[myavu]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Infact earlier today I spoilt myself further by changing the booking to a C40 Volvo EV in the same colour.

I must say the perfect car for you.Now just open the door, sit inside, put the thing into D mode and just drive off. SOP for starting the car and driving off has changed entirely from XC60 days.

Congrats.

[Hayek]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

I spoilt myself further by changing the booking to a C40 Volvo EV in the same colour. The C40 is a custom designed EV with a range 20% greater than the XC40 Recharge and a cost increase of Rs 8 lakhs.

Congratulations sir. Fantastic buy and am glad you chose to treat yourself. Must say that when you indicated you were considering a Seltos (which is a great car for its price), I was wondering why you would do that for your primary vehicle (it would be a great replacement for the Amaze in my view). But all’s well that ends well. Now waiting for your definitive review and updates of the C40.

[Raghav07]

Congratulations sir on your new XC40 Recharge! Looks good but in terms of space, it would be a bit smaller than the XC60, if I am right. Also, the color suits the car really well.
Once again, great car and color choice. When will be the estimated time of delivery and what is the hp and torque output?

[V.Narayan]

Thought I'd wrap up this thread sharing my experience at the various showrooms I visited during this search. As a background I'm in my sixties, greying, visit showrooms properly attired and normally phone before hand to announce my arrival so I don't have to stand there hoping to catch the eye of some salesman or receptionist.

MG: Booked a test drive via their web site. Could not raise them on the line after receiving their emails and kept getting SMS messages that "we tried to call you, but you are not picking up the phone" sort of thing. The missed calls on my phone don't indicate that to be the case. Dropped them.

Toyota: Toyota MGF on Golf course Road, Gurgaon was the worst of the lot. Despite being a long term Lexus customer from the same dealer family and despite having Lexus call them before I went so that I get a test drive and not lame excuses they were uninterested after realizing I was evaluating cars and not here to place an order pronto. It took them two visits to get a test drive organized and they didn't have colour plates of the exteriors to compare. I think their order book is full, sales incentives have been earned and motivation to do better is in short supply. What a pity Toyota.

Honda: They reminded me of cycle rickshaw pullers in U.P. who once they have earned enough for the day they go chill - no concept of maximizing earnings :-) I think their Honda Elevate bookings are roaring and hence interest in fresh clients is limited. Badly organized showroom, staff idling around but not attending to customers, test drives take several days to book, the tan colour interiors as shown in their on-line sales brochure is actually dark brown {a downer for me}. One has to be good at the "little doggy beg and plead act" to get anything moving. These lackadaisical attitudes reflect the management at the top in Honda India.

Maruti Nexa: Co-operative, responsive, quick but over crowded. The car {Grand Vitara} was not to my liking but otherwise very good showroom etiquette. Good for you Maruti Nexa.

Mercedes: The first visit was fruitless as I got stuck with a sleazy sales person and no test drive. I gave him a piece of my mind - told him, 'Son I have been driving since before you were born so spare me the B.S'. That's one advantage of being grey. The second visit however I got a competent chap and a test drive. Well organized showroom. Lovely cars. And they understand that their potential customers need their egos massaged :-)

Kia: Surprisingly good! My first interaction with this company. Very responsive, two test drives organized at short notice. Attentive despite being flooded with potential buyers. And as my posts indicate I really liked their product. This is one company I'll keep in mind for the future.

Volvo: Like Mercedes they know how to pamper their customers. Unlike other makes test drives are available at call- fewer footfalls probably helps. Fact that they know me might have resulted in better service - cannot discount that.

[Livnletcarsliv]

Is there any specific reason why you did not even consider the EV rockstar Ioniq 5 which meets all your requirements plus more?

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by Livnletcarsliv

Is there any specific reason why you did not even consider the EV rockstar Ioniq 5 which meets all your requirements plus more?

I did not start out looking for an EV but ended up with one. I like Volvo - engineering, reliability and A.S.S. . And my wife and I fell for the looks of the Volvo C40/XC40 Recharge.

[Livnletcarsliv]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

I did not start out looking for an EV but ended up with one. I like Volvo - engineering, reliability and A.S.S. . And my wife and I fell for the looks of the Volvo C40/XC40 Recharge.

I recommend you to try out the Ioniq 5 even if you have sealed your choice of Volvo. It is definitely a better EV than the Volvo except for the luxury/premium factor (Volvo is expensive as well).

[shyampsunder]

Originally Posted by Livnletcarsliv

I recommend you to try out the Ioniq 5 even if you have sealed your choice of Volvo. It is definitely a better EV than the Volvo except for the luxury/premium factor (Volvo is expensive as well).

Ioniq 5 is more VFM for sure but being a better EV than C40 is stretching it.

The power of the C40 is unmatched by cars which cost twice the price. Interiors are luxurious and infotainment powered by Android Automative is much superior.

Even if you forget the badge value for a second, just consider ASS. Volvo EV's service interval is the highest in India at once in 2 years plus the service quality should be far superior to your typical Hyundai service center.

I would pick the C40 over the Ioniq 5 for sure.

[shancz]

Congratulations on the car
I had no experience in the category you were looking at hence couldn't contribute anything, internally I had a feeling about the XC60 but grey haired wisdom trumps amateurish ideas.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

As a background I'm in my sixties, greying, visit showrooms properly attired and normally phone before hand to announce my arrival so I don't have to stand there hoping to catch the eye of some salesman or receptionist.

Calling in beforehand, never occurred to me but quite a useful piece of advice, Thanks.

I share similar impressions and likings towards Volvo's engineering and design. While Volvo India holds a special place in my books due to an unbelievably pleasant experience at their T3 stall for the V40 Cross Country back in the days.
Have fun.

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by shancz

Calling in beforehand, never occurred to me but quite a useful piece of advice, Thanks.

Announcing yourself or better still having some one announce your arrival is an old trick to enhance the perception of your importance in the eyes of the party you are visiting. It applies especially in cold calling situations or first meetings. At a subtle level it inflates your position in their eyes even if they don't realize it. If you have an assistant/secretary have him/her do it. It works. When you reach your meeting spot body language, posture, optimal clothes matter too. Of course, all this is only the salad dressing to get started on the right foot after that your communication content, tone is the real meat which will have to match the situation at hand.

Originally Posted by Livnletcarsliv

I recommend you to try out the Ioniq 5 even if you have sealed your choice of Volvo. It is definitely a better EV than the Volvo except for the luxury/premium factor (Volvo is expensive as well).

My philosophy in buying cars is a bit different from most others. A car at least for me is the most expensive consumer asset I buy other than the house I live in. I like to meet at the very very least the General Manager of the showroom/ Owner of the dealership plus the General Manager of the A.S.S. garage. Those are my table stakes. In my last two purchases of the Volvo XC60 (9 years ago) and Lexus ES300h (6 years ago) I made sure I met senior management of Volvo India and Toyota Kirloskar. I prefer never to limit myself to the sales executive or his boss. When I sense this access higher up would not be possible because the dealer will be a hinderance or too intimidated {with the request and by me!} or I have no direct access through my network I give it a pass. I understand my approach is a bit unconventional.

[Livnletcarsliv]

Originally Posted by shyampsunder

Ioniq 5 is more VFM for sure but being a better EV than C40 is stretching it.

The power of the C40 is unmatched by cars which cost twice the price. Interiors are luxurious and infotainment powered by Android Automative is much superior.

Even if you forget the badge value for a second, just consider ASS. Volvo EV's service interval is the highest in India at once in 2 years plus the service quality should be far superior to your typical Hyundai service center.

I would pick the C40 over the Ioniq 5 for sure.

You probably over-looked what I meant.

EVs are not just about power. Any 4 wheel EV on Indian roads will be more than fast enough to handle. So higher power doesn't mean a better car in EV language. Even as prospect, given money at disposal, c40 is still a strong contender for me.

And in technology, I have to disagree with you that a C40 is technologically better than Ioniq 5. The I5 is a ground up EV car while C40 is not. Of course, spec wise, the I5 in India comes in only one trim/variant and that is RWD. While the C40 is AWD. As I mentioned already, Volvo is better in terms of luxury, brand in India. While as a customer, the experience is good for both brands - no concerns whatsoever.

Just because Hyundai sells cheap cars in India doesnt mean the experience is not good. Globally, they are still in the top in terms of customer satisfaction/experience and India is no different.

[splitinfinitive]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

MG: Booked a test drive via their web site. Could not raise them on the line after receiving their emails and kept getting SMS messages that "we tried to call you, but you are not picking up the phone" sort of thing. The missed calls on my phone don't indicate that to be the case. Dropped them.

Kia: Surprisingly good! My first interaction with this company. Very responsive, two test drives organized at short notice. Attentive despite being flooded with potential buyers. And as my posts indicate I really liked their product. This is one company I'll keep in mind for the future.

I visited MG, Hyundai & Kia recently in Hyderabad and will concur with your assessment, MG was not interested in making a sale, Hyundai was chaos personified, and took no interest in solving the problem when somebody visiting an office above the dealership decided to park his car so that mine could not exit. Kia, on the other hand, super professional, responsive and were able to arrange test drive within 15 min.

[V.Narayan]

The car arrives in a few days. I have tabled the PDI list - thank you Team BHP - with some modifications for EVs. So, the excitement is building up. My building RWA has not yet accorded sanction for my personal charger point at my parking spot in the basement so for a while I will have to use the 2 or 3 common use charger points that have been put up. Today I am going for a familiarization session at Swede Volvo to understand the controls, feel, precautions etc given that this is my first EV and I may not understand all things instinctively. On date of delivery I've asked they deliver it at my home and demonstrate how to use the building's common use charger point.

Happy to be keeping pace with changing times.

[V.Narayan]

Asterix the Mighty Mover

The pastel green Volvo C40 christened Asterix has arrived at the Volvo showroom. Delivery is set for Tuesday once I'm back in town. Meantime the druid Getafix will give Asterix a ceramic coating. The Volvo C40 is small, power packed and has ohhh so much torque and acceleration that it can only be compared to Asterix with his magic potion.

In about a month, after I've driven the car around and got a hang of it I'll pen a thread with an owner's review.

[AmGu]

Congratulations on your new car!! Looks lovely, and i'm sure drives well too. Looking forward to your driving experience.

Your evaluation of different dealerships is also enlightening - the Toyota one particularly resonated with me. When the returned my call, the question was what colour Camry are you looking for, rather than telling me when would it be available for a test drive. Volvo has always been very good on the dealer/ASS experience (my current Volvo S60 is 8 years old).