Swap shop

[Greenbhoy]

Thinking of swapping our R-reg VW Golf 1.6SE for a Volvo V40 T4SE..........should I?

The Volvo is at a dealers and is the same value as the trade-in price of our Golf. 

[Impret-Sir]

The V40 was rather hurried into production after Volvo's joining with Renault failed, leaving them without a smallish car in their range. As such they didnt quite get things like the ride and handling sorted out before it went on sale. The T4 is quick in a straight line, (200BHP!) but it all goes a bit wrong in the bends, plus the engine is rather unrefined. Also, the early ones had a few quality woes, especially inside. Later ones had the chassis modded by Ford, and these handle better, and are better built. As for the Golf, it  was no great shakes in the handling department either, and the 1.6 SE has half the power of the Volvo, so you can work out its a fair bit slower too. However, it will be much better built than the Volvo. Style is a personal thing, but I cant help equateing Volvos with elderly vickers and retired farmers! Im no fan of Golfs, but to answer your actual question, and without knowing anything about the mileage/condition etc of the two cars, if it was my money I would stick with what youve got.