I am thinking of returning to Volvo ownership (sold my 03 2.4T last year) and I was wondering just how many miles people are putting (mostly trouble free) on their S60's? I currently commute 124 miles a day for my job and I may purchase a 03 2.4T from a friend that has 72k miles on it. The car is in good shape and the price is cheap but I would need to sell my 07 Camry to buy it. I purchased the Camry because I got "sold" on Toyota's going well over 200K miles trouble free (mostly anyway), which is what I need. I really need a GOOD car that is comfortable (this is the Camry problem....) that must give me atleast 200k+ miles

I know every car is different but I wanted to know what some actual owners feel about their cars low cost maintenance and reliability. The bottom line is I miss my S60 but I am not sure if it is the smart move over a new 07 (which I bought new 6 months ago). The Camry has a lot more room, better safety rating, newer and dependable BUT it is just not comfortable on long drives!

Thanks everyone for the help & it's good to be back on the forum again...

 

The S60 is probably the most reliable Volvo model out today, the platform is solid, and if you take care of it...there is no doubt it will last 200k+.

 

+1

 

Thanks!

 

i just can't believe you said that a camry is safer then a Volvo s60? err i dunno about that O.o

 

I couldn't believe it either but the Camry actual does have better overall safety crash test scores than the S60. The only one that was worse was the rear end crash scores. I am in NO way here to support the Camry over the Volvo, I am just going by the IIHS & NHTSA crash test. I have posted the websites below if you want to take a look. That is the only reason I stated safety before. It is hard to believe.....especially from Volvo. The last to links are the specifics on both.

Thanks.

http://www.safercar.gov/
http://www.iihs.org/

http://www.iihs.org/ratings/ratingsbyseries.aspx?id=291
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/ratingsbyseries.aspx?id=412

 

I think you need to read that link again...the Volvo is Good all around the camry has poor rear safety and average side. You also have to realize those are just crash ratings, it doesn't account for DSTC, ABS, whiplash, pretionsioners etc....

 

looked at the links again (2 bottom ones) and the Volvo has the Average rating for side impacts and the Camry has the Good rating. The Camry does have poor rear end crash rating. I agree with you that these are just base line ratings. Thanks [sm=icon_cheers.gif]

VOLVO S60
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/ratingsbyseries.aspx?id=412

CAMRY
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/ratingsbyseries.aspx?id=291

 

wow thats really interesting lol... I thought hands down it s60 was way safer O.o hmmmm.....Even thought these are baseline testings, I would have for sure thought the s60 would have had higher ratings, even tho its only baseline..

 

it is odd....since Volvo is supposed to be the king of safety

 

Regardless there is no telling what happened with the tests. Volvo doesn't come in short for safety, but I would have to say sometimes you get a bad test....just the same 5 star means 1 out of 5 is lethal....this could have been that "one" test. It's hard to judge by the ratings/testing because in real world scenarios even the safest cars can fail. Toyota builds great products, however their service/parts departments completely stink....Volvo you can usually get parts when you need them and you can normally get service when you need it, of course this also depends on the dealership you are at. To make a close on this topic, Volvo is still the industry leader in safety engineering and their products are still among the longest lasting if you take care of them...Buying an S60 will serve you well, I own a 2004 S60-R with 55k miles on it and nothing is wrong and no signs of problems. Hope this helps!

 

Thanks! I agree on the safety numbers as well and real world scenarios. I was just going on what had been established as a crash test score. It sounds like the S60 will serve the purpose well. The Toyota will probably do the same with a little less maintenance required but it is not as comfortable as my last Volvo. If it was, I wouldn't be asking this question in the first place. Unfortunately the Volvo I am consideringis not as nice as my last S60 but it is also a lot cheaper.

Thanks for all the great help!

 

yah there are a lot of factors to consider.... but probably driving performance isthe best way to judge it....will probably give away the difference factor right there.

 

given you keep up with the maintenace and change the oil on a very regular basis, I easily think the s60 is a 200k plus car. If you opt for a turbo model, you may see issues with the turbo before 200k if the oil wasn't changed frequently enough.

Before buying the car it might be wise to pay for a 1hr used car inspection, and have a technician look at it. They can usually tell you lots about the car and what it needs or what may need to be addresssed in the future.

 

IMHO you'd be sick to trade a 07 Toyota for the Volvo. I personally have a Land Cruiser with 200k miles on and no major repairs, my 69k mile S60 on the other hand is totally falling apart and may be looking at $5000 worth of service (LOL) like that's going to happen when the car's worth about $15,000. I traded a 2000 Camry in on my Volvo and have pretty much regreted it since. If someone walked up to me today and offered another Land Cruiser 1997 ornewer I'd swap him in a heartbeat! Of course he'd have to take my upside down lease

 

I understand.....I purchased a Toyota for that exact reason but the bottom line (for me) is the comfort. I commute to work round trip 3 hrs. a day and that is a long time to ride without comfort. Of course, I wouldn't like being broken down on the road either (which is doubtful with an 07 Camry). I wouldn't trade my Camry for a Volvo but rather sell my Camry. I actually just purchased a different 2001 S60 2.4t for 7,900 with 105k miles. I plan to keep it for a couple years and see how things go. My Camry is now for sale. Hopefully the repairs on the Volvo won't cost me an arm anda leg but then again it is about 12k less than my Camry, so I could pay for a few.....Without a doubt the 07 Camry is a GREAT car, it just didn't work well on a LONG daily commute. Those Volvo seats are just too comfortable.....Maybe I should have just installed those in my Camry

Thanks for the input