2001 Volvo S40 Base Sedan 4-door 1.9l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Volvo building new AstaZero safety proving ground in Sweden

Volvo is an automaker committed to vehicle safety, setting an ambitious target for itself: by 2020, the Swedish automaker envisions that no one will be killed or seriously injured in one of its cars. In order to achieve that goal, Volvo has announced a new proving ground designed specifically to test safety solutions.
Called AstaZero, the new facility near the company's headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden, is the result of a $70 million investment. It will cover some 500 acres, with over 60 acres of pavement, four city blocks and three and a half miles of highway. The Active Safety Test Area (the ASTA in AstaZero) will enable Volvo and its partners (including Scania trucks as well as government bodies and university development programs) to simulate city streets, highways, rural roads, roundabouts, T-junctions and more, combining traffic from cars, pedestrians, bicycles, motorcycles, buses, trucks and even animals in order to account for all manner of potential hazards.
The facility will enable Volvo to test active safety systems and autonomous vehicle operations, and even allow robots to test its prototypes in an adaptive environment that aims to be more flexible than existing proving grounds. Read more about Volvo's commitment to safety in the press release below.

Polestar says goodbye to Volvo C30 in video tribute

The Volvo C30 was put to its eternal bed a few months ago, but the tuners at Polestar have a little more eulogizing to do. The Swedish house of speed that has raced and reworked the little hatch since its introduction in 2006 wants the world to know what they've been through together, so it has encapsulated seven years of around-the-world action into three minutes and 28 seconds of track footage and champagne.
We're still waiting on word of a replacement for the funny little hatch, and while we lament what could have been, the video below proves that the C30 provided plenty of thrills for those outside of the US. And as you can read in our recent review of the Polestar-enhanced road-going C30, it provided a decent amount of fun for those of us in the States, as well.

2021 Volvo XC40 Recharge priced at $54,985

The final piece of the puzzle for the 2021 Volvo XC40 Recharge is falling into place today, two weeks after official EPA range information became available. Volvo just announced pricing, and it’s going to start at $54,985, including the $995 destination charge. Of course, buyers can also expect to take advantage of the $7,500 federal tax credit (and other state credits) with their XC40 Recharge purchase. That makes the total dent in the wallet $47,485 for a base crossover, or even cheaper depending on what state you live in. There isnÂ’t a long list of available packages and options, but Volvo detailed a few of them for us. The most expensive is the Advanced Package that adds VolvoÂ’s Pilot Assist driver assistance system, a 360-degree camera, wireless phone charging, a 12-volt outlet in the luggage area and a headlight cleaning system for $1,300. The Climate Package adds a heated steering wheel, heated rear seats and heated wiper blades for $750. And the last important option weÂ’ll point out is a heat pump for $350. Volvo says the heat pump can precondition the cabinÂ’s temperature and extend battery range, so it feels like a no-brainer for such a cheap price. Compared to the XC40 RechargeÂ’s direct competition, the crossover is priced in the same ballpark. A Tesla Model Y Long Range is $49,990. The base Ford Mustang Mach-E with all-wheel drive starts at $46,695. Neither the Ford nor the Tesla are perfect comparisons, though. The XC40 is both smaller and more premium than both of those options. WeÂ’ll note that itÂ’s not a huge stretch to go from the XC40 Recharge to the Polestar 2 that begins at $61,200, a $6,215 climb above the base XC40 Recharge. 2020 Volvo XC40 Recharge View 23 Photos Charging network Volvo also announced that itÂ’s beginning a collaboration with ChargePoint as the official charging network for the XC40 Recharge. That will give owners approximately 115,000 places to charge their electric crossover, though Volvo is light on the details for now. We asked, and Volvo said that an announcement about charging software integration is coming soon. DonÂ’t expect free charging to be part of the deal though, as Volvo tells us thatÂ’s not part of the companyÂ’s “immediate plans.” The partnership will allow owners to purchase a ChargePoint Home Flex charger for their home at the time of their XC40 purchase, but we donÂ’t have pricing on this option yet. You can place an order for the electric crossover on VolvoÂ’s website now.