Car of the Year 2013 - Volvo V40 | Awards - Car News Jul 2013

14:24 Monday 01 Jul 2013

CarSite Car of the Year Awards 2013


Car of the Year 2013
Volvo V40

Price Range:

£19,995 - £33,875

Tax Band Range: A - J
Insurance Groups: 17 - 35

MPG Range: 34 - 78
CO2 Range: 94 - 194

To say that picking a winner for our 2013 CarSite Car of the Year award wasn't easy is putting it lightly to say the least. We've spent the last few months poring over the nominees, vacillating between models, desperately trying to judge which car is most deserving of our top gong. Truth be told, all four of the nominees are absolutely brilliant. The Golf is the consummate all-rounder, the Sandero is an astonishing bargain and the GT86 is probably one of the most entertaining sports cars of the past ten years. Buy any of these cars and you'll absolutely love them.

In the end though we decided that the award for Car of the Year 2013 had to go to... drum roll please... the Volvo V40.

And here's why.

Volvo V40

First of all, the exterior. I know that beauty is subjective and my idea of a good-looking car could be very different from yours (I, for instance, think that the Mk1 Vauxhall Vectra is a handsome motor) but I'm sure you'll agree with me when I say that the Volvo V40 is an absolutely stunning vehicle. Parked up next to an Audi A3, a VW Golf or even a Mercedes A-Class, the Volvo looks just so different, so refreshing. The Rebel Blue paint in which our D2 R-Design press car was finished also looks sensational.

It's the same story on the inside. I'm loathed to use the word 'Scandinavian', as its ubiquity in Volvo reviews over the years has rendered it bordering on cliché; however, in this case, no other word will do. While the interiors of the Volvo's Teutonic rivals are verging on the dour and austere, the V40's cabin is effortlessly stylish. Don't get me wrong, it's by no means showy or gaudy, but the elegant 'floating' dashboard and the high quality plastics just give you the feeling that Volvo's designers care about aesthetics in a way in which the Germans clearly don't.

Volvo V40

The seats are supremely comfortable, the driving position spot on and, thanks to an excellent ride which seems to smooth over the blemishes in Britain's appallingly underfunded roads, the V40 is a wonderfully cossetting car to sit in.

With the V40, Volvo has also built an excellent car to drive. We're not going to lie to you, it's not exactly a Mazda MX-5, but the steering is fluid and linear, grip is plentiful and the V40 boasts surprising agility for a car of its size.

There's an impressive array of engines too, ranging from ultra-frugal diesels to characterful and potent petrol units. The performance pick of the range, the five-pot T5 petrol, will complete the 0-62mph sprint is a brisk 6.1 seconds, but it's the D2 diesel which is our overall favourite. A four-cylinder 1.6-litre unit, the engine in the D2 is no slouch, propelling the car to 62mph in under 12 seconds and on to a top speed of 118mph, but it's the economy figures which really make the D2 stand out.

Volvo V40

Volvo claims the D2 will return 78.5mpg and, while I only managed around 50mpg during my week-long test drive, I wasn't exactly practicing the most parsimonious of driving techniques. Perhaps even more importantly, the V40 churns out 94g/km of carbon dioxide, which not only means you don't have to pay road tax, but also means that you won't have to pay BoJo anything for the privilege of driving into the capital. For now, at least.

All of which brings us onto the Volvo's party piece, the main reason why we're endowing it with the title of CarSite Car of the Year 2013. The tech.

Here is a car which contains more computing power than the Apollo 11 rocket which went to the moon, probably. This is slightly worrying for me because I happen to be the least technically-minded person in the history of the universe.

I neither own nor want an iPad. Open my camera up and instead of an SD card you'll find photosensitive celluloid. And my phone cost me the princely sum of £5. In 2004.

Volvo V40

Luckily for me, the bulk of the V40's silicon wizardry is designed not to infuriate and confuse luddites like me, but to prevent you, your passengers and even pedestrians you've never met, from dying horribly.

A quick canter down the list of safety kit gives some indication of why this is the safest car ever tested by Euro NCAP. From a blind spot warning system to City Safety, a gadget which brakes the car automatically to prevent accidents at low speeds, the Volvo has it all. But even more impressively than that, the V40 even has a pedestrian airbag which deploys from under the bonnet to protect the poor unfortunate you've just run over.

And this is why the Volvo V40 takes home the honours in this year's CarSite Car of the Year awards. It's all very well rating cars on their performance, handling, looks and practicality, but when it comes down to it, protecting you and your family from harm is the most important job a family car can do. And on this basis, the Volvo V40 is the best car in the world.

Volvo handover