Volvo C40 Recharge | Wolf In Sheep's Clothing | First Drive Review

What's new on the C40 Recharge?

Though it may appear the same from the front, one would miss the new headlamp equipped with Volvo's Pixel Technology, allowing it to illuminate only parts of the road without dazzling oncoming traffic. It works like a set of MATRIX LED lights, and the C40 Recharge is Volvo's first car to feature this setup. Move along the side, and you'll notice a brand new design for the 19-inch wheel, which Volvo claims is more aerodynamic and paired with a pair of specially designed low-resistance tires to help increase efficiency. 

The overall roofline is now lowered thanks to the coupe-like roofline, making the Volvo appear much sportier and muscular. This also calls for a change in taillamps. Volvo's now equipped the C40 Recharge with beautiful LED taillights that house sequential turn indicators and showcase a welcome and goodbye feature when you lock or unlock the vehicle. Combined, Volvo claims that this makes the C40 Recharge about 4% more aerodynamically efficient, extending range ever so slightly. 

The interior changes are less drastic than the exterior. The carpeting is now changed with a material made from recycling up to 72 plastic bottles. Infact, the interior uses sustainable materials like forest debris, plastic bottles and used corks. This is quite an exciting initiative from Volvo, and they now offer a fully vegan interior. A new gear knob dawns the centre console, and like before, one doesn't need to use a key to start the C40 Recharge. Gone is the panoramic sunroof in exchange for a fixed panoramic glass that should make one less car on the streets with people sticking out of the roof. 

Jokes apart, Volvo claims this glass can cut down up to 95% of the UV rays and darkens on a sunny day to maintain cabin temperature. The lowered roofline means less rear visibility, and one can now lower the rear headrests at the touch of a button, but unfortunately, they don't go back up. The 13-speaker 600 W Harman Kardon system is one to behold and will knock your socks off with its beautiful audio tuning. Apart from that, everything remains business as usual, and I like that Volvo still needs to try to fix what's not broken.