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Comments
Does anyone have any thoughts or comments, either about the car or pickup in Sweden?
P.S.-I'd go to Sweden in a heartbeat just to go! (Friends have bought two Volvos that way and it worked out well for them both times.)
While I am not denying that a few of these cars have experienced some aggravations, they are almost always minor and easy to take care of.
Volvo is a very responsible company and tries very hard to be environmentally conscientious, which I greatly admire. If you are going to Sweden to pick up the car, you might want to consider ordering the navigation system. It will become much more invaluable to you than you could imagine.
I truly don't feel you will ever regret purchasing the 2001 wagon.
My '98 V70 AWD R had Michelin Pilots and they lasted 40m of hard driving, so I had no complaint.
Thanks
I got the impression from 2 dealers around here that the XC is selling well, but the T5 is below expectations. I finally bought a new T5 2 months ago-very happy with it.
Anyone have problems with the alarm going off for no reason? I don't believe that I'm hitting the panic button or anything but in the past two days the alarm has gone off 4 times.
Maybe the panic button is too sensitive on the remote?
Thanks,
-Phil
Chris Fairman
I'm sorry to tell you this, but it sounds like the same story I had with my l996 850 Turbo wagon. I kept it to 80,000 miles and finally said a tearful good bye to it. Even the service manager was sympathetic, but it just had one problem after another from about 60,000 on. The transmission was fine, but everything else seemed to go including the climate control/AC twice. Electricals were the biggest problem. It never let me down as far as starting and getting me somewhere, but in the end the aggrevation and cost of constant repairs wore me down. I hope this is not too discouraging, but I only wanted to let you know my experience. Sorry.
I've had a couple of e-mails and all with very similar experiences. I've had a couple of posts on the 850/v70 board also (check them out). It is discouraging yes. All the emails have said, that they have had similar experiences and none have said hang in there it's a great car. I wished I would have cut my losses earlier. I feel like I've invested so much that I can't afford to just trade the car in now. I keep thinking and crossing my fingers that each repair is the last one for the next 50k miles, but each and everytime that dreaded check engine light comes on. Sometimes it is on before I even get out of the dealer's lot. When you threw in the towel what did you go to? Any wagons out there that are comperable, without getting into the $40k range. This was the first "luxury" car we've been able to afford. I don't want to do it again. I've had much better luck with all of the crappy cars I grew up with hand-me downs and 4 cyliner economy cars that all went for more than 100k with little more than oil changes in the service records. Subaru, Mazda, Cavalier, Mercury tracer, Honda civic. They all performed exceptionally. But this Volvo has been my personal nightmare. Thanx for the sympathy anyway. Volvo says Drive safely. I say Drive, just plain old Drive...Please Drive... Please start today. Please run.
You will probably be real surprised when I tell you what I went with. I was really ready for a big change--away from luxury and into an SUV. I travel alot and found trying to see over all the trucks and SUVs out there was quite difficult. I had seen a Consumer Reports SUV magazine that mentioned the Hyundai Santa Fe and the 10yr./100,000 mile warranty. After looking at the Mercedes SUV and the Lexus RX300 I went, with great hesitation, to the Hyundai dealer. Surprise! I really "fell for" the Santa Fe LX with AWD,ABS and TRACS. Price--$22,616 with everything including leather heated seats. I do miss the power seats, but other than that I am very, very pleased. I found the dealer wonderful to work with and I don't regret my decision 5,000 miles later. Will it be reliable...it could not be any worse than the Volvo.
I know exactly what you are talking about when you say the Check Engine light comes on after leaving the dealer. Check over at the Hyundai Owners Club or the Hyundai Santa Fe board under SUVs and 99% of the posts are positive. The biggest problem now seems to be a real shortage.
To be perfectly honest, we still have a VolVO XC--1999 and I'm starting to get nervous about that one too! Again, it's the little things in the electrical system that are starting to go, but who knows what will go next.
Did I compromise on safety? Perhaps. That is my one hesitation on the Santa Fe as there are no safety tests done here. Reports from Korea have been very good. Not driving a "rocket" perhaps makes me a better driver, and my visibility is vastly improved. I'm sure that counts for something.
Please let us know what you decide to do.
1. The rear window design is horrible, when there's snow on the road the window needs to be cleaned every 5-10 seconds. This was quite a pain without the washer for 6 weeks. Obviously no thought was given to the aerodynamics of this area. Our similar (but roomier) Peugeot 505 wagon almost doesn't need a rear wiper, just rain and snow from the sky hits the window.
2. The door shape is very susceptible to dings both on the door edge and from other cars. If the door is swung open against a garage wall (kids) the metal edge hits, not the rubber bumper. I don't know why they bother with the rub strip.
3. The cargo cover is useless if you buy the third seat, I don't see why these can't be integrated.
4. The non turbo engine is plenty adequate, the auto has to downshift frequently but does it very smoothly.
5. Excellent mileage and comfort, getting 24 mpg highway at 75mph which is excellent for midwinter.
6. Seats uncomfortable for me after a half hour, but I know how subjective opinions of seats are.
7. For those who don't know it 4WD is a complete waste unless you live where roads never get plowed. Save your money and buy a set of good mounted snow tires for $500 and you can not only go but steer and stop too.
Thanks for both your responses. I'm pleased to see the gripes are directed more towards design rather than reliability at this point on the 2001s. The feedback on the T5 and non-turbo V70 were also nice; the XC gets most of the press these days. Volvo has an excellent pricing strategy with the V70 line. I know I don't need any more than the base V70, but 2Kish more gets the 2.4T and 3Kish more gets you in the XC -- each one giving you a bit more toys.
I rented the 2001 XC for a week in January and used it to go skiing up in Stowe, VT. It snowed the whole week and I must say I couldn't get that thing to slide unless I did something ridiculous. It was first time I felt antilock breaks shutter to an immediate stop rather than shutter into the intersection. Starting or stopping on snowy inclines/declines also was no problem. I loved the seating on both long and short rides. However, getting into those comfy seats is a bit of an adventure. The high seats and low sloping windshield making getting into the vehicle hazardous. What do they say banging you head once is a mistake, twice is stupid ... well the third and the fourth time was because the concussions had knocked me silly.
Anyway with all the XC's thrills I seem to be leaning towards the base V70, maybe the 2.4T depending on one more test drive and anymore useful posts supporting either one. Thanks to all and keep those 2001 review coming.
Purpose of post: Need advise and feedback on the V70XC. Anyone have enough experience with them - other than the report from the person who rented one and loved it. I'd like to know up keep data and reliability. Any reports out there on the '99 V70XC?
Thanks.
Haven't been serious in negotiation since I'm just kicking tires now and dealing with these guys via email.
Most of the initial quotes are 3-3.8% above invoice for cars that are ORDERED. One dealer indiated he could go lower than 3% if it's on the lot.
Are these in line with what you've heard/received? Thx for the input.
Pocahontas
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Did your memory system include the outside mirrors? It seems the V70s delivered in 2001 had them, those before did not. Mine was delivered in 12/00 and did not have that feature.
My continuing irritation is the lack of info on the 17" P6 Pirellis. Neither Volvo nor Pirelli can tell me where they fit in the Pirelli lineup, either quality wise, or as performance tires. I stopped by my Pirelli dealer today and he, nor his computer, knew anything about that designation. However, so far they have performed well on my V70 T5.
Interesting posts about the mysterious P6 Pirelli's. I love the way they handle so far. Hope I don't have problems with future performance or replacement of them. I'll keep watching the boards though for additional info and experiences of others. Read somewhere, maybe under the maintenance & repair area, that some people were noticing bubbles coming up on the sidewalls of these tires so I'll definitely be watching out for that.
Glenn
Our dealer says there are 2 ways to go, (1) get the "permanent" EuroRails at a cost of over $600, or (2) get the "portable" roof rails for considerably less. The dealer says that everyone is going with the portable rails. The roof rack and its accessories were a permanent fixture on our 850 wagon and we can't see ourselves putting a rack on every time we go out for a spin.
Anyone have experience with the portable model? Can it be used on a permanent basis? What are the visuals like -- does it interfere with the sleek line?
Any other solutions out there?
Thanks.
We have the removeable Load Bars on our '01T5 and I love 'em. This has got to be the cleanest system I have ever seen. The actual feet of the load bars never touch the top or side of your car. Instead the seat into little slots hidden in your roof gutters. Check it out & you will see where the clips insert. It is simple (installs in under 2 minutes), clean & effective. I believe the bars are rated up to 200 lbs. I use them with my large roof box and they work great. The roof box is left over from my '98XC and it fits perfect with the new bars. The box is Volvo brand however it is manufactured by Thule. I think the Load Bars are also mfg. by Thule so most of your existing components might work fine. The Euro Rails on my previous XC made alot of wind noise when not in use.
PS: I think I only paid about $145.00 for the pair of bars.
Also, although I live in St Louts now, I grew up in West Haven, CT.
Howver, after mulling things over this morning I bought a Saab 9-5 wagon at a dealer in Westport (close to home!.) The car is slightly larger than the V70, handles much better, and is well equipped.
Also, the Saab has lots of incentives, in fact the day before I purchased the car, I received a $1,000 certificate off the price of a Saab - just came in the mail - so I negotiated the price - just below invoice and got another $1,000 off courtesy of Saab.
Good luck with your new car.