looking at a 1999 S80 2.9...i was hoping i could get some advice on what to watch out for and if there were any major/minor bugs that that paticular model/year had. thankyou for any advice

 

Nope... I wouldn't buy it.

 

rofl, thats a problem waiting to happen!

 

Don't do it.

 

There's a lot of factors involved here. What's the mileage? What kind of condition is it in? Does the current owner have the maintenance records for the car? What components, if any have been replaced?

I have a 2000 S80 2.9 non-turbo and my wife and I love the car! The previous owner took fantastic care of the car. We still only have 67,000 miles on it and I take it in to get it checked out about once a year. The only repair I had done was the control arm bushings and the software upgrades. Outside of normal maintenance stuff like a transmission flush and the front brakes being redone I've had no other costs.

If they can't provide any maintenance paperwork or history, and if the mileage was over 75,000 miles, I would not buy the car!

 

I would stay away from the first and second model year of most Volvo models. It generally takes that long to work out the bugs. This especially applies to the S80, 850, 960, and C70's.

If you can (and enjoy) working on them, and the seller took really good care of it and it's below low blue book, then maybe...

 

Wow, I was about to post the exact same topic, but browsed first. I am (or WAS), considering a local 1999 Volvo S80 2.9 w/142K for $4800. It was in excellent shape, beautiful white w/tan interior, but after seeing these replies, I will run from it. Oh well.