Skip advert
Advertisement

Volvo C30 1.6 DRIVe

Green tweaks also give stylish hatch a boost

Overall Auto Express Rating

3.0 out of 5

Find your Volvo C30
Offers from our trusted partners on this car and its predecessors...
Hassle-free way to a brand new car
Or are you looking to sell your car?
9/10 sellers got the price they expected
Advertisement

* Price: £15,084* Engine: 1.6-litre 4cyl, 107bhp* 0-60mph: 10.7 seconds* Top speed: 118mph* Economy: 62.8mpg* CO2: 115g/km* Equipment: Gearchange indicator light, electronic climate control, electric windows, six-speaker stereo, Bauxite interior trim* On sale: January

Creating a low-emission version of a car is easier to do on some models than others.

Advertisement - Article continues below

For Volvo, converting the S40 and V50 to put out less than 120g/km of CO2 was relatively simple. Doing the same thing to the smaller C30 proved more difficult.

On a shorter car, you have to work harder to make the same aerodynamic gains as on a longer model.

So as well as the new wheels and blanked-off grille of its big brothers, the C30 gets panels underneath, a diffuser and new rear bumper. There’s a bigger roof-mounted spoiler as well. The combined effect is that the C30 is the most striking of the three DRIVe models.

It uses the same 1.6-litre diesel engine as the S40 and V50, and comes with the longer gear ratios, too. Since the powerplant has been tweaked to offer ultimate fuel efficiency rather than performance, the smaller Volvo’s slightly lower weight translates into better economy of 64.2mpg and emissions of 115g/km.

Surprisingly, it doesn’t feel any quicker. And while the diesel’s throaty nature is better suited to the sportier C30 than the larger models, the Volvo hatch still doesn’t do enough to challenge the class leaders.

Rival: Focus ECOnetic
while Ford and Volvo hatches are mechanically very similar – they use the same engine – the Focus is more practical, better handling and more comfortable.

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

Huge Audi new car blitz to bring us 9 models in 2 years
Upcoming Audi models - four-way image
News

Huge Audi new car blitz to bring us 9 models in 2 years

After a quiet few years, the German giant is gearing up for its biggest product onslaught to date
25 Mar 2024
Posh new trim level for Dacia Sandero while the Sandero Stepway gets more power
Dacia Sandero - front
News

Posh new trim level for Dacia Sandero while the Sandero Stepway gets more power

Both the Sandero and Sandero Stepway ranges have been tweaked, gaining more safety features to meet the latest regulations
26 Mar 2024
Road tax set to rise in April: here’s how much more you’ll pay
Road tax documentation
News

Road tax set to rise in April: here’s how much more you’ll pay

Drivers with newer cars can expect to be paying roughly £10 more per year, a although the biggest gas guzzlers will fare the worst
26 Mar 2024