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Volvo C40 Luggage Test: How much cargo space?

The Volvo C40 is the chopped-roof "coupe" version of the Volvo XC40, albeit without the internal combustion powertrain options. It's Recharge or nothing. As an electric vehicle, the C40 (or EC40 as it's apparently being renamed) is quite agreeable, with ample range and performance, plus a refined driving experience indicative of a Volvo that is quite clearly more sophisticated than the Hyundais, Kias and Volkswagens of the world. The interior up front is highly functional, too, with clever storage and good tech. Oh, and the gray wool upholstery is just beautiful.  But good grief, is the rear visibility atrocious. The back window is comparable to a pillbox and the blind spot is enormous. Worse, the various cameras supposedly on board to counter those flaws are just not effective. The rearview camera is mounted so low that its field of view is poor. The rearview camera mirror is susceptible to water droplets and condensation, and worse, the mirror housing is effectively pointed at the ceiling. That ceiling is glass and there is no shade. Ergo, if the sun is behind you, the amount of glare on the mirror renders it unviewable. If the roof is covered in condensation and the sun is behind you, there might as well be a brick mounted to the ceiling.  OK, I've gone off the rails here, but I just had to get that off my chest. The XC40 Recharge (or EX40 as it'll be called in the future), didn't have that problem, and I'm sure this isn't exactly a spoiler, it has a more usable cargo area, too.  Just in case it's not obvious, the C40/EC40 and XC40/EX40 is on the right. I'm done doing that / business, so I'm just going to make this future-proof from here on out. Volvo's specs say the EC40 has 17.3 cubic-feet of cargo space and specifically indicates that includes the underfloor storage area. When seemingly using that same measurement, the EX40 has 20.4. Honestly, I have no idea how that equates to the typically reported cubic-foot volume number of other manufacturers, but as a point of reference to each other, I'm going with those figures.  Both have an underfloor storage area, including a lid that cleverly props itself up so you can divide the cargo area for the purposes of keeping smaller items in place. There's also two little tabs that stick up specifically intended to loop grocery bags onto.  Now, I wrote off this area in the XC40 luggage test since it wasn't big enough to hold the smallest (fancy) bag, shown above in blue.

Tesla poaches Volvo interior engineering boss Anders Bell

Tesla is the belle of both the eco-friendly and luxury balls. The company's Model S and Model X are status symbols, and benchmarks for the ability to blend both green credentials with performance and a luxury driving experience. That said, their cabins aren't necessarily deserving of those credentials. That's why this little news nugget is such a big deal for the California brand. Electrek reports that Tesla has poached Anders Bell from Volvo. Bell confirmed the move via his LinkedIn page. The (now former) head of interior engineering and senior director of engineering was responsible for the Swedish brand's raft of high-quality, beautifully crafted cabins. Doubtless Tesla wants a piece of the critical acclaim Volvo's received for the interior design and quality on its 90-series models – XC90, S90, and V90. The move is, at least based on Electrek's stalking of Bell's LinkedIn profile, a big loss for Volvo. Bell joined the Swedish brand fresh out of Halmstad College's engineering program in 1998 and has spent his entire career working for Gothenburg and its various owners. That included a nearly four-year stint in China after Geely bought Volvo from Ford, assisting with the Chinese launch of the XC60. Bell's listed his final project with his previous employer as "development, design, and release of Volvo interiors to be launched 2017-2018 and concept definitions of interiors 2019 and beyond." That means that while Bell started at Palo Alto this month, his impact at Volvo won't fade for several more years. Related Video: News Source: Electrek via Jalopnik Green Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Tesla Volvo volvo s90

Volvo's European EX30 launch plagued by software issues, refunds

Are we ready to include crippling software problems in electric vehicles part of "the new normal?" If so, we'd think little of it. We're most surprised by Volvo being the reason for asking the question. The Swedes had to postpone production of their flagship 2025 EX90 due to software issues. Then, after crowing about starting production, we find out the automaker's informed buyers that their EX90's might not be complete upon delivery, waiting for over-the-air updates to restore functionality that buyers of an $80,000 would expect to come with their vehicle. Overseas, the EX30 appears to be in even more trouble, its software reminding us of the problems Volkswagen had with its ID.3 and Chevy had with its Blazer EV on launch. Autocar reports that the glitches "range from screens going black and steering-wheel buttons not responding to cars not charging and even emergency braking systems randomly activating," as well as "bricked infotainment touchscreens, incorrect information displayed (such as time and range), profiles reverting back to factory settings and driver aids failing." Some customers are reportedly returning their cars to Volvo for full refunds. The automaker told Autocar the EX30 remains on sale, but in the UK, Volvo's pushed online shoppers to the 2025 model; the 2025 EX30 launches July 8, Volvo said. The configurator at Volvo's UK site advisers visitors, "EX30 Model Year 2024 is no longer available for new configurations. However you are welcome to browse our stock cars." At the time of writing, we did not find any similar notice on the Volvo sites for France, Germany, or Sweden. A poster on a UK forum for EX30 owners wrote to another member that ordering's been disabled on the UK site for three months. And it's a popular model. Volvo has more than 35,000 units in Europe through the end of May, making it the third-best-selling selling EV there after the Tesla Model Y and Model 3. Every new car comes with its share of hiccups. Based on checking forums, owners seem thoroughly pleased with the EX30's build quality. The hiccups here and in general with EVs is that their primary issues trace back to software (on top of the usual mechanical issues all vehicles face). On that UK forum for EX30 owners, the Recent Topics tab is peppered with threads about problems with the hatchback, the Faults & Technical section contains 85 individual topics (some of which are undoubtedly duplicates or misplaced).