Faults:

Tie Rods - three times, ready for a fourth

Cam Shaft Replaced

2 Valves Replaced

Wheel Bearing replaced

Stero has a mind of its own, still does not work properly

Head Gasket Replaced

Manifold Gasket Replaced

The antenna does not accommodate the stereo/tv/gps. So you have to adjust to lower quality in order for the stereo to receive reception. And there are other problems mentioned above regarding the stereo.

The brakes are making noise again.

My average mpg is now at 15.6

The GPS will just start operating on its own.

The head liner has come undone. The carpet has come undone twice

The interior floor lights do not always shut off when lit on the approach of vehicle.

A speaker has been replaced.

General Comments:

When running correctly I truly enjoy the vehicle. But seldom does said vehicle not have an issue.

The dealership has been reluctant to call this car a lemon and for an additional $11,000.00 offered to get me in a 2006. I said, "No." The then agreed to extend the warranty to 6 years 100,000 miles, but that was over a month ago and I still have not seen any paperwork regarding the same.

I have no plans to ever purchase another Volvo.

Faults:

Steering box needed replacement, the car was drivable, but made a clunking noise and had a little looseness in the wheel when driving at low speeds. 15,000 miles.

A few other little things not worth mentioning.

General Comments:

Overall this has been a great car/truck to own. It rides much more car like than our Grand Caravan, very sporty feel.

Recently achieved a fuel efficiency of 26.2 mpg on the highway fully loaded with 6 passengers. Purchased through the overseas delivery program.

If you need 6/7 passenger seating and you don't want a minivan, this is the vehicle to buy. The Acura MDX was too much like a truck for our tastes. The Ford Freestyle is a potential contender, but lacks the styling worthy of such a vehicle.

Faults:

I bought the 18" premium wheels with the car to upgrade the appearance.

Yesterday while traveling from Chicago to Bloomington, Ind, I had a blowout that could not be repaired due to hitting some metal debris on the road.

Try finding an 18" tire! Not one tire dealer including Volvo dealers had one in stock! I had to have Tirerack.com ship one Fed Ex to me in Bloomington to get one at significant expense. Now I'm getting a full size spare since I travel a lot on the roads. Just an FYI for anyone with the 18" wheels, you will be SOL on the road, gimping around on the mini-spare.

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

Firstly, I need to say that our last 3 cars have all been Volvo’s (740, 940 & 960) and I thus freely admit to being biased toward the brand.

I think this is the first review of the diesel engine version and I will thus focus my comments in this area. The other reviewers have provided plenty of information on the other areas of interest you may have.

I have driven over 7 thousand miles in this car in mixed conditions, motorway, about town, school runs etc.

Considering its size this car is quite economical. About town we get 27mpg and we have achieved 33+ mpg on a long motorway run. My long term average is 28.5 mpg.

The engine is really suited to long motorway runs and copes easily when fully loaded with people and their luggage. A recent ‘booze-cruise’ to France was equally no problem.

The two weak spots I have found are:

(1) The car struggles to overtake a moving vehicle in the 40/60mph range.

(2) The car struggles to pull away from a ‘standing start’ at junctions etc.

After driving a 960 this came as quite a shock.

Quite simply, I think the car needs a bigger diesel. These engines can be chipped, but I have no first hand information on this process.

I love the car and I can put up with the sluggish performance. However I would recommend all potential buyers to carefully consider how they might feel before parting with their cash.