Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
Don't put them in the left or right outboard 2nd row seats either because you might be T-Boned while going through an intersection. Oh, and of course, don't put them in the front passenger seat because in a frontal collision, the airbag might seriously injure them.
Now that you mention it, don't let them outside the house, they might be hit by a car while crossing the street.
Can't single out Volvo here - take a look at any third row seat in most any vehicle. - most are no more than a foot or two from the rear glass. Some better than others. Depending on what hits you, the Lexus SUV will likely be no better.
Unfortunately, life is such that many of us need a vehicle that can hold more than 5 and we are no longer allowed to put all kids in the back seat like Dad use to do with the Chevy Biscayne.
We have 3 children, ages 6,4 and 2 and needed a way to have a 4th child in the car [car pool, friends, etc.]. We made the investment because we want to have this car long enough that our 6 year old can have it when he gets his license. Additionally, the 3rd seat gave us some breathing room [no pun intended] while we decide what car to buy to replace my husband's 1997 850 GLT sedan [an XC90 versus Honda Pilot debate that we haven't resolved] We do not have our oldest ride in the 3rd seat on the highway, and use it merely around town. I do have fond memories of traveling to Florida in the back of my parent's station wagon [with 7 total in the car!]. The dealer never once suggested from a safety standpoint that we shouldn't install it.
I just went through the replacement option and also looked at XC90 and Pilot but went with the Freestyle (based on Volvo platform) due to ergonomics - better interior layout and space. Of course less money than either (quite a bit). I just wish Ford would put the Volvo seats in it. Should look at it. Getting very good owner reviews!
In addition to not using the Volvo seats the Freestyle doesn't use Volvo's hardened steels in the chassis.
I am not trying to say that Freestyle is a replacement for, or same as the XC90 but only an alternative. And for almost $20k less money for similar equipment it is a good one. But if you want the Volvo prestige, go ahead.
$20,000 less?
At Ford.com I built a Freestyle Limited AWD with Safety Package, Homelink, and Moonroof for $32,000 after rebate.
At volvocars.us, I built an XC90 2.5T AWD with free premium Package for $38,000.
Personally, I think $6,000 is a reasonable premium for the Volvo's luxury ride, comfortable seats, higher quality materials/build, additional built-in safety features, more powerful engine, longer warranty, and 4 years free maintenance.
I just picked up a 06 Freestyle Limited, loaded with nav and dvd for $43k cdn (35.8k US?). A base XC90 '5 Seater' is $50k ($41.7k US). A base XC90 7 Seater is $56.4k cdn ($47k US). The 7 seater is over $6k more than the same 5 seater here. Add the premium and convenience package which you need to do to get the same level of equipment along with $5k cdn worth of nav and dvd equipment and you quickly get to $64.4k ($53.6kUS). of course, if you upgrade again to V8 add some more cash.
When I was faced with this difference in price it wasn't much of a decision. If the Volvo was only $6k more I probably would have picked one up for some of the reasons you state. All $6k here gets me from the Freestyle I have to a base XC90 5 seater - and I already had a V70 7 seater.
Can anyone give some input on volvo car seats? I am more keen on upper back support.
high car prices - Maybe (depends on cdn $ value which is now high compared to the poor US $), high gas prices - yes (it is about $2.50us/usgal where I live, is that high), high insurance - yes (pay $500 US/year - is that high), traffic (must be thinking about Toronto), poor planning - maybe but we have no toll roads to pay for new ones.
It isn't all that bad - uniiversal health care, more work than we know what to do with and more oil reserves than Saudi Arabia.
Gas is right now 90 cents a litre which is around 4 bucks almost with 15% tax.
Cars are priced ridiculously high.. 28K CAD for same cars that are around 20K USD which is around 23K CAD.
Universal healthcare is a bunch of BS. If you add up your taxes, it amounts to taxes + health insurance in states.. Quality however is a different story.. You will have to wait for hours on end before you see a doctor.. and if you need surgery forget it.. If its not related to heart.. wait for several months or even years.. BTW, its like a frozen tundra right now here...but I digress...
An ETM failure causes the unit to either shut down or go into limp mode.
Unintended acceleration is a discredited farce.
This was disproven years ago after the so called experts accused Audi and Mercedes of it.
So my question/ questions:(1) is the $5000 crazy?
(2) What problems does this model have or will/might have given the 164,000 miles?
Any words of wisdom or advice, insight regarding the '93 240 would be appreciated. Thanks.
regarding other posts, regarding V70 ETM & "sudden acceleration":
i do not agree that the only possible ETM failure mode is "limp home" and believe that plenty of ETM/software failures could theoretically cause an acceleration burst. software bugs are unavoidable. also unavoidable is the fact that a Yugo's brakes could stop a Dodge Viper at max torque. on the other hand, any sudden/surprising change in a vehicle's behavior can have dire consequences.
I would offer $3500-4000.
As for problems, same as any old car. Things wear out. Alternator, a/c compressor, electrical issues etc.
I know that would wreck the auto industry, but it would sure save all the oil.
It will save your dog or kid life if you leave them in the car. It might, however, kill the battery? I assume it goes off when the car gets cooler. Then will go on again when the car heats up again. Moral, Leave a window down and leave your dogs and kids at home.
Hmm. :surprise: :confuse:
All the work has been done at a local Volvo dealer in central New England whose dealer principal lives out of state and is invisible in the community. The work hasn't been great and mechanics tools have been left in the engine compartment. The car has never been washed after a service which doesn't bother me but it is their policy and leaves me wondering what else wasn't done?.
A week ago a warning light came on. Some of the time it was accompanied by a message saying that the right rear door was open (it wasn't). The dealer diagnosed it as a bad seal on the right rear door. They have ordered the parts. This may be expensive and unecessary (we do not use the back seat.)
Now at 68K miles the right rear wheel bearing became noisy. We were quoted $250 for the wheel bearing and $200 installation labor by the local dealer. Once at the dealers they called to say that the left one also needed replacing. We never heard a noise from the left side, not even when I went with the tech on a diagnostic drive. Never the less, we gave them the go ahead and $900 later we have two new wheel bearings.
When we got the car back to our company yesterday we tried to mount our winter tire/wheel package and discovered that the gorrilla at the Volvo dealership had put wheels back on with an impact wrench set at 650 foot pounds of torque. We had to use a 3' cheater bar and an impact wrench to get the wheels back off.
By personality (we're New Englanders), driving habits (only 10K per car per year), and the number of cars available to us, my wife and I tend to keep cars. Do we dump the Volvo for something else (I do though hate depreciation), stay with the very convenient local dealer, start taking it to a less convient dealer, or find an independent shop?
2001 XC V70 Car full of christmas presents, 2 kids, wife and father-in-law stalled on Christmas morning. It was jerking and hesitating intermittently for months when problem started getting worse. Then "performance decreased" message came on. Towed and car sat at volvo dealer over holidays. Became aware of throttle problem last summer. I was in denial. Volvo not only has a throttle problem. I believe the car is poorly constructed. Numerous suspension components needed replacement, problem with computer chip, wiring harness, seat motor, door locks, windows, gas cap, faded trim, etc. The dealer was moving and I asked for a print out of service records. It was 28 pages long at the end of last summer. Bought extended warranty for thousands so I could keep car longer. Got back half of cost in few months from repairing faulty computer chip.
The car is still a bit jerky on the ride from the Volvo dealer after software upgrade. I was told the throttle was clean and did not need any service but only a software upgrade. I am wondering how a software upgrade can fix a defect in a faulty throttle??? I was told the car was fixed and drove like a dream on a 10 km road test. It is more of a nightmare. I drove home, cleaned it up and went to the Lexus dealership on same day. Got an RX 330 and only $15k for the trade in value. The Lexus dealer told me they called 3 volvo dealerships. None of them wanted it but suggested that low ball price as wholesale anyway!!!
Driving this car has been emotionally similar to although not as serious as spousal abuse. You always get let down. You fear the next episode. You think you will make up and things will be better after just one more trip to the repair shop but it never ends until now. I do not want to sell this junker privately as I do not want to lie to some unsuspecting buyer. It is with great sadness I sell this Volvo. My mom and dad had 3 before and drove 2 into the ground. I was planning on doing the same. These new Volvos are junk. Shame on Volvo. Shame on Ford. Putting families at risk when there motto is Drive Safely. Do they not even care about repeat business?
MODERATOR /ADMINISTRATOR
Need help navigating? kirstie_h@edmunds.com - or send a private message by clicking on my name.
Share your vehicle reviews
"I have been told by my dealer that the A/C comes on after you turn your car off, IF , the interior gets too hot. It will cool the interior down even if the car is off.
It will save your dog or kid life if you leave them in the car. It might, however, kill the battery?"
THIS INFO IS WRONG! Do not rely on the AC to come on to cool your interior or occupants - you will kill them.
The electric blower will come on for a short time around 30 minutes after shut-down in certain circumstances to remove humidity from the system. There will be no noticeable change in interior temperature due to this, and negligible battery drain.
For the Air Conditioning system to function as a cooler, the compressor must turn, which is mechanically linked to the motor by a belt. In other words, the motor needs to be running for the AC to work.
Regards,
Helene
Here in Delaware, we do not have front license plates and so making holes just for the UGLY transponder is something I would like to avoid. When I contacted the E-Z Pass folks they just said I would need to make the holes in the bumper
It looks like it will fit in the grill area, but I do not know if that will work in the toll lanes. Does anyone have any suggestions for mounting an external E-Z Pass transponder. :confuse:
Thanks,
Helene
But, after tonight's flawless high speed run, when I pulled into the garage tonight, the orange light on the right hand side of the drivers display came on, "svc engine". Great, now I have to wrestle with the bozos tommorow AM who use an impact wrench to install wheels. (The dealer pricipal wisely lives out of state and has not been seen in years. How can Volvo tolerate an absentee owner of a one location dealership???)
You know, owning one of these things would be more tolerable if the service people, with whom I am now on a first name basis, treated the customers would some modicum of respect. But then again, maybe they go home chuckling about the stupidity of the Volvo owner.
On a side note, I heartily recommend the Michelin Artic Alpins and would not have attempted the trip without them or a similar modern winter tire.
It strikes me that newer cars, particularly the European cars, could be different. For example, I don't doubt that our now 67K miles 2001 XC has a drive train that with Mobil 1 and some diligence could last out to 150K. Maybe more. But the equation may have changed. Maybe you can't keep a car as long as you could before because the issues have changed. Rather than the drive train issues of a generation ago the concerns of today are electronic and HVAC. I'm told that some cars ( e.g., a Lincoln Town Car) require the removal of the dash to take out the heater core. Probably at that point, the car would get sold.
OK, so whats the relevance to Volvo? We like our 2001 V70 XC. Great seats, great handling, nice load capacity, and probably the best foul weather capability of any car out there except for perhaps the Audi All Road. (Volvo's foul weather capability extends to their high placement of the rear turn signal and tail lights. On a dark and snowy night, you KNOW when the V70 in front of you is changing lanes.) But can we keep this thing out to 150K in the face of costly repair costs? Can you really afford to own and older Volvo, Audi, etc.?
Most people cannot fix them themselves anymore and as they get older they will nickel and dime you to death (except the nickels and dimes will be hundreds of dollars each trip to the service dept). Sooner or later the nickels and dimes amount to loan or lease costs on a new one - or close to it.
I had an older BMW like this. Every 3 months into the shop for 500-1000 bucks of repair. At this rate, a new lease wasn't much more money.
Want to know the best way to avoid trading too often? Treat your car to a regular detail job by a professional. Seriously.
The difference between an 86 Volvo and an 06 Volvo isn't in the durability of parts (I'm sure the 06 is better built and more reliable). The difference is that a shade tree mechanic can't work on an 06 like s/he could an 86.
Having said all that we still have our 99V70 with 130k kms and no major out of warranty problems but the last two trips to service cost me over $2k for new brakes, air mass meter, timing belt etc - preventative stuff mostly. Teh car is likely only worth $10k. But now good for another 100k (I hope)
When the call came the caller identified herself and then simply verified with my assistant that we indeed owned a car that had been in for service. He did so and she thanked him and then she hung up. She now can say she called, she can say she confirmed ownership and no issues were raised. Nice trick. When I called our dealership back for her number to continue the "survey", they wouldn't/couldn't give me her phone.
I wonder if Volvo really knows how rotten the service level is? I could stock a small Snap On Tools truck with the hand tools that have been left in our vehicle. A sign in the Service Department promises a free car wash after each service. This has never, ever happened. (Frankly, I could care less about their free car wash but it is indicative of the eye-wash Volvo propagates.) This leaves me wondering what else was promised and not done.
I'm the kind of guy who never haggles over a bill. But I abhor chislers. All I want is what the invoice says I am to receive. The Porsche service experience we get is fantastic. The work is done right the first time. Sure, an oil change is expensive but you are getting what you pay for. The Volvo experience is leaving me with three alteratives, none very palatable: move downscale into a Tahoe, move upscale into a E Series Wagon (a lesser vehicle IMHO than a V70) or move into something Japanese. Why doesn't Volvo understand that a lot of people want drive their cars but the dealership experience is a turn off?
My Volvo dealer experience has been outstanding. Car washes, loaner cars, and service performed right the first time. Heck, my kids have broken the rear center cup holder twice, and they have always replaced it without a word - for free.
If I were in your shoes, I would have found someone else (and written letters to the owner of the dealership) long ago.
Not all dealers are good, not all are bad.
Don't blame the motor co. for something that isn't their fault.
Our maintenance records are located at this dealership though. Can I request a copy of the file? Can I get them to simply email it to the next dealer. Can I persuade the Volvo Care Hotline to get an electronic copy of these records? Does any of this even matter now that the car is out of warranty?
Thanks,
Jessica
If the car is out of warranty, it really doesn't matter if you give the service record to the new dealer or not.
Any warranty work is in a national database anyway.