my son recently graduated college and is pursuing his PhD. He's looking to replace my 2007 Explorer that he had driven since HS (275,000 miles). He has test drove the above cars. Anyone on here ever had either of these? Both are 2.4 5 cyl. Most European cars are higher Maintenace, but i know Volvos are known to be safe. Any issues with that engine? reliability?
The engines aren't the worst thing out there, if you've kept up on the oil changes they tend to be reliable. They definitely become leakers if the oil changes haven't been performed regularly or the PCV is clogged (it's a maintenance item to replace). The one thing of note is the timing belt replacement is absolutely imperative to be done before 100k miles as it letting loose will destroy the engine. The other big thing to worry about is the transmissions - if the fluid is remotely not clean it indicates major problems are coming (either in solenoids or just general failure). They are very sensitive. Suspension components can be dicey as at the age of both cars they will need shocks\struts and probably wheel bearings and other things. Some models are harder to get parts for than others (the V70 especially). Brake components are pretty standard. Everything else is generic new(er) car stuff - plastics in the interior are somewhat brittle as a Volvo rule, power door locks tend to be problematic as they age due to the built-in current protection that gets old and stops working, somewhat complicated electronics run the AC and other systems. When people say European cars are higher maintenance, it's more than you are expected to do the maintenance rather than blow it off. And European car designers made different choices than most domestic or Japanese brands in their engineering, so there are things that are unique to them that may or may not be simpler to repair than other brands.
I've handled both models, and elB is spot-on. If you do buy one of these, spend the extra time, get in with a parts importer. They will have access to not only Volvo parts, but all the other aftermarket Euro parts manufacturers. Then find a well-recommended independent Euro/Volvo shop. They'll have a lot of specific knowledge of maintenance, corrective repair and pattern failures. Not to mention, which specific maintenance and tune-up parts will make that five-banger run its best.
