Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Volvo S40

I

imaketouchtheme

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 5, 2007
1,097
4
Hey guys,

Yes, this is a thread about cars, and yes, I did just buy a VW Passat, but bear with me here.

My friend has recently offered to purchase my 2003 1.8T Passat as I've been looking for a car with a bit more power. I was looking at Volvo S40's (the 2.4L 5cyl) and I was wondering if anyone has any experience with those? The particular one I'm looking at is a 2004 model. It's currently wrecked, but I plan to purchase it and rebuild it if I decide to go with it.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.
 
Ah, the S40- I almost bought one of those last year... a 2005 model with 43k miles.

I must say they are nice cars, plenty of power with the 2.4L option. They're comfortable, with pretty good gas mileage too. I liked them because the purchase price wasn't too outrageous, and volvos are known to be pretty safe. A relative has a 1981 volvo that is still working fine, although it's a little slow compared to today's automobiles obviously.

I eventually decided against getting the S40 though....not that it isn't a good car, but volvo parts are fairly expensive, since the company is based in Sweden. Also I heard a few too many stories about people's AC units needing replacing after only 60K miles, an expensive procedure. I caution you if you plan to fix up a wreck... parts are expensive. I'd just get a clean titled 2004-2005. If you are going for a wreck, mind as well go for a 2006-2008 model so you can get a few more years of driving out of it.
 
Run away from any wrecked car IMO.

As for the S40 - good car, but not as sharp as a BMW or Audi though it will cost the same to fix. I assume you are talking about the T5 model with the turbo 5 cylinder and FWD.

Personally, I'd go with a contemporary 3 Series or a WRX. But I'm sure the S40 would be decent.
 
How wrecked? I plowed my truck into a Honda accord and bent my frame. I wouldn't buy a wrecked car and try to fix it without knowing what was wrong with it, not even close.
 
One for vote for staying away from salvage cars... Even if everything checks out initially, the long term durability of the vehicle has been compromised.

That said, depending of your definition of "wrecked," maybe you'll be fine...
 
imaketouchtheme said:
Hey guys,

Yes, this is a thread about cars, and yes, I did just buy a VW Passat, but bear with me here.

My friend has recently offered to purchase my 2003 1.8T Passat as I've been looking for a car with a bit more power. I was looking at Volvo S40's (the 2.4L 5cyl) and I was wondering if anyone has any experience with those? The particular one I'm looking at is a 2004 model. It's currently wrecked, but I plan to purchase it and rebuild it if I decide to go with it.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

I'm in agreement with all of the other posters.

Actually, my brother is currently looking at used Volvo S40s, so this discussion is pretty topical. The Volvo is a great car, sturdy, safe - this is a car which is designed to cope with Scandinavian winters - and it is built to last quite a long time. However, Lord Blackadder and macEfan both point out (correctly) that Volvo parts are expensive, so you may need to factor that in to your potential costs. Properly maintained and cared for, you can expect to get years out of it.

However, what I do not understand is why you would wish to buy a "wrecked car"; avoid such a thing. I would regard any wrecked car as seriously damaged goods and would run a mile if offered such.

My advice would be to buy a good quality, used, (not wrecked) Volvo, one that you know the history of, and the service history of, and care for it properly.

Cheers
 
All the folks saying to stay away are spot on unless you are a mechanic and enjoy working on cars yourself. If the frame is ok, there is a possibility that you could get a fairly decent deal on the vehicle but you may have to dump some time and money into it to get it right. I wouldn't hesitate to buy a salvaged car as a secondary vehicle until was comfortable that it was operating normally. Only then would I sell my primary. Volvo's are nice but parts are fairly expensive so expect to pay.
 
Plymouthbreezer said:
One for vote for staying away from salvage cars... Even if everything checks out initially, the long term durability of the vehicle has been compromised.

That said, depending of your definition of "wrecked," maybe you'll be fine...
Click to expand...

Well yes and no. My frame was bent but the collision center has the necessary tools to fix it. I saw it pinned to a lift and it was obvious this kind of repair cannot be done by just anyone. At under 30 mph and hitting a car half the size of mine, frame damage was absolutely a shock. Either way, for me I have a lifetime warranty on the repair and parts and that transfers.

I guess frames of newer cars are different, at least that is what I was told. Either way, this kid needs to stay away from a wrecked car unless he's had a full estimate from a place HE brought it.
 
jessica. said:
Well yes and no. My frame was bent but the collision center has the necessary tools to fix it. I saw it pinned to a lift and it was obvious this kind of repair cannot be done by just anyone. At under 30 mph and hitting a car half the size of mine, frame damage was absolutely a shock. Either way, for me I have a lifetime warranty on the repair and parts and that transfers.

I guess frames of newer cars are different, at least that is what I was told. Either way, this kid needs to stay away from a wrecked car unless he's had a full estimate from a place HE brought it.
Click to expand...

All cars today are designed to crumple in a collision. Most of the time the frame can be straightened or cut then welded to get it straight. However, this does weaken the structure and in another collision of the same nature it may not do what it was originally designed to do.

If you are a handy mechanic with some skill you can fix up a damaged car but like you said, you might need some special tools to do it. When I worked on a few fixer uppers I had access to a lift and welder as well. On top of that I had my tool box which had just about everything I needed. The only thing I didn't do was outer body work (dents and paint). I don't do as much as I used to do, but I still do brake jobs and various other small things on our cars.

Until we know the skill of the OP, it is hard to make a recommendation.
 
Sorry for the reply!

I really appreciate all the responses. Yes, I know what I'm getting to with salvage cars, I have access to a salvage car lot with anything I'd need to fix it up. I know structure/frame damage is the hardest to straight out, but the garage has poles and cranks that can do it easy. And like someone else said, you can always cut and weld it back how it was. The only reason I was looking at a salvage vehicle was due to the price. My family attends a salvage auction every Tuesday and I'm assuming the particular S40 will go for $2,200. That in conjunction with the repairs will still leave me out way ahead.

After researching it more and seeing this car will be even worse than my VW, I'll probably steer clear of it. I've been looking at the W8 version of my car as well, but I don't really know if I want another Passat or not.

Thanks again!
 
i own an '05 s40. it rides extremely well. mpg on it though could be better considering the size of the car. as others have said, parts are expensive unless you've got friends who own garages and are willing to cut you a deal. :D
 
I know it's not the same, but my first car was a 1999 Volvo S80 T6; transverse mounted 2.8L twin-turbo inline 6; stock 270hp at like 5300rpm, 280lb-ft at 1800rpm, 1/4 mile in under 15, factory limited to 150mph, and more computers/sensors/wires in it than a F1 car lol.

i loved that car. black on black with 5% tint all around, custom Borla turbo-back exhaust and K&N intake, reprogrammed the computer and changed the mapping, upped the boost(stock was around 8, I pushed it to 12), removed the speed limited, changed shift points.

Nothing like dusting clowns in their civics/preludes/pos-buckets/mustangs/camaros riced out with a huge wing, swarming bees muffler, JDM sticker(those got me worried because they add 73 wheel hp), and their "club" decal; in my 3800lb, 4-door, Volvo sedan. I still miss her :(
 
Volvos are a great car. My parents had an S80 and soon after that, an XC90 [2003]. Despite what people say about reliability, we haven't had any issues. Our XC90 looks and runs just like the 2011 models (they've hardly changed :p) They've been as good as our Hondas.

I would take a look into what exactly you mean by "wrecked" though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back