BY Aurelia Mbokazi-Kashe
The Volvo C40 Recharge landed on our roads promising to bring sexy back. Granted, it is a spectacular car and caters to all the senses. It being an Electric Vehicle (EV) added the je ne sais quoi and completely wiped out Eishkom and its many stages from my mind. Warning: when you drive this compact SUV, prepare for a crowd of onlookers wherever you go.
Our first drive was from Cape Town international airport to Franschhoek, it instantly gave me ‘rich aunty’ vibes. Lots of elements stood out for me, I could gush on forever. However, I will curb my enthusiasm and focus only on the highlights.
Exterior design
The Swedish Gods must have been experiencing brilliant weather when putting this car together. The exterior is a sloping roofline – a combination of a hatchback and an SUV – giving it an instant athletic appeal. The look is striking from all angles, however, the rear-view was my absolute favourite. I loved the seamless integration of taillights – a highlight of the brilliance of combining form and function in design.
The sloping roofline is meant to improve that car’s aerodynamic and drag coefficient, helping it remain energy efficient throughout the drive. Sadly, it makes it difficult to see through the back windscreen.
Interior design
The interior comes together beautifully as if it were a piece of music with notes in the right places. There is not a single sign of leather. All materials are 100% recycled and elevate the clean Nordic look that combines beauty with functionality.
Starting our drive from a basement, the black interior felt darker and cramped. However, as soon as we exited the parking lot the panoramic glass roof brought in lots of natural light and opened up the interior, giving it a sense of spaciousness.
Connectivity
The technology in this car is insane, and one of its key selling points. The large screen is a huge feature and extends across the dashboard. This is where everything is integrated and you get to see how much battery life you still have left and change temperature settings. You can connect by Google’s automatic service to access your music, navigation system, or the many safety features. You can activate it using your voice to avoid taking your eyes off the road and fiddling with the system. Clever!
The drive
Take off is eerily quiet, just a swooshing sound that reminds you that the future is already here. A light tap on the accelerator is all you need for the beast to come alive. There is no drag, you get a quick response and power is always on tap. It doesn’t have to announce its performance with a vrrrrpha or a roar as we’ve come to expect from internal combustion engines (ICE).
The braking is another marvel. It is instant and took some getting used to. It reminded me of driving a golf cart that went to Harvard and earned a degree cum laude. Heavy braking brought the car to an abrupt stand-still, not so cool when people are looking, right. I quickly avoided braking altogether, just took my foot off the accelerator, and voila, it gradually came to a standstill.
We took the longer and more scenic route to Franschhoek and didn’t have to recharge the car. We relied on the knowledge that you get a 444km range when fully charged. When we arrived at our destination, it still had a good range left.
The Volvo C40 Recharge proved to be a combination of thoughtful engineering and design. From the interior space, dynamic performance, connectivity, and safety – all are seamlessly fused to give you maximum enjoyment and an even greater feeling that you are saving the planet.
