Bagger #2 - 2004 Volvo S/V40

Decmeber 30, 2003 - By John Rogers

The S/V40 sedan and wagon are Volvo's attempt to woo the younger crowd who do not have the coin to afford one of their more prestigious models. Or they think the larger Swedish tanks are a bit of a yawn. Whatever, the S/V40 was never the planned-for sales success the head Swedes back in Gothenburg had hoped for. The premium priced baby-Volvo has ended up being a lot like that ol' beer commercial: Less filling, but more money.

The littlest Volvo shared a plant in the Netherlands with an even blander Mitsubishi sister model called (oxymoronically) the Carisma, since killed off. Introduced in 1995 to unsuspecting Euroweenies, Volvo took five years before they worked up enough courage to sell the cars in North America in the lucrative, yet fiercely competitive, entry-level luxury sports sedan class.

Which brings up a good point. If you actually think think you are getting a luxury sports sedan comparable to a BMW 3 Series or an Audi A4, think again Ikea shoppers. With no available stick, a decidedly non-sporty ride, and a lumpy turbo-charged 170-hp, 1.9-liter four-banger scrabbling through the front wheels, the only thing comparable to a BMW or an Audi is the S/V40's premium sticker price.

Sure the wagon has a nice rear-end, and who has not made many of one's life decisions based solely on that, but if you are going to go head-to-head on price with the heavyweights in this class, there are better values than this Volvo.

To avoid the two bags we are recommending to hide the embarrassment of actually owning this car, for your driving pleasure we point you in the direction of alternatives such as Volkswagen's Jetta 1.8T, or the even more rewarding Subaru WRX - heck, you can get into a BMW 320i for the price of a pimped-out S/V40. If you have teenagers, or sell beer out of the back of your car (What? - Ed.), go up a class to a Subaru Legacy or VW's Passat. Just don't think you have an A4 Avant or a 325iTouring competitor in your driveway with the purchase of the S/V40.

Volvo came to the realization that the S/V40's limited success was solely lessening the sticker shock of old Volvo owners stumbling into showrooms looking to trade in their 18-year-old 240 tanks, and with that epiphany for Volvo, 2004 will be the last model year for this decrepit version. The upcoming S/V40 based on Ford's new global C1 platform that debuted recently at the Frankfurt show will come with a much more athletic chassis, choice of straight-five engines from the upmarket S60, all-wheel-drive, a 6-speed manual tranny, and a 220-hp turbo model topping the range.

And hopefully no bags required.