V70 AWD?

[wuvvum]

Just been offered a P-reg example of the above. It's a 2.5 turbo manual; it's quite cheap, but it does have a few issues (noisy CV joint, slight exhaust blow, and most pressingly an oil leak from the turbo return pipe). It's tested until next spring though.

 

I really don't need it - I already have a large, 2.5-litre, petrol engined, turbocharged, four wheel drive estate car in the form of the Stagea, which I barely ever use as it is. I'm still half tempted though as I've always liked the 850 / V70 range, and I'd imagine with 4WD it might go round corners rather better than a standard car. Plus they do sound nice. And it is cheap. And it has a towbar, which the Stagea doesn't.

 

I know a couple of people on here have owned one in the past, so what are they like? Are they easy to get bits for, are they much thirstier than a standard V70, etc? Any info gratefully received...

[Pete-M]

Oil leak from the turbo return pipe on these is often because the breathers are blocked. There's a little plastic tank under the inlet manifold (which has to come off to change it) which gets clogged up, restricts the breathing and the next thing you know the crank oil seal goes and the clutch starts to slip..

 

Get it hot then pull the dipstick half out. If it's smoking like a chimney that's the first giveaway. They all smoke very slightly, but a good old plume means spending about £50 and a couple of hours waving spanners about.

 

4WD system is a bit fussy about tyres. Don't drive on a flat one... but they're not as mentally tyre fussy as people make out. CV joint could be a sign of a fooked centre viscous diff. If you can, drive it in a circle on gravel, you'll know if it's locked up soon enough.

 

Not much else goes wrong with 'em really. Brake pads rattle sometimes and occasionally on the estates the rear spring insulating rubbers go causing a mad clunk.

 

Very comfy, 2.5 LPT is at least as nice as a T5 for daily use. More relaxed and less laggy. If it's not got one, get a front strut brace. Makes a huge difference and isn't expensive, about £70 from Volvo. Plod ones have 'em.

[peter9000uk]

Check the top engine mount. Nearly every one I have seen with some leg on it has a fubared top mount. Cheap as chips to replace in the grand scheme of things but a bit of a ball ache if you just change the bush. If like my last one the top mount had been shagged for a while this had caused an exhaust blow. The blow is on the rather nice flexi pipe bit at the bottom of the downpipe. This flexi pipe is part of the fannymold. I had to replace the whole lot, not cheap from Volvo and a bustard to change as I believe started assembly of the car with this piece in the centre of the room and built the rest of the car around it. I have since seen the flexi part for sale on its own but would require welding to istall

[dollywobbler]

4WD doesn't make you go around corners any more quickly, but it does mean you can get traction in OMG SNO KAOS. And wet roundabouts. I remember Top Gear busting the 4WD cornering myth many moons ago, which pretty much lead to the collapse of the boring-family-saloon-with-4x4 market.

[KruJoe]

Scooters did a really good write-up on his one last year, but he deleted it. I wonder if he still has it saved somewhere?

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=10938&p=267988

[Cavcraft]

Had a 2WD drive one a couple of years or so ago, 2.5 10V iIrc. The exhaust had a slight leak which luckily was a just a gasket or something as my mate at the tyre depot said exhausts were big money for these things.

Also on a run the computer would say up to about 44mpg or something, but round town it was pretty dire in real world terms. They do seem a decent car, build quality was good and it felt like you'd expect a Volvo to, big and solid. Sounds a bit odd I expect but I find them a nice looking car, the sort of perfect modern version of the old 740.

[Volksy]

I loved my S70, it was the 2wd 2.5 Turbo. A very rapid and capable car. I had to change all the breathers on mine as it smoked to the extend that I thought that the turbo was failing. Not a difficult job at all. Sadly the S70's are worth the square route of F'all. So mine got weighed in come MOT time.

 

Their front wheel bearings can pack in by hitting potholes, happened to both on mine. The part alone is about £90 as you buy the complete hub.

[wuvvum]

Thanks for the replies gents. Decided not to go for it - from the seller's description of the exhaust blow it sounds like it was probably coming from the flexi, and it's blowing quite badly apparently - the last thing I need at the moment is another car that needs time and money spending on it.

[dieselnutjob]

I had never heard of a stagea before. They look wonderfully obscure

[wuvvum]

I don't know if the actual cornering forces are necessarily higher in a 4wd car, but you certainly get better drive out of corners than you do with a 2wd, especially on a damp road, so exit speeds will be higher. Tyre choice makes a difference too of course - I'm hoping that with its new branded front tyres the Rover will be slightly less of a wheelspinning handful in wet corners than it used to be on its barely legal Arrowspeeds.

[Pete-M]

4wd stuff like the Impreza can do some bloody quick cornering, but a lot of it is down to the way they feel more secure in quick corners.

 

I've had a few moments where after driving the Impreza for a few days I'll drive something else, chuck it into a corner and been surprised by under/oversteer when the Impreza is totally neutral at the same speed through the same corner. The Impreza takes the piss in the wet when it comes to traction, very rare it does anything other than just grip. My old Audi A6 quattro was superb in snow, it was just like driving on a damp road when most other cars were slithering all over the place.

 

You do have to remember that 4wd doesn't help anywhere near as much when stopping though....