Looking for S60 T5 buying advice!

[chodjinn]

Hello,

Joined the forum a couple of weeks back and been reading a few posts here and there. I'm in the market for a new car, and at the end of the day an S60 T5 seems very good value for money, and is cheaper for me to insure than a 4-motion Golf, and half as cheap to insure as a Cosworth lol!

Anyway, I've been looking around the £4k mark, is there anything I need to be aware of when looking or test driving them?

What are common faults? I plan to do the servicing myself, good or bad idea??

Also, I have been reading many conflicting reports regarding MPG on the T5s, can someone shed some realistic light on this?? From what I gather its about mid-20s round town, less if ya boot it, and a little over 30 mpg on the motorway, are these realistic??

many thanks in advance.

olly

[s60fan]

Hi there, I got a 51 plate S60 T5 for 4.5K last year. Not had any problems with it. I read a lot of reviews when looking for mine and no common faults jumped out at me. Manuals seem to be preferred overall and there are mixed opinions of the tiptronic box.There may well be other members here who might have further knowledge regarding faults. You should be able to get a decent one for your money at the moment. You might even find a higher mileage "facelift" version which I think were introduced in 2003 and have around 10 more BHP as standard. There were recently about 8 listed on Ebay for example, some a bit more expensive though. The fuel consumption figures are about right in my experience. Best car I've owned though, by a long way!

Simon.

[chodjinn]

Thanks Simon I appreciate your response mate! ;p)

[straight5]

I bought my Jan 01 car in December for under £2k. Its got 140k on the clock and the only problem with it was the front driver's side suspension. You can hear a bit of clanking from there at low speeds. I hear its not rare for this to be a problem. Can be the Anti Roll drop link if youre lucky, or as is my case the Strut needs replacing which is a bit more dire, ie £150 as opposed to £50. Other than that its just the usual checking that everything has been maintained such as the cam belt.

PS. I absolutely love the performance, but until roads are a bit dryer, the front wheel drive struggles with the power. For your budget you could consider an S60R with AWD.

[princepugh]

Fuel mileage figures you quote are about right, go for the face-lift model if you can. Remember these are fairly big and heavy cars so suspension bushes etc do go with time, worth a decent inspection to avoid additional expense. The phase 2 does suffer the ETM problem but I think by the time of the face lift model, an imporved component was used.

[chodjinn]

Thanks guys, I've love an S60R but I've not seen one for sale, and I dont think the insurance would like it!

[princepugh]

You may also wish to review some of the articles/ threads on this forum re the Phase 2 'R' as there have been question marks over the long term reliability of the motor. Assume you've considered 'chipping' options for a standard T5?

[cameron]

This is a review site with loads of info on all volvo's

Maybe something on there to help you out ?

http://consumerguideauto.howstuffwor...olvo-s60-6.htm

Courtesy of Babybadger

Cheers

Lee

[Baj]

I had the rear ARB bushes go at around 100-110k. £135 + fitting.
Is the only thing that has gone wrong on mine to date.

Can I also suggest a 2.4T instead of T5 if insurance and other costs are important.
200BHP instead of 240 so a little slower but cheaper to run.

[thebadger]

The ARB's can be swaped out & are cheap to buy (a pair for £20-30) The ETM (electronic throttle module) is an issue that can hit any S60/V70/C70/S80 produced from 1998 - 2002.

Volvo will try & help fix it if it's an issue they have not looked at previously.

Check the top mounts on the front struts, try & get one with DSTC rather than STC (if earlier!).

Other than these issues, normal tyre kicking checks... look at the breaks too if the alloys allow! The handbreak can go on them too.. try it!

Hope this helps....

[Baj]

The rear ARBs are bonded to the bar and cannot be changed seperately without much buggering and bodging.

Make sure the doors lock and unlock properly as I think there was an issue with them on some cars.

[KPB]

Hey mate

I've bought one in Dec 08. 01/Y with 94k and full service history, phone, black leather etc for £2700. I'm no expert in these cars but i'll gladly pass on what I've learnt.

I tried 4 different ones before plumping for the current motor - I'd really suggest doing this, performance cars (esp turbocharged) often seem to vary and the T5 is no different.

The common issue I found across some of those I tried were juddering above 60mph/wheel balancing (easy fix) and I also experienced an uneven idle and malfunctioning thermostat. Both these issues are widely reported on this forum and are, again, pretty easy fixes.

I also changed all four corner brake components, cost of £130 from fleabay parts ltd. Not a complex job apart from the handbrake shoes which had disintegrated.

A few things to bear in mind:

If the car is around the 90k mark check for a timing belt change in the service history. You'll notice quite a few hit the market at this price as owners push the car on to another buyer rather than shell out. Mine had been done early so not sure what the cost of this job alone is (I was given a service receipt for £600 which had the timing belt included amongst other items). Its due around 96k.

Check the clutch condition. This is apparantly a big job and can cost £600-800 as its a 7hr labour job.

Apart from that the T5's seem pretty solid. I've sorted nearly all the minor niggles on mine, and having quickly got frustrated with the sub-3k RPM performance, I had mine RICA remapped last week.

I have to say, the results are staggering and I'd highly recommend it!

[chodjinn]

cheers guys! Still on the look out for a decent one. Can never seem to find one in the right colour, with the right interior and right alloys though!

[cornclose]

Apart from that the T5's seem pretty solid. I've sorted nearly all the minor niggles on mine, and having quickly got frustrated with the sub-3k RPM performance, I had mine RICA remapped last week.

I have to say, the results are staggering and I'd highly recommend it!

Which RICA map did you go with please ?

[cameron]

What S60 are you looking for? T5 obviously but what colour, box, Alloys and colour ?

I'll keep my eyes peeled.

Cheers

Lee

P.S. This looks a tidy example and low mileage......http://search.autotrader.co.uk/es-uk...cleRegLetter=Y

[thebadger]

Alloys are an easy comodity to come by... I have 2 sets, one winter, one summer. A genuine set of "nice" volvo alloys (they always seem to suit the car better than aftermarkets) is between £200-£500 (depending on the look & tyres, also the colour & condition).

Favorite flavours are.... Pegasus, Anthracite. Comets, any colour! Nebulas, split rims, so mixed colours. Orestes, silver bright. Volans, anthracite.

Any quieries about how these look.... just look at the lovley machines in most signatures!

[KPB]

Which RICA map did you go with please ?

I got the RICA 310, with PPC, supplied by Farnsfield Garage nr Mansfield. Very good service too.

[KPB]

What S60 are you looking for? T5 obviously but what colour, box, Alloys and colour ?

I'll keep my eyes peeled.

Cheers

Lee

P.S. This looks a tidy example and low mileage......http://search.autotrader.co.uk/es-uk...cleRegLetter=Y

That's one of the four I looked at. Decent nick, okay dealer willing to do a deal...but it was the one that shook itself to bits over 60mph. Possibly just wheel balancing required but I wasnt prepared to risk it. He said he'd fix it as a condition of sale but I decided to look elsewhere. Its been up for sale about 3-4 months now. Needs a service and 4 tyres too.

[cameron]

Orestes MMMMMMMMMMM

Theres a set on ebay now @ £315 http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...MEWA:IT&ih=015

Lee

[thebadger]

Orestes MMMMMMMMMMM

Theres a set on ebay now @ £315 http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...MEWA:IT&ih=015

Lee

Running a set now as my winter boots! Need a recoat tho! Have my Comets ready by mid may for summer bling.... ah the joys!