VOLVO's S40 and V40 series fills a handy niche for Volvo as the first credible car it has had in the lower end of the prestige segment. The preceding 440 series and the 360 before that are best forgotten. But the joint development with Mitsubishi has brought some interesting contradictions - the S40 is neither fully Volvo, nor fully Mitsubishi. The styling is appealing, the packaging acceptable if a little tight in the back seat and the dynamics a mixture of strong engine (especially turbo variants) and harsh suspension. But the pricing is pretty bold considering the competition.