Volvo C30

The Volvo C30 is a supermini-class car produced by Volvo Cars. The C30 is a three-door, four-seat hot hatch hatchback powered by straight-4 and straight-5 engines. The car is a hatchback version of the S40/V50/C70 range, and uses the same Ford C1 (or Volvo P1) platform. It is being marketed as a premium hatchback or a sports coupe specially designed for first-time Volvo buyers and the youth market. Production is expected to be 65,000 units a year, 75% for sale in the European market. The production car was officially unveiled at the 2006 Paris Motor Show.

The exterior design of the C30 is based on the 2001 SCC concept car, which was inspired by the 1800ES, the estate adaptation of the P1800 Coupe. It also shares many design cues with the Volvo 480, particularly the 'sportback' body style and glass tailgate. According to Simon Lamarre, chief studio designer, "the 1800ES has become one of the icons for Volvo," inspiring the design of the Volvo C30. The interior design is similar to the S40 and V50; the majority of parts including the instrument panel, 'floating' centre stack and steering wheel are shared by the three cars.

Europe


In late 2006, the C30 was launched in Europe. Engines choices range from a 1.6L inline-4 (petrol or diesel) to a 2.5L inline-5 turbo (2.4L diesel). 2009 added the choices of a 6-speed PowerShift dual-clutch automatic with the 2.0 L petrol and diesel engines, a 1.8L E85 flex-fuel engine, and 1.6L "DRIVe" diesel engines with improved efficiency and optional start/stop capability. Trim lines include SE and SE Lux in the UK, and Kinetic, Momentum, and Summum (from fewest to most features) in most other European nations. The R-Design package adds interior and exterior accessories including aluminum inlays on the dashboard, R-Design emblems on the steering wheel, seats and floor mats, a rear spoiler and body kit.

North America
The C30 went on sale in Canada in March 2007 as a 2007 model, and in October 2007 in the United States as a 2008 model.

In Canada, the 2.4i was offered until 2011, while the T5 remains available. In the United States, the only engine available has been the T5. For 2008, the US C30 debuted with two trim lines, Version 1.0 and Version 2.0. R-Design was added later in the model year, featuring unique badges and interior trim. Since 2009, the US C30 has been offered in T5 or R-Design trim. In addition, the Polestar performance option (developed in partnership between Volvo Car Corporation and Polestar Racing) became available for the 2012 model year for several Volvo models, including the C30 T5. The software modification to the engine control computer increased output from 227 hp to 250 hp without a reduction in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fuel economy ratings.

Specifications
An upgraded sound system includes a digital 5×130 watt ICE Power amplifier from Alpine featuring Dolby Pro Logic II Surround, and 10 loudspeakers from Danish Dynaudio.

The 2008 model year brings some minor changes, mostly adapting the interior to the facelifted S40/V50 and including as standard an Aux audio socket.

The 2009 model year moved the Volvo badge from the hatch handle to the glass area above it, enlarged the font and increased the space between the letters. It also brought other small changes such as including the hard load cover as standard.

2010 update
Volvo introduced a refreshed C30 at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. It has a redesigned front end with new headlights, grille, and front body panels. The rest of the body has only minor changes, and the engine and transmission choices remain the same. A new sport chassis is available. Many new interior and exterior color choices have been added, including "Orange Flame Metallic" paint. The updated C30 went on sale in early 2010, as a 2011 model in North America and Australia.

Motorsport
A racing version of the C30 won the championship for the 2010 Swedish Touring Car Championship season.

Safety
The C30 continues Volvo's marketing strategy to put safety as a primary concern. This is demonstrated through some recently developed safety features, including a method of overcoming the "blind spots" in the driver's view to the rear through a system known as BLIS (Blind Spot Information System).

The C30 also features a four-wheel anti-lock braking system (ABS), electronic stability program (ESP), traction control system and front, side and curtain airbags, front and rear crumple zones, and a stiff occupant cell.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) awarded the Volvo C30 their Top Safety Pick award. The C30 was granted its highest rating of "good" in front, side, rear and roof strength tests and has Electronic Stability Control as standard equipment to receive the award.

The Volvo C30 has a patented front and rear structure using four different grades of steel to absorb and redistribute impact energy around the body of the coupe. Volvo's Whiplash Protection System and Side Impact Protection System with side airbags and Inflatable Curtain are also standard. The seat belts have pretensioners to protect the occupants against unexpected accidents.

The car also uses Volvo's Intelligent Driver Information System (IDIS) which continuously monitors the car's preemptive systems such as steering wheel angle, pedal depressions, and overall factors that help the vehicle's computer to decide if the driver is busy or distracted merging or turning, and will then accordingly delay certain data or alerts that are unimportant.

The C30 has been criticized because in an effort to make it more responsive in curves it has become less reliable on ice or snow where the rear end can more easily lose its grip compared to other Volvo models.

Concept cars
Three C30 concepts were unveiled at the 2006 SEMA show:
 * The Evolve C30 show car has a twin turbo engine, all wheel drive, suspension from Evolve's 2004 S40 concept from the 2004 SEMA show, and 4-piston brake calipers.
 * The IPD C30 SEMA concept has a supercharged 5-cylinder engine with 6 psi of boost, a nitrous tank, gull wing doors, and Alcantara seats.
 * The Volvo HS3 Thor Concept was built by Heico Sportiv. It includes a 2.5L turbo engine (B5254T) rated 300 PS and 420 Nm, Haldex AWD, Heico Volution V 8x18-in sport-alloy wheels with Toyo tires, and 4-caliper disk brakes with 320 mm front rotors.

Another concept car that was not unveiled at SEMA is the C30 PCP ("Performance Concept Prototype"). It was revealed in 2010 and was developed by Swedish company Polestar. It had all wheel drive, a body kit similar to the one found on the STCC cars and it borrowed the T5′s turbocharged 2.5 engine, albeit pushed to 405 hp. It was finished in a striking shade of blue. While the car was only a concept, as of July 2011 Volvo is considering producing a limited run of them.

Volvo ReCharge concept
The ReCharge concept is a plug-in hybrid electric version of C30, developed by Volvo's California development center. It was unveiled at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show. It features a 4-cylinder 1.6L flex-fuel engine and an electric motor on each wheel. It has an estimated battery range of 100 km. The batteries have 3 hours of full recharge time. The car has a top speed of 160 km/h. Volvo plans to sell a production plug-in hybrid C30 in Europe in 2012.

C30 DRIVe Electric
Volvo first presented a drivable electric C30 prototype in September 2009. An updated prototype was shown at the 2010 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The concept car was exhibited in the 2010 Paris Motor Show and presented as the C30 DRIVe. The C30 DRIVEe was one of the five finalists to the 2011 Green Car Vision Award.

Field testing of about 50 C30 electric cars has been conducted in Sweden since the fourth quarter of 2010, mainly internally at the Volvo Car Corporation. A Volvo C30 Electric was also part of the One Tonne Life project in which a family was given the task of living as climate-smart as possible for a period of six months. In November 2011 an agreement was made to run a demonstration program with two Volvo C30 Electric cars in the Jiading District in Shanghai.

The electric C30 has a lithium-ion battery, supplied by US manufacturer EnerDel. Top speed is estimated by Volvo at 130 km/h, with acceleration from 0–50 kph (0–31 mph) in 4 seconds. The C30 Electric can be recharged from a regular household power socket and a full charge takes about 7 hours. The all-electric range is up to 150 km. The batteries are installed where the fuel tank normally sits and also in a special compartment in the C30's central tunnel, and as a result, the luggage compartment is unchanged. The Volvo C30 Electric is equipped with three climate systems: one supplies the passengers with heating or cooling; one cools or warms the battery pack as necessary; and the electric motor and power electronics are water-cooled. The climate control in the passenger cabin features a bioethanol-powered heater, a solution chosen by Volvo to get heating without compromising the battery driving range, but the driver has the option to run the climate unit on electricity from the batteries. Ethanol is the default mode and the ethanol tank can carry 14.5 L of bio-ethanol. Volvo has Tested the C30 in winter conditions in temperatures as low as −20 °C (−4 °F).

Production of the C30 Electric began in June 2011. The Volvo C30 Electric body is built on the regular assembly line in the factory at Ghent, Belgium, and then the glider is transported to Göteborg for installation of the motor, batteries and other model-specific electronics.

Volvo plans to lease the Volvo C30 Electric to corporate customers, mainly companies, authorities and government agencies. Initial deliveries are scheduled for the third quarter of 2011 throughout Europe, including in Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway. Volvo expects to build about 250 cars by the end of 2012, and possibly more if market interest takes off.

A total of 100 Volvo C30 Electrics will be slated for the US, half will be allocated on the West Coast and the other half on the East Coast. Volvo is targeting the leases to corporate and government fleet users at a price of around US$2,100 per month in the U.S. and €1,500 per month in Europe. As this pricing is much higher than other electric cars available in the market by 2011, Volvo explained that their prices reflect the actual cost of the limited-production car.