It was so cold out on the lake where we were "ice racing" the cars, I couldn't help blasting the heat once inside in order to

Volvo says that the "number of mistakes and missed actions were dramatically higher for the drivers operating in the higher temperatures." (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press)

warm up. It seemed that I would never get warm enough, especially my hands which suffered from the use of inappropriate leather gloves. OK, I'm a West Coast wimp, give me a break. While I enjoy the cozy warmth when riding around in an ultra-hot car, I tend not to turn the heat up too high as I am prone to getting sleepy when the cabin is oven crisp. According to Volvo it seems that I'm not alone when it comes to the affect of heat. The Swedish company conducted a study in which it examined the results of two sets of test drivers over the same route, with two different interior temperatures. The first group set the temperature to 21 degrees Centigrade (70 degrees F) while the second group set the heat to 27

A preset slalom course on a frozen lake was the perfect setting to test the XC70's handling. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press)

degrees C (80 degrees F). Volvo says that the "number of mistakes and missed actions were dramatically higher for the drivers operating in the higher temperatures." Some food for thought the next time you're behind the wheel with the heat set to high. So I've mentioned driving the XC70 on sheer ice surfaces as well as "ice racing", what's this all about? Well, I've exaggerated the racing aspect of my experience, it was more of a few runs through a preset slalom course on a frozen lake. There was a race track set up too, but I took the V50 through that so will have to comment when this review is available - stay tuned.