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wheels stouffville suntribune thursday mar 11 2004 9 v50 interior page 10 an advertising section of the economist sun thursday march 112004 more volvo v50 page 10 volvo canada is thinking about importing a diesel version of the v50 wagon with fantastic torque and handsome appearance par ticularly without roof- mounted luggage rack as shown volvrx believes canada may finally be ready for diesel like the rest of the world aggressive by jim robinson road worthy the proof that the automotive industry remains the most competitive business in the world is that in only the third month of 2004 we are already testing 2005 models volvo is one of the first out of the 05 box with its newv50 wagon and s40 sedan which could be the best small volvos yet volvo nomenclature gives its wagons odd numbers and sedans even numbers it replaces the current s40 series sedan and wagon which were based on a mitsubishi platform and mechanicals- while not unpretty they were nonetheless boring to look at and with a 19 turbocharged fourcylinder engine tepid performers at best the v50 wagon tested here and the s40 sedan appearing in coming weeks on these pages now relies on fordsister company mazda for its chassis while opting for volvo- derived power and transmissions for much needed and even more enjoyable kick power comes from two versions of volvos fivecylinder engine family the base wagon gets the 24litre with 168 hpand 166 ftlb of torque the t5 gets the 25 light pressure turbo making 218 hp and 236 ftlb of torque both are available in frontdrive with all- wheeldrive as an option only on the t5 both come with a fivespeed automatic with geartronic selectable manual shifting there is a fivespeed manual with the base car or a sixspeed on the t5 in the t5 as tested here 0100 kmh is reached in 73 seconds in the auto and 69 seconds in the sixspeed suspension of the latest iteration on springstruts at the front and a coil sprung independent multilink at the rear being a volvo it is also leading edge in terms of pas senger safety with the v50 coming standard with fourwheel disc brakes abs and elec tronic brake control our route took us up through the rugged mountains to the north of malaga spain breathtaking vistas and a challenging climb didnt break sweat in the diesel most of which was done in fourth gear thanks to absolute gobs of torque that coupled with a supple suspension ensured the tires never scrabbled for grip on the spotty asphalt that like the rest ofthis area of spain seems to be in a constant state of decay through either disdain or indif ference the diesel was also remarkably quiet even more so that the t5 awd we drove later volvo canada is currently wresting with whether or not to import the diesel it is a major buying decision to european buyers especially in germany but here volvo is concerned if the extra 25003000 premium over the gaso line version is something canadians are ready to pay for a consumer would have to decide if the 300400 less they would pay annually in fuel would justify the outlay for the diesel on the plus the side the feeling of roadgoing torque is very satisfying to the driver particularly when powering onto a 400series highway at rush hour all the revs in trie world arent worth squat if the wheels arent pushing you forward fast enough to join the flow of traffic see best volvo yet page 10 voted new 611 i r in markham qjp trw 2004 freestar 20031 2004 escape xls 2003 f150 3mhbi 2004 f150 4x4 supercrew fx4 xlt supercab 4x2 xlt tmeyour 2004 f150 4x4 supercab xlt pibchasephce iiifuiwltm pass seating privacy vip uaxftm qua speed apuwm glass power locks iiawwnimxsabs jawrwco and more wwcofamiyenter- imi kwbtssoat power pedals and ront3i0 vbaufotransrrissjon ac remote keyless entry wwcasssca riici ixaded ytfto fx4 package wack with gray cgptafischafr4uv8 auto ac fiwpl pm emited s5p axle trailer frw speed v w control atahd more stk 3fs0578f puciapmk 31498 aw 54l3whp limited sspaxte power peda hjlusefor wpowwkxfc tracer low reverse sensing system power drive seat s wirekiwsartrrorsbrnited sip rear defroster at wheels 46lv8 jttjt reverse sensing 2iw js86 ahadomokal m fmthi f a f 21 main street unionville ua4 rttch kennedy road 1 block north of hwy 407 markville ford lincoln svt ai cash pr1oasorxynntsaro plus fro taw icerro i teases al leases aro based on 29500 down payment with 20000 tans allowed per year excess kms charged at 08ckm 10cam wtndstar i warfiham econcnfct sui readers qioico awards 905474 wwwmarkvillefordcom wwwmarkvillefordcom wvwmarkviilefordcom