Volvo V40 (1995-2004)

The Volvo V40 of 1995 to 2004 is the estate version of the first generation Volvo S40, the compact car that Volvo released in August 1995. Volvo had meant to call the cars S4 and F4, but Audi had already reserved the name S4, so the range became S40 for the saloon and V40 for the estate. The cars were built at the Nedcar factory at Born in the Netherlands, a joint venture between Volvo and Mitsubishi Motors, on a platform shared with the Mitsubishi Carisma. The V40 had a drag coefficient of 0.32 and was the first whole model introduced under design director Peter Horbury. It premiered at the Bologna Motor Show in December 1995, was named the Most Beautiful Estate Car in the World at an Italian award ceremony, and 423,491 were produced. With the second generation the estate was renamed V50.