Yea, I know there will be a pro-Volvo bias here. ;^)

Besides Volvo, I've had Fords / Mercury all of my life. Much easier to work on. An example, radiator replacement on my '95 855T and my daughter's '07 C70, especially the C70, was an all-day affair of disassembling densely-packed components. The V70 would require the same. Replacement of my '07 F150 radiator took two hours with minimal disturbance of anything but a couple of shrouds.

The complexity of the newer cars and limited access of Volvo diagnostic tools and software to independent shops has led to the better shops going out of business. There's one left with which I've had very bad experiences for a tranny replacement in the '855t, and I don't use dealerships.

I'll still DIY so I'd be pleased with the Lincoln's layout which is very similar to my F150 under the hood.

Thanks for the input, the decision will be forthcoming. I prefer the V70's ride and ergonomics and I do the driving on long trips.

Erwin