My wife and I were able to spend a few hours test driving the new 2001 V70T5 and compare it to our 1998 V70T5 with 26K miles. The new car had Geartronic, sunroof, Versatility package, 17" wheels, subwoofer (but otherwise standard T5 single CD/cass stereo), cold weather package. It listed for about $41K and had 35 miles on the odometer.

Positives:

Suspension much more refined, less harsh ride. One of our major complaints with our current car is the harsh ride; we feel every expansion joint, tar strip, etc. The 2001 model, even with the 17" tires does away with this without sacrificing road feel or handling. Would like a bigger steering wheel, though and tires noisy on some concrete road surfaces.

A few inches shorter than the 1998 V70T5; subjectively, maybe a little wider, but we didn’t put our two kids in the back seat to see if there’s a real difference

Structural rigidity much improved, a more "Mercedes-like" feel to it.

Quieter inside, about equal to an upscale Camry or Accord. Not as quiet as our Acura RL and nowhere close to a Lexus GS300/400.

Much smoother engine/transaxle. The coarse, noisy turbo in our current car is our other major complaint and despite having the same engine, the 2001 model is much more refined. Turbo lag is still a problem however, and I would much rather have the 2.9 L six cylinder (even non-turbo) offered in the S80.

Dashboard/instruments like the S80. LED displays instead of LCD offers better visibility during daylight hours. Express up feature on driver/front passenger windows a nice plus. Homelink is convenient. Fake wood looks fake. Still no variable intermittent windshield wipers, typical "We know what’s best for you" Volvo attitude. Seat heaters now offer low and hi settings, so can avoid roasting as we do in the winter in our current Volvo.

Stereo definitely better, has more speakers and subwoofer gives nice bass "rumble", even with Lion King CDs :). Why can’t Volvo offer a 4-CD unit without deleting the cassette player? Other manufacturers seem to manage.

Negatives

The right turn signal would intermittently start flashing very rapidly, suggesting a fault in the circuit somewhere-bulb, socket, wiring. This kind of intermittent electrical problem is very hard to diagnose and the Volvo dealers that we have dealt with would probably not be able to fix it. This is AFTER dealer prep. For a $41,000 car, this is not a good sign, and reminds us of all the annoying little glitches that have kept us on a first name basis with our Volvo dealer. Our car is currently in the shop for the fourth time with a nonfunctioning A/C. Yes, I know it has a leak, but they can’t find the source and simply keep recharging it over and over and over again…

Fit and finish a little worse, bigger gaps between body panels, some irregular stitching on leather seats. Paint (silver metallic) very lustrous and alloy wheels are gorgeous.

VCNA. 'Nuff said.

Overall, I think we will bite the bullet and buy the new T5. With overseas delivery, we save about $3700 compared to MSRP and it’s a no-haggle transaction. Checking on the ‘Net, the best price we could get by buying in the US would be about $1000 off list-new model, limited availability, etc. Our alternatives are a Honda Odyssey or Toyota Sienna minivan. The Honda is a two to three month wait and we’ll have to pay close to list; the car will definitely be more reliable than the Volvo, but not nearly as much fun. The Toyota Sienna is very nice as well but again, not much in the fun-to-drive department. The Mercedes E320 wagon costs more than we want to pay.

Sorry for the long post. Comments, suggestions welcome.

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Ishan Bhattacharya