Celebrities often bemoan that they can’t shift an association with something in their past. It becomes the by-line in all articles that get written about them. William Shatner will always be Captain James T Kirk. George Lazenby was the Bond that no one liked.
Volvos, then are the safe car. No matter what else they do, they are still thought of as the boxy, safe car that rival tanks for crash-test results.
Which is a shame because the interiors of the Volvo range are so refreshing. Most mainstream cars feel like a grey-plastic attempt at guessing the future, and the so-called luxury brands feel like an exercise in ostentatious use of chrome and leather.As Steve Mattin, Volvo’s Design Director puts it, “If you want to be innovative, there is little point looking at what the competition is doing.”
But Volvo doesn’t get enough credit for their beautifully styled interiors and intuitively designed controls. The focal point is an ultra-thin central instrument stack, which Volvo think appears to be free-floating in space. It doesn’t quite, if I’m honest, but it is very stylish.
For an estate car, the V50 is handsome, especially in R-Design sport trim. But their handsome body work styling gets overlooked too.
Which I guess is why they have had to come up with even more excessive safety gizmos, like BLIS.
This is a system designed to alert you to cars in your blind spot. A little orange light by the wing mirror illuminates when sensors spot a car in this area. I am sure this gadget will help avoid accidents for some, but I can’t say I approve of it.
I pride myself on knowing what cars are around me, even in busy conditions. If a car that was travelling quicker than mine vanishes from my mirrors, then I know it’s in my blind spot. I think it’s a good discipline, to always be checking this kind of thing. So in the busiest and most aggressive part of London’s North Circular, I didn’t appreciate the orange lights flashing on and off to tell me what I knew. It ultimately distracted me, making me look down, when I needed to be keeping an eye out all around me. It genuinely added to my stress. Indeed I turned it off, then I pressed another button to turn off the warning light, that told me I turned it off. There’s safe and then there’s anally retentive.
There’s other safety kit too, all of which comes complete with its own acronym. There is the DSTC (Dynamic Stability and Traction Control). Sensors monitor the car’s behaviour and if it starts to skid, DSTC will automatically brake individual wheels to help the driver regain control.
EBA (Emergency Brake Assist) which senses an emergency stop and automatically brings the car to a halt in as short a distance as possible.
Plus, there’s Volvo’s Intelligent Driver Information System (IDIS). The IDIS function continuously analyses the driver’s activity by monitoring steering wheel movements, the position of the accelerator pedal, the indicator function and so on. This information is then processed and each moment is assigned an activity level. Bored yet? Bear with me…
Under normal circumstances, the driver is able to receive phone calls, traffic information, text messages (not while driving) and system warning lights. But when the road conditions require full concentration – such as when they are braking or overtaking – all non-essential signals from the telephone and peripheral systems are withheld until the incident is past.
IDIS also allows owners to personalise their Volvo V50’s security and audio settings. For example, the central locking system can be programmed so that you can choose whether it initially unlocks just the driver’s door or whatever. I suspect this will lead to many Volvo garages enjoying bumper profits form re-setting these systems and fixing gremlins.
I managed to set off the alarm while getting in with the keyless entry – I have no idea how or why. If you are impressed by all this techno-speak then great, if not, then let me say this.
The 2.0 diesel engine is refined, powerful and has a smooth torque curve. This delivers an excellent motorway cruise and a responsive country-lane thrash. The V50 is one of the most competent, versatile and impressive family cars on the market.
Summary
A handsome, practical and well-made family estate. The interior design is the most modern and Ikea-like of any car. In Sports trim it is also satisfying to drive.
Road test car details:
Volvo V50 2.0 R-Design
OTR: £22,655 (new price – check out the used price)
0-60: 9.6
MPG: 48.7
Co2/km: 153
By: Matthew Tumbridge