C70 Review from CBS News Guest Blogger
CBS News reporter reviews our C70
p.s. – Yes this is a convertible.
Armen Keteyian, a CBS news reporter, has received numerous accolades during his career including eight Emmys, four were for CBS Sports – three for coverage of the Tour de France, (2000-04) and one for a Super Bowl pre-game piece about NFL quarterbacks and their sons (2005). He also has two Sports Journalism Emmys for “Real Sports” – a report on the financing of the Bank One Ballpark in Arizona (1998) and a story on high school basketball star Amare Stoudemire (2001). He’s not, or actually was not, an automotive writer. We are very pleased to have been chosen as his first car review. Hey Armen, we have nine more sweet rides for you to play with.
dan
By Armen Keteyian, Motor City Motoring – Special to the Volvo Blog
Let’s get this straight right up front: I’m not an automotive journalist and I don’t play one on television. But I am a television journalist – actually, a network TV correspondent – and having grown up in the Motor City have a lifelong love of cars dating back to high school and the dark green Buick Skylark I affectionately called “Frog.”
All of which, in a rather circuitous route, brings me to the first automotive review of my career: the two-door C70 T5 Volvo convertible I recently had the pleasure to drive.
I’ve owned plenty of top-downers in the past 20 years – a full line of BMWs beginning with the 325 series right up to the 645IC, as well as the first incarnation of the Boxster a few years back (a pale yellow my wife still kids me about). I have to say the re-designed C70 belongs in the same garage with any of them; perhaps the best combination yet of sexy European styling and Volvo’s unquestioned commitment to safety.
From a purely aesthetic standpoint the car just looks better – slimmer, sleeker, and nowhere near as boxy as the original version. Just ask the sweetheart of a bus driver who picked me up at my eventual drop-off point for the car. As I was getting on the bus she could barely contain herself, cooing, “Baby that is one good looking car you were driving. What is that?”
And it’s not just looks. The turbocharged 227-horsepower engine and five-speed automatic transmission answered every time I called, in all kinds of cornering and conditions, from Southern California freeway driving (a sport in itself), to back roads to downtown stop-and-go traffic.
Without question, the standout feature of the car is the electric retractable roof. Over the course of a week I put the process to the test no less than 25 times and it never so much as squeaked. I simply pressed a button and the C70’s mechanics took over – the roof and rear windshield automatically breaking into three sections, slipping quietly into the vehicle’s trunk. And, yes, when all folded down the trunk space is limited (a reported 12.8 cubic feet), but thanks to a deep well I still had enough room to stash a very large suitcase. (One caveat: a plastic “curtain” pulls over the well and must snap into place. Otherwise you’re going nowhere.)
Overall, with the top down, the car’s a breeze. Good sightlines. Smooth, easy power-adjusted front seats. A well-appointed dash. All operations – and any potential problems – spelled out in a clear, concise computer-ese. The upgraded Dolby AM/FM/6CD/Sirius not only delivered premium sound it made technical knud-nicks like me feel smart.
The interior, at least upfront, seemed roomier than many of my 325i’s, offering plenty of leg and hip room. That said, I wouldn’t recommend the C70 for one of those Chevy Chase family vacations. This Volvo is really built for a two-person romp given the limited trunk size and a tight backseat better suited to small children than full-sized adults. Naturally, when the top comes up the equation shifts — tilting a bit toward uncomfortable if you happen to be stuck in back.
Price wise, my test Volvo appeared to be in the same ballpark as the BMW 328 series – around 45K with options like the Dynamic/Climate package and multimedia sound. But my sense is given the new look and brash power under the hood when you get behind the wheel of this jazzy little model and flip that top down you’ll be singing a whole new tune.
2 Comments
Great pic of Armen. Bet he looks great driving around Manhattan in the C70.
I just purchased the C70 this week (got a fully loaded model), and so far, love it. Regarding the upgraded sound system that comes with the multimedia, it is to die for. Its far and above the best sound system I’ve ever heard in a car (although the navigation package is nothing to write home about). Just a note on the back seat – while not spacious, it’s lots bigger than other hard top convertibles (this was really the selling point for us) and is big enough that my 17 year-old, six-foot tall son is able to feel comfortable enough not to complain.
For those considering, I would also give a shout out for the wood paneling option, which looks absolutely wonderful with a black interior. Bottom line, the car is peppy, handles great has wonderfully comfortable seats, and has a nice luxurious feel. So far, I’m truly enjoying my purchase.