new here - looking for advice on '01 V70 I5

rc728 · Post by **rc728** » 04 Apr 2011, 19:07

hello -- we have put a dp and committed to buying a 2001 V70 nonturbo auto transmission FWD as an addition to our family. It has 91,000 miles and appears to be in fantastic shape and has been well maintained and cared for. I really wanted something safe for our new driver and Volvo meets my requirements. But now that I read the consumer reviews I am worried we have entered in to a car from hell. My questions: how real are the repair issues for this particular model? As my husband is not mechanically handy we would be going to a mechanic for our repairs. I'm just wondering if we have made a mistake and should lose the deposit. I love the car and grew up in volvos so I guess I am really looking for someone to tell me it will all be ok. But--- I want the truth ,too. Thanks so much!!

koffinb · Post by **koffinb** » 04 Apr 2011, 20:10

the 01 v70's had serious trans. problems, i'm not sure if it was only on the turbo models or not but they were horrible!!! Just make sure to drain..not flush the fluid regularly and you should be fine. Volvo's are high maint. cars but find a good mechanic and you should be just fine, just make sure all service records are available.

Good luck and enjoy it!

Post by **JRL** » 04 Apr 2011, 21:24

I would get your deposit back and look for a good 03 or 04

Post by **priapism** » 04 Apr 2011, 23:00

Major transmission problems with the 01s.

jda2000 · Post by **jda2000** » 05 Apr 2011, 07:02

The '98 V70 GLT or T5 is a good choice, if price of the newer ones is an issue.

Plenty of them around, strong engine and tranny and no ETM issues, since it has a wired throttle. Will last a long time if it has been maintained well.

bdragomir · Post by **bdragomir** » 08 Apr 2011, 19:25

01 are stong cars if properly maintained. Don't listen those that are telling you these were only trouble. Any car not maintained is going to fail sooner rather than later. I own 2 '01 V70 T5 and they are not higher maintenance than any other foreign (read European) car. @ 91k you can flush the tranny and if you do it every 30k you should be fine. I got one of my cars at 84k and the other at 145k. Flushed the tranny or the one w less miles and drained the other; no problems at all. As for the mechanic, just be careful they tend to be very expensive if they feel that they can ask for more money ... just ask for the quote and shop around. on the same note I would suggest to have two mechanics a good and probably expensive one for diagnostic and a cheaper one for replacing parts

Volvo's are strong machines just maintain it properly and you will enjoy it for a long time.

Good luck!

koffinb · Post by **koffinb** » 08 Apr 2011, 20:04

bdragomir wrote:01 are stong cars if properly maintained. Don't listen those that are telling you these were only trouble. Any car not maintained is going to fail sooner rather than later. I own 2 '01 V70 T5 and they are not higher maintenance than any other foreign (read European) car. @ 91k you can flush the tranny and if you do it every 30k you should be fine. I got one of my cars at 84k and the other at 145k. Flushed the tranny or the one w less miles and drained the other; no problems at all. As for the mechanic, just be careful they tend to be very expensive if they feel that they can ask for more money ... just ask for the quote and shop around. on the same note I would suggest to have two mechanics a good and probably expensive one for diagnostic and a cheaper one for replacing parts
Volvo's are strong machines just maintain it properly and you will enjoy it for a long time.

Good luck!

he is right! Don't let these people scare u. Volvo's are great

Post by **precopster** » 09 Apr 2011, 02:17

No-one is trying to knock Volvos here. There are two main maintenance items which statistically have maimed their fair share of '99-'01 Volvos

1) The Magnetti Morelli Throttle Module which is prone to fail on ALL 99-01 Volvos REGARDLESS OF MAINTENANCE. Do your due diligence on this forum AND ELSEWHERE. There is a whole section in this forum called DON'S ETM ROOM. The ETM history should be checked on ANY Volvo you're about to purchase. If just replaced you will have some life left in it. If one of the (redesigned) XeModex ones HASN'T been fitted and it has afew miles on it you are skating on thin ice. Oh and yes driving style alters the failure rate. Apparently wear takes place mostly on ones with lots of country miles away from traffic jams where the throttle has been sitting within a small range of movement.

2) The auto gearbox has known issues and again was a poorly designed valve body. Even with regular servicing many have failed prematurely and expensively. Of course there are exceptions to every rule but to test the theory try finding a used 99-01 auto box with a reasonable warranty and compare its price to a 97-98 auto box price; this is because of their rarity and known failure rate.

I just bought a '99 V70 as a restore project but I spent very few dollars on it because of all the research I'd done on this forum. JUST CHECK THIS CAR OUT and spend as little as possible.