George Perkins, Executive Producer – “Desperate Housewives”
A while back, we asked George if he would like to review our C70. Unfortunately, he was traveling in Hawaii at the time, leaving us no way to get one there within a reasonable time frame. However, upon his return, he took one for a state-side test drive.
Dan
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I’ve just received the Volvo C70 to drive and play with for a few days. What fun!
I’ve owned several Volvos over the years – a S60 and a V70 – and have a soft spot for them. The cars are so solidly built, handle very well, and give me both great confidence in driving and a wonderful sense of safety; all very important things to me, as I’m raising a family, yet not wanting to give up the pleasure of driving. I’ve always loved to drive. At probably 10 years old, I started driving. I would sit on my grandfather’s lap at first on his farm tractor, and then the farm truck – an old Ford that you would see in pictures of the Old West, rusting away in some field. As soon as I could work – mowing lawns at about 12 years old – I started to buy toys: mini-bikes, go-karts, two old Simcas which I assembled into one running car, motorcycles and then my first street car at 16 – a 1965 Ford Mustang. Since, I’ve owned at least 15 cars.
My Volvos continued the pleasures of being on the road for me. They were cars that I could afford at the time, and I still believe were the best cars for the money. Getting my hands on the very stylish and well designed C70 was a treat. The first day, I put the top down and drove to dinner through the canyons, because to me, convertibles are best for off-the-highway driving. It was chilly, so the heat was on and the windows up, but the sky was right there. On Sunday, I took my family to Geoffrey’s for brunch, again top down – even with June Gloom and warm clothing. My entire family enjoyed the ride along the coast.
The car is simple and well laid out. Nicely designed for the driver. The seats, as always, are Volvo comfortable and easily adjusted to find the right fit. It’s quiet in spite of being a convertible and pretty stiff, which I prefer. It handles very nicely and offers a great sense of being totally in control, while providing the driver the comfort of knowing that it will do what is asked of it. Putting the top up and down is great fun, and it’s also fun to watch people watching it. Even though hardtop convertibles are common today, the wonder of the engineering never passes.
It’s a terrific car – I was sorry to return it!
George
