Hi!

I drive a 2006 2.5T Volvo S60 with 130000 miles. I know absolutely nothing about cars.

I suspect I need new shocks on my car, as even the smallest cracks in the road feel like im off-roading. From google, I expect this repair to cost about $1300. So as a 25 year old grad student, I am unsure if this is the point I should get rid of the car to get a newer used vehicle or continue with maintenance. Also, the radio stopped working. It turns on but won't play music unless, except for occasionally it will cut in for about a minute. This would need to be fixed too.

I replaced the timing belt and a couple other things around that area of the vehicle (see I know nothing about cars) at 98000 miles.
2 coils and spark plugs at 25000 miles.
New tires recently.
Some other random stuff. I probably spend about $1000/year at the mechanics.
Only one minor rust spot, which my dad fixed for me.

So what else is bound to go wrong at this point? Should I keep it?

 

In terms of car maintenance, I'd go in the order of safety, reliability, perfomance, cosmetic. Keeping or selling may depend more on your ability to do some of your own repairs or if you can find a trusty mechanic with some knowledge of Volvos. (In New England this isn't a problem as there's a lot of Volvos/Saabs etc around - I have about 4 Volvo dealers within 25 miles)

In terms of safety, make sure the brakes are proper, the suspension has no play (ie bushings, ball joints, tie rod ends etc) which can compromise emergency handling. Replacing shocks may or may not fall into this category - Do you see an oil leaks on the strut tubes? Does the car clunk going over potholes, speed bumps or RR tracks? If so it could be strut mounts/bearings. These cars do tend to ride hard in the nose so unless you feel floating and nervous control, the shocks may be serviceable depending on your driving needs. I think the $1300 estimate is on the high side. You can find strut replacement kits (completely preassembled) for $600 which would take a shop about 1-2 hour to install plus an alignment so my guess is you'd be out the door for under $900. If the shop simply replaces the struts and bushing/mount, you'd be looking at about $300 in parts plus 2-3 hours labor and alignment so I'd think $700 is a reasonable estimate. With the car on the lift and wheels off, they could also easily refresh the front brakes. pads/rotor parts go for about $200 for the front pair plus another 1 hour labor so for $1000 you could have new front shocks and brakes. Anything like bushings/tie rods etc would need to be assessed via professional inspection which a good shop would do while working the shocks or brakes. If the steering feels loose, its worth it to get a shop to do an inspection. If you get the new parts put in the suspension while doing the struts, you only need to align once.

In terms of other maintenance items, its pretty much break/fit. The one thing to look after is the PCV system - it takes the crankcase gases and vents back into the intake. It has tubing and an oil separator which over time can/will clog. Once it clogs the crankcase pressure will build up and may push out oil seals (ie cam seals, main seals). A quick test is to pull the dipstick out and see if any smoke comes out with the engine running, if yes do the rubber glove test (see Youtube) where you remove the oil fill cap, put a latex (surgeons) glove over the hole and start the engine. If it inflates, your PCV is clogged and needs to be serviced. This typically costs about $200 in parts and 3-4 hours labor $600-700 and once done should last the car another 100K+ miles.

As to your radio, what I'd do is shop eBay for a used radio out of another S60 of similar year. It will be plug and play (you may need to remove some trim bezels to access the radio unlike the older Volvos which just slid in/out) but I'd bet you can find a fully functioning unit for under $100.

In all, your car if properly maintained should be good for 200K+ miles and I think your $1000 annual maintenance budget is a fair estimate (some years you may have a big ticket repair like shocks or PCV systems, others its just oil changes and wheel alignments). With that in mind, You can do some math to determine what a replacement car would cost vs value of your S60 plus annual maintenance. I'd think for the near term you'd be better off keeping. 130K miles is fairly low for a modern car but as noted you need to plan for some ongoing care and feeding.

 

Thanks for the reply! I am located in upstate NY. The mechanic just called back the quote for replacing all 4 shocks (plus alighnment) is $1585 + tax. Yikes!

 

I'd start with the fronts unless the rears are leaking as the front struts take all the beating. Also feel free to shop around for other shops and see if your mechanic will let you provide the parts. Then go to EEuroparts.com or FCPEuro.com to price out the Sachs shocks (OEM) and recommended hardware (genuine Volvo is best for spring seats). Another option is find a friend with air tools. LOL here's what happens when the spring seat fails...

 

Thanks! I did find another non-volvo specific mechaing, willing to fo it for half the price (~$850). Assuming he will not be using volvo parts. I am familiar with EEuroparts, and will look into providing the mechanic. Though, I am not sure Ill try my hand at the repair myself. I would probably end up with out a hand after my attempt lol.