26th Mar 2011, 16:40
My personal opinion is that the XC 70 is NOT worthy of wearing the Volvo name. Purchased mine used with 150,000km on it (nothing for a 240 series), and within a month I had spent $1000. This should have been an indicator of what I was in for.
Over the past 19 months I have racked up a substantial amount of kms (100,000), however the maintenance schedule required to keep this car running is more than the lease of a new Mercedes! It has always been understood that high mileage usage dictates more attentive maintenance; however this car is in no way comparable to the four previous 240 series cars I have owned (and put over 400,000kms each on).
The car is comfortable, fantastic to drive in the snow or gravel roads (I leave my friend's Subaru in the mist), has decent fuel economy for an all-wheel drive, and feels very safe, I will NEVER buy another Volvo! Sad to say from a lifetime Volvo man, the truth hurts!
Examples: To service the fuel pump you are required to drop the rear end, (not to mention the over $650 pump price), constant engine codes, most of them of the "gremlin" variety. Volvo service techs are clueless as to why the car keeps frying Mass Air Meters, keep referring for the need for me to "replace the computer"... How about replace my brand loyalty?
I have been told Volvo "fixed" many issues after the 2004 model year. How could they have built a vehicle with so many known issues for over 6 years? Good Bye Volvo, I will miss you dearly, have no idea what to replace you with, but surely the pain of sitting behind the wheel of a Domestic or a plasticky Honda or Toyota will not be as harsh as the drain on my wallet. Volvo for life... is R.I.P.!
27th Mar 2011, 10:45
Please read your consumers report annual auto guide that comes out every year around April before buying any car out there... buying a used european car is not for the faint of heart... especially during these times of raising labor/parts/service on these cars... even reliable Japanese cars can be expensive to repair if you pick the wrong car...
19th Jul 2009, 20:54
Instead of running to the dealer when your CE light comes on, go to your local auto store who can plug your car into the OBDII reader for free, go home, go online, and figure out what the code means. Many times the parts store can help you out there too. When you begin to take an interest in what goes on in your car, and show some sort of knowledge when you get to the dealer, not only will you understand more about your car, you will get more respect there.
What you also need to understand is that mechanical parts WEAR OUT! Motor mounts, tie rod ends, etc take a lot of abuse. Every time your car is running these parts are under stress. If you cannot handle the idea of replacing a wearable part, then a different mode of transportation may be more appropriate.