WeeklySA_AdminVOLVO C40 RECHARGE: A refined performance tinkered by what is termed “range anxiety”
By Ali Mphaki
Like a power switch the arrival of the much-awaited test fully-electric Volvo C40 Recharge the other day immediately triggered a wave of awe-inspired refrains from curious car enthusiasts passing by my humble abode.
‘Tjo! tjo! tjo! “, they gasped with a lump in their throats, their starry eyes firmly on the pearl white Swedish “future” standing idle and somewhat incongruous in the tiny parking strip of a four-roomed Soweto house.
Curious neighbours peeped through their closed curtains, the sight of the Volvo C40 Recharge offering an an irresistible itch. Cant blame them. Its the kind of feeling you get when the vehicle in the yard is more expensive than the dwelling.
As the first electric vehicle I had to sample, the Volvo C40 Recharge had put me instantly into a new world. Suddenly everything changed. Everyone’s demeanour seemed to have changed. For the first time I noticed, too, how the attitude of women varies with a man’s car.
Shhhhh. Ugesi, as they say in isiZulu, uyabulala! (Danger/Gevaarlik). And, wait for it, the whole thing happens quietly and smoothly.
No fuss. No mess. And it can be intimate. You ingress the Volvo C40 Recharge via keyless entry. Lower your bum on the driver’s seat. A little shock to the system disorientation is that you’d find there is no start/stop button to fiddle with. Once settled in the driver’s seat, select D(rive) or R(verse), and away you go. Simple.
Put pedal to metal and like a big cat stalking its prey, the the Volvo C40 Rechargetakes to the road in perfect stealth. Pedestrians only awaken to its presence but it can be very fast covering the mandatory 0 – 100km/h in a blistering 4,7 seconds.
When we took keys to our test Volvo C40 Recharge it had a range of 240km and a battery life of 60 percent. Volvo says when fully charged it can cover close to 400km but from my driving experience its reasonably to put the range at 340 or so.
Floor the accelerator pedal – and just like in an ICE vehicle – the faster the EV the quicker it drains the battery power. Being located in Soweto – SA’s largest township with no EV charging points – the nearest charge was at the Clearwater Mall some 40ks or so away.
To say the least, the first charge was a disaster. After a three-hours wait (had a meal, did some window shopping) the battery power had frustratingly gone up only five bars – from 20 percent to 25 percent.
Another hour took battery power to 32 percent. Could be the charging machine had a default ‘cause the following day went to a Volvo dealership where the staff was only to happy to charge the Volvo C40 Recharge for me.
It took about an hour for the battery to reach 80 percent, which translates to a driving range of about 250km.
If I had to charge it home, Volvo says it would take about 8 hours to reach 80 percent.
Caution; Not for prepaid users. What most would like about the Volvo C40 ( I surely did) is its crisp styling of a four-door coupe and posh interior you would expect from a modern Volvo.
Inside, the C40 Recharge offers a high seating position and arrives as the first Volvo model to be “completely leather-free”.Overall a design, as observed by a fellow scribe “ fresh as a Swedish morning”.
The C40 Recharge follows in the footsteps of the XC40 (and XC60 Electric, in other countries) as Volvo’s second fully electric vehicle.
It employs twin electric motors (one on the front and one on the rear axle), powered by a 78 kWh battery and offers an “anticipated range” of around 420 km, which the company says is “expected to improve over time via over-the-air software updates”.
It’s one of the fastest-accelerating Volvo products ever built. Volvo has announced it plans to become a fully electric car brand by 2030,and despite niggling challenges seem be on the right track, what with its cute smallanyana EX30 outselling all EVs in SA during the last quarter.
As for me, though distinguished in my Volvo C40 Recharge, I was left transfixed, almost ‘extinguished” by its magic. Be prepared for a purchase price from R1, 324 000 (incl. VAT).
