Looked at a 2007 XC90 V8 today

[scot850]

The local Volvo dealer (the only one within 200 miles) generally don't retail gen 1 XC90's. They say they usually have too many repairs needed to justify re-sale so they ship them all to auction. So I was surprised to see one for sale on Sunday in a new ad for the dealer. It is a V8 with only about 70,000 miles (110,000km) which is low and supposedly serviced at the dealer. I thought it was worth looking at as I have spoken to a couple of folks I know who have the V8 and they like them. I know they have the same issues as the other XC90's and some of the XC70 issues too.

The price is high in my opinion ($19,000 CDN - About $14.5-15,000 US) but hey there are not many options out there.

Naturally it had to be snowing and cold/damp today, but had to go to the dealer for a couple of other reasons so take a look while there.

I cleaned the snow off it and it looks bodily pretty clean as best you can tell with a wet vehicle, but no obvious dings or dents or large scratches. Not sure of the official color, it is listed as blue, but has a slight green tinge to it, The interior is black and the load cover is in the vehicle there as is a set of winter tires and rims.

Interior needs the carpets cleaned or pressure washed! The rest needs cleaned. I prefer to view vehicles in the 'raw' before the dealer has touched it to give a better understanding of the previous owner.

Tired starting it but it felt like the battery was low, but it started with quite a lot of rattling. That subsided as the engine warmed up. Sounded like oil starvation? Not sure how long the vehicle had been standing. Do these have the oil retention valve like the old engines/filters?

Other than that, the hood struts have failed, the windshield has 2 cracks in it, and the cabin fan motor is noisy. So possibly not too bad if the issues are fixed.

Got permission to ask the service guys about the service history. A few points jumped out but are relatively minor like the rear brakes will need done soon Dec 2016 service visit). The issues that jumped out were: 1) Starter motor is drawing too much current (hence the slow starting), but more tellingly the rear main seal is weeping.

Those repairs could be expensive so I have a feeling, the vehicle will be sent to auction as I would think the repairs could be in the $5-7k range, and even possibly more if done by the dealer. Thy have put the car in for an inspection in the next day or so and have promised to send me a copy of the inspection report.

I know the rear main is a big job and could be $2-3000, windshield is expensive too, starter motor to buy here is $600 at least, heater fan is $500 + so the parts add up quickly. So I'll just have to wait and see.

Good news is the V8 has a timing chain and not timing gear, so that doesn't need doing. Downside is the chain tensioners and pulleys have a 8 year/100,000 mile expectancy before the eat the front timing cover and leak oil and that timeline has passed. That is another $3000 job! Didn't bother driving the vehicle as it was low on gas and a waste of time until they decide to retail it or not after an inspection. Haven't even looked at the other brake items, front suspension, angle gear, AWD system, Rear wheel bearings and prop-shaft, and last but not least if the PO had the 60,000 mile 'F' service done.

Now I understand why they don't normally retail them, and also adds to my belief even a low mileage car when 8-10 years old can still suck at least $2-3000 in repairs to make them good.

Neil.

[cuhfs]

Sounds very high to me (at least for the NY, NJ, PA area). Especially with all the repairs you expect. After you get the dealers inspection report maybe offer them Kelley Blue Book "trade in price in fair condition". Saves them from having to send it to the auction and that way they retain a customer for repairs potentially. Just a thought.

[scot850]

That is a good thought and something I may try. Stupid thing is although the dealership does the repairs, the sales group are charged full price for parts and labour. This is why they often end sending the car off to auction as the repairs are over the top to make profit. Their sales price would have to include the repairs.

I get my repairs often done at a lower price as I have been with the dealer for so long, (small discount on parts or they will install parts I supply and they will sometimes give me a cut on labor cost), so strangely I pay less to repair the same car. Some repairs I could so myself to save money, but often the issue is they take their chance and send it to auction. They don't have to declare any issues so they put a high reserve on it and hope some sucker buys it not knowing better. For people like me it ends up costing too much for the repairs and the vehicle. They currently have an 06 XC90 V8 at auction with about 135,000 miles on it, same color and a reserve price of $6500 CDN (a little under $5000 US). Haven't looked at it and don't know what is wrong with it. I am tempted to find out what the issues are if they will tell me, and maybe bid on that instead. I'll update on what happens once they have done the inspection.

Neil.

[nickringelberg]

How is the V8 engine and trannie rated? It's the V6 and trannie that are toublesome, right? On a lark, over winter,I bought a 2005 T5 FWD XC90 at auction for $1000 US (additional $750 auction fees ). 218,000 miles on it and defects were listed as "Runs, bearing defective". No option to check out vehicle before auction. The last owner let it go without service for the last 10,000 I think. The radio worked, so they probably turned up the volume to drown out the noise of the things breaking on the car. After the auction, I called the ex-owner and he said he was told $4000 to repair everything, so he donated it to charity. It needed 3 wheel hubs, front left axle and ball joint, parking brakes and parking brake cable, and one ABS sensor. These I did for $900 parts. Fun car to work on, 18 inch wheels, so you can scoot underside to work on things without jacking up. Remarkably EASY to work on. My wife has owned Volvos for years, but I was always afraid to work on them, thinking they are specialized tools. This site is great to see how things are repaired! The local garage just finished off the repairs on the front that I missed to pass inspection and alignment: $800. $3450 total for a $2500 private value. It would have been a good deal if only the bearing defective!

[precopster]

Careful with that one Neil. The oil starvation noise coupled with the high starter current can mean that the engine is struggling to turn over due to bearing problems in conrods or main bearings and therefore the starter draws more current because it has more load.

There should be a book time on rear main seal; over here it's about $1,200 on a 5 cylinder which involves dropping the cradle.

Turning the motor over by hand may be a way to assess the engine's condition. A new starter then measure current draw on starter circuit may be the only way to be sure you're not getting in over your head.

[scot850]

Thanks for the warning Mike. I was thinking the same. I would not be planning to buy (assuming the boss ok's it before I sell one of the V70's or both!) it unless the issues are identified/fixed and some form of warranty included. Some of the simple stuff I could do myself like the heater fan (it is noisy but not urgent and I do have a new Behr one in the garage) and the hood struts for example. The other question I have to check on is if the 'F' service (the big 96,000km one) that costs over $1200 was done, and if the trans has been flushed recently. Again it is recommended at 80,000km. Problem often is that owners cheap out on stuff like that and then wonder why stuff breaks!

nickleringberg, still sounds like you got a nice deal on the car, even with the issues. All those issues are considered normal issues on the XC90, so now they are done it will possibly last a good while. Well done!

There is another V8 at a local auction for $10,500 min price from a dealer (not Volvo). The auction does have a warranty of sorts, that if a defect is found within 48 hours of purchase on a vehicle over $4000, you can either return it or they will negotiate with the owner for a fix/price change. Even so, not sure on that one. It does only have 145,000km on it so relatively low mileage.

Neil.

[RedGeminiPA]

Hi all! First time posting in years. I had an '04 XC90 2.5 AWD about 4 years ago, so I'm familiar with some issues.

I've started looking at an '06 V8 a buddy of mine will have for sale (he buys and sells wholesale). It has about 160k miles on it, but it appears to have been very well kept. The only mark on the body/paint is a small spot at the passenger side headlight washer, and the cover is broken off. Tires look about half tread, and seemed to be wearing evenly. Interior is in excellent shape, with no excessive wear or split seams. He's waiting for a new pulley and serpentine belt.

It looks to be pretty well equipped. From what I can see in the brochure for '06, it looks to have the Versatility, Touring, Convenience and RSE packages. The previous owner had seat covers on the front seats, and they're very well preserved. It does have halogen headlights, which is a plus to me, as the HIDs my '04 had were rather terrible. It was made in 4/06, and engine serial number is 0019517. It might need brakes and rotors, unless he's going to have his guy clean up the rotors. I believe it sat for a while, as the rotors have an unusual amount of rust on them, and the state inspection ran out in June of last year.

When looking at a picture I took of the interior, I noticed the tachometer is sitting just past the 2,500 RPM mark. Battery is disconnected or dead. I looked at it yesterday, but nobody was around, so I wasn't able to really go over it or start it up. It's sitting at a garage to be checked over better, so it should be ready to go when I buy it within the next couple weeks.

He said he can sell it to me for around $2,700, so I want to jump on it.

[scot850]

I'd be concerned as to why the rev counter is sitting off zero. It may have a speedo unit problem needing repair. Can't really answer that sa I have never seen the issue before, but know some Volvos after 1999 with the electronic dashes (like S80's) had issues with failures and heard of it on P2's but to a much lesser extent. Maybe someone else will jump in.

I think I have listed all the potential problems previously so I guess have them checked out as the 3 most expensive issues are, rear main oil seal leaks, timing chain pulley and guide failures and transmissions. Lesser but expensive are front suspension, AWD system including wheel bearings and starter motors.

At the price that does seem good to start at but the first 3 jobs can cost $3000 each up here to rectify unless you can do the work yourself.

Neil.

[JDS60R]

Having just spent 2 months fixing V8 AWD xc90's I can tell you that the rear main seal leak does occur but it is not the only thing that can cause it to leak there.

Check and see if the servo for the variable intake has had the wires repaired. If so they tilt up the upper intake and fracture the dry brittle hose that goes from the back head to the center bottom of the upper intake. This hose has wire tension clamps on it and once fractured leaks down under the intake and into a hole that runs out over the oil galley plug over the rear main seal. This then leaks out the bottom and appears to be a rear main seal leak.

These cars do often have RMS leaks but beware that it may not always be one. I would stuff something to catch the oil from under that hose and see if it stops. The tell tale sign is the slow run down of the oil from the intake so you can watch it continue to slow drip for days when not run.

[scot850]

Wow, 2 answers from the wise one in one day. I am truly blessed, and really appreciate the wise replies and insight.

I'll ask the guys at Volvo to check that out when they inspect the car, whenever that is!! Hopefully that is all it is.

Many thanks,

Neil.