My daughter will be 16 in a couple months and I am trying to select a first car for her. I've had several people tell me to look at used Volvos. I've done some searching on here but still wanted to ask a question. I want something inexpensive, but safe. Something that gets decent gas mileage and is reliable. I want to keep teh price in the $3K range so I will have to look for something with higher mileage, which is ok as long as it wil be safe and not need repair every day. I know any car can be a lemon or abused, regardless of brand but do you guys think a Volvo would fit my criteria? If so, what model(s) should I concentrate on looking at?
Thanks for any advice

 

I think it is a great car to start off with. I know a lot of kids when I was a kid had a Volvo of some kind or another.

Does she care or do you care if it is a sedan or wagon?

I would suggest...
240's
740's
940's
960's
850's

You can get these models for around you price if you shop around.

 

Thank you s70driver. See would not want a wagon nor would I. I have looked around and I have found quite a few in teh price range. Of all of the models you mentioned, are any supposed to be safer during a crash? Does any spoecific model seem to suffer from more reliability problems than the others? Is gas mileage about the same on all of them? Thank you, i've been searching some but if you can help steer me in teh right direction, it would be great.

 

240's I would go with 89 and later model.
740's 89 and later. Stay away from anything with a V-6 or a ZF transmission. You can tell by the shifter, it has PNRD321, all others have PNRD21
940's Great car, all years
960's Stay away from 92-94models
850's Stay away from the 93-94 models.
S/V 70 All years are good until 2001, skip to an '02 0r '03

Have any car you're thinking of buying checked out by a knowledgable Volvo shop or dealer.

Just my opinion, I'm sure others will agree or dis-agree, but I would generally stay away from any model from the first or second model year.

 

I bought a 96 850 GLT Sedan for my son who will turn 16 in April. In terms of styling that the kids will like the 850 is less boxy than the earlier Volvo's. My son thinks his looks good. You can check it out in the Sights & Sounds under Wheel Upgrade S60 850.

 

I would say a 240 slow car but very very safe.

 

ha ha yeah 240!!! that was my first car when i was 16... and i wish i still had it!! that model truly is a TANK!!! i can't even count how many times i crashed that car and drove down trees and street signs... yeah i was young and dumb... but what i'm trying to say is the 240 is an excellent car... i thought it was the ugliest thing i had ever seen when i started driving it, but grew to love it and it got a lot of attention from other kids in school, it stayed in our family from brand new '88 to 04 without any major repairs and had about 220k on it when we sold it.

 

I'd be looking at a normally aspirated 850. With any Volvo, the parts are very expensive, so be prepared to put some money in to get it up to snuff when you first get it. Aftermarket parts, where available, are a lot cheaper than the genuine Volvo parts.

 

Honda would be a good car however personally I am concerned about safety over saving a few bucks. I milk my car of every mile it can get on gas and mx items but you really can't beat a Volvo when it comes to accidents. I've been hit several times in my 850, every single time I walked away fine. Plus I feel so much safer in it than in friends' Hondas. Yes they are reliable but I kinda feel like they are rolling the dice every time they get on the highway.

 

The 850s have some important safety innovations over previous models. Highlights are:

The 1993 850 introduced the first phase of the SIPS (Side Impact Protection System), which was a structural steel cage with elements designed to distribute energy through the structure in the event of a side impact.

The 1996 and 1997 850s introduced the second phase of SIPS,the seat-mounted side air bags for the front occupants to protect the torso.

Pic of SIPS cage in the 850:

 

Get the 850. You want something newer and at least somewhat presentable. The old school look isn't exactly for everyone.

Edit: And regarding the 200/700/900 series, those are all RWD. 850 was the first year of the FWD volvos.

Double Edit: Check the 850 forum and on the top there is a bunch of things to look for when purchasing the car. If you need more help, ask us.

The parts aren't that expensive imo. But labor is a lot more expensive, and if you don't do your own repairs, these cars can get expensive pretty fast. They are very very picky about maintenance. But imo, safety > money. Meaning, I wouldn't risk safety for a little more reliability. The key to these cars is to look very carefully when you are purchasing them. If you find a good one, chances is that the car itself will fall apart before the motor/transmission.

 

My oldest daughter had a Sentra as her first car, my son had Honda Accord and my third also had a 2 door Accord Coupe. If it wasn't for the 12 point buck we would still the Accord Coupe. Now all three of my kids drive Volvo's. Oldest has a 99 S80 T6, son has a 98 V70 R and youngest has a 95 850 Turbo wagon.

One thing you need to remember is that you daughter will probably beat the heck out of her first car. They all seem to. At the time my kids were getting their first cars you could not get an 850 for $3,000. Now tha tyou can that would most definitely be a car I would consider. Just never liked the 240 until recently, and now I think it looks kind of special.