There's a lot more to the new C70 Convertible than just rakish lines and luxury appointments. While style, flair and individuality are some of the vehicle's cornerstone concepts, the new C70 is in every sense a vehicle of substance.

This latest Volvo is arguably the safest, most stylish cabriolet in the world.

Beyond the skin-deep pleasantries of cutting-edge in-car audio, the leather, Alcantara, walnut, marble effect and patterned aluminium, lies a no-compromise commitment to passenger protection.

Beneath the fully automated, one-button soft top, passengers are fully protected by a 'virtual' roof designed to spring into action in the event of an imminent rollover.

At the front of the vehicle, the windscreen frame and front door pillars are sturdily reinforced with high-strength steel and firmly anchored to the underlying structure. At the rear, bars recessed behind the rear-seat passengers' head rests are activated within life-saving milliseconds.

'ROPS' (Roll Over Protection System) also includes force limited seatbelt pre-tensioners to afford occupants optimum seatbelt protection.

This is not merely a Coupe with the roof removed, but rather a vehicle specifically re-engineered to suit both the expectations of luxury buyers and the imperative of complete passenger protection.

Naturally, the C70 Convertible has twin front and side airbags. But even the airbag protection is purpose-designed to meet the needs of convertible-specific safety performance. While the structure around the passenger capsule is horseshoe-shaped to efficiently dissipate impact energy, the side airbags have been lengthened for superior head protection.

Luxury-class straight-line performance is assured with either five-cylinder, turbocharged and intercooled powerplant — the potent 142kW 2.4T or the high-performance 176kW T5. And the vehicle's class-leading crash performance is further augmented by two strong cross members which reinforce the doors, one of which is fabricated from a specially hardened boron-steel alloy.

In order to make it easier (and quicker) for rescue personnel to free occupants after a crash, the doors automatically unlock in any collision severe enough to deploy the airbags.

The supremely comfortable orthopaedic seats incorporate Volvo's new whiplash protection system — called 'WHIPS' — which markedly reduces the risk of neck and back injuries in the event of rear-end impacts. In such a collision, the front seat backrests move backwards and the head and upper torso are well supported in a uniform manner. The backrest then tips backwards even further to prevent and catapult-like forward 'whiplash' movement.

Of course, the leather-bound steering wheel operates a collapsible steering column. Crumple zones in the car's structure limit the collision forces on occupants ensures the car deforms in a life-saving, predictable manner. Even the dashboard is designed to absorb collision energy.

But the best form of occupant protection is a design aimed to ensure a collision doesn't occur in the first place. And here, too, C70 excels.

The vehicle's dedicated active safety features include a dedicated STC — Stability and Traction Control — system improves stability, dynamic safety and grip. This complements a very sophisticated ABS system, with ventilated discs and sliding calipers in the front to ensure smooth efficient braking without loss of steering control. Electronic brake force distribution (EBD) is used to control the distribution of braking forces between front and rear wheels.

Owners with a young child will be delighted to know a leading brand child's seat is standard.

The benchmark C70 convertible: one of the world's sleekest, most stylish — and safest — open-topped tourers.