I have driven an old 240 wagon for quite some time now and after ny moms carivan (dodge, enough said) finaly killed its self she has been looking around for a new sedan type car for her normal comute, which includes weekly 200 mile trips to the beach. After looking at the quite nice specs and genral look of the s80 I recomented it as definetly a good car to look at, but as of lately i havent seen one possitive thing writen about them. Things steming from trans-axle problems to ecu issues to just rediculas warentee runarounds of parts that never worked properly. My biggest concern is reliability and after the damn carivan (just figure every 40,000 you replace the whole tranni) i wouldent mind spending the first 100,000 miles on just gas and oil, can any one elaborate on the S80 for me? also iv never had a car worked on at a dealership only really high end private shops so if that makes any difference. At this point its either a 2 year old volve or a damn camery and quite francly im not really a toyota fan but the damn things never break.

Most owners of the first year 1999 S80 T6 have problems. After 2001 I dont see or read the complaints as much. I own a 1999 S80 T6. I bought it used and a week later had to have the throttle body cleaned, new mass air flow sensor installed and the transmisson ecu reprogrammed with a software update. Most of the tranny issues are on the 99 models. I also had the shift silenoid replaced on the tranny. Volvo uses GM's 4T65E with a front limited slip differential. The tranny can be made very reliable and its very strong too. My advise is to purchase and aftermarket performance ECU it solved all my problems and has on every person I ever talked to that purchased one. Ive owned 3 Volvos and all of them were plagued with mechanical issues. But Ive never rode in a big sedan that rode as smooth as the S80. It also performs really good.

I love my 1999 S80 T6, and yes it has had problems. Lucklily I purchased an extended warrant. I have had the transmission replaced, the antilock brake computer, software upgrades, and the ball joints. I also have a Porsche 964, talk about indemic problems!

This is a good car and the problems will get worked out. It is comfortable, responsive, and looks great. Please quit the whinning and buy a Honda.

John

Bad wheel bearing.
Dead stereo.
Noisy water pump.
Dead electrical relay.
Dead fuel pump.
Bad air conditioner.
Grabby brakes.

The above list is a list of serious problems I have had on
the new cars that I have owned since 1970. Each problem applies to one car and each one surfaced within roughly 90 days of taking delivery. The first on the list applies to a 2000 S80 and the prior three apply to earlier Volvo's.

Because cars are complex machines any new car has the potential for exhibiting a problem early on. And some cars will have more than one problem early in life - that's just the risk of owning something built of many parts from many sources and assembled on a production line. My problems with the Volvo S80 have really been no different than with several other cars.

They are reliable boat anchors. Or open the sunroof and plant a tree in one. If you just want to buy gas and oil for 100,000, dont't consider ANY volvo.

If you buy a recent used Camry make sure you investigate "sludge"
issues with the engines. (Just type in "toyota camry sludge" at
google.com). Example: http://forums.vmag.com/mvsienna1199/messages/127.html
(Research any car long enough and you will wonder how any of them
actully get out of the garage.)

How about an S70? Lots of room (bit bigger then a Camry). Easy to
see out of. Room for 5. The GLT models (with the light pressure
turbo) have plenty of power. Big trunk. Fairly reliable. Easy
do it yourself maintenance (see http://volvospeed.com/bay13.htm).

And if you get an S70 with a rear spoiler it does not look as funny
as the rear spoiler on a Camry :)

An abundance of mechanical engine problems in Camrys have not appeared in the Consumer Reports "Frequency of Repair" charts. Is it POSSIBLE that SOME Camry owners really have neglected to change their oil? Anyway, Toyota did the non-Volvo thing and offered is an 8 year / UNLIMITED MILE warranty on suspect engines.

The Camry is always 1st, 2nd or 3rd in US sales annually. (The Taurus and the Accord filling the other slots.) So, no matter what, there will always be numerically more Toyotas with problems than Ferrari Enzos with problems. I'd rather take my chances with the available statistics.

-Punxsutawney Phil

Why would you take a chance on a car that has the S80's reputation? There is a reason that these vehicles are on "avoid" lists with consumer organizations. Based on my thirty-three year experience with Volvo, which was excellent until 1998, I'll never have another new one. Give me a 240 any time. Yes, you will see people venting on these forums, that's what they are for, but take these posts to heart. The S80 is an expensive car, not only to buy but to maintain. Please keep in mind that my comments are based on MY experience only but my experience is mirrored by lots of other Volvo owners and ex-owners. Just do your own investigating so you can make an intelligent choice.
--
Roy Olson

Check out the "No more Volvo" post below for some opinions pretty representative of this site--although keep in mind as Ermik said that you're more likely to get reports of problems on this board just by its nature.
--
Mark 2002 V70 10k

this is a board for posting problems , so its obviusly a lot of problem filled cars here.

i belive there are more happy owners than sad owners of volvos

I just read out of curiosity my 2 volvos run great.

// ermik

1998 S70 2,5 SE 95K , 1992 850 GLT 130K

I'm not sure. I have a 2000 S80 T6.

Other than a few sundry items like trim panels, which are typical when buying a new car, I have had very few problems.

The front rotors were warped since I got it. The radiator fan controller stopped working. The sunroof mechanism cable broke. All of these things were fixed under warranty. A few other problems popped up as a result of the service visits, but that is the fault of an inept service department, and has nothing to do with Volvo.

All of these things are minor compared to the hell that is maintaining my parents' suburban.

It may not be the MOST reliable car on the road, but it is far from the worst. Most importantly, I love this car like no other car I have ever seen or owned. Seriously. If this thing was falling down around my ears, I would never, ever consider any other brand of car. It's that nice.

Happy buying.