Last week I bought a 2010 XC70 T6 with 97000 miles. My car has had 2 previous owners. The Carfax shows regular maintenance -- 31 service records. But, in fact, other than the brakes being done (20K+ ago), it hasn't seemed to need anything. I.e. it's either "xx,000 mile service performed" or "Oil and filter changed."

I haven't owned a Volvo in a loooong time but fell in love with the car & am happy to have acquired it. It feels solid, & it goes....

My questions are 1) are there some areas/systems/parts I should make a point of having checked now (or soon -- & if so at how many miles)? & 2) are there some additional potential problems I should be on the lookout for?

I'm sure there are many among you who know these cars well, & in particular the T6. I would be grateful for any knowledge you can take the time to share with me. Thanks in advance.

 

I have the same car with 203k on it and climbing. Replace the pcv now. It will go and the car will smoke like crazy and will give you a scare. Shop around I was able to do mine for 40 bucks. Always run synthetic oil change every 5k. The rear differential is a common failure point both the haldex unit and the differential bearings are known to fail. Change the rear differential fluid every 6 months to a year depending how much you drive it. The haldex unit uses special fluid you can buy from ipd there is also a filter to change. Change it! there are helpful videos on YouTube to help you out. If you do end up getting a hum thar gets worse from the rear end bad from 30-50 mph there is a company on the east coast that rebuilds them with a lifetime warranty for 1300 bucks. These are very much so bulletproof cars. I know people with over 400k on them and they run like new. Lastly chances are you will start using a quart or 2 of oil between changes at about 200k miles. I believe that is turbo seals. It will foul out the cats. There are ways around replacing the cats big daddys garage makes an extension that will make the cel code disappear so long as you dont let it plug the cats up. Last thing on these cars that will fail are the rear bushings on the trailing arms. They are not too hard to change yourself. It is kind of a caveman act to do it without the expensive press but with some 4x4 lumber and a torch and a sledge its about a 2 hour job. I did have my check valve in my fuel pump fail. Dont waise your time dropping the tank. Cut a hole under the passenger side rear seat you can verify where you need to cut. I can now change the pump in under 30 minutes. Make yourself a cover panel as well to clean it up. Symptoms of failure will be hard starting and loss of fuel pressure when the car it turned off. Any other questions email me volvos80319@gmail.com I am getting a pretty good weath of knowledge about this car as time goes on. It should keep you happy for many years to come.

 

Thanks, Jake -- an extremely helpful response! I'm enjoying the car quite a lot. I'm only likely to put @50-60K on it in the time I own it, so I'll be leaving a lot of car for the next person.

 

Don't forget to verify change of timing belt...see Warranty and Service Records Information booklet, in the maintenance schedule section the heading there is an X in the 105,000 mile column for "Timing belt, tensioner and idler pulley replace *****" or 10 years....critical since the valves will damage pistons if belt breaks.
I may have the problem with oil fouling of cat converter. I'll try adding the extension of CC sensors noted above. Jake Dziekan do you know whether there is a good procedure to determine whether the CC is significantly plugged?

 

Thanks! But... the T6 has a turbo-charged 3.0 liter 6-cylinder engine with a timing chain. It's the venerable & wonderful inline 5 cylinder Volvo engine which has a timing belt -- & for sure it must be changed every 80-100K.

 

sorry, I overlooked the T6.....good notes from Jake Dziekan above....I'll have to see if he is here in Madison WI.....