2001 Volvo S40 review from North America

Recurring problem with airbags.

Transmission began to shift poorly.

Strong gasoline odor which was never diagnosed.

Lights constantly burnt out.

I bought this car as kind of a bridge buy when my old vehicle had problems. I was initialy intrigued by the low price of the vehicle and of course the fact it was a Volvo. Saftey, reliability, status and such. I do have to say I drove the car without sticking any major dollars of my own into it. I commute to work and put on about 60 miles a day and always got great mileage out of it.

Here are the reasons why I got rid of it. The first problem was the transmission. When shifting out of first gear, especially when cold, it would shift very hard and ocassionally "slip" in and out of gear. This made me nervous on long trips.

Secondly was the airbag problem. When I bought the car the airbag light was on, and the dealer replaced the driver side curtain. One subzero Wisconsin morning I started the car and the bag light came on again. I didn't bother having it checked again, but I was told the first time the bags are disabled when the light is on. So much for the saftey thing.

Other problems- Strong gasoline and burnt oil odors at all times, Service light constantly popping on, lights buring out.

I liked the way the car is styled. Mine was silver with a spoiler and I thought it looked pretty sharp, but I do not like the looks of them without a spoiler. The paint did hold up pretty well I thought for being five years old.

The interior in my opinion was very bland. The layout of everything just didn't give a high end feel. The rear seat is extremly cramped for adults.

I got what I needed out of this car. I guess the only thing I can say is if your looking to buy a S40 and drive it for 300m miles you'll be disappointed. Not the same Volvo as other models/years. I moved back to an American vehicle as I've owned many cars and can quite honestly say I've had the best luck with them. I know, not what I would have thought either.