I owned a few of these back in the day. And am wildly attracted to a seemingly mint 02 with under 100K. Can they actually last? Anyone with actual experience?
I owned a few of these back in the day. And am wildly attracted to a seemingly mint 02 with under 100K. Can they actually last? Anyone with actual experience?
Who could say no to turbo Volvo goodness? If you are wildly attracted to her, you should make her yours.
In reply to SPG123:
No experience with the S60/V70, but I've had an 850 Turbo which basically has the same motor. I got it fo' free with about 145k on it and promptly threw a homemade manual boost controller on, cranked the boost as high as the stock ECU would allow, and drove it to almost 200k without incident. And I beat that thing like a red-headed step child 
Turbo Volvo 5s are a hoot and will surprise a lot of cars from a roll. Plenty of guys out there are pushing 20+ lbs of boost at well over 200k miles. PCV systems need to be maintained and parts aren't the cheapest when things do break, but they're generally quite reliable.
Scariest car on the Internet? Seriously? That would be a Maserati Biturbo or B6 Audi S4 or something.
The early ones had some issues with the DBW setup and clusters going wonky (can't remember if the fix came in '02 or '03), but they are built much, much better than the preceding P80 cars, especially inside. There is really nothing to be afraid of. Keep a good timing belt on it, do the PCV system refresh and keep the fluid fresh if it's automatic, and drive the damn thing. I almost bought an '01 5-speed V70 T5 with 278k on it last year, if that tells you anything.
Do it!
I own a '97 850 T-5 as a daily driver/beater that I'm entering in the $2015 Challenge this weekend. I'm pretty sure the one you're looking atis the same car with a face-lift. All I've done is thrown on a cheap manual boost controller and wound it closed so the wastegate stays closed 
It goes pretty good. It has 194k on it now so yes, they can last.
In reply to edwardh80:
The '01-up P2 chassis cars are quite a bit different than the P80 chassis cars like yours actually, not just a facelift; the core drivetrain is similar but otherwise they share very little.
The transaxle is the scary part for me. The throttle body was done recently. I just drove the car and am reminded that the seats fit me as well as any I have ever sat in. A really pleasant car to drive. Very composed and fun in the boost.
Anvils.
pointofdeparture wrote: Scariest car on the Internet? Seriously? That would be a Maserati Biturbo or B6 Audi S4 or something.
Biturbo with a cam-chain Audi v8 swap. Scary
SPG123 wrote: The transaxle is the scary part for me. The throttle body was done recently. I just drove the car and am reminded that the seats fit me as well as any I have ever sat in. A really pleasant car to drive. Very composed and fun in the boost.
As long as it's not AWD, the auto transmissions are actually quite robust in these. It's a pretty damn stout Aisin-Warner unit; they go forever and ever with regular fluid changes.
T5 for the win. I like them much more than the R.
Type Q wrote:pointofdeparture wrote: Scariest car on the Internet? Seriously? That would be a Maserati Biturbo or B6 Audi S4 or something.Biturbo with a cam-chain Audi v8 swap. Scary
Somebody needs to do this just because...
pointofdeparture wrote: As long as it's not AWD, the auto transmissions are actually quite robust in these. It's a pretty damn stout Aisin-Warner unit; they go forever and ever with regular fluid changes.
Yes and no on that.
The transmission itself is moderately robust and used in a variety of cars. That's true. The Volvo valve body and Volvo tuning parameters, that makes it special Volvo flakey.
AWD was just an external issue with the bevel gear to the rear differential.
In reply to foxtrapper:
Ahh, I see. I have never messed with the AWD ones so my knowledge on them is limited. I have heard that the valve body problems were rectified in '02 or '03 as well, but I have also seen plenty of high-mileage '01s with good shifting original transmissions; I think they are just more sensitive to fluid changes than many transmissions. They are a FWD trans holding back a ~250HP engine, after all!
My buddy's 2002 V70XC had the transmission crap out on him at a little over 100k miles. Something about how it was programmed to shift into neutral when the car stopped.
The "fix" was 03 or 04 as I recall, and I think it's a different transmission or different sub-model. I've an 02 XC, it's got the classic problems.
I accidentally fixed a whole lot of the transmission troubles by replacing the turbo lines with the silicone ones from IPD. Put those on and very soon I started to think it was shifting better. Within about 2 hours, I was sure it was. Let the wife drive it and she was thrilled at how much better it was shifting. It has stayed better for months now.
My pet theory is the old oem vacuum lines leaked and throw the transmission computer or ECU "off the map" as it were. The new lines let it get back "on the map".
It's not perfect. It's still a bit slow going between forward and reverse. Scrubbing off speed in a sharp turn while giving it the gas still confuses it. But it is better and more driveable by leaps and bounds.
It's also going to go over 200k by next week. This is also after a good fluid change, the B4 cover change, software upgrade, adaptive mode resets.
My 04 Saab 93 has the exact same transmission, but with a Saab/GM valve body and programing. It's a completely different personality.
I was looking at these pretty seriously last year and I think that I came to the conclusion that the 850R was the one to get if you can find one. There seemed to be a step down in overall interior quality between the 850 and the 70.
In reply to Woody:
The 850 to V70 switch on the P80 platform was a step down. The switch from the P80 V70 to the P2 V70 (which OP's car would be) was a huge step UP.
You don't know infuriating until you have owned a P80 chassis Volvo with broken dashboard mounts (which are plastic and break on every single P80 at some point). I sold my 850R largely because of the downright infuriating dashboard squeaking. The P2 cars have a muuuuuuuuuch better interior and generally higher build quality.
foxtrapper wrote:pointofdeparture wrote: As long as it's not AWD, the auto transmissions are actually quite robust in these. It's a pretty damn stout Aisin-Warner unit; they go forever and ever with regular fluid changes.Yes and no on that. The transmission itself is moderately robust and used in a variety of cars. That's true. The Volvo valve body and Volvo tuning parameters, that makes it special Volvo flakey.
Volvo went for sleazy-smooth shifts by modulating line pressure way too low. When the solenoids get any junk in them, the trans slips/flares when shifting.
There are reflashes that increase line pressure, but in this timeframe you need the special Volvo tool, a J2534 interface won't do it.
I found on my S40 (also uses the AW55) that turning the boost up also firmed up the shifts and got rid of the occasional 2-3 flare. It's nice when you get two things for one change.
AWD was just an external issue with the bevel gear to the rear differential.
I haven't run into that issue, but from what I've seen, it's a lack of maintenance. Meaning, people don't actually check the oil in the bevel drive, so it leaks out and burns up.
slefain wrote: My buddy's 2002 V70XC had the transmission crap out on him at a little over 100k miles. Something about how it was programmed to shift into neutral when the car stopped.
Huh. There was a reflash that should have been done by the time the car was six months old... that strategy only lasted halfway into the first year they did that.
Interestingly, most hits for trans problems with the AW55 were related to well-meaning people mistaking a band retaining bolt on top of the transmission for a fill plug. Remove that bolt, band goes sproing, you lose half of your gears...
pointofdeparture wrote: In reply to edwardh80: The '01-up P2 chassis cars are quite a bit different than the P80 chassis cars like yours actually, not just a facelift; the core drivetrain is similar but otherwise they share very little.
See, that's why you're a powerdork, and I'm just a humble "reader" 
Not the scariest, this here is the scariest. http://www.carscoops.com/2015/10/one-of-kind-1951-hoffman-could-be-worst.html
You'll need to log in to post.
