The Volvo C70 Convertible:

Subtracting a Roof Adds a New Dimension

ROCKLEIGH,- NJ - The new Volvo C70 convertible may be a luxurious, sporting open fourplace tourer providing driving enjoyment, but first - and foremost - it is a Volvo, which means a car designed to safely and securely transport its driver and passengers.

The driving enjoyment in part is provided by a 190-horsepower, aluminum engine powering the front wheels through a four-speed automatic transmission; electronic climate-control system; power window/mirrors/locks (with remote); eight-way power seats with memory; leather upholstery; in-dash single-CD/AM/FM/Cassette with 240-Watt 10-speaker audio system; cruise control and remote lock/unlock with security system.

The lined, automatic, one-button convertible top, which goes up or down in approximately 30 seconds, features a glass rear window with electric defroster. Glass provides superior vision properties over the plastic rear window found in many soft-top cars due to its better resistance to scratching, ease of cleaning, less visual distortion and the ability to have an integral defroster element.

The C70 convertible's safety systems and features combine those found in all Volvo models plus some designed to meet the unique needs of the "roof-less" C70.

Active safety features include the superior traction offered by front-wheel drive, which can be supplemented by an optional Stability and Traction Control system; front-independent, rear Delta-link suspension for sure handling and the stopping power from four-wheel disc brakes with anti-lock system.

For passive-safety, the Swedish firm's engineers began by providing a strong platform designed to absorb and transmit impact energy around a rigid passenger "safety-cage." Collision forces from front, side or rear are channeled to reinforced structural members, not the passenger compartment.

A car's roof generally provides a major degree of torsional rigidity. The C70, designed to be a convertible, compensates for the missing sheet metal with heavily reinforced lower side rails; reinforced B-pillars; two-pair of struts reinforcing the front subframes; a horseshoe-shaped steel member in the rear passenger compartment area, and a steel wall behind the rear seats. The A-pillars and windshield surround are reinforced by a high-strength-steel tube sandwiched between reinforcements of Boron steel. This reinforced structure combined with Volvo's Roll-Over-Protection System (ROPS) helps to provide passenger protection during certain types of accidents.

The Volvo Side Impact Protection System (SIPS) incorporates door anti-intrusion members made of Boron steel. Boron, a type of steel, is superior to other hardening steels in terms of toughness relative to hardness and has high fatigue strength and wear resistance. There are some 10 critical components made of or reinforced with Boron steel in the C70 convertible.

SIPS also incorporates dual side impact airbags (part of the Supplemental Restraint System or SRS) mounted in the side bolsters of the C70 convertible's front seats.

Dual front airbags, with knee bolsters, comprise the remainder of the convertible's SRS, which complement the three-point seat belts with pyrotechnic tensioners found at all four passenger spots in the convertible.

Seat-belt pre-tensioners increase effectiveness of the three-point harness by removing belt slack in the event of an accident, helping to keep passengers more firmly - and safely - in their seats during certain types of accidents.

In addition to the tensioners, the bottom of the front seat belts run on rails to allow them to move with the seats and thus assure the best possible positioning of the lap-belt portion of the du-three-point harness.

The front shoulder belt no longer needs height adjustment in the C70 Convertible since the top fastening point is much further back than in a sedan. Given this geometry, movement up or down has little or no affect on actual seat-belt position on the shoulder.

The rear-seat harnesses are mounted in the center of heavily-reinforced ledge and lock on the outboard side of the rear seats. These are equipped with child-restraint-locking lap belts.

The airbag sensor serves double duty in the C70 convertible, providing triggering signals for both the airbags and the spring-loaded roll-over bars of the Rollover Protection System (ROPS).

The ROPS has a reserve power unit which can store electrical energy for up to five seconds - and thus still function - should the car's electrical power be cut during an accident.

Driver (and passenger) safety means more than protection from or in the event of a collision. It also means securing the vehicle from intrusion and ease of ingress/egress.

The C70 comes standard with a security system integrated with the convertible's central locking system. Activation is with either the door keys or the keyless remote control pad. A 11mass movement" sensor and inclination sensor are optionally available to supplement the security system's effectiveness. The mass-movement sensor guards the interior of the convertible much like a home-security system's motion detector. The inclination sensor determines if one end of the car is being lifted to help ward off car thieves bent on taking the entire vehicle.

The keyless remote has buttons to open the trunk (which takes two depressions within three seconds for release to reduce the risk of accidentally opening the trunk), lock/unlock the doors (as well as arm/disarm the security system) and a panic button to trigger the alarm.

The C70 Convertible shares safety features from it's hard top cousin. They are:

- Two level trigger system for front air bags deployment
- Automatic door unlocking, feature with frontal air bag deployment
- Antilock brakes with Electronic Brake Distribution to maximize brake performance under all conditions and all loads
- Seat belt pretensioners in all four seating positions.
- The steering column is equipped with three split points and, as a result, collapses further away from the driver in the event of certain types of collisions.
- Eye-level Light Emitting Diode (LED) brake light on the rear window which lights faster than the typical halogen bulb units, designed to reduce driver's reaction time.
- Four air bags (two front and two side) to help protect front-seat occupants during both front and side impact.
- Three point seat belts in all four seating positions.
- Head restraints at all four seating positions.
- Daytime Running Lights (DRLs) which allow the car to be seen from a greater distance in low-light and poor visibility as well as during bright daylight.
- Seat belt availability for securing child restraint systems in every seating position.
- Electrically heated outside rear view mirrors.
- Comfortable, fatigue-reducing seat design.