Volvo s40 car is it any good?

I have an S60 and whilst it was in for a service last week the garage gave me an S40 for the day....Not a bad car at all....Much more precise than the S60...They are very good used buys, if a little bland. What year/model are you looking at 96-04 or 04 on ? Check out www.parkers.co.uk for reviews !
 
I'd be looking at 04 and later as second hand, smart looking car, but no knothing about Volvo resale values, servicing costs, reliability etc
 
Randy,

Reliability is rock solid...Servicing costs certainly no higher than its rivals but be prepared for a bigger drop in depreciation. I'm not really sure why...Volvo drivers are a very loyal bunch and seem to drive nothing else but maybe they depreciate more because the second-hand buyer or less well off aren't dying to buy a Volvo as soon as they can afford to (as they would with BM's or Merc's)....Just keep in mind that the model changed in '04 and there is a striking difference in the styling between the two models so you'd lose out big time come re-sale if you opted for the older one!

r2d2
 
r2d2 said:
Just keep in mind that the model changed in '04 and there is a striking difference in the styling between the two models so you'd lose out big time come re-sale if you opted for the older one!

r2d2
Click to expand...
plus the older model is supposed to be rubbish
 
I have a 01 S40 and am very happy with it. I bought it over a year ago for just under 12k - which was the going rate for a 1.8l S40 with 38,000 miles on the clock. That price equated to nearly (if not over) 60% depreciation in 4 years on a car that was doing less than 10,000 miles a year. So if you buy - be prepared to see the value drop.

Otherwise, I've had no problems of any kind in well over a year of driving. A very solid car to drive (I know I really sound like a Volvo owner!).
 
How strange... I just bought a '99 S40 1.8 last weekend.
I've only had a couple of days driving it so I'm not really in a position to review it, however it seems to be well powered, comfortable, looks good.

Downside, the interior is pretty basic, sound is good, but stereo is basic.
 
The older model is ok, and the T4 version is a stormer. V40 is nicer still.

The current car is much better dynamically.
 
I'd only consider the new model. Every time you looked at your old S40 in the drive you'd know that for a few grand extra you'd have a COMPLETELY different car, lightyears ahead of the old one. The buff's tell you that its built on the Focus chassis, yet it competes with the 9-3, 3 series, a4 and so on, but it doesn't really, it fits nicely between the 2. You can pick up a new model '05 for about 24-26k, not bad for a 32k car.
Neighbour has a V50 (new s40 estate) in the 2L diesel engine, and what a car!
Also, the interior, with its floating console is a revelation in my opinion, and only a matter of time before the other stable-mate manufacturers copy/paste it.
As if that wasn't enough, the list of STANDARD extras on the new S40 is excellent (pretty much everything you'd need).
 
I'm also interested in the S40, the 1.6 diesel version, any more opinions on that?

Hope you don't mind my piggybacking.....

C
 
Me too Carmel.
Hoping to buy the 1.6 diesel version early next year. Have been at the husband to look at the second hand models as the depreciation looks steep. He wants a particular set of accessories and add ons that probably can't be found or will be difficult to find in a second hand one.
Don't know anyone with this car so I would love to hear some reviews.
 

Bring one in from the uk then. I assisted a friend of mine to do just this a few months ago and we got a Nov '05 S40 with just over 3k on the clock for over 4 grand less than a similar model here with almost 20k miles.

Not only that but the spec was worth thousands more (cruise, leather, heated/elec memory seats, 6-cd changer, sunroof, duel climate etc.) and he got the colour combination he wanted.

Amazingly in the UK they come with a 3 year warranty versus 2 years here. So even though the car was just over 6 months old he carried over 2 and a half years of warranty with the car, i.e. 6 months more than from new here. Warranty is honoured accross Europe.

Lovely car too, imho a decent alternative to a 3-series for those who don't care about the badge and aren't bothered about fwd.
 
I've had 2 cars (Fords) with that same 1.6 TDCI/HDI 110bhp engine.

It's an excellent unit.
 
Thanks everyone sounds like a resounding yes all round then!

how does the 3 years warranty come into play here if the car is imported, can't imagine too many Irish dealers being very enthusiastic about helping you if you hit any trouble!

Do you know how much VRT was paid, presume it was still worthwhile importing?
 

The dealers have no choice, they must honour the warranty as it was issued by Volvo, no reason they wouldn't be happy to help anyway. As to why they get three years in the uk versus two in Ireland i've no idea but suspect it's to do with more competition over there.

Can't recall the exact figures but after vrt was paid and taking into account flights, accomm (we stayed a night but didn't have to), ferry etc the saving was still in excess of four thousand euro versus buying a much lesser equiped and higher milage 05 here.

Have bought my last three cars in the UK and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
 
Just read your reply re Volvo from last Sept.-new member. Can you advise where to go in UK for a car?
 
Any of the main dealers? I'd say you should look for the car first rather than a specific dealer. Some of the garages will actually bring the car to the ferry for you. Mr.V went over and bought one last year- they met him at the airport and drove him to garage, then presented him with flowers for me going home. Car was impeccable, loads of extras and we've had no bother since. We would definitely buy in UK again.
 
Volvo S40 - in the showroom yesterday and boot looks very deep but a bit narrow (vertically)?

Also is 1.6Diesel a bit underpowered for the V40?
 
SpatenMan said:
Volvo S40 - in the showroom yesterday and boot looks very deep but a bit narrow (vertically)?

Also is 1.6Diesel a bit underpowered for the V40?
Click to expand...

1.6D engine is a good'un. Pulls well, and is sweet, and sips fuel if driven gently.

If you want something faster the 2.0D is quite rapid.
 
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