Wild Ass Rumor of the Day: Volvo Shipping C30s Back To Sweden?
According to Autospies' spies, Volvo NA is shipping C30s "back to Sweden." Yes, well, the C1-based hatch is assembled in Ghent, Belgium. In any case, the C30 seems to be selling poorly; Volvo's dropped C30 prices in Australia and Old Blighty. This might have something to do with a $22k base price for what is, in essence, a tarted-up Focus. Though the C30 offers more cargo space than, say, a MINI Cooper, the C30's practicality is hurt by its awkward hatch shape. And then there's the Swede's EPA 20/28 mpg via a turbo I-5. The poisoned cherry on top: the Volvo brand is in the weeds, facing a date with Ford's corporate strimmer. Add it all up and the C30 boomerang story seems plausible. Throw a little anecdotal evidence into the mix (how many C30s have you seen on the road lately?) and well… if Volvo can't sell its smallest, most efficient car, what does that say about its odds of survival?
More by Edward Niedermeyer
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Apparently this is totally untrue. In fact, most friends I have who work at Volvo dealers say the real problem is Volvo isn't sending enough C30's over because they don't make money selling them. Same for why they don't advertise them. I'm also curious why the engine keeps getting bashed for having "poor" fuel economy and bad performance. It's no gem, but 19/28 is pretty decent for that performance.
Hmmmm....I do appreciate the response regarding MPG. I will need to investigate real world economy more closely. I drive about 65 miles a day. If real world mpg on a C30 is closer to the low 20's versus maybe 30mpg real world on the Mini, that adds up to a big difference in fuel cost over 20,000/year or so. I will say I've heard a lot of stories about guys who beat the snot out of their Cooper S's constantly and still hit about 28-29mpg in em....
If you compare the performance to the economy competition it looks great. If you compare the economy to the performance competition it looks great. However, I don't think it works the other way. I will give it best looking award, and agree it is more comfortable than some of the others.