At 135K miles on my '01 S80 I have been thinking of replacing the front struts. I want to try and restore some of that "new car ride" as I now feel every bump/rut/pothole on our infamous New Jersey roads (we have the highest taxes in the country yet our roads are consistently rated the worst in the country...go figure.)

Just wanted to see what your experience was...did you get a much smoother ride? Was it worth it?

What brand strut did you use? I am considering the original equipment Sachs brand as I have heard that some aftermarket brands give you a harsher ride? I know that Monroe makes struts for my car that are $50 less (each) than Sachs but are they no good?

And did you also replace the strut mounts and spring seats at the same time? Is it worth it to replace these parts too?

Thanks for any feedback...

 

S80 front suspensions do take a pounding. New struts will definitely restore that "new car ride". While you are at it, make sure to change the spring seats too. (you may also want to check the end links and change those out)

I used Bilsteins and I love them. They are more aggressive, but I can't say how much because I changed the spirngs and sway bars at the same time.

Good luck

 

I empathize with you in regards to road conditions as I also live in the Metro New York area.
I had Sachs replacements as well as endlinks and front/rear bushings and I believe the lower ball joint. Cost was over $1000, but it gave me that "out of the showroom" drive feeling.
I also replaced some engine mounts, on my own, which makes the ride/idle must better.

 

Yes! I have an '01 S80 with 130k miles; New front struts will make a noticeable difference assuming that the rest of the suspension is in adequate shape. Tie rod ends are a biggie, lift up the front end and grab the wheels and try to change the steering angle to make sure there's no side to side slop in the front wheels. (I also had the control arm bushing worn and loose) With this said, i would suggest you steer away from the NAPA struts as I had two warranty replacements of the NAPA upper strut mounts. They came loose and were spinning, twice. To make things worse my mechanic didn't know he needed to use lower rubber insulators, because in his words 'he had never used them for other strut jobs'. I had him install Volvo original struts and follow volvo's installation recommendations. $1700 later with new control arms, sway bar, tie rod ends, 4-wheel alignment, and tire balance I have the new car feel again!
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Dodge Caliber History

 

I replaced the front and rear struts/shocks. I also replaced most of the associated parts bump stops, spring seats etc. Do not use inexpensive after market parts for the spring seats, stick with Volvo. I had the bearings fail on the economy IPD spring seats very quickly. The struts and rear shocks I used were Koni FSDs. I find they ride almost as smooth as OEM on bad roads but are very firm on smooth roads, so it is the best of both worlds.