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Volvo S80

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Comments

  • keithpakeithpa Member Posts: 17
    emachine,

    We flew Delta (Philadelphia to JFK to Brussels) and Sabena (Brussels to Goteburg). What was bad about the travel was a scheduled 6-hour layover in Brussels that turned into a 9 hour and lost luggage on the return trip. At least we were able to go into Brussels during our layover.

    Goteburg was very nice, beautiful weather, lots of outdoor dining, and sunset was about 11:30 p.m. You will enjoy your trip.
  • keithpakeithpa Member Posts: 17
    clswee,

    Yes, you understood right. I did pick up a 2001 on July 4. However, the catch is that they will not deliver it until August 1 becuase it is a 2001.
  • neil2212neil2212 Member Posts: 16
    Shauns, when you tested the T6 did it have the stock 16" wheels or the optional 17" wheels. To state "... the T-6 had perceptibly louder road noise than the 2.9, and a rougher ride." w/o equivalent wheel sizes wouldn't appear to be fair, if that where the case. Neil
  • keithpakeithpa Member Posts: 17
    emachine,

    Sorry I missed your question about where tey put me up. They put me up in the Hotel Gothia. It may not have been as nice as the two Radissons but it was fine. They have a large breakfest buffet included in the price of the room. It also has a bar/restaurant on the 18th floor. The rate for the additional nights we stay was even less then what the Volvo travel agent quoted me. The only negitive was the room came with two single beds. We asked and we were told that they only had one room in the hotel with a double bed.
  • emachineemachine Member Posts: 17
    Thanks for the response. I too have a 6 hour layover, but in Newark. Ugh. I wanted to fly Delta but they stop servicing Gothenbug on August 1. Great timing. Oh well, my new T6 should be worth all the hassle.

    Volvo booked my wife and me at the Best Western Elite. I think the Gothia was full.

    One more question. How long does the factory tour take? We want to see the factory but it is closed on the day we pick up the car. We can take the tour when we drop off the car, but I want to make sure it is worth it to sacrifice touring time. We would have to be at the factory by 1:00.

    Any thoughts?
  • broeuxbroeux Member Posts: 46
    Keith, all the hotels we stayed in during our Sweden tour had single beds, even though one hotel had promised a queen. In fact, they all simply tell you to slide the two beds together and you have a queen! Not quite the same, though, and some of them didn't slide so easily.

    Broeux
  • gblock348gblock348 Member Posts: 5
    Does anyone know the specifics on the end of year incentives on s80 t6. supposed to be a new program that started today for non-repeat customers (yet!).


    Geoff
  • mmullenmmullen Member Posts: 17
    Shauns, thanks for the info. I must agree with Neil, if the loudness is being caused by the low-profile tires on 17" rims, that's not a difference between the T-6 vs, the 2.9 but a tire difference. Our 2000 T-6 was delivered from the factory with 16" rims and I am pleased with the quiet ride although I imagine if Volvo wanted to add about 100 lbs. more sound insulation or choose the tires specifically for quietness the car could have been made even quieter.
  • broeuxbroeux Member Posts: 46
    We have the 17" Arrakis, and I don't have a problem with undue road noise. What noise I hear is quite tolerable and far outweighed by all the positive attributes of touring in this auto.

    Broeux
  • keithpakeithpa Member Posts: 17
    The factory tour takes about 1-1/2 hours. It is a combination film/lecture followed by a tour. Are you sure it is not available the day you pick up the car? I say that because the brochure said they stop the English speaking tour on July 1 for the summer but I went on it July 4.

    My wife and I enjoyed the factory tour. If going on the tour means giving up seeing something that you really want to see then skip the tour.

    In Goteborg take the Padden (toad) both tour. It is about 30 minutes and will give you a nice view of the city and some history.

    There is another boat ride out to an island fortress, I would skip that.

    There was an excellent restaurant near the Novotel Hotel. I do not remember the name but I think it began with an "s". It was highly recommended in the Foders Scandinavia Travel book and the people at the hotel desk thought it was the best one in town. It was a little price but good.
  • mmullenmmullen Member Posts: 17
    Sorry for assuming your wife just didn't want the car. I did some experiments to see if I could replicate your wifes problem with the seatbelt "cutting into her neck".

    This is what I learned. The shorter the person, the closer the seatbelt comes to the neck area. However, this can be eliminated by raising the seat position up. If your wife is over 5' tall, I suspect she did not know how to adjust the seat up. It raises quite a bit when the lower adjustment lever is held in the up position. I imagine she was just tilting the seat back, the seat itself or sliding fore and aft. Let her have another try and make sure the seat is fully raised.
  • shaunsshauns Member Posts: 24
    In order of quietness:

    16" 2.9
    16" T-6
    17" T-6

    I did not test drive a 2.9 with the 17" wheels. There was a noticeable difference between the T-6 and 2.9 16" wheels, and a clear difference in ride with a further increase with the 17" wheels.
    From this, I would say that the tires are the primary problem here - the T-6 uses firmer, wider performance tires in both the 16" and 17" wheelsets. I was led to understand, but cannot verify, that the shocks and springs in the T-6 are somewhat stiffer than the 2.9, which will also increase transmitted road texture noise. If anyone can verify this I would be in their debt.



    As to whether road noise should be an issue, for some of us, yes it is. It is also a reasonable criterion for comparison, because Volvo wishes us to compare the S80 against the 528i, MB320, and Audi A-6, and GS400 - ALL of which have better smooth road noise levels and the 528i and GS400 which have very good rough road noise levels.
    Luxury sedans, whether sporting or not, are expected to have very high levels of noise isolation relative to mid-range sedans.

    Now - why did I choose a Volvo instead of a Lexus or a BMW? I'm tall-and the Volvo (and A6) were the only ones that fit me. Rough road noise-wise, they're a toss up - and considering I got my S80 at under $34K on Euro delivery against $40K+, the Volvo won. But yes, I would have appreciated it if Volvo had spent another 100lbs or so on sound isolation and suspension knock isolation.
  • mikeh20854mikeh20854 Member Posts: 7
    Keith-- can you confirm that the 2001 has the flop down rear headrests? Any other changes you noticed for 2001? We're headed over to Gothenburg in about a week and half to pick up our car and tour around for two weeks. Assuming we want to go on the factory tour at what time should we plan to arrive at the delivery center. I assume taking delivety takes some time. Any information appreciated.
  • jack130jack130 Member Posts: 9
    mikeh20854

    Suggest you go to URL http://www.volvocars.com/overseas_new/,
    click on "Traveling to Europe" then click on "S80." This will give you the breakdown of standard equipment and options for the 2001 OSD S80 including the "Head Restraints, rear, outer, foldable with dashboard switch."

    Volvo North America or your dealer should provide this sort of info, I think. Hope I've helped you.
  • jarchjarch Member Posts: 16
    I have a 2000 T6 and also have some minor issues with the seatbelt position as well. My wife is 5' 2" and I am 5' 7". On longer trips in the car, I have found the seatbelt does bother me a bit in the neck area while driving, and I do put the seat all the way up. This helped but did not eliminate the slight discomfort entirely (at least for me). I was dismayed that Volvo did not allow the seat belt pulley mechanism to be manually adjusted downward to fit shorter (or taller) drivers like some other car makes do...
  • jarchjarch Member Posts: 16
    I have a 2000 T6 I took delivery of in March 2000. Much to my dismay when we received our factory order car, Volvo eliminated the fold down head rests for all S80s during that period (apparently due to some safety concerns with the child safety seat in the rear seat). Since then, they are now building the cars with this feature, which I wanted then and still want now.

    As I have no little children (just big ones!), I would like to have the fold down head rests 'activated' if possible. The Volvo service mgr at the dealer told me the seats were wired for the headrest fold down controls, but he did not believe that this could be done by the dealer (only by the factory). Does anyone know if this is true? It would seem to me that if the seats still had all the wiring that it would simply be a matter of getting the right head rests. Anyone know?
  • mmullenmmullen Member Posts: 17
    Jarch, do you usually adjust the adjustable steering column all the way aft? This could help because then the seatback could be tilted back a little.

    I am constantly amazed at the number of comfortable positions this car can adapt to even though I'm 6'4".

    I think Volvo shoulder harnesses do come closer to the neck than other cars. I imagine this is a safety feature to minimize the possibility of rotating out of the harness in a 3/4 frontal collision.
  • dobigildobigil Member Posts: 2
    I purchased a 2000 S80 T6 last September '99 and while it is cool to look at, fun to drive, and marks me as a Man of Distinction (: or is that :), I am overall pretty disappointed for the following reason.

    The "helpful" grab handle attached to the ceiling is constantly banging me in the head when I turn to look over my left shoulder, and often even with lesser movements. I've sort of learned to avoid it, but besides the sore spot on my head, I think it is truly a hazard for additional head injury in a collision (I'm an ER doc so maybe that's why I'm sensitive to this.) I realize that the magic curtain is supposed to come down and protect against this, but I don't want to wait until it's needed to test this questionable notion. By the way, I'm only 5' 11".

    The dealer has been sympathetic but of no help. Likewise, "Volvo Central" is absolutely uninterested. For a make that markets itself so heavily regarding safety, and for a 40K car, I am really very disappointed. Note that previous models of Volvos (and other car makes) simply do not have these hand-hold things on the driver's side, or they fold down against the ceiling.

    I have made innumerable calls and tried to get some third-party outfit to remove this handle (which is easy) and put up some blank plate that doesn't look gross (apparently next to impossible). At this point, my wife drives "my" S80 (she's short), and I drive "her" Suburban (which doesn't have a hand grabber on the driver's side, but does have one on the passenger side--much farther from the passenger's head as compared to the S80).

    Has anyone out there successfully dealt with this problem? As far as I'm concerned, it's not quite in the league of the famous Pinto Exploding Gas Tank, but it is a dangerous design flaw.

    DobiGil
  • rollierollie Member Posts: 337
    Regarding post #129:

    dobigil, I'm surprised you're still having this problem. To date, I think you are still the only person who has had a consistent issue with banging their head on the handle. I'm the same height as you and have never come close to hitting by head. Out of curiosity, what is the length of the inseam of your pants? (Before the wise guys get funny I'm wondering if your torso is disproportionately long?) Also, have you moved the seat down further to give you more headroom?

    Thanks.

    -rdo
    rdollie@mediaone.net
  • jarchjarch Member Posts: 16
    Just got my 7500 mile service on my T6 and I was a little surprised how much it cost; nearly $300! $142 for the service itself, $70 in miscellaneous parts including $50 for Mobil One oil (should have brought my own oil to them), and a one time fee of $75 to reprogram the VADIS for one touch unlock operation for the remote (should have had this done when I picked up the car). For such a simple service, makes me a bit apprehensive about my next service call! :-)
  • mmullenmmullen Member Posts: 17
    That does sound expensive. Subtract the $75 for the software change and you still paid $212? That's a lot even considering you specified the synthetic oil.

    I recently took our 2000 S80 T6 to Northwest Volvo in Lynnwood, WA for the 7500 mile service and specified synthetic oil. The total came to $130 plus sales tax.The service was $79, oil $42 and filter and gasket was $9.
  • anuthjanuthj Member Posts: 5
    dobigil,

    I'm 6'4" and I've driven my T-6 almost 26,000 miles without ever having a problem smacking my head on that handle. Perhaps, you have your seat a little too far up? Could you sit further back and use the adjustable steering column for a more comfortable fit?
  • dobigildobigil Member Posts: 2
    I admit that I like to sit "high" but I generally do have the seat all the way back, which might compensate. However, I'm only 5'11", and pretty normal-shaped. I've been driving a wide variety of cars for the last 30 years or so (just normal driving, starting in Driver's Ed in high school!) and I've never had this problem before. On the other hand, it sounds like I'm the only S80 driver out there with this complaint. I do feel somewhat vindicated in my ire by the fact that most cars have either a folding or no grab handle on the driver's side, presumably for this reason. Besides hitting my head occasionally (I admit, this is less frequent now that I'm painfully aware of the $&^#* up there), I really am concerned about unnecessary head injury in a collision. So, those of you who don't hit their head--isn't your head at least CLOSE to the handle??? I'll keep watching this section of the Town Hall to see whether anyone out there has noticed this, and better yet, found a solution!
    Thanks for your replys,

    DobiGil
  • ffee1921ffee1921 Member Posts: 1
    I test drove the Volvo S80 and S70 and was unhappy with the restricted visibility (side and rear) due to the headrests. Those of you who have driven these cars for awhile, is the visibility a problem?
  • tennbergtennberg Member Posts: 45
    Hi,

    This is my first post to this website. I leased an S80 2.9 back in May from Boston Volvo Village (Highly recommended!) and have been in love with it ever since. I have already put over 2000 miles on it. It has been a joy to drive.
    Although it is a while before I take it in for the 7500 mile maintenance, there have been a few problems that have appeared since Day 1:
    1. Sucking noise behind dash. This occurs either when I accelerate from a stop or during normal driving. My roommate says it is probably a loose hose somewhere. Lately, it has been doing this every few minutes for 3-5 seconds each time.
    2. EXTREMELY sensitive brakes. Although I appreciate how well these brakes work, I don't think they should be this sensitive.
    3. Roll back on hills. This has almost gotten me into a couple of nasty situations. When I go to put my foot on the gas pedal after being stopped on an incline, the car will roll back at least a foot, if not more. Most people on here said that that is normal, but I would like a second opinion.
    4. Revving of engine while stopped. I have noticed on several occasions that the tachometer will move up a notch or two while I am stopped in traffic. I have been told that this may be due to the A/C cycling but would like a second opinion.
    5. Brakes squeak a bit. I have noticed this during normal driving. I know that the brakes can't be worn down after only 2500 miles.
    6. Thud in steering wheel. On occasion, the steering wheel will make a thud either when accelerating from a stop or coming to a stop.
    7. Lights in ceiling flickering. My roommate noticed that when the defroster is turned on, the lights up top will flicker slightly.

    Thanks for any help you may have. I am not sure if I should have these problems looked at immediately by the guys at Boston Volvo or just wait until the 7500 mile maintenance.

    Mike (tennberg@yahoo.com)
  • twindytwindy Member Posts: 18
    I had the same problem as your wife with the belt cutting into my neck. I was able to move the seat up as high as it would go and played with the adjustments to get it "better". However, the belt tends to stay put then ride up on my neck while driving. I bought one of those "shoulder belts" for my daughter. The belts in the back seat cut her neck (she's 10 and about 41/2 feet tall). That did the trick for her. I will probably get one for myself also. Hers is an adult shoulder belt, not bad looking in a "fake" lamb skin. The type I purchased for her is the one that looks like a "pistol" carrying case, not just the one that covers the top portion of the belt. It actually repositions the belt.
  • broeuxbroeux Member Posts: 46
    Aaron, your right about the crystal. Buy all you can carry. But better than buying in the city is to go out to Kingdom of Crystal and buy directly from the numerous factory shops all over the country side. Mind you some of the crystal will give you sticker shock, but it's still a fraction of the cost in the states. (Go to your local department store and look at Swedish crystal before you leave for Sweden, just to get an idea of prices.) And we bought crystal at the company shops which we saw even in Stockholm for double the price. Out in the sticks you can buy it and pay the exorbitant shipping costs back home and still save over US prices.

    About those rubber mats, after we had already sealed the deal on the car here, I suggested to the salesman that he should give us a set of those mats as our "commission" since I did all the work in researching OSD and completing the order form with VCNA guidance (our dealer didn't know much about it!). The salesman called the parts counter and ask how much they were: $93. Surprisingly, he ordered them and had them waiting for us when we picked up the car. I never put them in until we hit a rainy spell here a couple of weeks ago, where it was raining every day. Now I love the look, feel and functionality of them. The rains stopped, but the mats are still in. Maybe for "dress-up" occasions I'll put the carpeted mats back in!

    Broeux
  • bhtonguebhtongue Member Posts: 4
    Are you sure it's a sucking sound or is it a hissing? If it's hissing it's from the AC compressor and is a "standard feature" on the S80. You get kind of used to it after a while but it really shouldn't be there seeing as no other car I've ever been in has such a noise. If it's really a "sucking" then I have no idea.

    The brake feel is overly sensitive. It doesn't get better or worse with time.

    Several people have complained about a thud (or thunk or click) in the steering column. It's a repair item that should be fixable.
    BHT
  • gblock348gblock348 Member Posts: 5
    Does anyone have the specific std car and option pkg's for the US dealer - delivered vehicle. There are some differences in the 2000-2001 OSD program cars, but no docs on the 'non-OSD' 2001 that I have found. Would appreciate the invoice prices as well. Have negotiated a 500+invoice but the dealer doesnt have 2001 detailed docs yet.

    It appears leather is in the base price, but not the sun. the security pkg does not list homelink, but hlink is nowhere else either.. maybe extra and dealer installed? the coin holder is gone? the rear headrest folddown is back and real wood for the dash. outside mirrors newly linked to driver seat memory.

    Would like comments on the arrakis and drive /sound. I drove a 17 and a 16 t-6 about 8 months ago at regular street speeds, and did not appreciate a noticible difference. The dealer suggested they are less comfortable and the tires are about 2.5x the cost of the 16's for replacement.

    thanks,

    Geoff
  • derekchoyderekchoy Member Posts: 36
    I am interested in this dealer installed option, does anyone know how much this is going to cost? And how well the system works?

    Thanks!
  • emachineemachine Member Posts: 17
    Homelink is now standard on 2001's. Coin holder is gone, as is the real wood. Premair radiator, lighted steering wheel contols, and memory side mirrors are in.

    I couldn't tell much difference between the 16 & 17 inch wheels. 17's might be a tad louder.
  • jarchjarch Member Posts: 16
    I got my T6 with a Nav system installed at the factory. I was told by the dealer it would take 1 to 1.5 days to install the nav system at the dealer. It is a pretty big job but is an available option to any S80 owner.

    The nav system works pretty well. Its biggest flaw in my mind is the poor visibility of the display (which pops out of the dash) in sunlight. But the voice commands (once you have programmed your destination) works well and you don't really have to see the display (although it would be nice to have a better view). On several occasions, I have found minor programming errors, but all in all I am very happy with my decision to get it (especially when in a strange city and trying to find my way around).

    I would also recommend getting the remote programming hand held unit so a passenger can program the unit as well. Otherwise the driver has to do it all. The remote is a $79 option (as I recall). Some reported getting it 'with' their systems (but I didn't in March '00).

    So, bottom line IMHO, the nav system is a very useful but pricey device...

    Good luck!
  • jarchjarch Member Posts: 16
    Oh - and BTW, the unit when ordered from the factory is $2500 (MSRP). I got mine for $2000 when I ordered my car new. CDs are available on a subscription plan (I think $100 per year or something like that) from NavTech (www.navtech.com) and you get 1 CD for your local territory (there are 8 CDs in all for the USA and choices for travel in Europe as well).
  • gblock348gblock348 Member Posts: 5
    the osd and others are all certain the real wood returns on the 01 T6. There is no mention anywhere for USA cars of homelink being a factory option, but the dealer said they can install it. the security option is a factory install and does not include homelink, or so they imply. Factual or published data would be nice to access...
  • javaseajavasea Member Posts: 11
    I am keeping my fingers crossed, but I have had no problems with our 2000 2.9 made in 10/99 through OSD. Got it serviced at Dyer and Dyer, Chamblee for $77.39. I had a loaner for 2.5 days because they said they had to replace a seal on the timing chain cover. "The technician notices a slight seepage, so they fixed it." "Tech observed oil leak behind timing cover." Apologized for the delay. I had a loaner so was not too put out. $39.50 labor, parts $11.67, oil (regular stuff, I requested it) $19.50 ($10.47 filter, $1.20 gasket, misc (EPA fee and shop materials) $5.90 Total: $77.39. I told them of the "o"ring bushing deal, complete with numbers from this site, and they fixed it. This is a great site. Thanks to all for your extremely valuable information. I'll keep you all posted as the miles continue. I believe the made the breaks less sensitive, though my wife notices no difference.

    After this service, my wife took our son to Space Camp. Our average mpg sored to 19.8. We do mostly city driving. For the record, I would buy another 2.9. I researched the MB and BMW, the only other cars considered. The Volvo is the best value for me. (So far.) Thanks, again for the great infomation. We see a lot of S-80 in NE Atlanta.

    Javasea
  • emachineemachine Member Posts: 17
    I have a Word document that OSD send me when I ordered the car. Homelink is on there and it says that the S80 has "walnut wood effect inlays, doors, tunnel console, and shift knob". I have heard volvo dicontinued the real wood because it was more dangerous in a crash. That sounds a little fishy, I would risk a splinter or two if I had the choice, but Volvo has made our decision for us.

    Send my you email address if you need the doc.

    Paul
  • broeuxbroeux Member Posts: 46
    We got an offer from Navigation Technologies Saturday for $140 per CD (regularly $180), and it states you get a 2-CD annual subscription: "one is shipped immediately; the second is shipped automatically in about 6-9 months." (They had told me they release updates in January each year.) And, if you order maps for 3+ regions, you get them for $115 each (pricing available with "offer code").

    Broeux
  • nymjknymjk Member Posts: 5
    For those who have used the OSD (emachine, broeux, keithpa), did you save $$? Was it an overall good experience? How did you order the vehicle: online or at a dealer? and, if at a dealer, did you get any guff (sp?) from them?
    Just curious, waiting for the lease on my damn truck to run out.
    Second thing: how long did you stay in Goteborg? travel the countryside (or other countries) as well? the whole idea sounds terribly exciting and can't wait to go next spring.
    Thanks for the input.

    Mark
  • emachineemachine Member Posts: 17
    I pick up my car in Sweden July 31, so I can't answer any questions about Gothenburg. My wife and I plan to stay 2 weeks and drive around Denmark, Sweden and Oslo.

    I was planning a trip to Canada or Europe this summer, so the OSD made sense. I really wanted an s80, but was a little concerned about some of the problems with the 99's. I found out I could get a 2001 through OSD, so hopefully the 2001 will have most of the bugs taken care of. I will be getting a newer model, a free plane ticket, a hotel room, and use of my car in Europe. And, I get the car for close to dealer cost with no haggling.(although the wait is killing me!) If you really want to save money, I'm sure most dealers will give you a price at or below invoice on a 2000 in the coming weeks.

    My salesman never told me about the OSD program, but I can't really blame him. He had never sold a car that way, and did't know much about it. (I had to get the 2001 pricing sheet from OSD and help him write up the order) After I brought it up, he was as excited about it as I was. BTW, you have to buy the car through a dealer. You can order it online but Volvo will assign you a dealership. There are two in my area, so I went with the salesman I liked the best, and the dealer that had the more reputable service dept.

    I'm sure rollie, broeux, keithpa, etc. can help you out with the Gothenburg specifics, as they have helped me.
  • too_redtoo_red Member Posts: 3
    Regarding the positioning of the seat belt in the S80...I am 5'4" and I do not have any problem with the seatbelt cutting into my neck. I have the seat bottom set all the way down as well.

    I must confess however, that I am genetically equipped with a seat belt positioning aparatus which keeps the belt centered, comfortably located onto my left shoulder...and truck drivers highly amused.

    I am told such devices can be augmented as necessary by appropriately trained medical professionals.

    (Sorry I just couldn't resist ;)

    I'll behave myself now.

    Gina

    p.s. We've had the car 10 days now and I have my 1200 miles logged in at varying speeds and conditions. Can I punch it now???
  • keithpa2keithpa2 Member Posts: 3
    nymjk,

    Yes we saved money on the OSD program. How much I am not sure since I do not know the 2001 price, but I figure around $3800 including the sale sales tax savings. The base price was $37850 for the car (including the leather seats and sun roof which was an option in 2000 for I believe $1200). You have to buy 15 days insurance/registration but that is offset by not having to pay destination charges.

    I found out about it through the internet (volvocar.com) and not from my dealer. However, they (Pitcairn Volvo in Langhorne, PA) were great through out the whole process. I ask my salesman if he/dealership got less money for the OSD and he replied he made very well. Since this was his first OSD, and he is very interested in doing it for hinself, he asked us to take notes on the experience so he can tell others.

    We arrive on Sunday, picked up the car on Tuesday (4th of July), and departed on Thursday. However, the owners of 4 of the 5 other cars picked up that day were making a vaction out of it. We also met several people who were returning there car after making a vacation out of the trip and even a couple who were moving to the UK for 18 months before returning to the US. Before we departed we were already taking about the "next time" (when we pick up a cross country for the wife) and making a vacation of it. We thought about making a vacation out of it but we had planned to go to Italy later this year, a place you DO NOT WANT TO DRIVE your own car, based on my business trips to Sicily last year.

    You are right about "the whole idea sounds terribly exciting." I highly recommend it.

    You mentioned that you are leasing a truck, I understand that they will do the OSD on a lease. As far as purchasing a car the only problem with the whole process is it take about 3 months to do everything. By that I mean you have to order the car 60 days in advance, pay for it 30 days in advance, and it take a couple of weeks to ship and receive it. If you can live with that it is a great deal.
  • keithpa2keithpa2 Member Posts: 3
    iskowitz,

    I can testify to what you said about Orrefors and Kosta Boda. We bought as gift Kosta Boda Votives that sell for $38 in Bloomingdales and Strawbridges. We bought them at a major department store in Goteborg for about $17.40, and we got the 14% VAT back making the total cost <$15. We also saw other Kosta Boda that we have at considerablely less then what we paid for it.
  • nymjknymjk Member Posts: 5
    Thanks to both of you for the tips and insights. Keithpa2, I am not planning on leasing again, this is strictly a purchase.
    Emachine, chin up! it will be sitting in your driveway in no time at all! (although I fully understand the pre-Christmas type of jitters you are experiencing).
    Based on your rather good experiences with your respective dealterships, I think I will place the order with a salesman that I have been able to connect with here in NY.
  • max1966max1966 Member Posts: 2
    Just took delivery on 2000 S80 2.9. Metallic silver with graphite leather and 17" wheels. Love the car !! I paid $34,707 before taxes, tags, etc. Shopped for over 6 months. Drove 528i, Infinity I30, Lexus, and MB. Choose the S80 because of cabin room, styling, and price value. I liked the engine on the I30 because of my experience with a 90 maxima with over 204K miles and still going strong. Although when I compared features, the S80 was only about 5K more with so much more to offer. The 528i drove great, but no in dash CD player, lack of back seat room, and almost 8K more than the S80. Living in the NE, the front wheel drive played heavily into my decision.
  • broeuxbroeux Member Posts: 46
    nymjk: I think we did save substantially over what we would have paid for the car locally. In our case, there is only one Volvo dealer in the area, the next closest ones an hour or more away. There's just not a lot of competition. Exactly how much we saved over the best price we could have negotiated state-side is hard to say. But the uniqueness of getting to make the trip to Sweden and then tour the country in OUR car was worth a lot to us. (keithpa--we didn't save anything on sales tax, as when one registers in our state a car they bought elsewhere, one pays the sales tax anyway, or the difference between the sales tax paid in another state and our sales tax, which is a hefty 9%. So, on an overseas purchase, we paid the 9%. I thought the same applied in Pennsylvania. We bought two Hondas from Pitcairn, BTW. Good Service Department.)

    We arrived in Göteborg on Sunday, picked up the car Monday, then left on our tour Tuesday morning. On the return trip, we dropped the car off at the factory in the morning, then departed Sweden at 5 AM the next morning, so we didn't spend much time in Göteborg; just exploring on foot in the two areas of the two hotels we stayed in. But we enjoyed the time we did spend there, especially the fantastic buffet breakfast at the Radisson SAS Scandinavia!

    I learned about the OSD program on this forum, before ever going to the dealer; good thing, too, because the dealership's management and most of the sales staff had just changed hands, and no one there had handled an OSD sale before, though they were familiar enough with it to know it was a good thing for them. They were eager to make the sale because there is very little work on their part--in our case almost no work, as I researched the whole thing and actually completed the order form with VCNA's help--and they make a nice commission.

    We wanted to really see the country, so we toured south to Växjö first and explored the crystal factories around Hovmantorp, Lassebo, Kosta, Johanfors, Orrefors and Nybro. From there we went on to Kalmar, where there's a nice Castle and Cathedral to see. Then we worked our way back north to Stockholm, a beautiful city where we spent the most time, as there is much to see. From there we traveled back toward Göteborg, stopping to see Vadstena castle, then on to Jönköping, where we spent one snowy night. From there it was a short, snowy trip back to the factory.

    The trip was interesting, and well worth it. We had some very memorable encounters. The OSD experience at the factory was smooth. We were even taken to a nice lunch in the executive cafeteria in a Volvo limo. Everyone was helpful and supportive. I would very much like to repeat the experience in the future and see more of the country and possibly travel over to Denmark this time.

    A cyber acquaintance of mine near Stockholm is complaining a lot about "cold, rainy" weather right now. They do get a lot of rain. But this is the best time to go. Temperatures are mostly in the 60's. I'm envious of everyone who is Sweden-bound right now.

    If I can be of help with any other information or tips, give me your email address, and I will correspond.

    Broeux
  • philzornesphilzornes Member Posts: 3
    Hmmm Broeux:

    I think you might be / have been / taken for a ride on the charge to activate the remote!

    After I ordered the remote from our dealer in March this year (getting the part # online from forum), I installed the battery (included) aimed the remote at the display and ziiiiippp - the screen came online and activated just fine!

    Nothing was ever said about a required S/W download - and I find it silly that one needs to pay for S/W download to activate the remote.

    I called my Dealer service department (Volvo of Richardson) in Dallas to ask about such a download; none had heard of it.

    I'm not saying you've been told you need to do this; but my experience shows otherwise.

    Good price on the remote tho! Mine was in the $80 range (dealer cost +/- a small commission).

    Phil
  • philzornesphilzornes Member Posts: 3
    Well Folks - after 4 1/2 semi-blissful months with our 2000 T6; it's time to enter the shop for it's 3750 mile checkup tomorrow.

    In addition to the checkup; we're asking them to fix:

    o two trim items (the speaker on the passenger door, as well as the door handle trim are coming off)

    o the upgraded radio (HU-801) is making some nasty scratching sounds through the speakers on ALL CD"s when we activate the Dolby Pro Logic. In the "3 Channel" or "Off" position; everything sounds fine. This just started after they replaced the unit 3 weeks ago (the CD's were skipping or fading out during parts of songs).

    I hope we've not been jinxed with an Audio Gremlin in the car now.


    Tip of the Week
    ---------------
    The ONLY other thing to watch out for (and a $300 lesson for us) is to ensure you do indeed get non-metallic film when you tint your windows.

    Our Volvo's NAV system was rarely finding any satellites for a period of 2 weeks; (we thought it was attributed to the solar flare up).

    Taking the car into the shop, after 10 days there with VNA, a slew of Guru's and even 6am conference calls to Sweden - they genius' finally figured out the tint we had on the rear window was metallic and inhibiting the NAV antenna in the rear window.

    (and I was *assured* when the car was tinted that there was not a dither of metallic in the tint... harumph)

    After the tint was removed - ZING - 8 satellites reappeared on the status screen. Problem solved; except I had to pay another $300 to REMOVE and Retint the Volvo's windows.

    Live and Learn!

    Phil
  • iskowitziskowitz Member Posts: 5
    Interesting note about your passenger trim around the door handle. I too had to have this replaced on my 2000 T-6. Seems it never really properly seated correctly.

    Tint - Philxornes did you keep the metallic tint on the rest of the windows and just replaced the back? or did you remove it all? I want to tint mine with a very high quality tint, without having the problems with the interference. Just looking for a light shade to get the UV protection, no limo tint for me? Anyone have any good tint experiences?

    OSD - Yes we two were planning our next trip before we even left Europe last October. What a way to buy a vehicle, hard for me to buy a car locally after that experience. I hope I am still as enamored with my car in 3/4 years when we go to buy a new car for my wife and get rid of the "Incredibly reliable" Toyota Avalon we have had since 96. She has her eyes on the early pictures of the V55 SUV (or whatever the latest number they are using is)

    Aaron

    P.s. Has anyone put any more thoughts into creating a Volvo S-80 Internet users group? I know Brouex and rollie(Where have you been rollie?) had mentioned it once. Anyone have the desire to still do this?
  • broeuxbroeux Member Posts: 46
    Phil, that's just what I was hoping to hear. I haven't been "taken" yet. The remote is due Thursday, and the first thing I planned to do is point it at the screen and see if it works! I couldn't believe there had to be a VADIS download to activate the remote.

    Broeux
  • broeuxbroeux Member Posts: 46
    Aaron, I'm interested in joining one, but I wouldn't know where to start in creating it! Anyone else interested?

    Broeux
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