By Emma Beyer (November 10, 2004)

Volvo has come out with a new car with a different appeal. When you think of a Volvo, I’m sure you don’t think of a trendy sports car that looks like it is right out of an action-packed video game. However, this car, the new 2005 S40, is nothing like the old S40. The only similarity is the name.

Volvo has taken a new approach to marketing this car by using videogames, hip hop music, and advertising at popular clubs across the country. The S40’s target market is the youngest in the history of a Volvo product. Volvo is hoping that the under 30, unmarried, young professional crowd and students will buy and love this car.

The new S40 has a sporty exterior and a Scandinavian interior. The center console is only about an inch and a half thick, and you can put your arm behind it. This is found in no other car today. The car is equipped with a very peppy 2.5 liter 5-cylinder engine. If you’re not careful, you could easily get a speeding ticket.

The car also comes with Volvo’s legendary safety features, including some really cool new ones like the WHIPS. This is a whiplash protection system, where if you get hit in the back, the likelihood of getting whiplash, a common injury in rear end collisions, is highly unlikely. It also comes with airbags that come out of all sorts of places, protecting your head, shoulders against frontal impact.

A great sound system is a necessity for young people. Volvo has put remote audio controls in the steering wheel and a Dolby surround sound system with six speakers. So now, not only do you look cool driving, you also sound cool, unless of course you are driving so fast that nobody can see or hear you.

The new Volvo S40 is a car that not only looks good and is fun to drive, but it is also a very safe car.