Seth:

I'm sure not the one to tell you about ease of working on the 95 850, but I recently bought one to replace a 91 940T that was rear-ended and totaled. Mine also was "owned by an old lady". I paid a hair over $10,900, but mine had only 38K on it (bought it in August). It's a turbo automatic, runs exceptionally well, corners better than any car I have owned. I live in the mountains and drive a winding 4 mile road to get to the nearest services. This car goes up and down the mountain with ease and is the most comfortable car I've ever driven. Everything works on it so I can't tell you about any issues to encounter. I need to replace the timing belt (had my very reputable Volvo mechanic look at it and he said if it were his, he'd change at 50K--nothing serious was going on with it) and have the ATF flushed, which I will do next week. I have the stamped maintenance book and mine has been regularly maintained every 5K miles by the same dealer.

My mechanic said there are no issues with these cars as long as they're regulartly maintained. They aren't cheap to maintain, but we spend what seems like a bundle every time we take my husband's Toyota pickup to the garage, and I a whole lot rather ride in the comfort of my 850.

Suzanne