All New 2007 Volvo C70 in Depth

Press Release

Page 1: Overview
Page 2: Engines
Page 3: Chassis
Page 4: Interior Design
Page 5: Equipment
Page 6: Safefty
Page 7: Security

• A four-seat coupé that transforms itself into a convertible in less than 30 seconds.

• World's first four-seat premium brand car with a three-piece retractable metal roof.

• Three five-cylinder engines available: Top of the range T5 (220PS) petrol engine, 2.4i (170PS) petrol and D5 (180PS) turbodiesel.

• Sporty to drive yet comfortable and refined.

• Class leading safety includes the world's first door-mounted inflatable curtain airbags.

• Available in Sport, SE and SE Lux trim levels.

• Revolutionary interior with unique, ultra-thin centre stack with display for menu system to personalise locking functions and audio settings.

• High-quality Performance, High Performance and Dynaudio Premium Sound audio systems, with Dolby Pro Logic II Surround Soundâ„¢ available.

• RTI satellite navigation available with RDS-TMC.

• Healthier Oeko-Tex standard compliant, emissions-free interiors.

The unique three-piece metal roof goes up or down in less than 30 seconds and makes the all-new Volvo C70 two cars in one: a sports coupe that offers excellent performance and agile handling, and a convertible just fine for lazy days open-sky motoring.

Three trim levels - Sport, SE and SE Lux - are offered, all with high quality audio systems and the option of a Dynaudio Premium Sound Audio System with 12 speakers (standard SE Lux). There is a choice of three five-cylinder engines: a 2.4i 170PS petrol, 2.4-litre 180PS turbodiesel D5 and the top-of-the-range turbocharged petrol 220PS T5, good for 150mph and 0-60 acceleration in 7.0 seconds.

The hard-top roof design is particularly innovative. Its three-piece - rather than conventional two-piece - design reduces folding bulk to improve style and increase packaging space.

The all-new Volvo C70 is a true four-seater, with comfortable rear seat room for two adults. The interior cabin is a modern, innovative design, and distinctly Scandinavian thanks to its clean surfaces, use of genuine materials - including aluminium and wood-effect - and fine functionality. The interior also features Volvo's unique 'floating' ultra-thin centre dashboard that stylishly houses all the main audio, ventilation controls with a display for the car's menu system that allows locking and sound preferences to be individually customised.

Safety is class leading. It includes the world's first door-mounted inflatable curtains for extra side impact protection and a further development of Volvo's ROPS (Roll Over Protection System) found on the previous generation Volvo C70 convertible. The powerful metal bars that pop up behind the seats have been strengthened and react faster.

The all-new Volvo C70 Is built in the Uddevalla factory in Sweden, in a collaborative effort with the legendary Italian coachbuilder Pininfarina. Volvo expects to sell around 3,000 per annum in the UK, which is about double the sales of the previous C70.

Design Concept:

• Sportiest of all Volvos, yet not overtly aggressive.

• Retractable metal roof means it looks equally good roof up or roof down

• Clean simple Scandinavian design, the latest iteration of Volvo design language

The all-new Volvo C70 is a modern, handsome, sports vehicle designed to look good roof up or down. 'The use of a hard-top instead of soft-top gives us a big advantage in style,' says Volvo's British-born design director Steve Mattin. 'Roof up, the car looks just as good as a purpose-built coupé. Equally, the compact three-piece roof design minimises the size of the folded roof stack, improving convertible style and packaging.'

The hard-top makes the all-new Volvo C70 a considerably more practical and secure vehicle compared to its soft-top premium brand rivals, as well as a more handsome one.

'We wanted to create two cars in one, without compromising,' says project manager Patrik Widerstrand. 'We have succeeded in creating a car that is both an elegant convertible and a sporty coupe. A touch of a button transforms the car.'

Apart from the extra flexibility, the retractable metal roof also makes for a quieter, more comfortable coupe. The normal-sized rear window, made of real glass, offers excellent rear visibility and has improved demisting compared with a plastic screen. It also gives extra rigidity to the body.

This sporty Volvo is a development of the latest Volvo design DNA, first seen on the original S80. It has a soft, rounded nose, a noticeable V-shape from grille to A-pillar, strong and protective shoulders, a kick-up truncated rear and distinctive upright tail-lamps.

The shoulder line swings up towards the rear to give an impression of dynamism and reinforces the feeling of a protective collar around those travelling in the back.

'Achieving harmonious lines both with and without a roof is not an easy task,' says Fedde Talsma, chief designer of the all-new Volvo C70. 'We opted first to design the all-new Volvo C70 as a coupe. We wanted to design the most perfect four-seat coupe we possibly could. Once we were satisfied with the result we made the necessary convertible adaptations. In our experience this is the best approach. The results speak for themselves.'

The rear section of the car is cut away abruptly and has the characteristic Volvo curved rear lights.

The C70 is the sportiest of all Volvos. Yet the car is not overtly aggressive in design. Instead, it is clean and simple, classically Scandinavian, with a minimum of fuss and uncomplicated rather than complex surfacing. Its stance is low, hunkered down to the road.

Although slightly shorter and lower than its predecessor, the all-new Volvo C70 is wider, longer and taller than its key (soft-top) rivals, the BMW 3-series cabriolet and Audi A4 cabriolet. This extra size is one reason the Volvo is roomier.

One of the many brilliant design features is the boot: made from aluminium, it opens rear-hinged to stow the folding roof and front-hinged (as in a normal car) to load luggage.

The all new Volvo C70 - dimensions (compared with the first generation Volvo C70l):

Length 4580 mm (4716 mm)

Width 1820 mm (1820 mm)

Height 1410 mm (1429 mm)

Wheelbase 2640 mm (2664 mm)

Track, front 1550 mm (1521 mm)

Track, rear 1560 mm (1521 mm)

Unique Retractable Three-piece Metal Roof:

• Hard-top roof goes up or down in less than 30 seconds

• Unusual three-piece metal design folds more compactly than rival two-piece designs

• Hard-top roof reduces NVH and aids security, as well as improving style

The advantages of the hard-top over a soft-top roof are numerous. The metal roof improves the styling of the car top-up, it reduces NVH (noise, vibration and harshness), it aids security, and it gives the Volvo C70 its two cars-in-one character, without any compromises.

The roof panels are made from steel and - unusually - are divided into three sections. Most hard-top convertibles have two-section roofs, which require much more space when stacked. The joints between the sections have rubber seals. The roof is closed and opened automatically, at the touch of a cabin button, in less 30 seconds. An electric motor, hydraulic pump and computer are used to activate and control the roof.

Folding hard-top roofs are renowned for robbing much - and sometimes virtually all - the luggage space. On the Volvo C70, the boot still has a spacious 200 litres of space when the roof is down. A practical roof divider in the boot makes it easy to assess how much can be loaded when the roof is down. To improve access when loading, roof-down, a 'load assist' button in the cabin lifts the folded roof panels 200 mm.

Designed and developed in conjunction with Italian coachbuilders Pininfarina, the roof is a masterpiece of engineering, and extremely easy to use. Just push a button and the roof is raised or lowered automatically. Volvo recommends it should only be operated when the car is stationary. The rigidity of the car is improved by about 15 percent when the roof is raised.