My wife and I came to a mutual agreement on our next car to replace a long in the tooth Passat. The Audi A4 was a bit cramped, she does not like the Caddy CTS or 300M and the S40 is too small for our needs.

Enter the S60 [her being flexible on the R is the compromise]. We both want to keep a manual transmission car in the fleet, but I am hard pressed to find one semi-local (NoVA) with relatively low miles (<40K) in our price range (~$20k), but I am keeping hope alive.

I have been reading that there were some improvements made after 2004 along the lines of more torque, but what other differences are there through the years. Also, what are the gremlins to look for when shopping, i.e. timing belts, CV joints, DV's and the like that.

Again, I would prefer a 6-speed but how have people on this forum found the auto in respect to reliability, comfort and performance?

Regards,
Steve

 

I personally test drove a 06 s60r a few months back and I really really enjoyed it.. I know you expect it to be fast but you dont expect the torque explosion when you bury your foot with it in advanced mode.
The particular model I drove was auto but I think the car would be even more fun in manual..

Any year allows the full 300ft/lbs of torque in any manual gear

In auto, 04 and 05 allow only 280 ft/lbs in 1st and 2nd, from 06 onward you get the full 300

For what it is, its a comfortable, safe, fast, enjoyable car to have... also has a bit of the sleeper factor as well.. people never expect you to be so fast..
If you are interesting in making it even faster without too much work all you need a ECU retune from IPDUSA. If they are to be believed and I dont see why not, honest guys. You will be gaining about 35hp and an additional 45 ft lbs of torque.. so then you are talking 5.5 second 0-60 times.. thats pretty damn fast


anyway, to look for, once it isnt high mileage you should have no major worries.. but if you are over 60,000 miles I would check out the timing belt and s-belt... CV joints shouldnt be a problem but just go full lock and put some power down, if you hear them then you know...
Also, the seats in the s60r are quite nice, so try to get some that havent seen too much prior abuse.. cracks, scoffs etc.. I really like the dark blue tinted leather.. goes well with the gague cluster


PS. Just test drive every car, both you and your wife, and then you will know for sure what is right for you

 

You can find one for around $20K but it will generally be $20K, have no warranty, and have about 40-50k on the clock. Maybe in your area it is different, and with the economy, etc., you can find one that is cheaper/better. I looked at many in MN for around $25k that are 2005 - on with around 30k on the clock that were under warranty. Warranties are good, no worries, they are worth it when the oil pump drops and you need a longblock (happened to me in 2 miles). I don't think timing belts are due till 110k on these cars, as with my car. Bushings in the suspension seem to wear quickly, gives you that nice clunk every single time you go over a bump. Easily replaced free under warranty. Other then that the Pegusus wheels tend to cause the Perrelli's to get bulges if you run over anything like a cigarette butt, but I have only heard this from other owners in MN (we have many potholes from freeze/thaw conditions). Those rims tend to bend as well when you hit a big one too. That's all I know

 

I appreciate the feed back. We ended up picking up a 2006 2.5T yesterday, majestic blue with the auto-maual, for a very comfortable price with the remainder of the CPO warranty (big plus for us). Looking forward to the experience. Is the semi rough idle nornal? Per my father, that is partially inherrent of the inline 5 design and out of the 5 I test drove, I tend to believe it.

BTW, nice to see another 944 owner here.

 

That_guy

You made a wise choice, I love that blue color as well, you don't see too many of them. I find that the 2.5t is plenty fast for me, and you can have some fun on the freeway with some roll on races with all the honda boys. As the Top Gear guy says: "It's not what you drive that matter, it's how you drive it". You are going to love that CPO warranty, I have gotten thousands upon thousands of dollars of work done for nothing but gas to drive to the dealer. I haven't experienced much of the rough idle, yet. Look at the "dogbone" motor mount on the top of the engine (connect to the "strut brace") and see if that is toast. You can kinda twist the strut brace to see if it has cracks. Mine is currently toast but I forgot to mention it last time I was in. Mine has roughly 68k on the clock currently. Seems to wear out along with the suspension bushings.

The 944 was my first car, still love it! Just need to save my pennies and buy an 88 or 89 turbo before they are all gone. My good friend has an 88 with a few mods, and it is a 355 eater.

 

There's an s60 R in raleigh,nc for under $20k

http://www.carsforsale.com/used_cars...o_S60_99423569

 

Good choice not getting the R. I've test drove several in my search for a new car and honestly was not impressed. The T5 actually felt faster to me even though it in reality was not. Personally I'm going for a 2006 and newer Saab 9-5 sport. They're less cramped than the s60 in the back seat, and a bit faster, better handling.

 

just a question adub, but did you adjust the s60r you tested from comfort to sport or advanced mode? Put it on advanced and the throttle response becomes seriously edgy and quick....
personally, no chance in hell a 2.5t can feel faster than that car...

 

Ohh yeah I did, I changed all sorts of settings around. Also I said t5 not 2.5t. I still found the Saab 9-5 faster. And I find my 242 faster than both.