Hi,

I bought a used BMW a few years ago and learned the hard lesson that BMW's aren't reliable and cost a fortune when they need to be fixed...

I was just wondering how a Volvo would fair in that sense? I would probably keep it for 5 years and put about 100,000 miles on it before getting something else. I know the warranty goes to 60k, so after that will repairs be significantly more expensive than like a normal car. My current ride is a 2010 Ford Fusion Sport.

 

Hey, I would agree that maintenance of BMWs cost a frotune if you are not mechanically inclinedto do your your own maintenance and it is not fair to say that BMWs are not reliable. We have a 1992 525iT BMW with 168K miles with little maintenance cost. Still very strong and solid. Actually I prefer driving it over my
daily commuter,2006 S60 2.5T, because suspension is very tight and flawless. My S60 has 118K miles and I feel it needs suspension renewal. We have 2 S60 both 2006. I have minimal maintance cost on mine but wife's has 55K miles and I laready changed rear door lock mechanism. It is quite costly because no after market is available only OEM is available.

cheers,
miles

 

The S60 was redesigned in 2010 so your best bet is to read reviews/complaints on New Cars, Used Cars, Car Reviews, Car Finance Advice - Cars.com.

IMO, "normal" cars are cheaper to maintain because people usually DON'T maintain them. They just drive them till something breaks.

I think repairs and other maintenance cost is a lot higher on newer cars, post 2000 because of the newer style design changes. All these bells & whistles, tight tolerances, active suspensions, etc. is just asking for problems. I actually hope I never have to buy a post 2000 car. I will be on the hunt for a very clean 960 or 98 S70.

 

I have a 2007 S60 2.5T and my scheduled maintenance costs have ranged from $100-200 to $500-700. I have not had anything "go bad" on the vehicle and have only had parts replaced that I would expect to replace, such as brake pads, light bulbs, etc.

All of the scheduled maintenance visits have a predetermined set of things to be done, so you can call your volvo service department and ask what the cost is, for example, the 45k service and know what you are going to pay. As you keep it serviced, the techs will let you know if they see a problem developing and will give you a time frame that you should consider addressing it in.

I've had the S60 for 5 years and just bought a 08' XC90 6 months ago. Have had no issues with either vehicle as of yet. Also have never experienced either vehicle break down, show "check engine" lights or otherwise show any signs that would make me think it was going to be unreliable.

Hope this helps!

 

Hey SweedHorse, how many miles do you have on your rides? Thanks for your input, it really sucks to read all of the cryers on the sites like cars.com but everyone has their opinions I guess.

Your comments give me hope for future Volvo purchases.

 

When we bought the S60, it was technically used but had mega low miles... probably like 10k or under. The last maintenance I had on it was the 75k so I'm probably at about 76-77k now. It's a 07 model that we bought in the fall of 07, so it turns 5 years old this year. I bought the 08 XC90 this past summer and it had 35k miles on it. I just took it last week for the 45k maintenance.

I've stuck to the recommended service schedule and have had no issues. In fact, after my Volvo's are serviced, the service reps rave about how good of condition the vehicles are in. I say its definitely possible for someone to have a different experience, but my experience has been that I've kept the volvo's serviced and in return, have had no issues whatsoever. I really feel like keeping it serviced is the key - when I bought the S60, it had been serviced at 7.5K (so it was on schedule for the recommended maintenance). When I bought my XC90, I refused to buy anything that hadn't been serviced appropriately - it was a certified pre-owned vehicle by Volvo, so it had been serviced appropriately.

I'm not a "car" person in that I don't know how to work on cars. I had a Chevy Blazer before I owned Volvo's and I kept the oil changed, changed the air filter myself and checked the tire air pressure. Other than that, had no idea what to do and I wasn't about to just take it to the dealership and ask "hey, does my SUV need any work?" In return, by the time I sold the Blazer I wasn't confident enough to take my family anywhere in it. Afraid it would break down, or worse, cause an accident.

Now, I'm doing everything I know to do to make sure my Volvo's keep going for years to come which amounts to keeping it serviced, keeping the tire's rotated/balanced/pressure consistent, I keep dirt from building up on the outside (wash it at least once a month) and do Volvo's leather care about 2 or 3 times a year to keep the leather from cracking and taking on dyes from clothing.

 

Good to hear. It sounds strange to hear a dealer comment on how clean 3 and 4 year old cars are. You usually don't get those comments till the cars are around 8 years old. Other's must really be letting them go. I purchased a new 740 GLE in '87. Had over 400k on it when I gave it to a single mom and that car looked about 5 years old. Very nice. People think my daughters S70 is about an 04 ('98) and say mine may be a '03 or '04 ('95). We keep them pretty clean and try to keep them ding free. This wagon is scrapped up a little but I try to keep it clean, vents, glass, restored the trim, clear lights, stuff like that really helps. I do all of the maintenance and repairs myself, mainly just economics and the fact that I get tired of some mechanics 1/2 doing things and leaving their finger prints all over my car when they are done. I really don't like cleaning up behind myself, behind them - eeek!

 

rspi,

That awesome, hats off to you! That's amazing that you do the work yourself.

I have a question for you... after a road trip that took me through the Washington DC area where there was a lot of road construction, I noticed that I had a handful of nicks on the front of my XC90 around the grill and headlights.

These nicks expose what I guess is the layer under the paint.. it's a dark gray color and you can feel the indentation through the paint. They range in size from about the size of pin head to a small sun flower seed. There is also a lot of road construction all around where I live as well, so I am also seeing longer scratches (these are not deep scratches) on the sides where it looks like debris is pinging the sides off of the road. My

Is there I way I can repair any of these myself or are these issues that require a professional?

Any suggestions would be great-thanks!

 

2012 Volvo S60 is one of my favorite this year in terms of luxury,design and quality.30 mpg with T6 R-Design,powerful six cylinder engines.

 

I purchased the 2011 redesigned S60 in December of 2010. It is a a very relieable car thus far; I have never owned a volvo before and I was very skeptical of it because of the ties with Ford. Don't be fool though, it may have been designed by Ford but it is 100% euro! By the way all the new Volvos have 5 years free free Scheduled maintenace. I haven't spent one red cent on the car yet! I LOVE IT!!!!

 

I'm very close to buying a 2012 S60 and I'm having the same questions. I've always owned Japanese cars (currently own an '04 Acura TSX) and can get them serviced anywhere. Is that true of Volvos or are you limited to the dealer or other specialty shops?

The five year Safe & Secure (scheduled maintenance, wear and tire items except tires, etc.) is sure nice but I'm wondering what the costs would be like in years 6-10.


UPDATE: Nevermind. I bought a 2012 Acura TL instead. I did call my mechanic and he said he works on Volvos, but he doesn't recommend them. I also saw that the predicted resale value of the S60 was WAY lower than I'm comfortable with. I guess I just wasn't ready for a European car.

 

The 2011 Volvo S60 points the way forward for the brand's new groundwork. Fine, then, that the Volvo has plenty of other impressive qualities to give it a unique edge over the competition. Consider it a premium sport sedan for people who don't want the stereotypical premium sport sedan.

 

Volvo S60 2007 -- my anti-skid service light comes on once a week and then goes off...anyone has any input on what it maybe....brought an On-Board Diagnostic Device (OBD) and plug it in under my dashboard and I have all green lights and No Codes at all showing up...please advise don't want to take my car to the Stealership yet!!!