Cape Town - I have never considered driving an electric car. Especially in the times of load shedding it just does not seem like a viable choice.
So when I was invited to test drive the latest Volvo C40 – I was in for a sweet surprise. It was a sweet deal and a great day at the office – drive a new car to Franschhoek to have brunch. Fantastic.
Upon getting to our meetup spot, it was love at first sight. (Not something I would normally really believe in.) But these cars were beautiful as they were lined up and just ready to hit the open road. So sleek and just inviting.
Once we were teamed up, we hit the open road. I did not immediately get behind the steering wheel – I first wanted to get a feel for the car. The interior. The hiding spots. The technology. And I was thoroughly surprised. It even had an air purifier, which I imagine would come in handy in big cities.
The Volvo C40 is not just a looker on the outside but the inside has some exquisite finishings too. There is ample space for all your must-haves while travelling. Comes with heated seats, a wireless cell charger and an easy-to-handle touchscreen fitted with Apps. So, navigating to our destination was easy.
Cape Town had a bit of a drizzle on the day, which was perfect to show off the automatic wiper system which forms part of the safety features.
I finally got behind the wheel…. And honestly, I was not expecting an electric car with such a kick. Maybe it is just my own bias, but I was pleasantly surprised because the car went from 0 to 100km/h in under 6 seconds.
She was a pleasure to drive and navigate, even with the wet roads. With the rains our initial road was flooded so we had to take a slight detour. Not that I was complaining because the detour included gravel road and muddy puddles.
The C40 is not a 4x4 but handled the gravel road and muddy puddles so well. There was no unnecessary shaking or handling issues, which made the drive so great. Add to that the Harman Kardon Premium Sound system and we could listen to our favourite songs. There were these little and intense speed humps, but the C40 handled them like a pro.
While driving and eventually parking the 360° camera and the cross traffic alert came in handy. While I was initially a little confused when the sensors lit up on the side mirrors I was informed that it is actually to alert the driver when there is a car in your blind spot that you might miss.
Wondering about the charging? If you’re rushed for time and you visit a public fast-charging station, it can take between 32 and 37 minutes to charge it from 10 percent to 80 percent. But if you are at home or work and you charge your car with an installed charger it can take up to seven or eight hours to go from 0 percent to 100.
I must mention that with Volvo aiming to be a climate-neutral company by 2040, the interior is made of recycled and bio-based materials. In the Volvo C40, they made sure that sustainable was still stylish. And with the different cars we could see the different interiors available to customers. Hint: great.
This tied in lovely with the venue we went to, Ludus Magnus on Two Rivers Farm in Franschhoek, which was also focused on sustainability and delicious food.
Final thoughts:
I am by no means a car girl. And this was not meant to be a review but just me sharing my experience with the Volvo C40. And I have to say, it changed my perspective of electric cars. The handling and interior, I was almost sad to get back into my own car. I absolutely loved the experience. And if you can afford to own one, I say, in the words of Nike, Just do it!
* Devereaux Morkel was a guest for Volvo South Africa.
IOL