Volvo V70 Wagon Experience

peachy2

Been dreaming of a Volvo for many years, and I am working a dealio now.
My question is...my brother, the GM mechanic, inspected the 2001 Volvo and says the rotors need turned, and it needs new brake pads. Those of you in the know...the dealer tells me that you can't turn Volvo's rotors and the brake pads are thinner on this breed of car. Am I being bamboozled, here? After all, I am a lone female car shopper.
We agreed on a price of $25,800 and they will 'reinspect' the brakes (this is a 'cerfified' car with 48,000 miles.) Plus, they will give me the extras I asked for like replacing the cracked fog light, mud flaps all around, a few other minor things and a new Indoor Air Filter. Edmund's Dealer Retail price is $31,599 for here in rural Illinois.
Is it wise to do after market window tint, would like to have that?
And when I took it overnight, I didn't use cruise, because it wasn't illuminated as I see you discuss. Hmmmm.
I called the former owner. They loved the car but traded it in for the new XC90. So, that's a good sign. ;o)
Thank you,
peachy2

volvomax

Volvo rotors can't be turned.
If the car passed the Certified inspection then the brakes and rotors should be fine.
By all means have the dealership re-inspect the system.
Otherwise the car and the price sound fine.

blockislandguy

Peachy2, at the risk of being a spoil sport the pricing sounds high. MY2001 XC70s are now going for that figure here in the Northeast. On the other hand, it is Certified. (Although how it could be "certified" with a cracked fog light is an interesting point. Is it Certified by VOLVO or just the local dealer??? If the latter, then this is merely eyewash advertizing.)

Why don't you ask the dealer how much more would a discounted new V70 cost you?? Maybe have a copy of the weekend Chicago Sun Times auto section with you opened to the ads by the Chicago Land Volvo dealers. (Guaranteed you could find a new V70 advertized for 30K).
That would:
 
1) communicate to him that you thought the pricing sounded high and

2) you could see if the extra 4K or so with lower finance costs would be attractive to you.

blockislandguy

Peachy2, my mistake. In rereading your post I see that you were referring to a XC. My thought on the pricing being too high was relative to a plain jane V70.

On the other hand, this mornings Sunday papers have brand new MY2004 XCs at only 32K (see for example the Boston Globe on line). I wonder how Edmunds justifies dealer retail of a MY2001 XC at 31K? (Edmunds data has other anomolies as well: used Chev Tahoes are valued higher than GM Yukons, Saab 9-5 sedans are worth about the same as a 9-5 wagon, etc. Have these guys ever put a foot on a car dealers lot? Despite being built on the same production line, historically the GM badge is worth more than a Chev bowtie; people will kill for a Saab wagon and leave the used sedans alone).

explorerx4

my wife drives a 9-5 wagon. should i be worried for her safety?

blockislandguy

Explorer4, were you the guy I backed into at the party in my Maxima?

explorerx4

you would have had to back all the way around the block and ended up on the other side of the street. was that YOU?

wagonmommy2.. if it's not too late, have your battery checked. when they go bad, but not dead, they can cause a lot of weird problems.

smith88

I have a 2001 v70 2.4 I have to replace the Booster cylinder for the brakes($900.00) should I expect any other suprises with this car

berob

I'm looking at a Silver '98 Volvo V70 with 53,000 miles on it. It is one owner with all records and is in mint condition. Two questions: 1. Any thoughts on what I should be paying and 2. Any things I need to be careful about on that particular year and model>

br1009

I am looking for information regarding oil sludge
problems or turbo failure with 2001 T5 engines. Any responses would be helpful. I am also interested in any feedback regarding problems with following the recommended 7500 mile oil change schedule in the owners manual for the 2001 V70 wagon with a T5 Engine. Thank you.

camydog

I have an '01 T5 wagon in Europe with about 17k miles on it. I run Castrol Syntec oil and follow the manufacturers suggested service interval, 7500 miles. The car is run hard on the autobahn both at high speed and high rates of acceleration while merging at on-ramps and interchanges.

No problems with either issue you mention thus far. I am the original owner and it is an American spec. car.

blockislandguy

I think that the problem referred to above is called turbo coking which results not from necessarily infrequent (e.g, 7500 mile) oil changes but a rapid shut down of a hot engine. The turbo which was formerly spinning at 100k rpm now is stopped and is red hot. It cooks the oil that was cooling it.

IMHO anyone running a turbo should use Mobil1 or some other 100% synthetic oil for heat transfer reasons, change the oil at the 3 to 4K, and run an intermdediate grade of gas (the higer the octane the slower and more controlled the actual explosion).

buddhabman

Why did you buy; What are your impressions, what compares or doesn't?

bhottle

We just traded a 98 V70 AWD because it was a lemon. It had only 74,000 miles in six years with only three months of commute driving, but the folder of repair records was thick. Our dentist had the same experience, as did another friend. I sincerely wish all owners/purchasers of Volvos the best of luck, but i wouldn't take another Volvo as a gift.

newbaby3

2004 XC70 @1900 miles. I noticed several drops of oil under the car about a month ago (purchased it in September)with new ones arriving at about a drop/week. Drops evident on the underengine tray but the origen was not obvious to me. When I brought the car in yesterday the service writer asked me if I had smelled anything in response to the symptom, which I thought was sort of odd. Turns out its was a faulty o-ring seal on the oil return line from the turbo. The seepage was probably building up on top of the tray before it dripped. Actually, I don't know if the seal was at the turbo or the engine. But I now realize that I always did smell something when I would park the car in the garage, kind of like a coating on the exhaust system (or like that) since the car was new. Now I'm wondering if the service writer asked me if I smelled anything 'cause it may not be that uncommon?
I also asked them to check out the trip odometer as it has reset itself two times in the last month, always at about 150-160 miles upon restarting the car (both T1 and T2). THey claimed there were no error codes and then proceeded to give me a copy of the owners manual page on the use of the trip computer. WHatever. Other than these two issues (well ignoring the deer that broad sided me--I now appreciate the tank-like qualities of this vehicle!) the car has been great. I was given a loaner 2000 S70 for the day-yuck! I test drove one of those back in 2000 and remember it being a far more substantial car-absolutley no comparison to the new models. The dual booster seats are jsut waht we needed too. YadaYadaYada-enjoy.

dbugbee

There have been many posts already which have mentioned the trip odometer problem on ALL 2004 Volvos. There is supposed to be a SW fix very soon, if it isn't available already. It's amazing how uninformed some of these dealerships are.

blockislandguy

bhottle, sorry about your experience. What do you mean though by the second sentence: "It had only 74,000 miles in 6 years with three months of commute (sic) driving...". Wthout knowing what you mean, I'm left with the impression that you did get some good service life out of the car over 6 years. Isn't 12K per year the national average?

fedlawman

What a whirlwind week this has been.

My wife and I just won our lemon law arbitration with GM and will be returning our 2002 Buick Rendezvous in the next couple weeks (they are buying it back from us).

We were going to replace our Buick with a Toyota Highlander or Honda Pilot, but on a whim, we decided to look at a 2004 Volvo V70 a few days ago just to make sure we didn't like it and cross it off our list. Big mistake! We both fell in love with the safety features, ride, seats, styling, interior materials, space/versatility, structure, etc. We knew right then that a V70 was going to be our next car.

I caught up on all the posts in this forum over the last couple of days and found you all to be a well informed and helpful (friendly too) group of people. Based on my readings here and elsewhere, I came up with a target price of about $31,000 after incentives for a 2004 2.4 (non-turbo) with Auto, Premium, Versatility, and Comfort. That was a little more than we wanted to spend, so we decided to look at some CPO V70's and try to find one that was configured as close as possible to what we were looking for. I knew I'd have less selection in the used market, but I figured if I could find a similarly equipped CPO 2001, it would probably cost in the low $20's.

I did a volvocars.com CPO search and found one dealer in Seattle that had a good selection of V70's, so we loaded up the kids and went to take a look. The first V70 we saw (beautiful silver w/taupe interior) had auto trans, power/memory/heated leather seats, moonroof, homelink, headlight washers, CD player, auto dim mirror, wood trim, and the all important 3rd row jumpseat. It also had only 26,000 miles on the odo, was only 2 1/2 years old (originally sold in June 2001), and looked like new inside and out...like it just rolled off the assembly line! My wife and I both drove it for about 20 minutes and noted that it felt and drove exactly like the 2004 we had driven a few days ago.

We knew we wanted it immediately, although I had reservations about it being the first car we had looked at. My wife and I decided that maybe it was fate, and if we could get it for a reasonable price, we would buy it. Well, our salesperson was terrific, and after fairly brief negotiations, we agreed on a price of $22,500. I suspect we got a decent (but not great) deal, but I saw added value in it due to the condition and low miles, CPO warranty, and the small likelihood of finding another used V70 that so closely matched what we wanted.

My wife and I are thrilled with our "new" Volvo. I feel very assured that it's the way to go for our family and I'm confident that this car will serve us well for many years to come. Thank you folks for all the info!

alioth

Does anyone know how much current the security system draws while engaged? How long would it take to drain the battery?

alioth

I read that the standard 2.5T automatic transmission somehow free wheels while slowing down from highway speeds. Is this correct? My V70 2.5T came with the "sports package" which includes a 5 speed (Geartronic) auto / manual transmission. It seems to be engaged at all times. Am I correct?

fedlawman

I was wondering if anyone else has noticed that the V70 seems to be low to the ground.

After about 1 week of daily driving, my wife told me that she frequenty scrapes the bottom of the car on speedbumps, driveways, etc.

She explained that she drives very carefully over bumps now, and it still happens on occasion.

Is this a common issue or should we have the dealership take a look at the car?

volvomax

Ground clearance is 5.5 inches. As is typical w/ European cars the nose is low to promote better high speed stability. European curbs are lower than American ones, also you should go over speedbumps and curbs at an angle if possible.

fedlawman

I've never owned a European car before and this never happed with our outgoing Buick!

Edit: I did own an Alfa Romeo in college, but that doesn't really count...LOL.

capoany

Looking for input from owners of V70 2.5T. Seems like the best compromise in the line, and current deals, particulary retention offers, put it at close to $10K less than R at real transaction price. 2.5 T seems more tourqey and quick than I thoght it would be...hit me with your real world experience and opinions please...thanks!

skylee1990

Fedlawman, you might want to mention to your wife that she should be cautious when parking the car as well. We damaged one bumper on our '99 V70 on a railroad tie in a parking lot, and another on a standard "curb". Interestingly enough, the Volvo dealer has the only low curbs around....

newbaby3

I have not driven an R but have put almost 2500 miles on '04 XC. Power is more than adequate for most situations, let's say cruising at 70 or so and then accelerating to pass-no problems, the turbo seems particularly well suited for this. Really, any situation other than from a standstill it feels great. AT no/low speed there is the momentary lag but you can get used to it, besides the R will have that as well. The R looks nice though. Perhaps for less than 10K you can do something similar using aftermarket. There should a chip available soon for the 2.5 in case you want more power

volvomax

A very nice all around wagon. You should be very happy w/ it.
The R is for those who want a little more fun in their commute. If you drive one you'll be hooked but for every day use the 2.5T will be just fine.

fedlawman

Thanks for the advice, I'll have to remember to check out my Volvo dealer's curbs!

By the way, I was planning a follow-up comment...

I finally got to spend a little time behind the wheel myself the other day, and I managed to avoid bottoming the Volvo on bumps. However, I did take a freeway onramp with "a little gusto" and half way through the turn, the bottom of the front bumper cover began scraping on the pavement!

Should I consider this normal too?

volvomax

The only thing I can think of is that the high speed stabilizer is loose under your car and is hanging down. Either that or your belly pan is loose.
Otherwise the bumper shouldn't be able to hit the ground no matter what. Not unless you sideswiped the curb.

The high speed stabilizers can be knocked loose if the car hits a curb. They are made of rubber and are designed to smooth the flow of air around the front bumper and keep air from going under the car. Volvo took them out after 2001 because too many Americans were knocking them loose.
After 2001 none of the Volvos, except the R series cars will reach more than 130 mph.

fedlawman

Thanks for the reply volvomax.

I inspected the underside of the car and didn't see anything loose or hanging down. I'll have the dealer mechanic drive with me to see what he thinks.

bodble2

scraping the bumper while going around an on-ramp is definitely not normal -- in any car other than a NASCAR. Are you sure it is the bumper that's scraping, or are you hearing something that "sounds like" something is scraping? Afterall, you can't visually confirm that the bumper is scraping.

fedlawman

Well, I suppose it could have been something else, but I assumed it was the bumper because it's the lowest part of the car.

The noise didn't start until just before the car began to understeer (I induced a pretty good amount of body roll), and then when I eased up, the sound disappeared.

I think I'll take a closer look at the underside of the car tomorrow so I can talk with the mechanic when I bring it in.

fedlawman

OK, I feel like a complete dufus.

Anyone interested in a slightly used set of mudguards? The rear ones are in fine shape...

lancerfixer

Sorry, but I got a good chuckle out of that one. :-)

capoany

Thanks for the input! V-max, as you are enlightened, how has the issue of the missing R Geartronic power and torque affected the sales of the car? It seems like there are more available than I would have thought, at relatively good discounts from list.

the 2.5t seems like it has great grunt, with relatively high torque vs a rather unimpressive 208 hp rating.

volvomax

Aren't what Volvo expected. But I don't think it has anything to do w/ the auto version.
The gearheads that the car is aimed at would'nt take the auto version anyway. The casual driver who wants a little nicer S60 is the one buying the auto R.
We are selling @ 1 R per month, which is what we did w/ the S60 T5.
I just bought a manual R and love it.

capoany

I can't do the manual due to family and commute...but am a lapsed gearhead. Do you feel the R is worth the leap over the 2.5T? Does it's complexity and high strung nature strip away some of that inherent Volvo-ness ( durability/ simplicity)?
Confused by the economics as well. Volvo FInance cant touch the third party banks on leasing an R.

lancerfixer

...left the Volvo lexicon with the demise of the 240, sadly. Durability might be a different story.

volvomax

If your an aggressive driver the R is worth the $$ over the 2.5T. There is simply no comparision in the handling and braking dept. The auto R is slightly slower at low speeds than the 2.5T, but the faster you go the faster it gets.

There is nothing that leads me to believe an S60 will be less durable than any other Volvo. More maintenance than a 240, but a much, much better car.
Simplicity is over-rated. 240 simplicity gave us anemic engines, live rear axles, weird ergomonics, and a/c that didn't work if it got too hot out.

dsvogel

At 37,500 miles with not great treadwear, sketchy wet handling, and 3 patches on 4 tires I was finally fed-up with the OEM Michelins on my 01 V70T5.
Since it is my wife's car (with 2 kids who ride in back) she took it to a tire place to get patched. They tried to not patch it - instead they told her she needed 4 new tires. Our price is between $130-170 a tire with $23 per wheel for the "premium" installation package - complete with valve stem! Funny when I called they then agreed to patch the tire. Hmm....
Dealer told her that the only option they thought of were the same OEM tires. Wrong answer. I don't need another batch of expensive French tires
Went on to the Tirerack's website and found that people love the Continental Extreme Contacts. I was looking for a good dry/wet combination that would also work for the occasional snow that the Tidewater VA are gets. Also saw a bunch of people talking about having to do a lot of patch/plug work with Michelins like the ones on my Volvo. Got the 215/55R16 Conti's for $82 a piece plus $30 shipping for the whole set. Showed up at my front door in 3 days. Other sites offered "free" shipping but at higher prices. Tire stores in town said that model was a special order item.
Installed them at one of the military base hobby shops nearby (even treated myself to new valve stems oh boy) and got out the door for a lot less and under my own time constraints. So far I have been very happy. Road noise is comparable if not better, my wife feels like the car handles/brakes better in the dry as well as wet and I didn't have to pay double for it. I expected the better wet handling (new tread) but the dry was nice to get also. I'm not saying Michelins stink (I have X1's on my 90 Accord and have never had any problems), but it seems like the Continentals are a great substitute if people are looking for a lower priced alternative.

By the way, Fedlawman, at our old home in Florida we had a very steep curb to get onto our driveway. Our technique with the Volvo and my 73 911 were to always take it at an angle. Never scraped once. Just get one side going up first on big bumps and you won't have a problem. Of course now that the mudflaps are gone on your car....... :-)

blockislandguy

dsvogel, you seem like the analytical sort. What do you think the cost/benefit ratio really was to have your kids riding around on three patched tires with 37,500 miles on them in a T5? To eke out those last 5000 miles IMHO was a poor risk and negated any potential benefit/fun you could have with your T5.

So what if you had to put the new set on "early". By the time THEY would be worn, you would have put three more years and 65K (total) on the car. At that point you could put on a third set for the final push to 100K or in that sixth year, trade it. But please don't throw kids into a T5 with worn-out tires and think that you are saving anything.

volvomax

Actually 37,500 miles was good for the Michelins.
Most people burn them out in @ 30K.
The Conti is a good replacement tire, although the Michelin will have better ultimate grip and better high speed character nobody in the US is going to run a T5 wagon hard enough to notice the difference.

dsvogel

Thanks for the concern for my kids. I was not trying to eke out another 5K on my tires at my children's expense. Here is the timeline for my patches on the tires.
First patch - 6 months into owning the car at 7190 miles.
Second patch - 1.5 years into car ownership at 14200 miles.
Third patch - 6 days before new tires were put on the car at 37K. Bought new tires on the net that night and just needed to get the time to put them on.
Remember my wife does most of the driving in this car and she is not very aggressive in acceleration or cornering. Yes it is a T5, but the tires were not balding and because of rotation the fronts still had good tread. Actually the guy at the military auto hobby shop even commented that he would have waited on the fronts and only done the rears. He even commented that all four would still pass the state "safety" inspection. My response was I did not want to put my family at risk.
In general from day one I was never impressed with the handling of the Michelin's wet or dry when I drove it.

Volvomax - my feelings on going with the Conti's exactly. If there is a sacrifice at the limit with them - when is my wife going to be there?

joey913

I was considering the purchase of this Volvo at a small used car dealership: a 98 V70 Turbo Wagon, $12,500.
But after reading a good number of opinions here, I'm thinking, quite possibly, this is a bad idea.
You have to understand, I have NEVER had a reliable auto, even the '89 Ford F150 I purchased NEW was a money pit almost from day one. Therefore, I vowed... only good used vehicles from now on.
I have always liked Volvos aesthetics and heard positive words from their owners and people smart about cars. Being 6'6" I fit in them very comfortably, and I want/need a wagon because i'm always lugging something large around and I bicycle a great deal.
So, if some of you Volvo-files could offer me some educated unbiased opinions, I would greatly appreciate the guidance. I need some wisdom... and some luck this time. Thanks

blockislandguy

Joey913, you must have been born under an unlucky star to have had trouble with an '89 F150. We've put 125K on ours with zero mechanical problems. Ever. Naturally we take good care of it and replaced the normal maintenance items. Heck, the AC even still works well. You just can't hurt an American cast iron V8. They will run forever (i.e., 200K). Of course the grey paint faded and we had it repainted under warranty, repainted again later, and just fixed some rust in the rear wheel wells.

The Volvo V70 is a great car. But one of the reasons why cars depreciate is that they wear out. If you're looking at a '98 with 65K to 90K and six years on the clock (any New England winters?) you are entering the "maintenance zone". Nothing tricky but you could be looking at front struts, brakes, tires, radiator work, etc. This could rip through the IRA contribution you were going to make in April. Maybe you would have better luck with a newer, certified used Volvo?

bodble2

but from what I've read, I would definitely avoid a pre-2001 V in its various iterations.

alioth

I had an 86 245 that i was just tired of. We now have a new 2.5T. We drove V70, V70 2.5T, V70 2.5T with sports package, V70 R, BMW 325 2door - 4door and wagon. We bought the 2.5T with premium and sports package which includes the geartronic tm and 235x45x17 tires on 17x7.5 wheels. It goes like a scalded cat. It corners well. It feels comfortable at any speed that I've tried. It was a little like driving a starship shuttlecraft at first. The controls are complex but seem normal after about a week. The transmission is great - it seems to know what I expect from it in auto - it will also shift with manual input. No complaints so far.

We liked the BMWs but the wagon was too small and we needed the utility.

volvomax

There was nothing inherently wrong w/ the 98 turbo Volvo wagons.
Light bulbs tended to burn out frequently.
See if the dealer has the maintenance records.
If the car wasn't serviced properly then pass on it.

joey913

I remember the first problem with the F150... I was driving, just a few blocks from home, late-nite and the accelerator quit working.
I got lucky (no traffic) and was able to coast home down a hill into my drive.
the problem: something to do with the pedal... I believe the cable became unattached because it wasn't attached right at the factory.
LOL... It was downhill from then.
(I was religious about maintenance by the way) Every time I took it in for service they would find something.
Just a few of the problems:
EGR valves, at least 3 or 4 of them, one went bad in less than a year ($300+ for them babies).
Fuel tank pumps, at least 3 times on those, once within 6 months ($600+ OUCH!). It was great having it just conk out in 5 o'clock traffic in 20 below windchill weather. LOL.
I remember some seals going bad and costing a bundle.
The paint job was inferior, the worst i've seen. At the time I sold it the paint was peeling off in sheets like some skin condition.
The upholstery on the drivers side wore down to nothing and split. The springs had decayed to the point the driver was sitting more than 2 inches lower than the passenger.
I replaced a headlamp at least once a year.
The radio went bad in less than a year.
The drivers power window went bad... that was like $250. Twice I think.
It was vandalized 2 or 3 times that required body/paint work and a window here and there.
(Just thought I would throw that in)
It was keyed down the entire driver's side in a parking lot at a University.
The tranny was getting weird when I sold it. Seems like I remember the brakes wearing out way to fast and way to often during the first few years.
Alas, I could go on, but I can't and don't want to remember them all.
In afterthought I guess it makes sense. The '90 F150 has a 7.7 consumer rating here at Edmunds and a 2 from JD Power.
Maybe I just got a bad truck. But I stuck with it for over 10 yrs... cause when it was ok, I loved it... and I don't give up easy. But I will never buy a Ford again... never, ever, NEVER. LOL

jrosasmc

Volvomax- What's this I hear about the '05 Volvos coming out in two months? Isn't that a little too early for the company to be bringing out new models?

Also, what exactly were the old 240's bad points? You seem to not be too keen on those cars.