Long-term arrival: 2021 Volvo XC40 T5 R-Design AWD

The tricky part of trying to establish your brand as a player in the luxury stratosphere is to slip past the premium specs. This is what marketers of brands such as Acura, Buick, genesis, Infiniti, and Volvo if one proves to be in good faith against established German luxury.

Volvo has long produced sturdy premium vehicles with just enough elegance to justify the higher purchase price compared to a mainstream brand laden vehicle. But now we see vehicles from Gothenburg like the S90 and V90 (and from what we hear The redesigned XC90 is coming next year), which place Volvo firmly on the luxury shopping list against the dominant German brands.

Enter the XC40, a lively subcompact SUV that allows Volvo to return to its comfort zone with a premium mentality. But the Germans swam the downmarket and brought the battle for luxury buyers to Volvo’s door with vehicles like the Mercedes-Benz GLA, the Audi Q3 and the BMW X1. Who builds the better product – a long-time premium automaker playing in its established sandbox, or the real luxury brands looking to expand their presence?

Base XC40 MSRPs start at $ 34,795. But we loaded ours with goodies that stood out at a tested price of $ 44,890. What did those extra 10 grand got us?

The “T5” code means a 2.0-liter, turbocharged, direct-injection four-cylinder that makes 248 hp and 258 lb-ft (from 187 to 221 in the base T4) and is paired with an eight-speed torque converter from Geartronic’s automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. The suspension is a front MacPherson strut and rear multi-link configuration that ride on 19-inch aluminum wheels. The R-Design has a “sport chassis” setup that has stiffer shock absorbers and springs than the standard “dynamic” setup. We decided not to jump for the active 4C chassis setup.

When getting in, the occupants are greeted by the always comfortable, heated Volvo seats with electric lumbar spine and mechanical thigh support, all made of Npa leather.

What else does R-Design bring you? Some material improvements like a laminated sunroof, a different grille design, leather steering wheel and gear knob, Volvo brand footplates in the door sills and fancier gas and brake pedals. There are also some practical additions, such as: B. Keyless locks, a hands-free tailgate (wiggle your foot under the bumper), integrated roof rails, two-zone air conditioning and HomeLink garage door control.

The driver sees a digital 12.3-inch instrument panel, which also contains quick displays from the on-board computer, meter or radio. The central waterfall features Volvo’s ubiquitous 9.0-inch Sensus Connect infotainment screen with Ple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as Bluetooth connectivity. It also doubles as a WiFi hotspot. The front and rear occupants at the front and rear each have two USB ports. A trial subscription to SiriusXM satellite radio is transmitted via the Harman Kardon stereo system with 650 watts and 13 speakers.

Our XC40 also comes with the $ 1,300 Advanced Package, which includes a 360-degree surround view camera, 12-volt socket in the cargo area, inductive smartphone charging, adaptive cruise control, and high pressure -Headlight cleaning offers (probably more necessary in) Swedish winters than in Los Angeles). Still, I’d say this is an inexpensive set of features.

For security reasons, the Swedish automaker wants to make sure that the long-term connection remains a top priority for buyers. Starting with LED headlights and fog lights (both sets of lights “corner” with steering inputs), the XC40 adds the usual warnings about blind spots and lane departure, but then brings automatic braking after a collision as well as the City Safety system that can detect this to cyclists or pedestrians day or night.

If the XC40 detects that you are crossing the center line in the path of an oncoming vehicle, it will put you back on track. It also notifies you when your driving inputs are tired compared to the road route and uses the ms function to suggest a nearby stop point. And of course there are plenty of airbags.

This XC40 is not a safety item in itself, but has a front and rear parking assistant. Many automakers’ systems speak of a good game in this area, but typically do poorly when it is required to perform in the real world. We’ll see how the Volvo fits together.

The XC40 comes with free Factory Scheduled Maintenance that covers the first three services (10,000, 20,000 and 30,000 miles) for free as long as you arrive within the first three years or 36,000 miles of service.

Even though we care a lot about where we are going because of the health issues, we still expect the XC40 to be used on a large scale. As soon as we took the keys, we made our way to our vacation home in the Paso Robles wine country. Details following.

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