I’ve had up for trade my MK4 Golf 1.8T, 5spd w/150k on it.
I don’t like the car and am looking for more room, 5spd sedan or wagon preferred, ideally a Honda.
Not looking for something fast or to make a project out of, simply looking for reliable transportation with good fuel economy.
Because of financial issues and being layed off, I have had the car on CL and on here “For trade” for some time now, as I would like to keep out of pocket costs as close to 0 as possible.
Finding my ideal reliable, not hacked into Honda has been tough.
Had all sorts of ridiculous offers, from trucks to Cadillacs to modified Civic hatchbacks :ham:
Out of all the offers so far, this has been the only one I would consider:
1998 V70 AWD (automatic)
230k Via the owner -
“Has had everything replaced that was worn out. Shocks, struts, mounts, control arms, tires, oil seals, timing belt… the hood is black because a deer wrinkled up the original one back in May. Getting a parts car in a few weeks that is the same color and plan to replace front doors, hood and rear hatch. Driver’s door has a small dent from when I purchased it. The front passenger door has a good sized dent from the deer incident. The rear hatch has a small bit of rust forming on the bottom.”
They are great cars, just a bit more tempermental than your average Japanese DD. However, they are built incredibly well, and when properly maintained, go for hundreds of thousand of miles. My '04 S60R was terrific to me for the year I owned it. Had 128K on it when I got it, 142K when I sold it. I put in an alternator and steering rack in that time, which given the mileage was more than acceptable. Both were original, and both were reasonably cheap. Had I not decided to get engaged (and wanted to free up some funds for a ring), I never would have sold it…I loved that car…
Simply based on what I have read so far, some common issues that come up with these are: AC - evaporators (the part inside the dashboard) is very expensive to replace. Clean cabin filters are important to extending the life of the evaporator.
The A/C clutches may exhibit failure by unlocking when underhood temperatures are very high, as in during hot weather. This is often misdiagnosed as an iced-up evaporator. Shutting the A/C off for 5 minutes will solve the problem in the short term, but eventually you’ll need a new compressor (or at least a new magnetic clutch coil).
AC, not a big issue for me. It’s not a requirement.
What I am concerned with is motor and driveline issues.
Automatic transmission failures - bit of an issue with all front drive Volvos - fluid changes are important despite Volvo’s advice that changes were not required.
So are these an issue with AWD?
For AWDs, propshaft joints (the driveshaft that couples from the transaxle to the rear differential). There are two CV joints, one front and one back, and a universal joint in the middle with a bearing.
Have read to Avoid the pre-2002 AWD cars. Only the Haldex AWD systems are reliable enough to recommend.
A VW is like a woman on the rag-you know eventually it will end. A Volvo is like a bi polar, schizophrenic, woman on the rag who is also currently at Bry Lin undergoing treatment. I’d run so far and fast from a Volvo that I would die of exhaustion.
The n/a 5 cylinder isnt bad as long as the maintenance is kept up. Finding a S or V70 with a 5spd would greatly improve the reliability. 98/99 were the years of the GM transmissions.
No-anything Volvo is a steaming pile of shit. There is no such thing as a reliable Volvo. It is like saying “Oh, this hammer would feel much better if I smashed it over my head instead of smashing my toe with it.”
