1990 Volvo 740 Estate SE review from UK and Ireland
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Owned for last 4 years and 50k miles :
Only major fault has been crack in wire from engine management system, which caused sporadic failures to start, and took a couple of weeks to track down.
Tail-gate struts failed.
Lots of minor electrical naughtiness :
Instrument, dashboard and side lights are forever blowing; I don't think we have ever had a complete set all working at the same time!
General comments?
Performance reasonable for 2 litre in such a big body.
Handling better than you would think when unladen, gets a bit tail happy when fully loaded.
Ride good on smooth roads, but definitely jumpy on rough roads.
Plenty of passenger and load space, which is why we bought it.
Power steering and incredible turning circle make it extremely manouevrable, but still needs a big parking space.
Fuel consumption about 30 mpg in mixed driving.
Servicing costs astronomical - if I'd known at the outset, maybe I wouldn't have bought it.
Needs service every 6k miles, main Volvo dealer expensive and not very good. Have switched to unfranchised Volvo specialist who gives much better attention, but still quite dear.
Search for New and Used Volvo 740s available in the UK
Click here to advertise your car
Recommended Reviews:
  | Reliable, comfortable and BIG! |
| Great, Heavy on fuel, but the 2.3 engine is powerful enough to cope with everyday driving |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Possibly |
| Engine and transmission | 2.0 petrol injection |
| Performance marks | 7/10 |
| Reliability marks | 7/10 |
| Comfort marks | 7/10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 5/10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 3/10 |
| Date of Entry | 3rd January, 1998 |