It is the Swedish manufacturer's smallest SUV, but the problem remains. Due to its volumetry, it proved difficult to achieve classification as a Class 1 at toll booths — harder than the bigger “brother” XC60. And this, because, in front of the Volvo XC40 is taller than that of the XC60.
Being classified as Class 2 would naturally and negatively affect the commercial career of the XC40 across Portuguese lands, in contrast to the success that is seen in the rest of Europe — the most glaring example? The Opel Mokka, a model practically non-existent in Portugal, but one of the best-selling compact SUV/Crossover on the European continent.
But after months of uncertainty, Volvo Car Portugal, informed, through its Facebook page, that the new XC40 4×2 become Class 1. The XC40 with four-wheel drive remain as Class 2, but Volvo Car Portugal seeks with Brisa to also include these versions in the lowest class of the toll system.
Paradigm shift needed
The Volvo XC40 is just the latest example of the inadequacy of our toll classification system. It was the reason why cars like the Renault Kadjar, the Dacia Duster or the Mazda CX-5 took much longer to arrive in our country than in other markets.
In some cases it forced changes to the vehicle chassis, which involved lowering them, in others it forced a new approval process, raising its gross weight. But considering the current car market, composed, increasingly, by tall crossovers and SUVs, it appears that exceptions are increasingly the norm to "fit" light cars in Class 1 at toll booths.
Isn't it time to look for another way to classify vehicles? It would be more logical to separate them by weight, as weight turns out to be the main impact factor on the road where the vehicle travels. It doesn't make sense that a motorcycle weighing just over 200 kg pays the same as a 1500 kg family car, and that it pays the same as a 2500 kg large SUV, and that it pays the same as a truck weighing tens of tons. .