Rattles all over!! Replaced clips on interior tailgate cover, wrapped seat latches in electrical tape, adjusted hood, tightened/replaced body panel retaining clips... takes time, but not difficult.
Bulbs in the dash... took some time, but not difficult or expensive.
When you turn right, the indicator does not automatically cancel... I manually turn it off. I'll figure it out after winter.
Nothing else wrong with car; was maintained as per dealer recommendation (full documentation provided when purchased).
We were expecting out first child this year and therefore had to shop for a family car... no minivans.
A friend recommended buying a Volvo... I found this one that was well maintained and had low mileage (for a 12 year old car) for $4k Cdn.
This is the nicest car I have ever owned. Rock solid... extremely comfortable to drive.. handling is excellent... easy on gas (8L/100km, 75% hwy miles)... lots of features (A/C, heated seats, traction control). Acceleration between lights is not great... plenty of passing power though.
I am amazed every time I drive this car... I could not have done better for the price. Knowing my family is as safe as possible in this beast lets me sleep at night.
These cars are commonly available for very little money and there is plenty of support on the internet. They are simple enough for the home mechanic to maintain. You'll have to go the the aftermarket for reasonably priced parts.
This thing is a tank... I will keep it for as long as it wants to stay with me (General consensus is 400,000 km without major expense). Should it die tomorrow, I would not hesitate to replace it with another Volvo... drive one and you'll understand.
Sorry, but I don't' buy it... Volvos that are FWD aren't as great as you'd like them to be.
Sure they have great heaters, and the engines and trannys will last a long time, but everything else around the car will and does fall apart!
As for the safety aspect, Volvos aren't the only ones with those safety ratings. Sure 2 or 3 decades ago they were at the top of their game, but since then EVERYONE else have caught up and surpassed Volvo on this feature.
If you want a slow, stodgy car with poor handling that'll appeal to those getting ready for retirement, then by all means buy a Volvo. If you want something you can really enjoy, buy anything else and save your money, cause all you're paying for is the name.
How can the V70 be classed as slow when the T5 has 240bhp as standard? The five cylinder engine in all sound fantastic. Full stop.
They are also great cars to drive. My 1998 S70 has 146,000 miles and is perfect all round with EVERY LITTLE THING working, and not failed or even had an advisory on the MOT in the four years I've owned it.
By the way, I'm also a younger person! My S60 is also far better then the competition (especially BMW) when it comes to value for money, comfort, practicality and safety. The understated looks look elegant and sporty without being offensive...
I am more than happy with the 190HP of 98 Volvo XC Wagon. 0-60 in 8.6 seconds is just fine for me. Sticking to the road in turns thanks to AWD and Traction Control is also very nice. I have driven plenty of other cars from luxury to compact (And have had to maintain them too!). My 300,000 Km Volvo is a TREAT to drive and maintain. I am sorry that some have had bad experiences, But this is my third used Volvo with over 200,000 KM and I ask myself daily:
"Why do people buy new cars when they can buy a used Volvo" and enjoy all the comforts and more reliability and safety.
I'm currently driving a 1998 V70, I love it. Prior to this, I had an '89 240 DL wagon, loved that too, but sold it at 496,000KM (that's a fairly educated guess as the speedometer quit in the last year I owned it!) it was running when I sold it for $1000, and surprisingly the only rust was around that pesky tailgate window and trailing edge of the tailgate.
Volvo's aren't for everyone, they aren't the fastest, unless you opt for the turbo or R models, but they do have enough high end torque to surprise naysayers on the highway! They aren't always the most reliable either, but the fixes are usually fairly straight forward. Bottom line is, if you love Volvo's, which you might have guessed, I do, you take the bit of bad with the whole lot of good.
If you need a practical, 'V'ersatile vehicle that will take daily abuse, then you just can't beat them. I'm at 423,500K now. I'm hoping, hoping, hoping to reach the 1/2 a million mark before this one leaves my driveway... however, I just found a '98 T5 V70 for just $3500 that I might just buy if it examines well... guess I'll just have two!
Now something I'm experiencing of late are really niggly things, ABS light that comes on and off, oxygen sensor light that does the same, some of the windows and door locks decide not to work on occasion, and a propensity to idle erratically on the rare occasion.
If you can find one with low mileage, it's well worth it, mine costs on average about $250.00 /month to operate and that includes insurance, that's another plus about an older car - the rates are good! I also feel that driving and keeping an older car in good order is a more environmentally responsible choice; why scrap something that is perfectly good?
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