V70 vs. XC70? How bad do I need the AWD?

dgh74 · Post by **dgh74** » 25 Apr 2018, 15:44

Dear All:

I have been searching for XC70s or some time and I'm finding that the market is crowded with lackluster examples.

I just came across a clean, super-low mileage 2004 V70 (65K) that's priced the same as XC70s with over twice the mileage.

I've always driven old FWD Saabs without traction control, and my wife has an AWD BMW for the winter, so I'm wondering how much will I noticed/need the Haldex in the Volvo in heavy rain at highway speed?

When I've driven the BMW in the wet, I definitely notice the AWD grab, but I'm wondering if this is because the BMW is RWD-biased by default?

I've always wanted the XC, but this'll be a highway/around town car, so I'm wondering if I should just be responsible and consider the V70 instead. It's the LPT not the NA. I'm willing to give up traction, but not the turbocharger.

Thanks!

Post by **Rattnalle** » 25 Apr 2018, 16:42

If you feel like you need AWD for rain on the highway you really should be looking into getting some real tyres instead of whatever you have on.. It should not be needed ever in that scenario. That or there's been something else going on with your old Saabs.

It's barely needed for proper snow-winter driving either as long as you use proper tyres. The only real use case I can think of is if you have a steep driveway or something.

Post by **oragex** » 25 Apr 2018, 16:53

Put winter tires on a used set of wheels, forget about AWD unless you drive in a mountain area

Post by **scot850** » 25 Apr 2018, 17:09

+1 to what the guys have said. Unless you have really bad snow/ice and hills, then you don't need the AWD. AWD is a lot more expensive to maintain and a good set of winter tires means FWD is probably going to be just fine.

Living in a hilly district with ice and packed snow in the winter I have driven A Honda Oddity (sorry Odyssey Worst vehicle ever from new), a Volvo 760 turbo, and even my Suburban I ran mostly in 2WD. None had winter tires, but now I run all AWD's but we do have a real need for them, but many here do not have AWD, but use good winter tires. We are not allowed to use studded tires here, so good snow/ice tires on spare rims are the way to go. For safety I do use winter tires on all our cars now, even the AWD's.

Neil.

Post by **June** » 25 Apr 2018, 17:17

As I have said before, I will never own AWD again. FWD is just fine. At least the older ones are finicky from my experience with having one new in 98. June

dgh74 · Post by **dgh74** » 25 Apr 2018, 18:14

Thanks for the replies. Sorry if I wasn't clear-- my Saabs were always great in the rain with good tires and good in the winter with four snows. I should add that they were old 900s with no traction control or ABS. I imagine that the modern FWD Volvos with TCS are superior to the Saabs, but, that said, I feel like I appreciate the AWD in the BMW. It may well be that this is in my head and that I'm trying to rationalize buying the XC because I like the slightly jacked up stance and the plastic cladding.

Post by **oragex** » 25 Apr 2018, 18:38

Volvo comes in two favors: the STC which is a traction control, and the DSTC, which adds stability. My own opinion, the STC is not only useless, but also definitely a problem when the car needs to climb a hill with snow or needs to move from a parking lot with snow. What the STC does is it cuts the gas when the wheels start spinning. Or, in snow I always need the wheel to spin if I want to accelerate/move the car. Fortunately it can be turned off but it comes back when the car is restarted (argh)

The DSTC adds a very important safety future, the stability control.

Keep in mind that the AWD in Volvo was quite problematic (and expensive to fix) in most models prior to 2007, and maybe even after but in a lesser extend.

The advantage on the XC is that indeed the car is more lifted, because to be honest, the S60/V70 are quite low to the ground and get stuck rather easily on deep snow even with good winter tires.

Just for the sake of the AWD I would also look into a Mitsubishi SUV, they actually have 4WD and are actually decent cars (but definitely not as comfortable in the seating department)

dgh74 · Post by **dgh74** » 25 Apr 2018, 20:15

Does either work by modulating the ABS on the slipping wheel? It's funny, when I've driven the XC70s, I've felt that the handling was a little bit sloppy due to the ride height, or possibly just due to the fact that I'm test driving cars with 100K+ miles on them and possibly the original suspension. I thought I might like the V70 better because the suspension's tightened up. I didn't even consider that their lowness might be an issue RE: snow and stuff. Regardless, the build quality and the general feel of these cars reminds me of my Saabs in a way that my BMW doesn't. That's why I'm shopping for one. I always liked the Mitsus relative to some of their better known Japanese rivals. Their styling's appealing. I'd take an 80s Land Cruiser too. But they're prohibitively expensive and don't have the fit and finish of the Volvos.

Post by **cn90** » 25 Apr 2018, 21:03

- Another vote for dedicated winter tires.

- Many years ago, I thought winter tires are costly. It is NOT true:

1. If you can prevent an accident, then you just save money. A minor bender fender etc. easily goes to $500-$1000 etc.

2. I spent $400 for a set of used rims (on ebay etc.) and another $400 for snow tires, so about $800 in total.
- The summer tires last longer simply b/c they are not used in winter.
- When you sell the car, you can always sell the used rims.
- So all in all, the cost of winter tires is very small!

The only downsides are:
1. Winter tires consume more gasoline.
2. Every year you have to jack up the car to replace the tires. But this is a positive thing too: you can take this opportunity to inspect the brake hoses, rotors, brake pads, CV joint boots etc.

Post by **jonesg** » 25 Apr 2018, 21:10

dgh74 wrote: ↑25 Apr 2018, 15:44 Dear All:

I have been searching for XC70s or some time and I'm finding that the market is crowded with lackluster examples.

I just came across a clean, super-low mileage 2004 V70 (65K) that's priced the same as XC70s with over twice the mileage.

I've always driven old FWD Saabs without traction control, and my wife has an AWD BMW for the winter, so I'm wondering how much will I noticed/need the Haldex in the Volvo in heavy rain at highway speed?

When I've driven the BMW in the wet, I definitely notice the AWD grab, but I'm wondering if this is because the BMW is RWD-biased by default?

I've always wanted the XC, but this'll be a highway/around town car, so I'm wondering if I should just be responsible and consider the V70 instead. It's the LPT not the NA. I'm willing to give up traction, but not the turbocharger.

Thanks!

I have a 2004 v70 , it has AWD.
The haldex pump leaks but that's a different subject.