2008 Volvo C30

Because Volvos have long been known for safety and common-sense virtues, it's easy to forget the Swedish company's early history with more entertaining machines. Early in the Sixties, Volvo launched a P1800 series of two-passenger sports cars to complement its practical PV544 and 122S sedans. In 1971, the two-seater evolved into the P1800ES, a squareback coupe with long quarter windows and a frameless glass hatch. Just over 8,000 were built, and no more than 1,800 ever reached the U.S. With its new front-wheel-drive compact C30, Volvo is clearly looking back to that P1800ES; but also forward, entering an unfamiliar market niche.


"It's a car that really pushes the boundaries," said product communications manager James Hope. Car line manager Kent Johansson dubs it "the car with the biggest personality."

Styling

Designers of the fashionable C30 have "thrown the map away," declared "forward-thinker" Michael McMillan, author of Paper Airplane: a lesson for flying outside the box. Designers Simon Lamarre and Andreas Friedrich sought inspiration at the Milan Furniture Fair and Paris Fashion Fair. They even studied shoes; but "most of all, we looked at the people we had in mind...to find a new way of expressing sportiness in cars."


First seen as a concept at Detroit's North American International Auto Show in 2006, the C30 boasts high-mounted headlamps that Lamarre says, "give this angular, angry look." Flaunting the "biggest shoulder" of any Volvo, the hatchback comes in a selection of "funky colors." Volvo is pushing personalization, too, making loads of accessories available to the youthful buyers who comprise most of the target audience.


Based on Volvo's S40 sport sedan, it has the same long wheelbase but is 8.5 inches shorter overall—and 330 pounds lighter. Set up to carry four adults, the C30 has easy-folding rear seats and a shapely, frameless glass hatch.