Hi Tom,

I have owned the following, all from new or near new and I have put hundreds of thousands of miles on each car. Still have the 850 and V70:

244GLE
265GLE
740GLE
'93 850
'98 V70

The 244 was the cheapest of all to maintain. The 850 has been the family (and my) favourite for comfort and performance. The V70 comes close to the 850 but has still had evaporator, ABS ECU and a couple of other expensive problems.

The 850 has been the most expensive of all to maintain but we love it the most. It also saved my wife's life when my daughter was driving and had a very serious accident. Everyone who saw the situation said my wife and probably my son would have been killed in anything else.

Yes, we had the failed transmission, but it was replaced by Volvo under warranty even thopugh the 3 year warranty was a year out of date. The replacement is fine, 7 years later. So, if you are buying an early 850, check because it might have had the transmission replaced (better than buying a '93 transmission). On the other hand, you are going manual....

I have just replaced the engine in the 93 with a 20 valve 1997 motor. The old one was burning oil and rings were badly worn in two cylinders [only]. Very strange (for a Volvo) but probably caused by the dealer 15,000Km oil changes with almost total stop-start driving. I now do more frequent oil changes. I think I got fooled by the 15K services when other Volvos were always much shorter.

In my experience of Volvos over the past 24 years, I believe the calibre of the Volvo mechanics I have encountered has failed to keep pace with the cars, at least in Australia. I find them good with mechanical things but believe the electronic sophistication of the 850/V70 and others is sometimes too much for the mechanics. I'm not knocking them, I think it must be a real challenge to understand mechanics, electronics, all the computers and also have excellent workshop practices. This reached breaking point for me last year when my '93 850 cost A$7,500 in repairs and maintenance and my V70 A$2,800. At that point, I decided to learn much more about my cars and maintain them myself. I believe the accredited service people have replaced many more electronic items than they should have in the search for elusive faults. Indeed, a quote of about A$4,500 to fix a number of fault codes actually cost me a couple of hours and A$400 in parts!

So, go for the 850, I think it is a great car, but make sure someone excellent gets to look after the mechanicals and electronics. This could be you or it could be an excellent Volvo Service facility.

Regards & Happy Christmas,

Dave

Tom -- as an owner of 4 240s over the years (still have two) and recent purchaser of a 95 855 NA with a 5 speed, I can share some thoughts. The 855 is a treat! Even in the NA version, it'll do things that I can't do with the 240s (NA). Apparently the 850 series has its quirks -- PNP switch, a.c. evaporator, and so forth, but so do the 240s -- wiring harness, heater blower fan motor. But remember -- the 240 isn't reliable (not like a Toyota is reliable), it's dependable. You can pretty much count on getting from point A to point B, even though it may not be in tip-top shape. So don't get down on the 850 when folks badmouth its reliability, the 240 isn't perfect either.

All that being said, you'll find several things different -- 850 parts are more expensive, generally, and the engine compartment is way tighter -- there's a lot in the way when you want to do general maintenance chores. But the 850 has built a reputation of being much easier to work on than contemporary cars. And, properly maintained, the white block motor will last a long time.

One thing which bothers me a tad -- the 855 doesn't hold as much as my 245s do -- in terms of out-of-sight storage bins for things like tools, jumper cables, a bucket of sand for snow traction, etc., the 245 wins hands down. But the 855 has a split rear seat, so that adds a bit of versatility.

Rob Kuhlman

We made the switch from 240 to 850 1 1/2 years ago. Avoid '96 unless you want to replace ABS module, common problem found out too late. Burns lots of oil at 95K (Turbo model), but much more comfortable than the 240 I think. Course our 240 seats had 280K on them....

I have a 1995 850 sedan and it will most likely last forever. The car is rock solid and I have had no problems other than the car's appetite for brake rotors. The non-turbo engine should be a longer lasting, less expensive long term choice (just my opinion) but I think all the 5 cylinders need to have the oil level watched as the engines age. My 850 now has 95K miles and will run low on oil if I do not change it until the Volvo recommended 5000 mile interval. The shop said to change the oil every 3000 miles to avoid this. My electricals have been great but we also have a 1998 V70 AWD and the car has taken a power window unit, ABS control unit and the electrical rear hatch lock. You never know what you are going to get until you live with the car for a while. Pay to have a Volvo expert/tech look over the car, it will be the best money you can spend.