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Last spring I traded the 01 V70 for a new one. We won't go into the why of it all, just accept the fact that it was not my idea. The new car has something over 10k miles on it now, and I have some opinions to share.
The 09 gained some weight. This car is big and fat. Part of the weight gain is under the hood, probably mostly in the six speed automatic. Yes, folks, the only new Volvo you can buy with a manual transmission (US model) is a C30. Or so the salesman told me. I have been doing business with this guy since 1970; he has no reason to jive me. The transmission is pretty nice, I guess, but I am still frustrated by something that does what it wants to rather than what I want.
This car is a gas hog. Sure, it has something over 200 horsepower, stronger and faster than anything I have owned before, but I would rather have the economy of my previous Volvos. I have done some highway travel at moderate speeds, 27-28 mpg, my daily commute is down around 25. A poor replacement for the 01 which did a pretty steady almost 30 mpg. This car is comfortable. As comfortable as a bed. Not always a good thing, but I am getting softer and more spoiled. I like it. It feels solid. The next months will tell how it goes in bad weather.
Dynamic traction and stability control. I am notoriously unstable, so I resent this feature. The only time I have noticed it so far was when I floored it from an uphill stop in the rain. I won't do that again. Plus the know-it-all computer told me I burned and extra $5 worth of gasoline doing it. I wish the car wouldn't tell me stuff like that, but since it is there I can't stop looking at it. We'll see how the traction control does when I pull out of my road making the right turn and going up the hill from a standing start on an icy night.
I put the snow tires on the other day. The telescoping lug wrench is a neat thing. The FoMoCo stamp suggests that it may be found in some other vehicles also. The tools and spare reside under the cargo bed in an easy access hole. An improvement. The whole cargo area is improved. The huge and wide hatch will swallow all sorts of stuff, as a Volvo should. It seems much wider than the hole in the back of the 01. The adjustable sliding tie downs are sweet, and the upper tie downs are another nice improvement.
If this car was economical and had a manual transmission I might even like it. Smirk.
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01 V70 2.4 M5 and a Mini
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