Safe, comfortable and reliable
Rear position bulbs had to be replaced more than once, everything else works just fine!
A fine car with a very responsive engine, good handling that makes you enjoy the ride.
The only "problem" I had was getting familiar with the radio/CD controls, by the way, it has a great sound with ProLogic.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 26th February, 2009
Excellent running costs and comfort. Mediocre performance, disappointing on poor surfaces
Anti-Roll Bar replaced £42.00.
Unhappy with Tracking, had 4-Wheel Electronic Wheel Alignment done- occasioning a new noise when doing tight 180 turns. Seems to have disappeared though. Occasional strange thumps from offside rear suspension.
Front tyres v badly worn on inner edge- Alignment showed the combined toe-in was 3degrees and should have been maximum 1degree.
On rough urban surfaces, v lumpy. Speed bumps handled better in a Renault.
Bifuel is amazing. 210miles of motorway, Cruise set at 70mph turned in UK6.4p per mile of LPG (cost on 19th/Sept2006 39.9p per litre LPG). This beats the 1.9dci Diesel Megane by 2p a mile. Major savings.
Bifuel struggles occasionally at traffic lights. Gentle prodding of pedal required.
V big and heavy car, but still holds the line. Bothered by the suspension though, on poor surfaces. Should be a lot better. Bifuel has self-levelling suspension as standard- could be a reason.
Comfort-wise, v successful. 400miles still leaves you in the mood for dancing. The Sat-Nav is good. The TV is pretty cool. Take a break from driving, watch some tv, hit the road again. V good. TV not sold on the new S80- This may be a rare accessory in future.
Stability Traction Control v convincing. Well worth making standard in every car, as the EU is proposing to do.
BTW- In a Bifuel model, the gas tanks are placed under the rear seats and in the spare wheel pit. There is no spare.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 20th September, 2006
Too much for too little!
Problems persist with the exterior mouldings around the windows. It chips off like fingernail polish.
Difficulty seeing out of rear windows due to the size of the head rests (Elite model has the video screens on the back side of the head rests).
Problems with the radio fading in and out, although the problem never surfaces for the dealer.
Rubber mouldings inside the car pulling away from the interior metal around the door.
Fabric around the mirror on the passenger side is pulling away from the mirror.
Overall, the car is fine.
However, for the price, the quality and durability of this car do not match up. My old 740 is more durable than the S80 T6 I have now.
The leather seats are nice, but there are a few pressure points that will soon wear through the leather.
I wish my husband had consulted with me before he paid for the car in full.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 14th October, 2003
Regarding the previous comment, expect your transmission to fail before 100k miles, along with the suspension system, and don't be surprised if the engnine starts buring oil with a smokey exhaust after 100k miles, IF those issues wait that long. Also, the Town Car is actually MORE expensive to buy new than the S80. I find this interesting since the Town Car is an American car made with mostly domestic parts borrowed from the Crown Vic (aka generic Ford parts), yet the Volvo is foreign and mostly original to itself (no borrowed chassis, engine, etc...)
My Certified warranty DOES NOT COVER to my surprise a necessary software upgrade, even though it will be required to UNJAM a jammed pressure switch in the transmission.
Furthermore, Volvo charges the following when their certified warrantly does not cover this problem.
$ 90 - to diagnose the issue
$ 90 - to install software to fix the problem
$ 25 - for the software itself.
THANKS!
9th Jan 2004, 19:01
I also looked at the S80 Elite, and was excited over the soft drink cooler in the rear armrest and the twin T.V.s - but soon realized as the driver I would never get to enjoy either of these nifty features, therefore I bought another Ford product, a 2003 Town Car and have been very happy with it. It has no flaws in quality related interior trim and is much smoother riding than the S-80 I drove.