1989 Volvo 340 GL review from UK and Ireland

Back rest of the seat fell off (2 door - moving the seat takes a lot of torment).

Short circuit somewhere kept blowing fuses - radio, indicators, brake lights.

Throttle cable jammed (scary!)

Clutch is slipping.

Well as cars go this is a good one... provided you don't mind a lack of anything resembling design flair and style.

The 1.7 engine does the heavy body justice and can scare the pants off your average would-be Gary boy, though drinks petrol like a fish drinks water.

Tested a top speed of 105 mph (only to be expected when you have the aerodynamic properties of a house brick). 0-60 in around 10 seconds.

With brakes that'll have you stopped dead before you're dead and stopped, you can get away with flinging this luxury lorry around at knuckle biting speeds; but be wary because when they lock, they lock good and proper and before you know it you have square wheels.

One major flaw of the 340 Volvo is its inability to handle. You feel very detached from the ride at both low and high speeds, It's very unsettling and very unpredictable simply because you have very little feedback through the steering wheel - and therefore have no idea what it is that your tyres are actually doing on the road. For instance, this is the only car I've managed to accidentally pull a 630 degree spin in (and no that isn't a typo..) - I just had no idea that I had so little grip. It felt fine until the back end whipped round and we went into spin dry mode.

Being such a heavy car, you can be rest assured that once the back end goes, you may as well sit back and enjoy the ride since no amount of opposite lock will bring her back into line.

However my Volvo is still the most comfortable car that I have driven and still drive, with plenty of room and a living room couch approach in terms of seating.

Definitely not designed to be a driver's car - but rather a car 'which will get you from A-B'...

A good all rounder.