Reviews and Road Tests
Volvo XC70 Malarrimo Enduro - Summary
By by: George Achorn
Dec 23, 2004, 22:18

When Volvo first presented the concept of an XC70 Enduro event in Baja, I must admit that even I as editor of a Volvo-oriented publication cast a quizzical eye. This car, known more for being a “Mom’s Taxi” than hardcore off-road endurance racer, didn’t seem the best suited for Baja. Three straight days and over 600 miles of driving in extremely grueling conditions has made me reconsider my belief in that stereotype. Sure, the XC70 makes a great taxi for soccer moms, but its abilities go so much further – especially with Volvo’s new 4C system.

In the USA, there are so many poseur vehicles that pay homage to the earliest hardcore off-roaders such as the Jeep CJ, Ford Bronco and original Land Rover. The mystique around those early off-roaders conjures up images much like our Baja environment – and that image helps sell cars to families looking for something sexier than minivans or station wagons. It’s that mystique that built the modern SUV market, even though you’d never dream of taking many of those vehicles into such a demanding environment. After Baja, I’m convinced that’s not the case with the XC70.

This Volvo station wagon, with body cladding and raised suspension has moved to a different level. It has the skills to back up the look. Over so many miles or rock climbing, fording streams, sliding through sand, speeding down washboard roads and more – the Volvo held up surprisingly well.



At no point did we detect any interior rattles. When we finally thought we could hear one, the noise turned out to be a backpack vibrating as it leaned against a door panel. Smacking it back onto the rear seat, the noise disappeared.

Aside from driver error-induced damage such as my ruptured oil pan, there were no mechanical failures that we know of during the grueling test. The single tire blowout we witnessed and some noisy brakes during our third day of high-speed wet driving are the only other issues that were experienced – the latter of which disappearing promptly when we ceased blasting through large amounts of standing water.

As a Volvo representative pointed out, private owners of these cars will likely never drive them as fast or as hard as we did in such an environment. Having invested over $31,000 for a new XC70, it’s unlikely an owner would drive as fast as a bunch of journalists who don’t even own the car, jockeying to keep up with the race pace set by Baja 1000 ace Bryon Farnsworth.



Considering the abuse, this is a powerful bragging point for Volvo and especially 4C. The conditions were so intense for the car’s suspension; the fact that it worked flawlessly throughout is quite impressive. At no point did the shocks overheat and lose ride quality.

Even more impressive was the 4C system’s Sport Mode. Earlier drives of the XC70 with 4C on the road left us a bit disappointed in the level of stiffness of the suspension’s Sport mode. Reconsidering it now, the setting doesn’t seem as if it were specifically meant for on-road firmness like the program in the V70R. While it does marginally improve that, where the mode really shows its capabilities is off-road. Out there, it not only improves handling, it does a valiant job keeping jarring hits and teeth chattering vibration minimized – the car controllable at speed on such surfaces.

Did we have any complaints? There are just two. First, Volvo steering is still a tad light and vague. That may suit their typical clientele, but more feedback and a weightier wheel would be welcome. Also, in the high-performance backdrop that was Volvo, some sort of steering wheel paddle shifter control for the Geartronic transmission’s manual mode would also be a big improvement.



So what will become of the 2005 XC70 Malarrimo Enduro cars? We hear from Volvo that they will be shipped back to the company’s California-based technical center. The cars will be disassembled to analyze how they held up.

We hear Volvo is considering, on a very early and unconfirmed level, converting two of these Baja XC70s to actual Baja 1000 racecars that could compete in the world-renowned enduro. Inspired by Autodesk’s Paris to Dakar efforts several years ago, the prospect would certainly be a major marketing opportunity for the XC70 and could help promote it as more than a “Mom’s car”.

For today, the XC70 remains a ride for Mom. However, should Mom ever care to begin club rallying, she might be surprised at just how well she does. The last word should go to my co-driver Ben Stewart of Popular Mechanics. He vocalized it best as he controlled the car through a powerslide in one particular dusty corner.

“Mom’s car rocks!,” he exclaimed.



ARTICLE SERIES LINKS

1. Introduction
2. Part I: Loreto to Mulege'
3. Part II: Mulege' to San Ignacio
4. Part III: San Ignacio to San Francisquito
5. Trip Wrapup

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