How reliable are 850's?

SomeGuy537 · Post by **SomeGuy537** » 24 Apr 2021, 03:19

I'd say they are pretty reliable and robust. However i call these older 5-cylinder Volvos zombie cars because they aren't necesarily trouble-free but they always seem to run no matter what. Some common problems are bad valve stem seals, clogged pcv and bad piston rings. These are like terminal diseases, the car can run good despite the problems but if you want it to last a long time you should get one that doesn't have them. There are also a bunch of somewhat common problems that will keep the car from running and these include the fuel pump relay and fuel filter. Check out Robert DIY on YouTube, he has detailed information about the reliability of the P80 cars.

Post by **abscate** » 24 Apr 2021, 03:53

I think it’s easier it tune on the -1998 platform, before ME7 came, but I’m not an expert on this stuff.

Post by **Goupil** » 24 Apr 2021, 04:46

I'd agree with SomeGuy537, they have some issues like all cars have but most of them won't stop an 850 from driving. That's what gave them their reputation of reliability imo.
That means some owners wont fix the problems and live with it, so be aware of the common issues when shopping.

On the plus side, there's a huge community with a lot of DIYs and parts are for the most part readily available. And the community usually finds a way around NLA parts.
The rustproofing is really good if that's a concern where you are

Post by **Chuck W** » 24 Apr 2021, 06:39

abscate wrote: 24 Apr 2021, 03:53 I think it’s easier it tune on the -1998 platform, before ME7 came, but I’m not an expert on this stuff.

It's easier from a DIY approach. The ME7 is stuff is tunable, but it's not as accessible. There's also no CAN BUS stuff to deal with on the -98 cars.

Post by **scot850** » 24 Apr 2021, 11:04

It all comes down to maintenance or lack there of. In Canada people tend to run the cars till they stop and then sell them. Little maintenance gets done, so by the time a 25 year old car comes to market it takes a lot to get it back to a good running condition. I usually estimate $2500-3000 to get a local car up to a decent standard. FWD cars are generally easier to work on with better parts availability. The AWD (you didn't get them in US in 850 AWD manual trans form) parts for the rear are getting hard to find and much is getting NLA.

I like the 850's as good solid cars. If you can find one that is good grab it.

C30 is nice but fat guy here can't get into them. Even the P1 chassis S40/V50 are tight for me. Changing the spark plugs is a pain as you have to remove the intake to access the plugs. Daft design as all the intake is plastic on top of a hot engine. The P1's are also hard on front suspension parts for some reason.

Good luck which ever way you go.

Neil.

Post by **matthew1** » 24 Apr 2021, 11:53

GarrisonHale, from the factory, the 850 was extremely durable.

But you're asking the wrong question. IMHO after 10-15 years a car's reliability reputation starts to become less important than the condition of any particular sample of that car. By 25 years it's almost entirely dependent on service history.

Example: I'd rather have a 1995 Peugeot with timely, up-to-date, documented service than a 1995 Toyota Corolla with poor or unknown service.

So it rests entirely on how good of a 850 sample you can find.

And therein, as they say, lies the problem.

Use this to get buying tips https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/categ ... ers-guide/

Post by **manovlov** » 24 Apr 2021, 12:21

Well, a 850, without any doubt to me : comfort, secure, cool, strong, reliable, easy to fix, and a really premium girl-trap !
Yes, i recognize, it's not the most objective point of view you've ever read, but...
Seriously, car depends on the owner. For me, few electronic,no turbo, a very strong engine, as read somewhere here, lot of DIY, Matthew, Abscate and Scot2X425 and others Gentlemen, a marvellous website which calls,...which calls... what's the name of this place already ? ah yes, MVS, Marvellous Vebsite Spacial...

I don't know the C30.

Manov

Vroam vroum !

Post by **erikv11** » 24 Apr 2021, 12:48

manovlov wrote: 24 Apr 2021, 12:21 ... ah yes, MVS, Marvellous Vebsite Spacial...

Makes my day!

Post by **manovlov** » 24 Apr 2021, 13:17

I mean that :

: Capture d’écran 2021-04-24 à 21.16.00.jpg (126.84 KiB) Viewed 7317 times

If you compare to a C30, it's aso little smal car...

: Capture d’écran 2021-04-24 à 21.17.49.jpg (24.33 KiB) Viewed 7317 times

It's obvious, isn't it?

Vram Vroum

Post by **misha** » 24 Apr 2021, 14:17

manovlov wrote: 24 Apr 2021, 13:17 I mean that :
Capture d’écran 2021-04-24 à 21.16.00.jpg

If you compare to a C70, it's aso little smal car...
Capture d’écran 2021-04-24 à 21.17.49.jpg

It's obvious, isn't it?

Vram Vroum

It looks like C30 to me.