1995 Volvo 960 Wagon review from North America

Right before we bought the wagon, the previous owner had done quite a few things like change belts and the water pump.

The air conditioning has never worked, we didn't want to spend the money fixing it after the first 'recharge' only lasted a week.

We had no problems until around the 200k mile mark,

then we had the head relined, new water pump, timing belt, radiator, transmission (put in a used one).

The leather in the seats is badly cracked in front now, and the covering has pulled away from the edges at the tops of the front doors just below where the window starts.

We go through brake pads fairly frequently, because of how we use the car (use it like a pickup truck!)

This car has been wonderful! We bought it used at 126,000 miles for just under $5000. We use it in our business to deliver mail, up to 1000 lbs at a time gets loaded in it at least 2x a week, but it still runs great. We looked at getting an SUV a few years ago but none were able to be loaded with 900+ lbs like the Volvo..

We had to fix quite a few things on it around 200k miles, but now (knock wood) nothing else looks bad.

Even though it's always looked a little rough since it's older and had dings and scratches on it when we got it, you can tell it was a very well made car. For $5000 we got a solid and safe wagon with an awesome stereo, HEATED leather seats! a sunroof and power everything. So many little details spoiled us on the Volvo, we just went to test drive a new Honda Civic and ended up spending less money and buying a used S40 with 40k miles on it instead - Hondas are great but now that we're used to the Volvo we decided to stay with that brand.

It's super easy to fold down the back seats and end up with a huge cargo area. Everything inside the car is just well planned, and feels solid and reliable - even though it's an old car with a ton of miles, it has a smoother ride than a new Toyota (I rented one on vacation and couldn't believe the difference). The seats are comfortable too, even on an 8 hour drive to Disney. My husband and son used it several times to tow a sailboat and camp at a lake, and folded down the back and slept in there instead of a tent - so it makes a great camper too in a pinch.

Also, I had to swerve once going 70mph on a wet highway to avoid a car that spun out in front of me, then quickly swerve back into my original lane to avoid another car. It tipped up onto two wheels but I never felt out of control of the steering - then it clunked back down on all four and I was able to keep going - as steady as if it had never happened. Can't say the same for my heart!

This car has been worth every penny we put into it.