Ok i've found both of these cars. The 99 T5 manual has 130k miles had timing belt and clutch replaced but has check engine light on and needs tires. From up north but garaged its whole life. The 94 850 turbo is auto with intake, r computer, tinted windows with only 60k miles. No problems that he knows of other than it needs tires. Ok i know these engines are pretty much the same. Is the S70 T5 really that much faster? Also he mentioned the throttle body recall was done on the car. I really wanted a manual but then again sometimes i like not having to shift. Which car would you pick?

Oh also the price is the exact same for both cars. S70 is silver, 850 is burgandy looking. Will they both get about the same fuel mileage and be same as far as fast wise?

Thanks

 

ok i just started looking up tuning parts for both cars. can you not get an ecu upgrade on the 99 s70? i see everyone doing them up to 98 but didnt see any 99. Can you tune these or not really. That might be enough to make my mind up.

 

You can tune the '99+ cars too.
iPd's tune can get you (per their site)...
280hp
310tq

If the S70 has all the maintenance records and is in good shape, I'd go that route. Before you do any tuning to it, complete the Stage Zero to make sure everything is up to par.

 

don't forget ipd's ecu upgrade is very expensive, but if you're not strapped for cash and neither shows signs of blow-by, i'd go with the 60k mile 850"T5-R". If you absolutely need a 5mt, then go with the s70.

manuals are only quicker from 35-65mph, and have a little bit of an advantage on the highway after 100+. out the hole, autos aren't bad at all, but the tranny doesn't hold gears like a "sport" auto should.

for instance, you kickdown at 30mph, gear drops from 4th to 1st, you stay on it to top of 2nd (80mph) ease off abruptly. It shifts to 4th instantly, it just doesn't hold the gear in case you want to pull again. unsure if you understand what I mean. this is the only thing I hate about volvo autos. I don't like to manually play with the gear lever, you should be able to leave it in "D", press sport mode, and the tranny should be smart.

Mercedes-Benz knows this.

 

thanks for the opinions. i just figured a manual would be more fun to drive. im not ruling out an auto but thought manual would be faster also.

the manual is 8 hours away from me , the auto 850 is about 2 hours away.

 

Man, the only good thing about the manual is that you won't be able to text and drive that much. I like manuals, they are fun to drive. If you love to drive, get the manual. The auto will almost alway be faster except when you want to hold a second or two like the note above states.

I'm not real big on low milage cars. They often have more problems than high milage cars because they have been sitting a lot or have not had ANY maintenance because of milage. Example, if that t-belt in that 850 hasn't been replaced I wouldn't even start the car. Have it towed to get the belt replaced. The only thing that would suck about the 850 is the fact that it may not have an 0bd-II port. That would be a deal breaker for me. Also the fact that the 850 has been tuned, it has also likely have been driven harder. hard to imagine it only has 60k, I would run an auto check on it and do a compression test.

I would probably go with the S70. Five years on a car is a lot when gets over 10 years old. Harder to find small parts that go bad, etc.

 

the guy said he was a pilot so never got to drive the car that much since he was gone so much. i would def do the timing belt and water pump because i didnt ask him if he did it. he told me the mileage shows on carfax to prove its real.

can you put boost controllers on 99 s70? the main thing i like about the s70 is the more modern look inside and out. the engines are identical.

 

I really like our S70. And I do believe the pilot thing. Most of those guys average about 6,500 miles per year on their cars.