Time to retire the Explorer V8 and am looking at the XC90. I've been talking to friends w/Volvos (2) in order to get impressions, but in lurking for some time, it's clear I'll get some good advice here. I'm leaning towards a vehicle coming off lease, but am open to suggestions.

This is how it will be used: Put on about 25K miles/yr, w/a lot of freeway miles at 75-80MPH. Spend the winters in San Diego (sea level) and summers in WY (7,500'). About 10% of the annual miles w/be in the mtns, slower, and with a medium weight tow. San Diego driving is about 50-50 urban-freeway and only 4-5K miles/yr. Need AWD too. Entire family is tall; son is 15 and 6'4", I'm 6'2" and 220, wife 5'9".

I'm leaning towards a T6 or V8, but also want decent fuel economy. The Explorer AWD gets 20-21 on freeway which I can live with. Not too worried about MPG in stop and go urban - none do well there. I'm a little worried w/the T5 at 7,500' it won't have the power I need, still, the turbo makes sense for varing altitudes.

Based on your own experiences, what do you think? Any options you'd consider a must have? How about those I should avoid? What about specific years? What about service cost? I'm handy and do all my own minor stuff incl fluid/belt/filter changes, but should I consider taking a second on my son when going to the dealer? You get the idea. I'm familar with Volvo the name, but prior to now, not the brand as a purchase.

Thanks to all...

 

I have the V8, and I doubt you will see 21 mpg on the highway. I only have 3000 miles on mine but highway miles are 18-19 mpg so far.

Bizwiz

 

i'm getting 21 -21.5 mpg im upstate NY/NH driving (some mountain driving, interstate mostly) -have V8. T5 seemed under powered. I would not get
T6 because of 4 speed tranny

 

Are there problems intrinsic to the 4sp transmission, or is it just because having the additional gears offered by the 6 speed are a better use of the available power? It would seem the additional power of the T6 over the T5 would negate the difference in transmissions. Yes/no?

 

I have a 2.5 and am completely satisfied. I don't want any worse gas mileage in this day and age. The only time it is "underpowered" is when I have a lead foot. I have had no problem climbing hills or going in the snow. I would read the review on Car Talk. They seem to think that the turbo could go sooner than expected if you are racing the thing often. www.cartalk.com, then click on actual car information. They reviewed the XC when it came out in 2003.

 

Betty,
Thanks for recommending the article. It was honest and comprehensive. I'm not worried about the turbo(s) on engines these days. Mostly because there are preventative things you can do to make them last almost forever. I don't know how Volvo cools it's turbos, but it is either oil or water. If water, that's a real plus, if oil there are a couple of things you can do to increase service life. First and formost use synthetic oil. Synthetic has a much greater heat tolerance. When the engine is shut off, turbos have "heat sink." The temperature of the turbo goes way up and will "cook" the oil remaining in the unit. Eventually the oil residue from this will deminish the oil flow to the bearings within the turbo and the bearings will fail. Synthetic oil will minimize this.

When the seals fail it can be noted because, after idling at a stop light, a white puff of smoke will appear from the exhaust when throttle is applied. When a seal fails usually the bearings are not far behind. Because turbo tolerances are so close, once this happens the impeller may touch the turbo housing wall, chip, and be ingested into the engine - read VERY expensive repair. Volvo recommeds to let the engine idle for a minute or so after driving hard. This is to cool the turbo. The second thing I would personally do is install a turbo lube system (brand names vary, but the principle is the same). This system costs about $300 and consists of a small 12V electric motor and some oil lines. The electric motor will kick on when the engine is shut down and continue to circulate oil to the turbo for a period of time (1-3 minutes), cooling and extending turbo life. Some of these units have a "pre-lube" capability which will circulate oil prior to starting the engine, briinging oil pressure up before the engine is started. Since most engine wear occurs in the first 10 minutes this can be a very good thing also, particularly in cold weather. These lubers are more commonly installed in emergency vehicles for obvious reasons, and triggered on when the door is opened. A water cooled system would minimize the reason to buy one of these units, but as I said, I don't know what Volvo uses.

 

Thanks for all of the information on the turbo. I will refer back to your post if I ever have any problems. I just wanted to voice my experience with the 5 cylinder engine. Seems like Click and Clack were only concerned with the Turbo going out on the 5 cyl. Again, I'm not using it to tow. Anyhow, I think you will like the XC90. I've ridden in the Explorer which is a nice vehicle, but prefer the Volvo's size and maneuverability. I am pretty sure that mine came from a lease. It was just over 36,000 miles when I got it with one previous owner. I get about 24 mpg on the highway at 70. I've had it a total of four months.