I've been looking at S80's and XC70's. I think I'm leaning towards a 2011 T6 S80. Do you think there's going to be a redesign in the next year or two? It doesn't seem like they've changed much in a while. I don't want to buy a 45k car to have a brand new design out the next year.

 

It might this model s80 change in 2007 its been 3 years now. but i dont know for sure maybe in 2 more years..

 

It will probably be updated soon, follow the flow the C70 and the S60.

 

That's what I'm afraid of. I don't think the S60 is a good looking car at all. I think the current s80 has nice clean lines without being too boring. It seems like s80 prices were dropped quite a bit or something at dealers which makes me think something new is coming out. That or they are having trouble selling them.

 

Well, I don't know the state of their development pipeline. But I will say that in the past 20 years, Volvo hasn't had a particularly short development cycle.

The 850 ran from 1993-1997, and the S70 which was only a modest redesign of the 850, ran from 1998-2000. The S60, which was a complete redesign, came in 2000.

The original S80 ran from 1999-2003. A modest redesign ran from 2004-2006. Then a complete redesign has run from 2007 to the present.

So if they follow that pattern, they are not due for a redesign from the ground up, anyways, for a few more years.

 

Is there a reason why prices have been dropping? Are they just trying to get more competitive and boost sales?

 

I don't have any inside info as noted, but I do know that sales were falling, which is why Ford sold them a year or so ago when Ford was in trouble, and a Chinese company bought them, which may not help their sales. S80s are made in Sweden as they have always been though, and I've heard nothing to indicate they should be less desirable since the change of ownership.

As far as quality, Volvo had some rough years from 1999-2003 that I think really hurt the company. Especially this issue with the ECM module that initially the company did not back. Eventually they did the right thing, but by then I think the buying public was turned off.

But thing have improved a lot since then - the 2004-2006 S80s were already much better, and the redesigned S80 introduced in 2007 has also been reliable.

Personally if I were spending in that range, I'd consider an S80 to be a bargain - softening of sales is in your favor for buying a new one. The Volvo has a solid powertrain and it is the safest vehicle on the road. Being conservative, I'd suggest avoiding the 4 C's suspension as the shocks/struts are expensive to replace.

Get a web subscription to Consumer Reports and pore over their reliability histories for the S80 and say a likely competitor like the Audi A6. The info there is worth its weight in gold, in my opinion.

 

i got the 07 s80 v8 now, and by far I think this is the best looking volvo I have seen, but id say get the adjustable suspension as this has very soft handling, although its more adequate when doing quick moderately fast turns. The car is really reliable, Im so happy with this purchase after getting away from my traumatic problematic 2001 s80 t6. I love the new design!!

 

How will the fact that they are owned by a Chinese company now affect things? Production quality?

 

I think ultimately time will tell, and anything else is speculation. I haven't seen anything in public statements to indicate quality should suffer, and S80s will be made in Sweden as always.

Some people said Volvo quality would decline under Ford, who made cheaper cars. But in fact, under Ford, they improved quality. That's why assertions based on guessing aren't worth a lot - we'll see. You can certainly read the business articles to try to divine the future by reading the tea leaves of corporate officers' statements and industry analysts' predictions, but as far as I am concerned, we'll see ;-). I am neutral therefore in expectations for now.

Here's some analysis in The Economist from the end of summer, when the deal was finally closed. I think it sounds reasonable, but the proof is in the pudding:
http://www.economist.com/node/16750095

 

Yea it will be interesting to see. They have dropped the MSRP quite a bit from last year and it seems like dealers are giving big discounts off MSRP as well. For instance, I went to a local dealership yesterday to look at a white S80 they had. I want a T6 and this was a 3.2 but I wanted to see the car in white with a beige interior and get a feel for it. The sticker was 42k. They basically told me right away, "We'll sell it to you for 36k." That was with no haggling or even mentioning prices so it seems like dealers are really trying to move these this year. Considering that the 2011 models are just getting out I find this surprising. I hope that the new Chinese owners aren't putting in cheaper parts which is allowing them to sell for really cheap prices. I can probably get a full loaded T6 for 42k or so if dealers keep selling them for so cheap.

 

Hi there
When we leased our s80 in 2003..the dealer did the same to us..dropped right off the top $6000.The salesman said that Volvo has an incentive for the S80.After the lease expired we purchased the car and paid it off last year...phew..expensive !!!! Don't have any major issues(knock on wood) so far...almost 61000miles on it.The trany problem scares me of what I read here but other than that I love this car.List of the few things that went wrong
motor mounts,rear break discs,O2 sensors(warranty),am radio reception very poor,new tires,quite a few light bulbs,trunk lock(Warranty),fuel pump(warranty),a/c work..took the dealer many days to figure it out why was blowing warm air..replaced some sensors they said and the vents were stuck(not opening)warranty also and when we went to pick it up..the mechanic crashed the rear bumper backing up..they went out of business..so that's about it..hope this helps..good luck !!!!