Volvo S40

annieg3 · December 2005

The 2006 s40 is a great car and I love driving it! But I am bugged by the wind noise at the tops of the driver & passenger windows. It sounds like the windows are not completely up. Volvo claims they cannot hear the noise, but I've had friends drive the car and they can hear it. Wondering if anyone else is having the same experience.

Also, my brakes squeak when backing up. The car only has 2700 miles on it.

Any input would be appreciated.

ceetray · December 2005

I just got a new battery installed in my 2003 S40 and the radio requires a code to re-boot. I have the code but before I could punch it in my brother tried several wrong codes and the radio now says "off". I went to the dealer and they said that the radio has to be on for 2 hours to re-set and then the word code will come back up. I had the radio on for over 3 hours and the it never happened. We even went so far as to disconnect the battery and start over but to no avail. Any suggestions?!? The service center is closed until Tuesday and I NEED my radio. Happy New Year everyone!

au94 · January 2006

Well, we have an 06 T5 that has the same brake issue at virtually the same mileage. Our first oil change is free from the dealer and I was planning on waiting until then to have it looked at. I have noticed that brake dust accumalates more on the real wheels than the front. Never seen this before, its usually the other way around.

Din't seem to have the wind noise problem though.

Anyone that has any input on the brakes would be appreciated!

sbvolvo · January 2006

We have been looking for a S40 T5 and looked into leasing a 2006 but in the process found a 2005 S40 T5 AWD, Prem Pkg. 6spd manual which is exactly what my husband wanted. My question is what should we offer on a 2005 now that it is Jan 06? the MSRP is $31,250. I feel like if we could get a good enough price on an 05 it might be better to buy than to lease an 06. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!!!

sbvolvo · January 2006

I was quoted a lease deal on a Met. Silver, 06 S40 T5, Prem, Sport, Audio, Conven. Pkgs. with an MSRP of $32,225 and a sale price of $26,807. The lease is for 36 months with 15k/year and the payment are $491down and $491/Month. The price seems amazing but the payments seem really high for this price. When I go on the Volvo website finance calculator, the payments are closer to $400/month. Can anyone offer me advice about what seems wrong with this deal? We have excellent credit. The residual value is $15,145. Thanks for your help!

qbrozen · January 2006

well, i believe the volvo calculator does not take tax into consideration, for one. And I would venture a guess that it also leaves out DMV fees and paperwork fees.

There is a lease calculator here on Edmunds you could try. It allows you to plug in all those extra costs.

volvomax · January 2006

leave the key in the ignition in the on position for 2 hrs(engine doesn't need to be on) with the radio on.

aventures · January 2006

You need to shop other Volvo dealers as well. I bet they quoted you the payment without pulling your credit first. They are assuming you qualify already but keep in mine they make profit based on the different money factor (in leasing lango)they use to calculate the payment. All leases now are full disclosure so they really can't snuck in hidden fees accept for acquasition fee and disposition fee (price you pay at least turn in if you don't purchase the car). As for the lease payment calculator, it is always low. Don't rely on it. There are a lot of factors that it doesn't account for to make an accurate quote. If you don't plan on keeping the car for a long time and drive within the allowance mileage, go for the lease. If you buy and plan to trade within 3 years, don't do it. You have to save more than a couple thousand dollars to go with an 05 instead of 06. Don't lease an 05 period. Good luck..

sbvolvo · January 2006

Thank you very much for your help. I was concerned about the deal the offered because they acutally called and offered us a much lower price and better deal and then called back and said that they had made a mistake and it was actually going to be the price offered above. I really liked this Volvo dealer when i bought my S60, but now I'm having my doubts becuase the lease manager first misquoted us and then has been rude to us since his mistake. Unfortunately there is just the one lease guy, becuase the other people there have been great to us.

He told me that the "Cap Cost" was $26,807 does this mean that it includes the tax and fees? Thank you so much for your help and advice!

volvomax · January 2006

Cap cost doesn't include taxes and fees.

sbvolvo · January 2006

Thank you. I went to bankrate.com and did some more research and realized that this lease deal:

The MSRP is $32,225

The invoice price is $30,157

The Cap price (leasing price) is $26,807

Terms- 36 months, 15,000 miles per year, drive off is $491.94, 35 payments of $491.94. Residual value is $15,145.

ENDS UP POTENTIALLY COSTING THIS:

$17,709.84 total in payments
$15,145 Residual Value
$17,245.00 total price to purchase w/tax @ 6.5%
Total actual price of car:
$34,954.00 :mad:

Bank rate.com advises adding up all of your lease expenses and the cost of purchasing your car at the lease end (just in case). This also helps to show you what type of deal you are getting. the thing I don't understand is how $26807 turned back in more than the MSRP when I look at the total payments and the residual value.

fedlawman · January 2006

Is the $491.94 figure before or after tax?

volvomax · January 2006

Short answer is don't buy the car at the end of the lease.

The other way to look at it is this: $26,807 sale price, plus tax and license, finance @6.9% for 60 mos. total price $34,200. 60mo pmt @$570. In reality the purchase price would be $2000 higher, since the lease incentive is greater than the purchase incentive.
Now, your payment is @ $612 and the total cost is $36,700.
If you plan on keeping the car for a long time, buy it.
Otherwise take the lease.

qbrozen · January 2006

Volvomax summed it up pretty well.

When you are calculating your potential cost, you are adding in all the taxes, interest, etc.

i mentioned the lease calculator on edmunds before, but here is the direct link. Plug in all your info and see what you get.

http://www.edmunds.com/apps/calc/CalculatorController?tid=edmunds.finance.financ- elanding.calculators..3.*

jims40 · January 2006

i want to upgrade my whole exhaust system the headers, turbo downpipe to the cat, muffler, everything could somone tell me a good website or somone to call caus its pretty hard to find out about volvo performace parts i also want an intake but im pretty sure k & n will work.

jims40 · January 2006

oh yeah its a 2003

pat · January 2006

You should have a look at our Speed Shop: Tuning & Modification board. Have fun!

jims40 · January 2006

in addition to the exhaust i was thinking of getting the upsolute chip they say that it gives 40 more horses and doesn't effect the gas mileage or ware?

UPsolute.com

qbrozen · January 2006

i haven't looked at the specs on your specific car, but, many times, when going for the highest chip upgrade on a turbo car, it requires you use premium fuel. So, unless you are already running premium, your fuel costs will increase, regardless if the actual mileage remains the same.

Just thought I'd point that out, not that it should prevent you from doing it. Heck, I don't mind running premium for increased performance.

check out ipdusa.com for other upgrades.

volvomax · January 2006

For an older S40, ipd is probably your best bet.

sunbyrne · January 2006

i haven't looked at the specs on your specific car, but, many times, when going for the highest chip upgrade on a turbo car, it requires you use premium fuel.

Volvo already recommends premium fuel in the T5 for best performance anyway. I suspect most T5 drivers are already putting at least midgrade in, so maybe it's not such a hit. Now, mileage may be another story...

qbrozen · January 2006

there is no '03 S40 T5.

sunbyrne · January 2006

Ah, right, sorry, I had lost context.

donthegreek · January 2006

I'm going to buy an S40 2.4i in a couple months...fwd/auto...any pros or cons with the 16" tires vs the 17" tires....wear wise?? I'm sure the 17's will cost more.
How bout the awd model...does the awd eat up the tires...do they wear quicker??
Thanks in advance!!

dkchaks1 · January 2006

hi

thinking of buying a 2000 s40 volvo with 61000 miles on it. Is there any reason why I shouldn't go ahead with the deal?

tiggerbug · January 2006

Hello All-

About 7months ago i purchased a 2000 S40 Volvo from Car Max that had 82thousand miles at a great price. I drove the car for 3months and then constant problems began to happen. The ignition Coil had to be replaced and so and so forth. My problem now, when I drive the car at about 30-40 miles per hour, it drives smoothly. When I try to accelerate to 60 or 70 miles per hour the car begins to knock and act like it just can not make it. The knocking is felt underneath the floor board and sometimes it will get so bad that it shakes the car. The faster I go the harder the knocking gets and it progressively get worse over the day. One mechanic told me it is the CV Joint another has said that I am not using the correct Octane fuel? Has anyone else had a problem like this? PLEASE HELP!!!!

qbrozen · January 2006

well, easy enough to pick between those problems. ARE you using the correct fuel? If so, I would tend to agree with the CV joint. But that can be checked before actually replacing it.

tiggerbug · January 2006

:confuse: The car actually did not come with a owners manual and CarMax stated that I could your regular gas in the car. I thought that to be kind of strange, so i have been putting Mid-grade in the car, is that wrong?

volvomax · January 2006

try premium and see if that works.
The S40 works best on premium.

hiblerj · January 2006

I own a 2000 S40 with 82k miles and I have a similar issue with vibration. It is definitely not a gasoline issue. We found that all three motor mounts had broken and needed to be replaced. After fixing those, we had to replace the right-front axle because the engine was 2 inches out of alignment. When we got it back from the shop, the problem still persisted. My mechanic suggested that we replace all the tires...we did as told, but the vibration is still there. From 20-60 mph the car harmonically vibrates. Today, we put it on a lift rack and I revved the car from 10-60 mph and I can feel the vibration. Does anyone have any other thoughts on a solution to the problem? There is no play in the axles and I wouldn't think that a sensor would cause the problem.

only120xs · January 2006

A few pages back there were lots of people with brake and engine problems on '05s... is anyone having any problems with 06s??

bons · January 2006

This article might be of interest to current and those considering buying a new volvo...

New car smell is toxic many new cars...not Volvo

http://money.cnn.com/2006/01/31/Autos/toxic_cars/index.htm

http://www.swedespeed.com/news/publish/Volvo_News/article_742.html

fedlawman · January 2006

Interesting article bons. It looks like in choosing a new car, you have to choose between getting cancer from the flame retardant chemicals or risk burning to death in an accident!

This article might be of interest to cell phone users...

http://www.sarshield.com/news/disclosingdanger.html

Here's disturbing informtion about Aspartame...

http://www.321recipes.com/aspartame.html

Before you take another shower, read this...

http://www.chooseorganics.com/organicarticles/bodycaredanger.htm

qbrozen · January 2006

they released the report Jan 11th? And this environmental agency considers this some sort of groundbreaking news? I saw this in a scientific TV special years ago. And I'm sure it wasn't new news even then.

sunbyrne · January 2006

Here's disturbing informtion about Aspartame... http://www.321recipes.com/aspartame.html

What's fascinating about this is the almost complete lack of pointers to articles in refereed journals which involve human adult subjects. What's here is mostly a lot of anecdotes, but anecdotes aren't good science. The fact that this page eventually degenerates into paranoid-sounding conspiracy-theory howling isn't exactly a boon to credibility.

While I agree the FDA isn't necessarily the best at the job of screening products, I'm unconvinced by this page. While the research on pregnancy and aspartame is old news (my wife went off Diet Coke for both pregnancies and nursing periods), I have yet to see a sound study that shows it has any serious effects on non-pregnant adults. This page certainly didn't link to any, mostly just opinion pieces from MDs. Big deal, I'm sure I can easily locate just as many MD's who *don't* think it's dangerous. I want data, not opinions.

I mean, think about it for a minute. Given the number of people who ingest large quantities of aspartame on a regular basis, if a researcher could show strong evidence for negative effects associated with aspartame, that study would publish itself and be a career boon to anyone associated with it. Yet no such research has been published. I wonder why...

Before you take another shower, read this... http://www.chooseorganics.com/organicarticles/bodycaredanger.htm

This is simply a rant. The only basis for anything here is the statment that antimicrobial soap "is chemically similar to Agent Orange." Whoopee. Carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide are "chemically similar" and yet have radically different meaningful chemical properties. This article doesn't cite a single shred of evidence showing any toxic effect on anything, and the piece comes from a source with a vested commercial interest in demonizing anything not carrying the "organic" seal of approval.

Yes, there may be legitimate reasons to prefer soap without antimicrobials in it (like producing resistant microorganisms), but the "toxic to humans" argument presented here is weak speculation at best.

I didn't read that particular cell phone study, but it's probably more credible than these other two. I have seen a couple well-done studies on such effects and as a result I prefer clamshell phones, which keep the antenna further away.

fedlawman · January 2006

Sorry, there was no "tongue in cheek" emoticon for my earlier post with all those "danger" articles.

It would have saved you a lot of reading...

sunbyrne · February 2006

D'oh! Heh, you totally got me, hook, line, and sinker. :P

grad · February 2006

The car is not beautifully designed either inside or outside but i had a Volvo and was impressed some years ago and I'm ready for a step up from my near perfect Ford Focus
that has 105K faultless miles. I want something larger now and heavier with some sizzle and comfort.Sizzle is something that this car does not have. The "thunk of the Volvo while closing door is impressive" but good impressions stopped right there. Interior is bland and muted and hi tech cheap looking. It lacks interior storage space (a killer with me)Dash board does not even have the storage of my Focus(pathetic) The stingy and tiny center arm rest is like my Focus (shocking!where does ones arm take a rest? and the storage? non existent) The little pocket billiard space on driver side door I had to stare at to believe it existed. But the final turnoff was the cheesy inside silver painted plastic door handle. How long could it last? It resembled the quality of a childs car from Toys R Us.
This for $25,000? Has anyone seen a Camry or Altima? What did PT Barnum say? Well maybe Ford can come to its rescue but I'm not optimistic. Very disappointed Grad

beaunedoc · February 2006

Now in my 18th month with a S40 T5 AWD I've learned to live with the limited storage space, like the T-tec (sp?) interior. And yes I can point out a few things about the build/design that could be improved. But I have enjoyed driving the car in all conditions, around town and around the country. It has great seats, more than competent handling and performance, runs fine on 89 octane, and it doesn't rattle or squeak. Xenons are super, too! Can you get a 6 speed in a Camry? My left foot feels neglected if it can't join in the fun. beaunedoc

donthegreek · February 2006

Hey beaunedoc ...I'm thinking about buying either a 2.4i or the T5 AWD....what kind of gas milage are you getting????

don

beaunedoc · February 2006

don, I have been getting 19 and a little change in the city and up to 25 and change on the highway. I have been playing around and running one gear higher to see what difference it would make for in town travel. No results to report as of yet. The engine has enough torque that it hasn't been a problem when accelation is desired. As mentioned it runs just fine on 89 octane. Torque steer is seldom noticable, the AWD is great for a northerner like me. beaunedoc

donthegreek · February 2006

Thanks beaunedoc,
I live in north central Pennsylvania, so the AWD is appealing. Little concerned about the mpg...sounds about right though.

don

bronwynb · February 2006

I'm looking to buy a 2006 2.4i, but I'm ordering a custom-built unit because the body kit + rear spoiler that I want are not available as an option on the 2.4i. Via the "Overseas Delivery Program," I have been quoted a price of $25,357, including automatic transmission, Select Package, pre-painted body kit and rear spoiler as accessories (and the free trip to Sweden, which could be just a method of taking my attention away from a higher vehicle price, for all I know).

Is this a decent price? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, and here's the breakdown:

$22,070
+ 1200 (automatic)
595 (discounted select package, w/ overseas delivery)
1485 (body kit)
307 (rear spoiler)
- 300 (discount, "just for me")
----------
= $25,357

lady_a · February 2006

Are the pads and rotors of the 2001 S40 one unit and have to be replaced together? During my routine maintenance visit at the Putnam Volvo dealership in Burlingame, CA I was told that my rear brake pads were just to the point of being worn out. When I inquired about replacement, I was told, "The brake pads and rotors are one unit and have to be replaced as a unit" When I asked when I should have unit replaced, I was told, "Just keep driving until you hear screeching, then you'll know it's time". In reviewing postings here I see no one stating they've had to replace brakes pads AND rotors as a unit. In fact there are many discussions regarding replacing pads with no mention of replacing rotors at the same time HELP!! :surprise:

fedlawman · February 2006

The rotor is the metal brake disc attached to the wheel hub. The pads ride in a "carrier" over each side of the rotor, and a piston attached to the "carrier" presses the pad onto the rotor when you apply the brakes.

Strickly speaking, pads and rotors are seperate, and can be replaced independantly if needed. That said, a set of rotors for your car is so inexpensive (approx $60 per axle) that I would replace the rotors when I do pads.

You see, pads require bedding in to perform properly. This is the process in which a thin layer of pad material is transferred to the rotors and bonds with the rotor surface. This layer is what the pads "grab onto" when braking, and if it isn't uniform and smooth, you can get juddering and steering wheel vibrations.

Assuming your rotors are still in good condition (you should ask your mechanic how hey look if you can't tell yourself), you could bed new pads to them if you want. In my opinion though, it's worth the extra $60 per axle to get fresh rotors - it's what I do on my car.

sarahr97 · February 2006

Long story short - my '96 honda civic was stolen about a month ago so I need to buy a car. I've been wrestling with new vs. used but more importantly, I've also been struggling between a Jetta and a volvo s40. Most friends that I talk to think I should go with the Jetta but I really like the look of the s40. Does anyone have experience with either or both? I really want this car to last me approx. 10 years (is that wishful thinking?)

merckx · February 2006

I really like the new Jetta-it's MUCH roomier. But after having a 2001 Passat,with its many problems and lack of VW support,I've had to say no more VWs.

I admit that now I'm a Volvo sales consultant,but i'm quite impressed with the new S40. i think it's one of the best Volvos in the range,actually.

They appear to be quite well made-The quality is pretty apparent.

sarahr97 · March 2006

I like the looks of the Volvo S40 but my sister keeps teasing me that it is a "mommy car." I'm 26 and nowhere near motherhood. I know that Volvo is marketing the S40 to 20-somethings like me but I don't see anyone in that age group driving it. Any thoughts?

deepthinker · March 2006

I see your point about the image issue with the Volvo S40. I got a lot of grief when friends heard that's what I got. I chose the Volvo after ending my lease on a BMW 325xi. I'm 31 and single, and out in the social scene, the Volvo sure does cause a different perception by other people. I ended up choosing it for reasons completely unrelated to image, and after a few months, I'm still happy with my choice. It's funny that you're thinking about a Jetta-seems like at least half the time I see one, there seems to be a cute young girl driving. I'm always lookin' when I pull up to a Jetta at a stoplight. Something about that car sure attracts the girls in their 20's. I say drive 'em, price 'em, and go with your gut.

sarahr97 · March 2006

Great

Cause I've given up on the idea of the Jetta based on reliability issues. Now it's between the S40 and the Acura TSX. Thanks for your thoughts!

Volvo S40

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