2004 Silver! on 2040-cars

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Volvo V40 Cross Country gets the all-wheel drive it deserves

Want a rugged Volvo wagon? Gothenburg has two kinds to offer: there's the XC crossovers on the one hand and ruggedized wagons on the other. As we reported last month from the unveiling of the new XC90 in Sweden, Volvo plans on offering more Cross Country wagons in the future. But in the meantime, it has upgraded the existing V40 Cross Country with some key enhancements - not the least of which is the long-awaited addition of all-wheel drive.
Powertrain upgrades for Volvo's smallest soft-roader include the new T5 engine (a 1.7-liter turbo four producing 245 horsepower), an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. The new powertrain is not only more capable, but also more environmentally friendly than the old T5 it replaces.
The enhanced V40 Cross Country launches in Europe mid-fall before being rolled out in other markets in the following months, but unfortunately the United States is not among them as the V40 is not offered Stateside in any configuration, which is a shame.

Volvo introduces 2022 C40 Recharge crossover, announces all EV sales will be online-only

Volvo plans to become an electric car brand, with EVs making up half of sales by 2025, and all sales by 2030. Volvo has now also announced that as part of its electric future, it will move all vehicle sales to online-only, and will expand its customer services. The first car to be sold online-only will be the all-electric C40 Recharge, which the company showed off in a sneak peek during in the “Volvo Moment: Recharge” video above. The 2022 Volvo C40 Recharge is a fastback-style “crossover coupe” with an upright stance. It features a 78-kilowatt-hour battery providing 260 miles of range, according to Volvo. With electric motors front and rear, it'll do 0-62 miles per hour in 4.9 seconds. Volvo claims a 0-80% charge in 40 minutes. It will be VolvoÂ’s second car (after the XC40 Recharge) using the Google Android Automotive Operating System for its infotainment, much like that introduced on the Polestar 2. The C40 will also be completely leather-free, signaling a move away from leather for all Volvos in the future. To begin, the Volvo C40 Recharge is available for order online at Volvo Studios in New York, Milan and Tokyo. Volvo C40 Recharge View 35 Photos Along with sales going completely online, Volvo will expand its Care by Volvo program beyond vehicle subscriptions to offer a complete care package. Customers can enjoy greater convenience, with the package covering insurance, warranty, maintenance, roadside assistance and even home charging options. Volvo cars can still be custom ordered, but it will also offer a number of pre-configured packages for faster delivery of its vehicles to customers. Pricing will be pre-fixed, removing the need for haggling with a dealer and wondering if youÂ’re getting the best price for your vehicle. Dealers arenÂ’t being put out to pasture, though; Volvo says its retail partners “remain a crucial part of the customer experience and will continue to be responsible for a variety of important services such as selling, preparing, delivering and servicing cars.” Volvo intends to become fully climate neutral by 2040. To help with that, it will adopt some of the same practices as spinoff brand Polestar, by enacting full transparency in its supply chain, and using blockchain technology for sensitive raw materials like cobalt. Volvo will also perform on-the-ground audits to ensure everythingÂ’s on the up-and-up in its supply chain. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party.

Junkyard Gem: 1983 Volvo 240 DL Sedan

The most iconic of all the Volvos — all the Swedish cars, for that matter — sold in the United States is and always will be the brick-shaped 200 series, which could be purchased new here from the 1975 model year all the way through 1993. Though it was an evolution of the earlier 140 series and looked nearly identical to its ancestor from any rear angle, the 240 (and, to a much lesser extent, 260) remains the most recognizable Volvo ever made. Because these cars were quite sturdy and inspired such devotion from their owners, plenty of them remain on the road to this dayÂ… and that means plenty of them wear out every year and end up taking that final tow-truck ride to the boneyard. Here's a bread-and-butter mid-1980s 244, with the sensible four-on-the-floor overdrive manual transmission and well-oxidized Richelieu Red paint, found in a self-service yard near Denver, Colorado. Prior to the 1980 model year, U.S.-market Volvo 200s were named according to a very logical system: the model name was a three-digit number, with the first digit indicating the car series, the second digit representing the number of engine cylinders, and the third digit showing the number of doors. Typically, the trim level would come after that. Just to confuse everyone, Volvo did away with everything but the trim levels when identifying these cars. Thus, this car would have been badged as a 244 DL during the 1975-1979 period, but for the first half of the 1980s it was called simply the Volvo DL. Of course, everyone who knows old Volvos today just calls this a 244, period. DL stood for Deluxe, so of course it was the cheapest trim level. The list price on this car started at $11,085, or about $31,090 in 2021 dollars. That was cheaper than a new BMW 320i ($13,290 or $37,275 now), but more expensive than more luxurious and powerful Japanese competitors such as the Datsun 810 Maxima by Nissan ($10,869 or $30,485 today) and Mazda 626 Luxury Sedan ($8,895 or $24,950 today). If you insisted on an automatic transmission in your '83 DL sedan, the price tag went up an additional 390 bucks, or about $1,094 now. This car has the base four-speed manual with the overdrive actuated by a switch on the shift knob. With 107 horsepower from this 2.3-liter straight-four engine, this car wasn't particularly quick. However, it weighed less than 3,000 pounds (despite its blocky appearance), so it got out of its own way well enough when equipped with a manual transmission.