I purchased a 1999 XC70 last year, and I have to say that for the most part, the car has been running very well. Some issues did arise, and were costly to repair. But which car now days is cheap to repair? My wife drives a Prius, and I cannot take it anywhere except the dealer, which anything you do to a Prius starts at $500-1000 to repair. You just have to expect that premium cars will cost more to keep up.

I live in Seattle, with wet slippery steep streets and am glad every day I drive that I bought this car. The car stays stuck to the road like no other 4 x 4 that I have ever driven.

Also, I have said this before in other discussions, Volvo's, in general, are designed for colder northern weather. Even my 86' 240 wagon, with 140k miles runs better during the winter than summer. I brag to friends that even that a 20 year old, rear wheel drive 240 has better traction than a Jeep Cherokee up steep slippery wet hills. I regularly pass them up going up my hill near home as many a 4 x 4 flail at the bottom of the hill! And the XC is better still...

Regarding costly repairs and reliability, you will be better off in a Volvo than those poor owners having to deal with their BMW's...

Had a 1999 AWD S70 for 2-1/2 years. Not a single problem. I took it to a Home Depot lot after a good rain, full of puddles. Tried very hard to make it lose traction. Could not.

Traded it in for a 2002 XC70 a few months ago, so too soon to reply on reliability. But it too is truly awesome when it comes to sticking to the road. More body lead than the S70AWD, but will solve that with a strut brace and IPD sway bars (like on my 1995 850 T5).

Volvos are not as reliable as the cars from Japan. But the cars from Japan are certainly NOT Volvos in any way that matters to me. I'm afraid the day I die there will still be two Volvos in my garage. And I can be certain I will NOT die IN my Volvo.

I've owned a '98 for over 5 years. Bought at 100K - I'm over 240K and it's been a good vehicle. It does everything well but I wish it were a little bigger. I'm considering buying an '04-05 to replace it. Replacing 4 tires is normal on most awd cars. Also own a '90 240 wagon we've had since '92 - over 250K. My experience is that Volvo's are well built cars. The repair areas are predictable. Dealer service can be expensive.

Now in a '99 XC, have been for 5 years. Bought at 55,000, now at 135,000. Spent money on tires, o2 sensor (ouch), and front suspension (easy), timing belt and idler at 70,000, and dealer remapped the ECU (warranty with lower than 200,000 miles)
Can't say one bad thing about the car at all. AWD is simply awesome!! (live in the NorthWest) Comfortable, and the best engineered car I have ever driven.

Good Luck with yours,
Jim

Have owned a 98 V70 XC for nine years and had $15,000 in major mechanical repairs. If you are prepared to budget $1500 a year to maintain it, it's a great car to drive. You may run it one or two years without any problem but when s*it happens you'll be spending big bucks.

After 30 years of volvo's I offer the following.
My wife gave up her 95 850 wagon and bought a used 2003 XC with 20K miles. Her car now has almost 60K on it and has been trouble free.....I think the comments on this site will be a big help in keeping it that way!!!
We live in New England and I have never driven another car in the wet or snow that feels so locked to the road...
However, when my 940 blew-up this Spring, I did not think I needed another XC.
I bought a used 2004 V70, which I am very pleased with.....so far.
If you do not need the XC AWD, I would opt for the V70.
However, the XC seems to be the car I hope I am in, should the weather turn bad or one starts crushing the sheet metal.

Like you, I've owned Volvo automobiles for many years. I always wanted an xc70 and I convinced my new wife she wanted one too. Then I found an 01 with 108,000 miles. Totally emotional buy! Just the worst way to do it. But you know what? I don't give a rat's #$%&. I like this freakin' vehicle, and sometimes in the garage late at night I do a little "superior" dance.

I'm reading up and studying hard cause I know it is going to take me to school sooner or later, but, hey, that's life.

I'm new to the 240 line too, having owned 740's and 850's, so I'm looking to this list to get me out of a jam every little while. It has sure worked in the past.

Wig

Consumer Reports actually recommends the '04 and '05 XC70 as a used car.

Being a Volvo it's hardly likely to be "low maintenance".

I'd look for one that's CPO with 100,000 mile warranty.

-BTC

'98 V70 T5 5-speed, 173k mi, heated velour cloth comfy chairs, factory HD suspension, Bilstein HD, front IPD stabilizer bar, Volvo strut tower brace and skidplate, XC grill, C70 jewel E-Codes, V-1, Lidatek, IPD stuff, JB Weld, Original Duck tape, zip-ties, two '06 Honda license plate nut impressions in back bumper (gift from daughter), Mobil-1 since new.

"The two largest English-speaking countries in the world are India (350 million out of 1 billion) and the United States (300 million). By 2025 the number of English–speaking Chinese is likely to exceed the number of native English speakers in the rest of the world."

Well... Volvos need more care than Japanese cars, but the cars are cheaper to maintain than BMW, Mercedes, Audi, VW. And Japanese cars aren't as roomy as the Volvo 70 series, unless you go large Lexus.
The new cars do not have onboard DTCs, which means you will have to buy a scanner and still maintain good relationships with the dealer for the occasional code in the P1nnn and P2nnn range.
The 1997-2001 AWD were/are pretty expensive to keep. And, yes, we have to buy new tires to replace just one, and, forget the spare!! AAA.
The newer models 2002 and up are much better with AWD and Trks, but I do not know about just one or 2 tires. My practice is to rotate them every oil change. Side note about Trks: My daughter attended a Street Survival sponsered by TireRack and BMWCCA. On the wet skid pad, they tried to make an XC, new, slide. It just wouldn't!! They couldn't get one wheel to spin or lock up no matter what the instructors did. I told them that it was close to impossible, but the doubting thomases had to find out for them selves.
Oh, chains. The 17 inch wheels require special chains. You can find those specs if you go to www.volvocars.us and go to owners. If you give them your email address, you can look at the owners manual for any year Volvo.

Klaus
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Please answer, we need to know if the advice is good or bad. The 164 has a new home, all I am left with are 2 turbos :)