This will be the first Volvo I've owned and I'm looking for the good, the bad and the ugly where this car is concerned.

Help?

 

The good is a '12 is a fairly new car and should have new car reliability. I'd suggest getting a $40 car fax report (either ask the seller or get the VIN) before dropping $16-17K. Mostly look for service records, are all the recall fixes up to date etc. You can also probably find survey data from Consumer Reports on typical problem areas via their web site (again for a fee). For the most part Volvos are typical to European car quality as many of the OEM parts are sourced from the same vendors as VW, Audi etc. That also includes the cost of repairs/parts which will be higher than say a Camry... You didn't mention if you are looking at AWD vs FWD (FWD being less complex).