It's called Rebel Blue, and it's the signature colour for the stunning Volvo V40 R-Design, the attitudinous sports derivative of the all-new V40, due to debut at the Paris motor show at the end of this month.
And relax, folks, it's available in six other sexy colours as well.
The R-Design front treatment features a satin-finished, metal-framed grille, re-profiled, deeper front bumper and daylight running lights, while at the rear there's a dark grey diffuser, satin-finished bright-metal details and dual tailpipes, all running on five-spoked, diamond-cut alloys (17” is standard, 18” an extra-cost option).
INTERACTIVE INSTRUMENTS
Inside, you'll find R-Design sports seats trimmed in a combination of black Nubuck textile and perforated leather, with an embroidered R-Design logo featuring a blue “R”. Full leather seats are available as an option.
The flight deck includes a special sports steering wheel, gear-knob, handbrake and pedals, aluminium inlays with a perforated look and a black headlining.
Want more? The R-Design Lux package adds embossed full-leather upholstery, active bending xenon headlights with headlight washers, rain sensor, cruise control, keyless start and rear theatre lighting.
The interactive, liquid-crystal TFT instrument cluster in the all-new V40 allows the driver to switch between three layouts with different configurations and functionality - Elegance, Eco and Performance. In the R-Design, however, all three modes are backlit in radiant blue.
OPTIONAL SPORTS CHASSIS
The optional Sport chassis has been developed by Swedish racer Robert Dahlgren, lead driver for the Volvo Polestar Black R team. It runs 10mm lower on stiffer springs and dampers and thicker anti-roll bars.
The front MacPherson struts have 25mm piston rods, to help them absorb lateral loads, and the rear wheels have mono-tube shocks that use the same valve for both compression and rebound damping, giving faster fluid flow, which in turn means that the damper responds more quickly.
ENGINE CHOICE
The V40 R-Design will be available in South Africa from March 2013 with a choice of two engines - the five-cylinder, 110kW/350Nm, two-litre D3 turbodiesel, or the five-cylinder, 187kW/360Nm (400Nm on overboost) T5 petrol with sequential-port electronic fuel-injection.
Each comes with a six-speed Geartronic transmission driving the front wheels.
PRICES
V40 D3 Geartronic R-Design R 363 300
V40 T5 Geartronic R-Design R 397 100