I'm inexperienced with Volvo, but I'm a capable guy with some mechanical abilities. I have a small fleet of road and off-road vehicles, trucks, cars, SUVs. My most capable one is a 2004 Toyota 4Runner 4.7L owned since new and I've put over 200k miles on it. Extremely capable, reliable, and well rounded. It's the best overall I've owned. I've taken it on rugged outdoors adventures, difficult terrain, deep snow, ice, etc. for snow sports, camping, etc. I'd like to have another option for longer-range activities, cross country trips, mainly a bit better fuel economy and longer bed for sleeping and dog transport, while not sacrificing reliability, safety, and quality. (I have 2 Toyota Tundras for truck needs, a small SUV for local dog hauling errands in town, and a couple of different sedans for highway driving, and a muscle car for "fun.")

I am considering adding a XC70 for long road trips, comfort, a bit longer bed for sleeping in (I am 6'1" tall), dogs, cargo space, camping, AWD and ground clearance for capable basic off roading adventures (no rock crawling, but I don't want to get stuck in a rutted road or a few inches of snow/mud), and a bit better fuel economy than my 4Runner (18mpg overall).

I have ruled out Audi and Subaru as being simply long-term unreliable and/or expensive to fix. My budget is in the $5,000 to $10,000 ballpark. I'm thinking a Gen2 XC70 might fit the bill. I am looking at a 2007 with the 2.5T and 200,000 miles that appears from photos/description to be in excellent condition for the age, for $5000. There are some others locally but that one might fit my needs pretty well. If well maintained, could I expect to get another decade and 100,000 miles from it?

I have watched a lot of reviews, read a dozen sites, read dozens of reviews, etc. My questions, concerns, and feedback sought are mainly long-term ownership experiences, reliability, realistic mileage these XC70s can run, common problems and expenses to fix, MPGs, which are the better engines between the 2.5T and 3.2L, etc. and anything else important to know, quirks, experiences, etc. Thank you all in advance for feedback.

 

I recently picked up a 'well maintained' 2005 for what appears to be a good price. 119K miles, 1K miles the past 10 months, from my mechanic - he has serviced it for years. New or newer alternator, water pump, fuel pump, brake master cylinder, starter, and timing belt.

- It has a special type of engine - needs a new timing belt every 10 years or 120,000 miles. If the TB breaks, you ruin the engine.
- In one month I'm getting 20.5 MPG of mostly freeway miles.
- I take it in Monday, I have an oil leak.
- It runs smoothly; I recommend upgrading to LED lights (installing them throws an error message)
- It is a luxury model; I have wood trim interior, but not the heated-seat option.
- I may upgrade the stereo someday, and I need to apply a plastic sealer to refresh the wraparound rubber / plastic trim.
- minor issue: the rubber door gasket has a narrow lip - and about 3" of it is worn off near the roof at the door jam, on both doors. Right near my left ear! When I hit 65-70, I believe this causes a slight baffling sound to the otherwise quiet ride.

 

Our current 2007 xc70 is at 250 k miles. Turbo is leaking oil slightly, just changed out suspension parts and motor mounts. Our 740 went over 300 k miles before we gave it a neighbor. My kids have had 2004 Subaru Foresters which go forever also.

 

My oil leak noted above appeared to be the oil pan screw, so that was good news.

 

I have had 5 Volvos all P2 and one P3. They are the best of the European cars but they need a lot of repair and maintenance. They are expensive to maintain even with an independent shop. You will never have the reliability and low cost of ownership you have with the Toyota 4Runner.Get a 3.2 engine because it has a timing chain and it gets better mielage than a 25T.Volvo has better paint jobs than any I have seen . My red and silver paint looks great and they are out in the Florida sun a lot. I have seen many faded Mercedes and Bmw. Just my thoughts.

 

I have an '09 XC70 3.2 AWD and I absolutely love it. has 245 000 kms on it and runs like new. Had to replace the signal stalk because the message scroll wheel and the Read button didn't work. Gas mileage isn't the greatest but I don't do a lot of long distance driving. I live rural so I can't guess what gas mileage would be like for city driving. I honestly can't think of anything negative about it.

 

a few thoughts - avoid the early year XC70s (ie 2000-2004). The 3.2s have the advantage of a timing chain but if you opt for a T5 or 2.4T just check when the timing belt was last serviced (its like 10 yr/120K miles whichever comes first). I'd also check out when the PCV was last serviced. On older I5s the intake manifold had to be moved to access the ports/tubes/oil separator that can clog. On the newer cars you can simply replace the oil separator up top. I'd expect 20ish around town, 25-26 highway. Not great but better than a similar vintage SUV. I've always found volvo seats to be the most comfortable. If you find a car with torn up seats, you can buy replacement skins from Elwood Industries for about $500 /seat (top and bottom). Most volvos have common problem areas so check out some of the relevant posts on the forum to get an idea. Most stuff can be done DIY.

 

I've had a 2012 xc70 for a couple of years now. Previously I had a 1993 960 wagon. Both cars are amazing when they work. But they require a ton of maintenance and everything is expensive. I tend to fix everything myself but at times when I need a mechanic, for example replacing the rear differential last summer, it was a repair that cost about half of what the car is worth. The xc70 now has 175k miles and it has started to remind me that the catalytic converter is below threshold. Which means at least $4k and possibly $6.5k, depending on where I take it and what part I decide to put in. Apparently, the CATs that you can get on ebay do nothing to stop the check engine light from coming on. Only Volvo original part works in that sense.
I also had to replace the AC compressor last year. I did it myself and just had my local mechanic evacuate and replenish the system. Still, ended up paying around $700 for the part and the mechanic's labor.
We also have a Honda Fit, for driving around NYC and it never needs anything aside from oil changes and air filters.
But, the Volvo, WHEN IT WORKS, is an amazing ride. If you have the time, knowledge and the money to put in it (quite frequently it seems), it may be worth it.

 

My wife's 2003 v70 - similar, but nonturbo 2.5 5cylinder is a reliable workhorse even at 310K miles, wish it awd , my 2012 IS a rare FWD that I bought in desperation as no 2011-2014 xc70's were in my michigan area- or at least at a resonable price..Here and many places they have very high resale even for the highly revered 2007 year xc70 - which has the best mpg of any xc70 2.5 turbo... ,,y 2012 xc70 fwd gets average mpg 24'ish, with city mixed highway use...lots of cargo room for not being a truck frame suv, great ride comfort also/
I buy parts from FCP euro, parts geek, parts.com and S &G imports then take to my very affordable side hustle mechanic( former volvo/toyota shop mechanic )