Possible purchase of 2001 S60

[jmoffett]

I am considering purchasing a 2001 S60 for my son for his first vehicle (safety and fuel efficiency are our main considerations). The car has 157,000 miles on it but looks like the previous owners have taken very good care of it. I have done some research here on the forum, as well as a couple other message boards, and learned that the predominant issue with the car would be the automatic transmission.

The transmission was rebuilt at 130k by an independent Volvo shop and I have verified with the Volvo dealership that the ETM received a software upgrade back in June of 2006. The ETM remains under extended warranty until September 20 of this year. In 2007, the fuel pump was replaced under warranty/recall at 114k. The timing belt was replaced at 130k and the water pump at 140k, as well. The seller has records to document these repairs in addition to the information I got from the dealership.

Are there other problem areas that I would need to consider before buying this car? What kind of real world fuel economy would I expect to get (daily drive would be half freeway and half hilly/curvy road)? The seller is asking $4300 but indicated he'll accept less. Assuming the car is in very good cosmetic condition and there are no other mechanical issues, what would be a fair price to pay/offer?

[priapism]

I would only buy an 01 if I knew it had a new trans, so first step is good. I only track fuel economy on long trips and I got 25 cruising between 75-90 the whole way. It gets good highway fuel economy but like any turbo it will drop when you dip into the boost. Problems I've had include lights constantly going out and an irregular idle...plus the trans, which was a big one. That looks like a good price esp with the new trans.