My son called me and said he is looking at a 2002 S40 T5 with approximately 153,000 miles on it. He hasn't driven it yet but he said the owner told him the only issue with it is that it needs new bushings. Now granted new bushings could mean control arms, stabilizer bars, strut bearings/bushings, etc. I've had
(and worked on) 3 Volvos in the past but they were all 850's or S70's /V70's, so the question is....How difficult is it to work on this issue on an S40. And for that fact, what else are common fail points on this model so I can advise my son before he pulls the trigger.

Thanks, Glenn

 

You meant 2012 S40 T5?Anyways there are different bushings need to be replaced on this car which one do you need?Engine mount bushings,arm bushings front or rear or suspension bushings?

 

Not sure which bushings....all my son said was the guy said it needs a bushing kit, so he did not ask anything further. I figured I would ask for tips all around. Like I said, I have replaced bushings on 70 series Volvos but not 40 series. I kinda figured they would be similar but decided to ask in case of any "gotcha's". And he said it is definitely a 2002, but now that you mention it, it couldn't be a T5 as that year S40 came with a 4 cyl didn't it?

 

yep Gen I S40 (2000-2004s) came with I4s, 2004.5 moved onto the I5. The only odd thing I've found on my s40 is the springs are extremely long - I've done the struts a bunch of times on an 850 with standard death stick compressors and the S40s were too long for that tool. They don't beat up the suspension the way mthe 850/70s do but are prone to tearing the front motor mount (near #1)/

 

New bushings could mean almost anything. The 2000-2004 models wear out the strut bearings and bushings most often. The car also has 4 motor mounts. The bottom 2 fail more often than the main and trans mount. Then there are the sway bar bushings and end links. I've never replaced the control arm bushings but some here have already.

A 15 year old car is going to break parts regularly. It's cheaper than a new car payment but it still needs regular TLC in my opinion.

 

yes..my s40 has torn its front mount...fixed it with superglue...they are not cheap but you can replace them without lifting the engine