Kaisa
Hi,
I am new to the community here, but not to Volvos. I am about to buy a 2004 XC70 (AWD T5)and I have seen 2 in my price point (about $5000-$6000) .
First one has 140k on it. All logs are fine (not all done by Volvo mechanic, but servicing has been done regularly, timing belt around the 124k mark) and it seems to drive very well. There was a water leak under the car (looked like from the mid-engine) after test drive, but that was most likely from the aircon as it was on full blast.
The other one is a trade in from a dealer with 151k on it and has the same engine on it (2.5T). It has service history up until 2012 and one low beam bulb neads replacing. The interior is a bit damaged, but other than that it runs well. The dealer did not know much about the history of the car other than what was written in the logs, but they claimed it had been inspected by the NRMA.
I would think the one with full logs would be a better choice, however the kms are quite low and not sure why that would be.
Which one would be a better pick and what to look out for? Did the 2004 models also suffer from transmission issues?
Any response would be highly regarded! :)
Philia_Bear
ALL 5 speed AUTO XC70's should be avoided like the plague
Both of the ones your are looking at are ripe for transmission failure
They both sound like cars that got traded in, bought by people who didn't know and refused to maintain the cars, then on the next yearly inspection got handed a bill that scared them off into trading them in
Berry Volvo has a manual 2002 XC70 at the moment... I'd tell you to highly consider it
Kaisa
I have heard about these issues, but was hoping it would be better with later models. The one with 140k did own the car for 4 years, but they had bought a new car thus not needing the Volvo anymore.
What would be cost of a new transmission and what else could be affected when the transmission goes?
I did actually look and test drive a 1999 V70 (2.5T) and was going to buy it, but had a NRMA inspection done on it and it turned out to need a lot of repairs ( engine oil leak, perished pushes (front and rear suspension), engine mount perished etc).
Philia_Bear
Replacement trans would be 4-6k inc labor
Thus pretty much they all get scrapped when the trans dies
Parryana
My XC70 has 170k on the clock and the transmission has never missed a beat. The car is used for towing a race car around the country as well. I do flush the tranny oil every 2 years though.
Kaisa
We really wanted a wagon and the XCs are very spacious in that regard.
Its good to hear something good as well. What year model is yours Pazza?
Ben
Mine was a 2002 MY2003 (So a 2003 effectively) and the transmission went along with the dash, AWD, ETM and a few other choice parts. We got a tenth of the price we paid for it two years previous. Don't buy one, or be prepared to either pay for a new transmission (which considering they're all dodgy, a new one isn't guaranteed to die in another 6-10 years) or to walk away from it.
Yes there are some which just seem to work - like Pazza's - but the stars have aligned for them, whereas for the majority they don't.
Beautiful car, shame they're prone to dying! This was ours:
.
Rob
Find a manual one and you will be fine.
Alternatively put a bit more cash with it and buy a post 08 D5.
Kaisa
Thank you all for the feedback! :)
I guess I will be weighing my options about the car then.
Parryana
Mine is a 2002, well its actually my sons now. I only use it for the towing. I also have a 2004 V70R and my wife has a c30 R design. A little volvo crazy here. BTW: I race a Peugeot. Crazy hey.
Parryana
Ex850R
I will take the Pug over the XC.......
Kaisa , why not that 1999 car?
If its good nick then spend $2k on it for all parts that need done (which is std fare if not maintained sell) and have a great car.
Be quick and talk to @iceton1975 , Mark about that manual 2002 XC they have before they wreck it.
Kaisa
Pazza your car looks great! :)
Snoopy - The 1999 V70 was a great drive, but I did an inspection on it (NRMA) and they uncovered some issues with it( engine oil leak, perished front and rear suspension bushes, perished engine mounts etc) and rated it as unsafe to drive. Had a word with the inspector as well and he said it would need at least 3000-4000 in repairs to get the basics covered. The issue is that I would be using the car daily and for longer commutes. Thus I figured a newer model would be better.
The 2004 XC70 with 151ks has a few concerns, but would need to be serviced to know for sure. I was looking up some Subaru Outbacks as well, but would really like to stick with Volvo.
Ex850R
All the bits you need done on that V70 1999 are easily got and cheap too , the cars all are hard on the front mounts , typical of all FWD cars. Not 3-4000 , 2K is all at a good independant shop or do it yourselfeasily. Then the car is good for another 20 years use , if you get the 1999one fpor $1-3K and spend 2k you have a much better car than the later one which will cost you cash over and over again.....
Subaru? watch the oil has been changed a LOT as there is a design flaw that has them gunge up and do head gaskets....As they have two heads , expect a maximum of $5K to fix a Subaru at a shop as engine comes out unlike Volvo....You get all the same bushes to fix plus its AWD so more bits to fix. Really , unless you get a manual XC70 , probably forget them...BUT , as some have said , you M A Y get a good one , can you afford the risk?
Ben
I had a 2002 Outback and it was great until the head gasket went - bit of a standard problem with the 2.5 engine apparently until 04 I think. I should've stuck with it and got it fixed.
Subaru has expensive servicing as does Volvo, but I'd say from my experience that the Volvo has more expensive parts when things go wrong, with more things usually failing.
As a few peeps said above, go for the 08+ models of Volvo, they seem to be a lot better.
Kaisa
Yeah, the V70 was actually my first choice, but had to let it go because of the pressure from the inspection notes and also my partner. There are still a few good ones out there, so I would just have to look around.
If I were to get the 2004 XC70, I would take to the mechanic next week to see what needs doing. It also had an msg showing on dash about low beam light bulb needing replacement. How easy of a fix would it be on that model if I were to do it myself? Also I have read it is possible to turn of/ disable the AWD in these cars?
PaddlerEd
As you seem to be set on an XC70, I'd be taking it first to someone for a software update for all the control modules, in particular the auto box... then take it to your mechanic for everything else. The days of the independent (non-specialised) mechanic being able to cure everything is long gone, there's so much that is software update based that they need to go to main dealer every 12 months or so for updates.
Also I'd say that the inspection needs to be done by someone who knows that particular model of car, as there are peculiarities to them.
Someone else will chip in, but there is a year where the Haldex system changed to one where it is less tyre wear dependent; the early system didn't tolerate odd tyre sizes (even replacing one tyre whilst the others were part worn was enough to wind it up) and I know that remained the case until part way through the P2 V70's life.
Ex850R
As Ed says.
I took my V70T 1998 to the garage up my street , he had some scary $$ on the list of parts he said it needed......
I had to get a VIV on the car , they picked up none of that or when RWC cert was obtained.
A good independent shop will have Volvo Diagnostic's tools. There is a guy we know in Melbz that bought one as well and can help.
Where are you?
Voldat and Berry Motors in Melbz are your places to go. Brilliant peeps there.
Others can give you shops in other states.
They can organise a dealer update as well.
Kaisa
Fine enough :). Would the software updates only be done by the Volvo dealers?
Snoopy- I am actually in Sydney and would love to know if there are good Volvo mechanics that I could turn to if something goes wrong. I have heard only good about the ones you mentioned in Melbourne.
Parryana
When I need a mechanic, I do most of my own stuff, I use Savvas Volvo, I find his work good quite good.
