nothwithstanding, the Polestar Performance Volvo C30 Performance Concept Prototype is one tasty vehicle, not just because it’s been tuned up to appease the inner race car driver in all of us, but because the finished product is actually better than any of us expected given that it is, after all, a Volvo. To make sure that we get to know the prototype racer to a tee, the folks from Volvo, together with their counterparts from Polestar Performance, have released a walk-through video of the souped-up C30. This video describes every painstaking detail of the Volvo courtesy of Derek Crabb, Volvo’s vice president of powertrain engineering and the executive director of motorsports engineering, and Christian Dahl, managing director of Polestar. Needless to say, both men offer some pretty insightful takes on the car, most of which should give Volvo enthusiasts a taste of what it would feel like to sit behind the wheel of the tuned-up C30.
Volvo C30 by Heico Sportiv
 
Heico Sportiv specializes in tuning Volvo cars and has done so since 1997, so it isn;t surprising that they have unveiled a new customization program for the new Volvo C30. The new kit is based on accentuating the car’s design and improving driving dynamics and performance although, in Yoda terms, exhaustive in components, it is not. The new components are simple in number. They are made in reinforced polyurethane plastic and consist of a new rear skirt with exhaust system. The exhaust is made up of 120x74 mm diameter stainless steel end pipes that are matte-polished. The tuner is also offering an individually calibrated combination of rear valence and exhaust system – including an additional muffler and unique sound guarantee from five cylinders for the high end engines T5/D5. Compared to previous tuned up models of the Volvo C30 by Heico Sportiv, this one is a tad on the lazy side. Not much is done to the original automobile leaving an image of an unfinished model. Press release after the jump. Full story Volvo C30 Polestar Performance Concept Prototype
Volvo and Polestar performance have teamed up for the past fifteen years and created some fine cars to race out on the track including the Volvo C30 that was last seen winning the Swedish Touring Car Championship, but it seems that these partners-in-crime have decided that it was time to go to the streets. Polestar Performance announced it will unveil the C30 Concept Prototype at the Gothenburg Motor show that will be held from April 22-25. With the Volvo C30 Polestar Concept Prototype, Polestar aimed to build further on the strong driving characteristics of the standard C30 and at the same time illustrate the link between the racing cars and the Polestar Performance products. The team tackled this assignment with a renewed excitement that one can only get from building a street car with a racing design that is not held up to specific racing regulations. The C30 Polestar Performance Concept Prototype is powered by a 2.5-liter T5 engine featuring a larger intercooler and a KKK 26 turbocharger. The output has been raised to an impressive 405 HP and 510 NM of torque. Press release after the jump. Full story 2010 Volvo C30 STCC
Volvo will enter the Swedish Touring Car Championship (STCC) with a C30 driven by Robert Dahlgren. He says the C30 STCC is the fastest Volvo he has ever driven. The car is based on the facelift version of the C30, but with improved rear suspension, engine, and aerodynamics. "We’ve gone over every single aspect of the new car - front and rear suspension, engine and aerodynamics. We want to be absolutely sure of all the improvements, and also to confirm the reliability of all the new and revised components," says Christian Dahl, Team Manager for the Volvo Polestar team. Volvo and Polestar have had success on the racetrack before. In 2009, they had the fastest times in all of the qualifying sessions and succeeded in winning half of the heats. This year, they have extended their testing program to secure victories for the 2010 STCC and have already clocked in 3000 kilometers of track testing. Follow the jump for a video of the Volvo C30 STCC and the press release. Full story Volvo and Polestar Racing to develop racing prototype of C30
When you think about high-performance race cars, the name ‘Volvo’ doesn’t usually pop up in discussions. As one of the world’s most conservative car brands, Volvo doesn’t really elicit thoughts of race cars the same way Ferrari or Porsche does. Yet despite not being considered a popular racing brand, Volvo is far from being a pushover when it comes to car racing. As a matter of fact, the brand’s Swedish Touring Car Team is a defending champ in its racing league. That being said, Volvo and its racing partner ‘Polestar Performance’ have developed a new racing prototype that’s based on the Volvo C30 with a goal of building a car that boasts just about everything a true-blooded race car driver wants on their car including performance, reliability, and speed. The prototype C30 comes with a 400-horsepower engine, an all-wheel drive system, and aerodynamic features that were taken from race car data that came from Polestar themselves. Robert Dahlgren, Polestar’s race and development driver, was geeked up by the thought of seeing a C30 get the full racing treatment. “We love the Volvo C30 - it’s a great car with huge potential for development with its low weight and low centre of gravity,” he said. “It’s also a fantastic road car. But now we go much further by combining the road car with cutting edge racing technology." For those of you that are intrigued by how this Volvo C30 racing prototype comes out, you won’t have to wait long because the car is scheduled to be unveiled at the Gothenburg Motor Show in a few weeks time (April 22). Volvo XC30 to Arrive in 2012
Two years ago, we began hearing rumors about Volvo creating a soft-roader with the inner workings of the Volvo C30 and the styling of the Volvo XC60. After being in the pipeline for so long, those rumors were finally confirmed at the Geneva Motor Show by Volvo’s President for Overseas Corporate Strategy, Lex Kerssemakers. He says, "There will be some further expansion of the XC range in the near future." Generally speaking, society is becoming more environmentally and economically conscious. The trends that we have seen with cars such as the BMW X1 and the Audi Q3 are that of a market wanting more for less. The photo shown here is a rendering of what the Volvo XC 30 might eventually look like. Starting off as a 3-door and possibly moving to a 5-door, this compact crossover shows us that the days of those big, heavy SUVs - along with their ridiculous gas mileage - just might be a thing of the past. Follow the jump for more details. Full story 2010 Volvo Electric C30
The Swedish automaker Volvo is set to unveil a complete battery electric Volvo C30 this January at the 2010 North American Auto Show in Detroit. The all new zero emissions vehicle will have a range of 150 km and is Volvo’s next step towards a production version of their Recharge concept car. The safety conscious car builder is currently preparing a test fleet consisting of at least 50 electric Volvo C30s which will be used as real world test beds starting in 2011.  The electric C30 is powered by a Lithium-Ion battery pack that can be recharged via either a standard household outlet or a special high capacity roadside charging station. A fill up will take about eight hours, but will be reduced when connected with a high speed charging station. With the batteries topped off, the Electric C30 can sprint from 0 to 60 MPH in 11 seconds while the BEV’s top speed is up around 81 MPH. The electrified C30 has a range of 94 miles and has no gears which means that the motor’s power is delivered seamlessly, and because of the electric motors gobs of torque are available instantaneously. UPDATE 06/11/2010: Volvo announced today that the C30 Electric is ready for delivery and that the first deliveries will be made this autumn. This is a fleet of ten experimental cars that are equipped with advanced measuring instruments. The selected users of this test fleet will drive the vehicles for a two year period to provide Volvo with the details of their driving experience. Press release after the jump. Full story 2011 Volvo C30 T5 and C30 T5 R-Design prices announced
Volvo today announced prices for the 2011 C30 and C30 R-design. The C30 will go on sale at a price of $24,600, while the sporty C50 T5 R-Design starts at just $26,950. For 2011 the C30 gets a soft nose, front fenders, grille, headlights and lower front spoiler, a larger Volvo iron mark and also larger air intake. For the R-Design version most of the modifications has been made under the skin: steering ratio is lower, spring stiffness has been increased by 30%, and there is also a new sport chassis . Both models come with a turbocharged 227 hp inline 5-cylinder engine and a 6-speed manual transmission. Press release after the jump. Full story Video: Volvo’s new ’New Moon’ commercial
With the up-coming launch of the much-ballyhooed second installment of the Twilight saga, ‘New Moon,’ the stars of the film are quickly ramping up promotional and marketing efforts to get people to watch the movie. Now, you might think that when we say ‘stars’, we’d be talking about Robert Pattinson and Kristin Stewart, right? Not exactly. In this commercial by Volvo, the Swedish car company – and also the official car for the movie – releases a trailer of sorts to promote the new movie. The only thing different about this one from the other New Moon trailers is that Volvo is promoting the movies’ ‘other stars’, in particular, the Volvo C30 and XC60. Apparently, Volvo thinks that being associated with pale-skinned vampires would be reason enough for people to come watch the movie. | Volvo C30 latest reviews: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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