A Few Questions About the S60/V70...

[Alan16ac]

Hello all!
Looking at getting myself an S60 or V70 as a daily driver. Wanting something comfortable so this seems like a good choice.
Only have a low budget though so I'm looking at 2002-2005 cars with the 2.4 D5 engine.

Unsure wether to go manual or automatic? I like the lazy drive of an Auto (I have another car for "fun") but don't want an unreliable and unresponsive auto. I'd rather stick with a manual if that'd be the case.

My budget is around £1000 although would stretch to £1500.

Am I mad buying a car at this end of the market or is it possible to get a half decent car?

Thanks.

[Georgeandkira]

Let's all go to Alan's house to drink beer and talk Volvos! Waddaya say?

[bugeye]

No experience with a diesel engine in the USA. However, the automatics in 2001, 2002 are said to be unreliable. As once stated, "the most expensive Volvo is purchased at the lowest price".

[Georgeandkira]

Seriously,
Why Ford decided to meddle with the inwards (programming) of the automatics of '01-'02 is a mystery. That is not to say every one of those units is bad. If you find one which is in an otherwise good car I suggest driving it until hot and go about town at middling speeds. This will make the car shift a bunch and any choppiness will surface.

The DIM of that era had assembly (soldering) defects which result in intermittent operation of the high beam indicator, run-on numerals in the clock, inoperable trip odometers and complete failure. These are repairable for a fee of about £250. Check that number.

The AWD gearing (bevel gear) was revised by '05. The earlier setup was less forgiving of unmatched tires and many will be worn out.
I'm not 100% certain but I think all AWD systems run happier with matched rubber.

All the usual wear items will need to have been replaced on any car that age.

There was a facelift during the '05 model year (dropping of headlight wipers, freshened center console, pretty chrome rings on the speedo and tach).

Concentrate on '05 and later examples and drive as many as you can. Feel for smoothness. Look for straight (aligned-centered) steering wheels. Listen for any rumbling. It'll pay to have any prospective old Volvo inspected by your shop.

[delticol]

I had a 2003 S60D5 which had over 130k on. It was superb. It did 50 to the gallon and was rapid. Sold it to get a V70D5, I am now on my second one, these too are superb cars. The current one is a 54 plate facelift model but with the non DPF 163 engine. My advise would be to go for it, either model, you will not be disapointed.

[The Slug of Doom]

The diesel cars carry a premium over the petrol ones, but still you should find a good car for that money (I recently bought an S60 2.4 T5 manual in that budget).

The S60 is cheaper generally as there is far more demand for the load lugging V70.

As others will tell you, the Euro III D5 engine (pre 2005 ish) is a tough old lump if properly maintained.
They are capable of very high mileages if the regular oil changes are carried out (this is critical on diesels).
As the old mantra goes, buy on condition (and particularly history), not age.

Accept front suspension components are going to wear more quickly than expected. If replacing, go for the good quality stuff to avoid doing the job again in 12 months.

I would go with a manual.
Better fuel economy, more reliable and more involving drive (relatively speaking!)

Trim wise, always go for an SE which will have leather and the (bl**dy wonderful) uprated sound system.
If you find that you want to change the headunit for something more modern then worry not, it is quite straightforward and while you lose the centre channel you gain bluetooth/DAB/digital music inputs etc.

Bodywork wise they don't rust.
If it has rust, it has had a bump.

Put simply, for the money you wish to spend, I doubt there is much better than a well looked after S60.