Volvo V70 & XC70

[Theothers]

Hi all.

Has anyone owned either of these? what do you think? What goes wrong? and how much more expensive are they to run than a Merc?

Thanks for any help.

R

 

[davidjpowell]

had a 04 V70 D5 for 18 months and 35,000 miles. Nothing went wrong, nothing fell off, nothing rattled.

Very comfortable, fairly quick but not as smooth an engine as MB.

David

 

[Sp!ke]

Currently got an S60 D5 which is basically a V70 in saloon trim.

Its quick, economical and seems well built. I doubt it'll be any more expensive than a Mercedes to run as most parts are available from GSWF or Eurocarparts. They can be picked up for half the price of an equivalent merc and they dont rust.

The only gripes are the poor turning circle and poor rear visibility.

 

[imadoofus]

Volvo dealers aren't cheap, but parts are generally less expensive that Mercedes.

 

[NewMB]

Being a sweden, deriving a Volvo has been part of my life for years.

My most recent one, was a new 2003 (53) V70 2.5T SE Geartronic that I was very pleased with.

Great engine, good fuel economy despite the turbo charger and being a petrol engine. Best seats in the world and nothing ever went wrong with it. Sold it with 32K on the clock.

Depending on mileage, teh D5 is another good bet. Get the later version (after 2004 I think) and you'll get the 185 bhp engine instead if 163. The latter was renamed 2.4D and still lives on today.

Good luck if you buy one.

PS Fold the seats and you have a perfect bed!

 

[Paul S320CDi]

I had a 2000 V70 T5 for 12 months. It was 6 years old when I had it. In the 12 months of ownership I only ever had to put tyres on. Never had a single problem with it.

It beat everything on the road that I came across. My heart used to race at traffic lights waiting for the off. Everything was just a blurr in the rear view mirror. Massive in the back too. It felt really solid inside. As someone above mentioned, the turning circle is terrible.

 

[robert.saunders]

£70 fine for parking there

I've had many a ride in a Police V70 T5 (as willing observer I hasten to add) and it really is an impressive machine, certainly in the hands of an advanced driver anyway

 

[Paul S320CDi]

£70 fine for parking there

Even on a Sunday?

 

[robert.saunders]

Even on a Sunday?

Technically, depends on the signs

 

[Vlad]

If you are talking about the older V70's ie @ 1997 era then they can suffer from annoying ABS light problems and engine management light issues...they also rattle more than the equivalent W210 E Class but have better bodywork.

An E Class also has a better chassis in my opinion and feels better tied down as a V70 can float about a bit.

The later V70's, ie 2000/1 onwards can also suffer from a potentially expensive engine idle problem which will cost @ £300 for the part + fitting.....so if the revs fluctuate up and down and it won't hold an idle then walk on. Again, even on these models I find that they have more internal squeaks and rattles, whereas a E Class Estate will tend to have none. Diesel models by the way do not have the idle problem, just the petrols and they finally resolved it in 2003 by changing the offending Marelli part with a redesigned Bosch unit, which can not be retro fitted.

Again they can suffer from engine management light problems.

The petrol engines on both models of V70's can be pretty thirsty, especially the 20v models and the T5 models...this specific model has horrendous fuel consumption and the worst turning circle you could possibly imagine. The 10v (140bhp) models are much better on fuel and I've had over 40 mpg on a long motorway journey, albeit it was a manual model...auto's would never be this good.

Lastly, if you want a seven seater, stick with the W210 7 seater....much better design and comfort for the rear facing oassengers as you have a footwell, whereas the V70 does not and its uncomfortable for anything other than short distance.

Finally, finally....engines are bomb proof, as are the rest of the mechanicals + bodywork and can cover huge mileages, but for driving pleasure I think the W210 is the better car, whereas the Volvo has the better bodywork.

 

[pint6x]

I currently run a 2003 V70 D5 SE with the 163bhp 2.4 diesel lump.

Bought nearly 2 years ago with 74k miles on it for £10,400. Worth hunting out the SE spec because you get leather, climate, cruise etc.

Seats very comfortable. Economy pretty good at about 42-45mpg depending on how it's driven.

Mileage now up to 105k. Service intervals every 12k miles.

Apart from regular servicing and tyres, the following problems have appeared:

Mass Airflow sensor - went at 86k miles - car would not pull above 2500rpm - being a mechanical numpty I took it to a main agent and paid over £400 to have a new one fitted (part cost £280). I now know where it is, it's easy to replace and I would buy a pattern part next time for a fraction of the cost and do it myself.

Rear wiper motor - this is apparently a known fault - the motors don't last forever - I got a used one for £40 and fitted it myself - all OK now.

The 96,000 service is a biggie - new cambelt time, so make sure it's been done if mileage greater than that, or haggle hard if approaching 96,000 miles. I got this service done at an Independent specialist for £350 - main agents wanted £600 plus.

I have a good independent specialist locally which is partly why I got the Volvo. They tell me the front wishbones will probably need doing at about the 120k mark - they all do that I'm told.

Apart from that, it's a keeper and I'm aiming to take it up to at least 250k miles if not more. It is a fantastic car for a five person family and we chuck bicycles and all sorts in the back all the time. It cruises very easily at 90-100 on the continent, it has a good standard fit in-dash 4 cd stereo, it is very relaxing to drive. We've taken it down to Italy three times so far and it's been great.

I have to say I love it, and for the money I paid I couldn't think of anything better.

I did consider the E class estate, but the Mercs were a lot more money for the same year/mileage, and I was put off by the rust problems. The obvious difference between the E class and the V70 is rear wheel drive versus front wheel drive.

If you want any more info, do drop me a message or just ask here.

Rgds

Philip

 

[NewMB]

it has a good standard fit in-dash 4 cd stereo

The 2003 SE version has a Dolby Sorround System with 9 speakers fitted as standard and is pretty good.

I upgraded this to the next level (the highest level at the time) that came with 11 (!) upgraded speakers and a bigger amp. All for £250 only. Bargain and well worth it.

Best ever car stereo I have experienced!

The current version is even better but costs a whopping £1000 to upgrade!

 

[crockers]

Had the same car as Sp!ke -- loved the seats - good performance - great fuel consumption ..

HATED..the turning circle...only car I have ever had to shunt around a tight multi storey carpark

had it for 80,000 miles -- nothing went wrong....besides headlight bulbs..

 

[Piff]

Interesting reading guys. I'm currently looking for a tow truck and in the back of my mind I keep thinking of an XC90. Presumably these are not overly different to the XC70?

 

[SimonsMerc]

Currently got an S60 D5 which is basically a V70 in saloon trim.

Its quick, economical and seems well built. I doubt it'll be any more expensive than a Mercedes to run as most parts are available from GSWF or Eurocarparts. They can be picked up for half the price of an equivalent merc and they dont rust.

The only gripes are the poor turning circle and poor rear visibility.

 

[flango]

£70 fine for parking there

I've had many a ride in a Police V70 T5 (as willing observer I hasten to add) and it really is an impressive machine, certainly in the hands of an advanced driver anyway

I had a V70 T5 for 2 1/2 years apart from regular servicing never had anything wrong with it, had 147,000 miles on it when I let it go, one of the best cars I have ever owned. At the time I was travelling to Scotland every week, prior to the Volvo I had a BMW 325 touring, when I got the Volvo it took 30 minutes of my 300 mile journey, not through speeding but by its fantastic ability and stability cornering on scottish A roads.

I do a lot of driver training and put the 3 main police estates against each other (Merc, BMW, Volvo) and I have to say it the Volvo wipes the floor with the others, it is so composed in professional hands that there is not much that will out run it or out manouvre it, you are not likely to get into any handling problems even with the most in experienced driver.

I now run a Subaru Outback estate and have to say although a real good car it's not in the Volvo league.

My advice would be go for it owning was a joy and low running costs for such a big powerful vehicle.

 

[Vlad]

Interesting reading guys. I'm currently looking for a tow truck and in the back of my mind I keep thinking of an XC90. Presumably these are not overly different to the XC70?

XC70's eat tyres and have simply dreadful fuel consumption...not an easy car to shift second hand.

 

[flango]

XC70's eat tyres and have simply dreadful fuel consumption...not an easy car to shift second hand.

totally agree on the XC's. This Subaru I have uses a similar 4 wheel drive system, diffs are sensitive, no such thing as changing one tyre it's all 4 or nothing as a few mm in tread depth accross and axel or front to rear will stuff the diffs. £800 a time for all 4!!

Also Vlad dead right second hand values terrible and very hard to move