Volvo V40 T2 1.5 (A)

In their place came the D2, a 1.6-litre

turbo diesel with 115bhp, introduced

solely to keep the V40 in Cat A and help

it maintain its market competitiveness.

To be fair, it had its strengths, such

as excellent fuel economy, and the

V40 D2 did sell in fairly substantial

numbers here thanks to its attractive

pricing, but somehow it felt like a bit

of the magic has been lost along with

the extra horsepower, sacrificed in

an effort to please the authorities.

For those who are still resisting the

diesel route for whatever reason, and

insist that petrol is still king, perhaps

there is now room to rejoice, for you

can now have a petrol V40 once again.

The numbers may have been down

from the last petrol variant (it goes

from T4 to T2 now), but trust me,

this is still a car worth looking at.

The V40 T2 does actually tick many

boxes right, and offers quite a decent

compromise to strike a good balance.

For one, it still sits in Cat A like the

D2 diesel, offering 122bhp from its

1.5-litre turbocharged powerplant,

ensuring that it can maintain its market

price competitiveness. But as you may

he Volvo V40’s model
history in Singapore
offers quite a clear
illustration of the ever-
changing automotive
landscape that is uniquely ours. We’re
probably the only market in the world
where one model can have varying
powerplants throughout its model
life simply to adapt to constantly
shifting regulation changes.
When it was first introduced here
in 2013, the V40 was initially only
available in the hip, lifestyle-ish Cross
Country style (which is still available
by the way), powered by a punchy
1.6-litre T4 turbocharged petrol engine
with a not-too-shabby 180bhp. Shortly
after, the ‘regular’ V40 hatch was
introduced with the same powerplant,
along with eye-catching options such
as a Volvo R-Design body kit and a
head-turning bright blue paintwork.
But as the hammer came down on
‘overpowered’ Cat A cars in 2014,
with the introduction of the 130bhp
demarcation line between Cat A and
Cat B COEs, so too marked the end of
the V40 T4’s existence on our shores.

SWEDE

T FOR 2

Volvo’s compact hatch has been reinvented once

again, with the introduction of the pocket (and Cat A)

friendly T2 variant

TEXT BEN CHIA PHOTOS AARON HIA

March 2016 // 25