Following on from our test drive of the all-new Volvo V40 last year, http://www.rev.ie/volvo-v40/ we’ve recently had the pleasure of driving the new sporty variant of the Premium C-Segment contender.
The Volvo V40 R-Design isn’t shy at making a statement, finished in Rebel blue, closely resembling the scorching Polestar model, it stands out from the crowd. Its sporty, muscular appearance is certainly aided with the addition of a lower, re-profiled front bumper and rear diffuser with twin exhausts (one each side). It sits lower then its standard sibling with a lowered chassis and benefits from 17” Ixion wheels. The interior is a masterpiece and something we thoroughly enjoyed, particularly the nubuck-upholstered front sport seats, complete with R-Design wording stitched on them. There’s also a sports steering wheel and pedals to complete the R-Design theme on the interior. This R-Design V 40 benefits from a TFT colour display screen with blue instrument dials, an illuminated gear knob, specific R-Design aluminium trim and led daytime running lights all equipped as standard. There are three dash themes for the driver to choose from, elegance, eco and performance. Each one providing a different set of gauges and colours in the driver’s instrument cluster. As it’s the R-Design V40, we selected the performance theme for the majority of our driving, it provides a clear, neat display of all the crucial gauges.
Our test car was equipped with a six-speed manual transmission, coupled with the D2 diesel engine it proved to be a fine combination for our week’s driving. We would however favour the D3 model, with its additional power, but more importantly higher torque figure, resulting in a more relaxed drive when carrying passengers onboard. That said the D2 is certainly a very economical unit, achieving up to 3.6l/100km (78.5mpg) on a combined run. Thanks to low emissions of just 94g/km of CO2, the V40 R-Design benefits from tax band A2 placement, resulting in an annual road tax bill of €180.
The R-Design variant of the stylish V40 offers an attractive alternative to the regular model, it’s ideal for those motorists with a keen eye for performance looks and driveability. It strengthens an already impressive offering from Volvo and will no doubt attract a number of conquest sales into Volvo showrooms nationwide.
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