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Hi guys,
I'm about to plunge into buying a 95' 850 T5-R, I talked them down quite a bit b/c it needs a few things. Then again, I could but a 00' V70 2.4 for about the money I'll have into the 850 when I'm done.Both cars have about 125,000 miles. I love the power in the T-5 and the rarity of the R but maybe I'm crazy to buy it when I could have s/t like the v70, also a peppy car, no? It's overall in better shape thought the 850 is still looking proud. I just need some very subjective opinions, as objective ones would probably steer me from an old Volvo.
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At this point i'd buy the 95 just for the OBD. I must admit that the window switches on the 95 should be on the doors, but given the choice between the switch location and the OBD. I'd vote for the 95 all day with the OBD to tell me what's going on in times of need.
However, if you don't do your own work, then it's of little relevance.
I also can not tell a lie, I drive a Volvo like it's meant to be driven, hard and fast. So the turbo is an attraction for me, and then there's the fact that i'd probably just kill the 00 driving it like the 95 demands to be driven.
Mitch
93 850 (still running like a champ)
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I have owned a '95 854T (sedan), a '98 S70T, and an '05 V70 2.4T.
The car I like(d) the most is the one I no longer have, the '95. I would heartily recommend it. For some odd reason, I like the styling 14 years later. The S70 muted the lines a bit and I don't like it as much. The later 70 styling is ok. I LOVE the power of the HPT. The 2.4T is a very good engine, but the turbo really has ba11s. I don't hit the accelerator hard a lot, but when I want power the turbo delivers.
I bought the 2.4T to get better fuel economy, and I find it is actually worse than the HPT. WTHWT.
Personally, I like the old seats much better than the ones in the 2.4T. I heard the newest Volvos have a new seat design.
Your '95 Volvo is the last one with the little box under the hood to read/reset codes. I liked that, because as an older car it threw some codes (:. If the '95 was maintained well, I would say go for it. You did say it needs some things. I bought mine around 130K, and drive it 40K miles. Very dependable and great performance.
Good luck - recycle a Volvo!
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The only reason I would pick the 00 over the 95 is the placement of the window switches.
The 95 has sport suspension (read rough), a high pressure turbo, on board OBDII, climate control, and a lot fewer electronic gizmos that are not needed.
The 00 is a N/A car which is quite slow, has window switches in the door. But it is the base model, no climate control, no CD, no self-leveling rear shocks.
The R can be made to go even faster, but for what purpose? The V70 cannot be modified.
The R will retain its value longer than the V70.
Klaus
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Volvoless. Its been 90 days. BUT I am getting a 1966 122 soon.
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Klaus, I still haven't gotten used to the new switches! You are right, the door location should be superior, but I find myself hitting the back switch instead of the front, and pressing the bottom instead of the top. Maybe my arm shrunk! The '05 has auto-up which I like, don't know about the '00. This is some criteria for buying...
I think I just haven't driven the 2.4T enough to develop my muscle memory.
Don
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My 98 had auto down, no auto up. Feeling for the switch with the left hand is infinitly easier than reaching down with the right and then having to look so far down to figure out which one you want.
I think the V70 manual is quite fast and much better then the LPT V70 with auto. There is no hesitation when giving it gas, response is very quick, torque comes in quite low. It just doesn't have the high end kick.
I watched a kid tear up an older stingray with a 427ci. The kid had a 1995 855 with a stick, the corevtte was auto and very heavy on the short winding race track.
Klaus
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My name is Klaus and I am a Volvoholic.
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reads like sound advice.
What do you think of the age factor though. There are little things all over the 95' showing it's age, noisy seat motors, broken plastic, a worn corner in the paint here or there, etc. not to mention it can't be as mechanically sound. Is it worth the $, effort, and then gas? I had a 98' 850 non turbo standard trans and thought it was o.k. for power, though a turbo would have been nice. The V70 has a tad more horse and also standard.
I'm not only a practical person, but wonder if the v70 will be much cheaper to run and a lot less toying with it?
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The V70 is much younger and the vinyl inserts by the door handles have not started to pucker, lift. It does have window lifts on the doors :)
If you are used to an NA car with a 5 speed, the V70 is very nice. It will go fast and get 1 or 2 mpg better than the R. It probably doesn't have self leveling Nivomats which are very expensive to replace. It has VVT and individual coil overs which helps in the bhp dept. You will need to buy a scanner, there is a Swedish outfit that has one that will read Volvo codes for a small fortune ($200+-).
The V70 will not have been "beaten" by a younger driver. It has the same interior room as the R.
In either case, you may not bring the car back to the USA.
Too bad there isn't a D5 engined V70 available.
Klaus
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Volvoless. Its been 90 days. BUT I am getting a 1966 122 soon.
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I think both cars were well taken care of. The 850 T5-R is a 2 owner car first from Italy and dealer serviced straight through. The V70 is a 1 owner dealer serviced car. It does have AIr con.
I am still really unsure though I am supposed to pick-up the 850 today if I want it. I'm not sure if I really like the car better or am stuck on the idea that it's a collectors car and much faster. That does mean it's overall the better car.
Thanks for the help agian
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As you already know, any car running on the German roads must not have any rust or body damage, the emmissions controls all must work. In either case you will get a "good" car.
Of course, the plastic bits will break. Especially on the 850, that has always been a complaint over the years.
A black car needs AC, even in Germany! I would have gone for the V70 in hind thought, just because it is 5 years younger.
Regardless, both cars appear to be in good shape. Both cars will be fun to drive. The 850 might be easier to resale after a couple of years.
Klaus
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Volvoless. Its been 90 days. BUT I am getting a 1966 122 soon.
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Can we have a third choice? You might not be happy with the 95's age factor, and you might not be happy with the 00's power. My friend's NA V70 was pretty unimpressive, but the 95 has the skinny roof rails, the seats aren't so great and probably rattles and squeaks pretty good. Can you continue shopping?
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'97 855na, Mobil 1, K&N, various IPD's and eBay's
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I went ahead and bought the v70. The 170n hp is really not bad (though leagues from the 240 or something in the 850). The car turned out to be really clean. The guy threw in an inspection, which it passed with no problems found what so ever, and that's not easy in a german inspection, let me tell you. I would have loved having the power and the rarity, but the 850 would have been a hole to throw money into. It already needed a lot of tlc and repair. The v70 is bone dry under the car, and runs like a top. Everything on the car still feels good, but the 850 had so many little marks, and broken or loose plastic pieces. Not to mention the worn out drivers seat, steering wheel etc...
Oh, and the v70 is a one owner, dealer serviced car, owned by a doctor that finally traded it in for a new 50,000 BMW.
I think i made a good choice.
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You done good :)
The V70 is not an Autobahn left lane cruiser, but it is still fast enough. It will take curving roads very nicely in 2nd and 3rd. And the seats are really comfortable.
Have lots of fun.
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My name is Klaus and I am a Volvoholic.
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I've had it up to 125, but I've yet to have a good stretch of autobahn. It's been strong, 170 hp hasn't been bad... and it glides, the only noise is the wind in the wiper blades.
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There are new design wiper blades that should be able to be fitted onto the car. All of the new Euro cars have them. Ask about them at parts stores. Not only do they work better, there is very little wind resistance.
I can't get a good answer about them at my local dealer.
Remember, going fast has it's own learning curve. At 125mph, you need to be looking about 1Km down the road. AND still staring in the rearview mirror for really fast cars :)
Klaus
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My name is Klaus and I am a Volvoholic.
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Congratulations, Sounds like a good choice. Throw a K&N air filter in there and you'll feel like you have a turbo. lol. But seriously, you'll be able to feel a difference -good for 5-10 hp but you can call it 15hp :)
Stay away from watching youtube videos of Volvos on the autoban (too much)
Have fun and post back with growing pains
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'97 855na, Mobil 1, K&N, various IPD's and eBay's
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Some photos are here:
http://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/details.html?lang=de&id=98695601&origin=PARK&pageNumber=1&tabNumber=2
http://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/details.html?lang=de&id=92524834&origin=PARK&pageNumber=1&tabNumber=2
Neither car looks quite as good as the photos show!
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