Hi all. I have just joined the site and this is my first post. We will be shortly moving back to Australia and I'm thinking of buying a Volvo 850 (sedan or wagon). I've owned 5 Volvos in my time and believe they're a fantastic car. I also believe their safety to be of the most importance. Anyway, my question is this - If I buy an 850 what should I look-out for the most??? i.e the transmission, engine, electronics etc. Any help would be appreciated! Also, which year is the best in your opinion. Many thanks.
Benny.

 

if your going to be buying in australia you might as well buy a 5-speed turbo. i fancy 97 more just because they should have gotten the most problems out of the cars by then...
But now that i have to live with it, i think id rather have OBD1 93-95.
Then you just have to choose wagon or sedan.

things that suck on volvos
-A/C working
-rear wiper on wagon
-heating blower motor
-heated seats driver + passenger working
-PCV system (you run the car intill its hot and if you get smoke out of the dipstick it needs to be replaced)
-Sunroof working
-gas guage working

 

Thanks Matt01. Yes, I hear the air-cond units can be a pain etc. The 850s are going for around 3-5k in Australian now and I figured that they are a good car and drive well. One would guess that any of them having done over 300kms would be too old??? I know that most Volvo drivers take care of their cars so at least that's a consolation. There also doesn't seem to be many turbos available in Oz, guess they're all out of service now or people are hanging on to them as collectibles? Anyway, thanks for your info. Benny.

 

no, i just can imagine that everywhere has better volvos than USA. Many volvos can go past 300 000kms, but it really depends on the maintenance, honestly if i found the right car, but it had 300 000 kms, and the owner could prove that the oil changes/repairs were made in a timely fashion, i'd buy it.