I'm possibly selling my 97' Saturn and upgrading to a Volvo S70 GLT.

98' S70 GLT automatic with 214k miles for about $2,200
Heated seats and power everything.

With being 214k i have yet to ask if the timing belt has been replaced. I figure he already replaced it once. He's saying it has a V6 and i know some other car brands go from timing belts to chains. (i prefer chains, as i drive a lot and it seems a hassle to me to replace a belt )

So does it have a timing belt?
Can i expect at least 25mpg combined?
And is there any other known problems i should watch out for or should make me not want to buy this?

If i don't buy this, i'll probably be buying another Saturn as i know them pretty well.

 

Hi and welcome to the forum.

First off, the car is an inline 5 cylinder. If that person thinks it's a I6, they have no idea how to care for it. Just keep walking.

Yes the car has a timing belt.

Yes you can get 25 mpg combined if you drive right.

There are about 10 common problems that you should look out for. Look at this buyer's guide, it's basically the same.
https://volvoforums.com/forum/volvo-...s-guide-13678/

If you do NOT turn a wrench I would not suggest getting a Volvo. The maintenance cost is to high.

 

I'll probably be doing most of the work myself, as i did on my Saturn. Besides the timing belt.

My brother who works on cars for a living will be going with cause he said about the turbo is expensive to fix if there are problems and he seems them come in with bad turbos or whatever...

And thanks for the list, i was trying to find one like that!

 

My turbo has only 191,000 miles on it, I'm sorry to hear they give problems! Still, I much prefer the horsepower of the turbo. Sorta like air conditioning - it will add to the cost of driving, but I refuse to have a car without it (I live in Texas).

Drive a few S70's in good repair. I suspect you won't consider a Saturn again.

Compared to a Saturn, you will be pleasantly surprised how well the Volvo is built.

 

If you can turn a wrench, there is no reason to have someone else do the timing belt, it's really not hard and you can find good instructions here (unless you just want to throw your brother some business).

The turbo is NOT on the list of things to watch out for so I wouldn't worry about that. Besides, you can likely have one rebuilt for about $400. As mentioned above, if you get a decent Volvo, you'll probably never want to drive another Saturn.

I drove a '96 Saturn for about a month last year. I was testing it out for someone. I could not get any better than 25/28 mpg in it. Disappointing for such a slow, small car. Anyway, try to get a turbo Volvo, I look at the turbo as a safety feature.

 

well put

 

My 97' saturn was slow, but i always got at least 30mpg in the city with my lead foot.
The reason i bought a Saturn in the first place was because how great they are. My aunt has had her Saturn for 14+ years and it never once broke down or needed any major work.

Yesterday i arrived at the idiots house to look at the Volvo and he had just sold it to someone else. So no Volvo for me.

I'm still looking around for Volvo's but i'll probably end up in a Saturn again.

I'd love to find a decent priced Cross country wagon in navy blue.

Thanks for all the help, and hopefully one day i'll be sitting in a Volvo!