Hi all,

Even though here in Holland everyone drives an 850 or v70 there are no quality forums available. So boring you guys is my only option.
I own 2 850's; a 1992 GLE sedan and a 1993 GLT estate. Bought 'em because I like the looks and because of their reputation for being solid and reliable.
After owning the pair for about 2 years I'm sorry to conclude the 850 sucks!
The estate has perpetual problems with the autotranny and the front discs , and the sedan blew a headgasket 2 times, apart from several minor irritations. A friend of mine owns a 1999 v70 and also had a headgasket replaced just before installing a complete new engine.
I know my 850's are rather old, but my 1987 Landcruiser always runs without any problems. I expected relatively expensive cars like these to last a lot longer.
I'll be posting questions on fixing my cars later, but for now I'd like to warn anyone who considers buying a 850 or similar car. These are my last volvo's ever!

Eelco
Holland

Usual 850 problems:

Rear Main seals

Alternator

ABS control Module

Engine Mounts

Peeling Door Panels

Loose windshield trim

Faulty seat heaters

Leaky Sunroof

Noisy Suspension

etc. etc.

I've had them all.... ironically I'm one of the few whose AC hasn't crapped out, but the compressor sure cycles a lot and I get the occassional blast of hot air.... so only a matter of time.

This car has cost me thousands of dollars to keep on the road. Not worth the aggrevation. My 1988 Ford Escort I drove to 200K, only major repair was a water pump at 170K. The Volvo is a money pit and parts are outrageously priced. My remote for my door locks was $90 alone and happens to be the cheapest thing I have replaced on my 850 other than a light bulb.

If you bought a 92...well sorry....and a 93? What where you thinking?....give ANY car maker at LEAST two years to get it right. So I DON'T feel your pain.

The biggest piece of shit I have owned was a VW, then some American cars and a Nissan.....and even my Toyota truck took the liquid shit when the defective (material) front crank seal blew in my driveway at 60,000 miles....

My 1996 855 is very reliable, thanks. Yeah the new air pump still has me pissed off, and who the f#ck designed the rear hatch plastic?....but other than that I'm clean....well there is the broken recirc mechanism...
--
http://www.fidalgo.net/~brook4/oilslubesfilters.html

auto magazine just reviewed a 2002 c320 wagon or something....pretty bad review actually...said too many fit and finish problems. the whole glove box had fallen out...ouch. every make has some cars that just don't get put right...sorry to hear u got one of those (either that or the prev owner didn't maintain it that well)

Well, Well, Well, what do we have here? Volvo Bashing or a customer that just got some rotten units, or poor maintenace or all three?

Sometimes, one gets a car or piece of equipment that was just poorly built on that particular day. I'm certain that Toyota, Nissan, Mercedes, etc. owners can be fould that would never buy another of the same manufacturer's cars.

If It was me instead of you, I would probably feel the same about Volvo. However, my experience with Volkswagan, makes me not want another. My experience with Mercedes says, wow! you better have plenty of funds for the maintenance. My experience with Volvo, says that all things require proper maintenance. This does not mean that one should wait until it breaks to replace. If you follow just the manufacturer's recommended schedule, you are asking for trouble. All cars and electronic devices are designed to last just up to the end of the warranty period. Seriously, this is an engineering design.

Some equipment is just poorly made, others fail for stupid avoidable reasons.

My Volvos, a 1983 244T w/300k miles (I have spent a good amount on it over the years in maintenance, and my 1995 850 T5R has seen very little in maintence costs. Brakes, tune ups, tires, rotors, oil changes, washer pump motor and headlight wiper motor (figure this one?).

However, the 244T I simply love, it is black, I have owned it from the beginning. I had it completely stripped and re-painted original Volvo Black. I have performed most of the maintenance and have a great sound system that I also designed and installed. It simply looks and rides great.

The 850 T5R is simply bad!!!.

I take care of all my cars, including my wife's Mercedes (which is a maintenance and costs nightmare)

I think you have a good point.

Go with another manufacturer. I think you will find that, sometimes you just wind up with a particular crappy car, but, the manufacturer is not.

Since the new Volvos look like Buicks now, if I was to buy a new car, it would be a hard choice staying with Volvos simply because of the way they now look. You knew a Volvo when you saw it in the past. Now they all look like all other cars.

The 1983 244T and 1995 850 T5R absolutely turned heads.

The new Volvos do not.

I keep my cars up.

It would be a really hard choice in the future.

Good hunting.

Lawren

1983 244T (300k miles, black)
1995 850 T5R (66k miles, black)
1970 Plymouth Barracuda (340 Cuda, in-violet purple)

Hummmm bought my 95 850 new in March of 95. 116K + miles
Problems:
upper stabalizer IPD replacement part.
1 Head light bulb
2 tail light bulbs
2 Batteries
burns about 1 pint of oil @ 5K miles

Yea right will never ever buy another volvo. HA! It's the most dependable car I've driven/own including my wife and kids Toyotas ,Nissans and Fords.


Lee

If I'd had your experience, I'd probably still drive a Volvo. Mine was bought new in 1994 and had 102000 miles when I sold it a couple of months ago. It was always maintained to a much higher standard than Volvo's recommendations, including regular transmission flushes. Used Mobil 1 from time of first oil change. The car was not mistreated in any way.

In addition to expected wear items, the following were replaced during my ownership. These items were replaced after failure, not as a precaution.

1. Evaporator (three times).
2. Transmission (one time).
3. Left front hub (one time).
4. Oil pump (one time).
5. Turbocharger (one time).
6. Battery (numerous times).
7. Alternator (one time).
8. Rear main oil seal (one time).
9. Air pump (one time).
10. Ball joints (one time).
11. Heater hoses (one time).
12. Power steering pump (one time).
13. ABS computer (two times).
14. Front and rear brake disks and front calipers (one time).
15. Left front seat heater (one time).
16. Light bulbs (more than I can count).
17. Mass Airflow sensor (one time).

I'm probably forgetting several items, but most are listed. The car had several intermittant problems that would come and go at the time I unloaded it. It was sold at auction as is. This was my third (and last) Volvo. Until this car broke the record, my worst car ever was a Dodge Dart.

car bought new in 95, now at 70k

1. no
2. no
3. yes, right also
4. no
5. no
6. on my 4th battery
7. no
8. no
9. no
10. no
11. no
12. no
13. no
14. replaced rear rotors under warranty, replaced front brakes at 40k after rotors down to minimum thickness with 13" brembos
15. no
16. once, but the old factory ones were still working 3 years ago.
17. yes

18. replaced as bulletin, pnp switch
19. trip computer connector (disc displayed)
20. fan relay
21. ac recharged at 70k
22. ac not functioning properly
23. sunroof inner lining rattle....too many times to count...i think i lost a piece of folded paper in it and now it doesn't rattle...
24. rear hatch was repaired under warranty
25. engine mounts (all 3) replaced at 60k

everyone has their own problems =)

I bought mine in Jan '02 with 77,000 miles on it. It was a local, one-owner and I sat down at the dealership (didn't buy it there btw) with it's maintenance history. Begging at 12k. Here it is.

http://www.geocities.com/hwy51_guzzi/carhistory.htm

I treat my 855t as I do my Moto Guzzi (Italian Motorcycle). If it makes any sound out of the ordinary or feels differently in any way than normal I investigate immediately and remedy. To do otherwise is to have small adjustment/lubrication problems turn into bigger maintenance problems.

I'm now looking for two more Volvos, but they'll be RWD and have 2-valve engines. I really like my 855t but it is a much more complex car than the older models. I have to wonder just where the automotive industry is heading as a whole. I for one am not smitten by electronic cellulite such as nav systems, driver's aids like yaw/roll control, onstar, Nissan's uphill and downhill assist in their 4X4, drive by wire, etc. All this stuff adds cost, breaks, and instills a false sense of security. Seems folks can't get enough though. I'm not a total ludite though, I appreciate ABS and airbags but even ABS gets in the way occassionally. It would suit me to be able to disable it when I'm hustling around on rippled rural roads.
--
Erwin in Memphis, '95 855t

Well maybe not. But I bought my '98T5 new in 1997, I now have the equivilent of 174,000 km on the car and it still uses no oil between changes. Not electrically perfect, those gizmos fail often and expensively.

As they did on the 960, the 760, the 240, etc.

And there are all the other usual problems, too. A Toyota it's not.

But it's amazing that since I began to do well enough to afford new cars, I've had a lot better luck than when I bought my cars off the used car lot.

If I'm religious about changing my oil and using Mobil-1 synthetic there are well, the service manager at my Volvo dealer told me about a lease return they got back with 36,000 miles and the warning lights and "check engine" light all on, and as far as they could tell, the oil had NEVER been changed. Anyway, that's what they said. I imagine the car was trucked off to the wholesaler. There was probably some very happy buyer of a S70 on e-bay. For the first 2 weeks. You may be comparing your used Volvo experience to the old iron-block Volvos, they probably tolerated misuse and abuse much better than the 850-70.

So I have mixed feelings. I love the performance, the safety, the ergonomica and the comfort. I just wish the electricals were manufactured by Sony instead of Fiat.

-bill d cat

I fully agree with alot of these posts that state that sometimes you just get stuck with a lemon no matter what the brand.

I had a 1986 Audi 4000 that I put 260,000 Miles on with ZERO problems. I mean zero. A clutch cable broke so I gave it away to charity. But the car still ran great and didn't use oil. It had zero electrical problems. The point is that Audis' sucked and I got lucky with zero problems.

My Volvos have been bullet proof..knock on wood. My 1995 wagon (5 speed) I bought used and I have just replaced brake pads and rotors once and I put on new Bilsteins mainly for performance. Now with 120,000 miles on it, it runs like a champ and I wouldn't think twice of driving across country tomorrow.

1999 S70 bought new (5 speed Man.) now has 90,000 miles on it.

Parts replaced: 2 light bulbs, filter and oil changes. It still has the original brakes!!!!!! Oka, I would say that is pretty damn good reliability.

Nate

You've probably also noticed a bunch of fellow-new-volvo-buyers around who experience the same problems as I do with my ancient cars. So I'm not so sure it's a poor man's problem. I think it's more likely that volvo was too anxious to sell cars that were filled with gadgets. All they knew was that consumers like yourself who insist on driving new vehicles are fond of advanced stuff. They probably didn't quite know how to properly produce those gizmos, or how to make them last.
As far as I know the iron block cars weren't too advanced, but they worked. That's something I cannot say about our 'advanced' 850's. I agree that the car's age, use and maintenance can make a difference, but in my opinion volvo's depend too much on those factors. Hate to bring up the Landcruiser-example again but after serious abuse, minimal maintenance and 260.000 km's it still runs every day.

I would have to agree !

I have owned an 850 turbo since new in 1995. From the get-go it's has been one annoying thing after the other requiring fixing.

Going on the 2nd ac evaporator in only 74K miles ! This alone is a $1,200 to $1,600 repair for goodness sakes.

I do like the car's looks and the performance of the turbo. My wife absolutely refuses to take it on road trips because she feels it is not dependable.

BTW- All maintenance is followed by the book. Thank goodness for Bay13 at Volvospeed.com which has goods directions on how to do maintenance and repairs.

Fun car but high maintenance. For trips, I'll take my Sequoia.

Ahh, we all have our indifferences and tolerances. Volvo makes a safe and in my opinion very reliable car. Funny, I would not be in anything Less than a Volvo on a long road trip. Solid engine, transmission and solid frame that does not rust out. Some people will say it is a shitty car because they have had to replace a few bulbs here and there. To them, I suggest public transportation. You obviously have no idea of how fortunate you are and of what you are comparing that to.
Proper maintenance of for example aircraft, keep them running daily for over 35 years plus. And proper maintenance of Volvos will make them last that long as well. This in my own and personal experience can not be said for many of the "other" manufacturers cars. Bottom line: If you take care of your Volvo it most certainly will take care of you.

Jimmy Johnson, over here!

Jimmy,

That's the way I feel about the car. Sure, it had the well documented teething problems. They were addressed under warranty.

My only real gripe is that the door panels de-laminated and Volvo refused to own up to their supplier's error. OTOH the cars are incredible bargains when measured against the competition, so I guess that I can't really complain, too much.

My S70 was slammed by an SUV big-time. No injuries. The car was pretty offended, however. Now, obviously it was the expertise and skill of the body shop techs that restored the car. But I think the basic engineering excellence of the car enabled and justified the restoration.

I follow the maintenance schedule exactly and take measures to prolong the life of the interior and exterior. But, I've observed that the harder the car is driven the better it is. Wasn't that an ad campaign years ago? "Drive it like you hate it."

Works for me.

Bryan

Just a note.....
I have noticed that many people praise the Japanese automatic transmissions as
superior and ultra reliable compared to the Volvo automatics. Well folks if you would just look under your hood you would clearly see that the 850 transmission IS a Japanese transmission!!!

I have owned Audi's and a Porsche 911 and Nissan's.
Volvo by far is the best car I have owned.