Volvo / S40 / T5 AWD sedan

Overview

THIS is a European importer's dream: Spec an existing car up dramatically - adding things like standard all-wheel drive and a premium 12-speaker sound system - then drop the price with equal the amount of drama.

Volvo has done exactly this with its new AWD version of the already impressive S40 T5, and the result is a hard-to-ignore small prestige car that ladles out a decent serve of performance that it is more than capable of digesting.

It drives home the point that some Volvos are just not staid any more.

Only the fact it owes its existence to cars like the Mazda3 and Ford Focus - limiting the available passenger space - undermines the baby Volvo.