1997 Volvo S70 T5 2.5 turbo

Summary:

A wolf in sheep,s clothing

Faults:

Nothing to serious to date, however the right side brake light has a habit of registering as out! when in fact it's not?

Other than that glitch, totally reliable and awesome piece of kit.

General Comments:

The T5 is not for the faint hearted and inexperienced driver, the speed uptake can be frightening especialy in sport mode. Drivers would do well to glance down and check what mode your in prior to accelrating.

The interior is of high standard and finish, also has oodles of comfort and support on long journeys.

Only down side I have with the the interior trim is the dash board top covering! tends to reflect back onto the windscreen in high sunshine.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 3rd April, 2003

1997 Volvo S70 T5 2.3 petrol

Summary:

Underestimated power and safe luxury car

Faults:

Handbrake needed to be overhauled at 104000 miles, including new rotors and pads.

Knocking on front Sway bar which needed replacing.

General Comments:

The T5 goes like a rocket and has plenty of scope for improvement if you want to modify the engine and ECU. Only slightly let down in its road holding and cornering do to its size, does need to be lowered if you want a truly sporty feel, as in the T5-R versions.

Tends to eat front tyres, a pair of Pirelli P-zeros only lasted me about 12,000 miles, but that depends on driving style.

The brakes match the performance of the car extremely well.

The cabin is more than comfortable for long distance, high speed motorway driving.

Very reliable, but costly if you go through a Volvo dealer.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 14th June, 2002

8th Jan 2007, 05:38

I am not the writer of this review, however I did own one of these and have written a review of it which is entitled "An expensive disappointment" and is in the 1999 grouping. You may want to read it before you buy!!

To answer your question, I thought the fuel economy wasn't too bad at all given the size and power of the car, although I have mostly owned fairly high performance cars, so I am used to higher fuel consumption than people who drive the mainstream models would be used to.

But if you want the power, you gotta pay the price!!!

I typically got mpg in the mid to high 20s from a mixture of town and motorway driving with good use of the performance (but not constantly flooring it - then you would really see it drink).

The best I did with it was holiday driving from the South of England to Scotland, I averaged 32 mpg over the trip (1,800 miles).

Hope this helps.

1998 Volvo S70 SE 2.5i turbo diesel

Faults:

Reliability has been disappointing, the following have gone wrong in the first 14 months of ownership:

1. Air conditioning compressor - twice! First the original unit, then the replacement.

2. Electric front window switch.

3. Electric aerial - twice! First the original unit, then the replacement

General Comments:

Other than the reliability, a good car. Wonderfully comfortable cabin, especially the seats, making it an excellent motorway cruiser.

The water based paint takes ages to properly harden. Getting rid of bird droppings in the first few weeks gave dreadful scratches.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 19th December, 1999

1997 Volvo S70 T5 2.3 turbo petrol

Faults:

The electric aerial sometimes decides to not fully retract, nothing else, not even a squeek.

General Comments:

A family car which neatly disguises the fact that it has 240bhp under the bonnet. Suspension on standard car not sufficient for the power but fitting lowered springs sorts the problem out. Power must be delivered gently to avoid shredding front tyres. Next time you come across a T5 try one out!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 24th January, 1999

8th Jan 2007, 06:55

"Disguises the fact that it has got 240bhp under the bonnet"?

Yes - disguises it a bit too well!! I found mine a bit disappointing engine wise. Sure it was quick, but not nearly as much punch as I was expecting.

I raced mine against my previous car (which my brother in law bought from me), a Civic 1.8 VTi (169 bhp) and it was barely, and I mean barely, any quicker.

Also, why does the engine rev to 6,500 (and sound rough with it)when the power drops off after 5,000 rpm? I didn't even think the low to mid-range torque shove was all that good either, which might have compensated. I later had a Golf 130 TDi PD which was far more impressive in this respect.

Didn't give the best of either world.

And I couldn't agree with you more about the suspension. I thought the chassis was appalling. I'm glad you got yours sorted with aftermarket springs, but why should you have to?

And more to the point, why should you have to spend the extra money as well?

Surely the manufacturer should set the car up properly in the first place - they charge us enough for them??

It had some good points, I'll admit, but mine was unreliable as well (bought from a main dealer and properly maintained).

I was glad to see the back of it.

German or Japanese cars are where it's at!!

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