Hey all!

I'm about to take the plunge into the Volvo world. I've only ever owned Ford cars and trucks so this is a big change for me. My SUV was totaled on Monday and I need to get into another car quickly. I found a 2006 S40 2.4i that is in my range and looks outstanding. I've already spoken with the current owner as well as my mechanic, who can work on Volvo. Unless the car is completely different or there are major issues they're covering up I am going to purchase it tomorrow.

My questions are as follows: what do I need to look out for? The car has just shy of 131,000 miles. The timing chain was replaced by the current owner. They have had the car about 4 years. It was driven by their teenage daughter (not sure what I think about that!). The air conditioning has never been worked on but operates fine. They claim they have had regular maintenance handled by their mechanic who I am aware of, although he moved from the area earlier this year.

What do else do I need to know? I'm far more mechanical than normal folks but all my experience relates to Ford cars and trucks. This is a quite a different step for me. I should add that I'm a nut for maintenance and upkeep. My last car was 16 years old and I did all the regular maintenance. It didn't look all that great but mechanically it was perfect. I would have had no qualms about driving it many hours away, and did so several times each year including a few months ago.

Help me out and get me into this Volvo thing. Thanks in advance.

 

first thing is maintenance records. Carfax reports will help for prior owners, but its a big plus if the current owner can provide.

There really isn't much different from other cars of this generation. The timing belt is key, in that its an "interference" engine - ie broken belt = bent valves so following the maintenance schedule (ie 10 years/100K miles for belt, tensioner, idler) so its good to know that's out of the way.

Clean oil with frequent changes is key to avoiding clogged PCV systems and gummed up VVT gears. Look for any sludge built up inside the filler cap, oil leaks around seams can be a sign of a clogged PCV. Staining inside the head when looking in on the filler ie discolored metal where you can see the casting texture is normal. How do all the fluids look? is the transmission fluid redish brown or brown? Black/burnt smelling is a warning. After that its how it drives - any clunks, hiccups etc? A well maintained Volvo can easily go 200K+ so 131K is not really high.

 

Welcome to the forum!

Ford owned Volvo during that time period so you will find lots of FoMoCo parts on the car.

A clogged PCV system will "whistle" through the dip stick tube. Check and see if there is some kind of recall for this item on your engine and year. It's not terribly difficult to replace if you DIY.

When checking the oil level you need to wait for the oil to drain out of the filter back to the crankcase as the filter is mounted up high. After an oil change do not make the mistake of filling the oil, running the engine for leaks, then immediately checking the level only to find it a quart low.

The filter is a cartridge mounted vertically inside a big plastic cap. You remove the cap with a special large, short socket and extension. Regular long sockets work but may hit the air cleaner housing.

Enjoy your car. My wife still loves her 2005 T5 S40.

 

 

hi all new to the group just like to say thanks for the add 👍

 

I appreciate all the helpful tips posted here. I did buy the car. I did a bit of tooling around to get a sense of how it drove. Motor sounds great and the shifting is smooth. The ride is better than what I expect for a car of that age and miles. There is also some slight warping of the brake rotors but the pads have a lot of skin on them.

It's past dark here and I've had a long day so I'll get into the mechanical aspects more tomorrow. The engine oil change sticker is current in the windshield and the oil was nice and golden when I checked it. I'm certain the prior owner had that on lockdown.

That premium sound is niiiice, even if I don't have Bluetooth or aux in. I did have a question about that, though. Where is the sub located? I didn't see it in the truck or under the rear panel anywhere. If any of you know please direct me.

Thanks again, very happy with my purchase and I look forward to some enjoyable driving.

 

Sub is in behind panel near rhs large speaker in trunk I believe. You can hack in an aux in via the cd changer if you have this mode on your stereo. Just lookup aux in cd changer volvo on ebay and something should come up.