Volvo Gets Punk'd By The Dutch With V40 Leaked Photos

Derek Kreindler
by Derek Kreindler
volvo gets punk d by the dutch with v40 leaked photos

Once upon a time, Volvo built the V40 at the Nedcar plant, alongside the Mitsubishi Carisma. Volvo ended that partnership in 2001, but the Dutch managed to pull one over on Volvo, leaking early pics of their new V40 compact in advance of its Geneva debut.

The V40 will apparently be the first Volvo built on their new modular platform, and will underpin an S40, C40 and XC40 (count on the last one to be the most likely candidate for a spot in the future lineup). Different variants will underpin the “60” and “90” series vehicles as well. The V40 is said to be 2.2 inches shorter than the outgoing V50, making it a foot longer than a Volkswagen Golf. City Safety collision avoidance will also be standard. The Dutch Autoblog article mentions 1.4L and 1.8L engines, but that doesn’t jibe with Volvo’s new modular engine strategy which calls for 500cc per cylinder (and thus a 2.0L 4-cylinder). We’ll see what’s really going on in a couple of weeks.



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  • Ubermensch Ubermensch on Feb 18, 2012

    Glad the U.S. won't see that ugly thing on our roads. Not to mention that it is now really a hatchback and no longer a proper wagon.

  • Roberto Esponja Roberto Esponja on Feb 18, 2012

    I'm really hating this long hood/tiny trunk design revival. This looks like a 2012 take on a 1972 Mercury Montego. What a useless car...

  • Art Vandelay Dodge should bring this back. They could sell it as the classic classic classic model
  • Surferjoe Still have a 2013 RDX, naturally aspirated V6, just can't get behind a 4 banger turbo.Also gloriously absent, ESS, lane departure warnings, etc.
  • ToolGuy Is it a genuine Top Hand? Oh, I forgot, I don't care. 🙂
  • ToolGuy I did truck things with my truck this past week, twenty-odd miles from home (farther than usual). Recall that the interior bed space of my (modified) truck is 98" x 74". On the ride home yesterday the bed carried a 20 foot extension ladder (10 feet long, flagged 14 inches past the rear bumper), two other ladders, a smallish air compressor, a largish shop vac, three large bins, some materials, some scrap, and a slew of tool cases/bags. It was pretty full, is what I'm saying.The range of the Cybertruck would have been just fine. Nothing I carried had any substantial weight to it, in truck terms. The frunk would have been extremely useful (lock the tool cases there, out of the way of the Bed Stuff, away from prying eyes and grasping fingers -- you say I can charge my cordless tools there? bonus). Stainless steel plus no paint is a plus.Apparently the Cybertruck bed will be 78" long (but over 96" with the tailgate folded down) and 60-65" wide. And then Tesla promises "100 cubic feet of exterior, lockable storage — including the under-bed, frunk and sail pillars." Underbed storage requires the bed to be clear of other stuff, but bottom line everything would have fit, especially when we consider the second row of seats (tools and some materials out of the weather).Some days I was hauling mostly air on one leg of the trip. There were several store runs involved, some for 8-foot stock. One day I bummed a ride in a Roush Mustang. Three separate times other drivers tried to run into my truck (stainless steel panels, yes please). The fuel savings would be large enough for me to notice and to care.TL;DR: This truck would work for me, as a truck. Sample size = 1.
  • Ed That has to be a joke.
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