Introduction
What Car? says...
Looking at the distinctive design of the Volvo XC40, you begin to wonder if the German premium brands have it wrong – their ‘Russian doll’ designs lead to a very strong resemblance between models, which often leaves you struggling to tell one from another. At the very least, Volvo's creativity is jolly refreshing.
Of course, the XC40 does retain some distinctive Volvo design cues. Its Thor’s Hammer headlight design and equally striking LED rear lights, for instance, ape the company’s other models, keeping the bloodline recognisable.
Now, the Volvo XC40 is a former What Car? Car of the Year so it's no secret that it's good. But it's been around a while now, so is it still a better buy than rival family SUVs, such as the Audi Q3, BMW X1 and Range Rover Evoque? Read on to find out.
If you decide to buy a Volvo XC40, or any other car for that matter, take a look at the latest deals available through our free What Car? New Car Buying service. You could save plenty on the brochure price without any tedious haggling.
FAQs
Volvo XC40s with diesel engines were highly rated in the 2021 What Car? Reliability Survey but all the diesels have now been discontinued. Petrol XC40s came 22nd out of 28 family SUVs. Volvo as a brand didn’t perform particularly well, coming 19th out of 30 car makers in our survey. That was ahead of Jaguar (21st) and Mercedes (22nd), but behind Audi (18th), BMW (13th) and Lexus (first). Read more here
Yes. Our favourite Volvo XC40 is the plug-in hybrid (PHEV) Recharge T4, which offers a combined output of 211bhp from its 1.5-litre petrol engine and electric motor, and has an official electric-only range of 28 miles. A more powerful (and expensive) Recharge T5 PHEV is available, as is the fully electric Volvo XC40, with an official range of 261 miles. Read more here
We recommend the Volvo XC40’s Recharge T4 engine with Plus trim, which sits above Start and Core in the line-up, but is still reasonably priced. The long list of standard equipment includes a 360-degree parking camera, ambient interior lighting and heated and electrically adjustable seats. Read more here
In entry-level Start form, the Volvo XC40 gets a 9.0in touchscreen, built-in sat-nav, rear parking sensors and a sophisticated automatic emergency braking (AEB) system. Stepping up to Core trim brings some desirable extras, including rear parking sensors, a rear-view camera and a powered tailgate. Read more here
Most of the Volvo XC40’s functions are controlled through its portrait-oriented touchscreen, which looks and works much like an iPad. It’s easy to use when parked up, but quite distracting and fiddly when you’re driving. Read more here
The Volvo XC40 has an official boot capacity of 452 litres. While many plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) lose a lot of luggage space to their batteries, PHEV versions of the XC40 offer the same space as the petrols in the main boot area. You can fit seven carry-on suitcases below the parcel shelf – the same as in the Volkswagen Tiguan.Read more here
| RRP price range | £35,830 - £60,300 |
|---|---|
| Number of trims (see all) | 5 |
| Number of engines (see all) | 6 |
| Available fuel types (which is best for you?) | hybrid, petrol, electric |
| MPG range across all versions | 134.5 - 42.7 |
| Available doors options | 5 |
| Warranty | 3 years / 60000 miles |
| Company car tax at 20% (min/max) | £91 / £3,001 |
| Company car tax at 40% (min/max) | £183 / £6,001 |
| Available colours |
