1997 Volvo 460 TD 1.9 turbo diesel
Summary:
A no nonsense performer that's built to last
Faults:
Nothing special to be mentioned other than the usual suspects (tires, brake shoes etc.).
General Comments:
It can keep up very well with most of the newer TD (c) i engines. I regularly frustrate Golf TDI and even smaller BMW 3 series owners with my unsuspected accelerations.
In spite of this performance, it's a very economical car to drive. My estimate is it uses just under 6 liters of diesel per 100 km.
I had two collisions, one with a Fiat Stilo - my mistake. I needed a new bumper, the Fiat had to be towed. Later with an Alfa Romeo 155 (his mistake). I think his car had more damage than mine. Anyway - my point: not only could the looks be mistaken for a tank, it's built like one too!
The styling's a bit primitive and there's no electronic comfort devices, but those usually break down the first anyway.
I will keep this car as long as it will run, which could so it seems be next to forever.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 26th August, 2004
28th Aug 2002, 17:27
There is something wrong with your expectations especially when buying a car with a high kilometre history.
Head gasket blowing is a sign of overheating/poor maintanence at that mileage
Fuel pumps break and at 210K km that's not terribly surprising.
Hand brake cables need to be replaced after awhile
Ten to one the injectors were only *dirty* so many people replace them when they only need cleaning.
Having a clutch go at 260K km is only to be expected, hell I'm surprised it didn't need replacing sooner.
Moving all those components to replace a clutch is fairly common, even more so with FWD cars.
At such a high mileage of course your springs are going to be sagging a bit, more likely your shocks are worn out.
The paint has faded in 10 years because you need to wash, polish and wax paints to keep them looking nice after 10 years, they don't just look after themselves.
All cars with 200K km plus will have squeaks and rattles... all cars.
It makes me wonder if you test drove the car before you bought it and have very "unreasonable" expectations of vehicles.