General: XC90 3.2 petrol or diesel??!

[cath123]

Hi All,
I am new here so please be gentle!

With our expanding family (along with my waist line!) we are now after a practical family SUV and the XC90 definately fits the bill and the wife approves which is the main thing! So its nearly all systems go.

After a search I couldnt find any info on this but can anyone shed any light on the reliability on the 3.2 petrol model vs the diesel?
We wil be doing most shortish journeys but with one longish one each week.

The vehicles we're interested in are namely 2007/8 models (pref sport).

Cheers,
Jimbo.

[t5_monkey]

Welcome to the forum!

Petrol... if your second name 'Sheikh' ?

What's your annual mileage? If it's less than 10k petrol may be the way to go... more and diesel makes more sense.

Diesels give more mileage but parts can cost a lot more if the engine goes wrong.

Petrol will be a lot 'nicer' to drive too.

[MtillingVolvo]

Originally Posted by t5_monkey

Petrol will be a lot 'nicer' to drive too.

True, although the 3.2 unit is a bit gutless in the XC90 I have found. If you go down the petrol route you may as well go for the V8 = Loads of fun!

This one would do nicely:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classifi...1500?logcode=p

Or this one if you fancy a sport and a bit of "look at me!!"

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classifi...1500?logcode=p

[Rawas]

Hi there,
Don't know much about the diesels, but the 3.2 is a reliable car. I bought my full options 2008 XC90 3.2 AWD with 16,000 km.on in early 2010. Took it on a two very long trips to Turkey on two consecutive summers, no problem what so ever. The 3.2 has 238 hp. not a lot, but pretty good in climbing mountains with family and luggage. Fuel consumption is high, but normal for a car this heavy.
The 2008 model year would be the most reliable according to U.S News, rankings & reviews, scored 8.2/10 points vs 7.9 for the 2007. I love this vehicle, everything in it seems fit and family friendly, the fact that Volvo mounts their engine transversely up front, gives you a internal cabin space unmatched by an same size SUV.
I would avoid the R-Design it is not as comfortable as the standard models, to make up for the loss of rigidity, simply add a front strut support 200$ and ten minutes of work.
Finally, opt for the premium sound system, with the 12 Dynaudio speakers you will forget about driving.
Good Luck

[cath123]

Thanks so much guys for the quick responses!

Our mileage is circa 6 to 7k per annum, this includes a 1k round trip for the summer hols.

How does the V8 fuel cons compare to the 3.2?

Seems so far, that there's no major flaws in the 3.2 reliability... any more views?

Just out of curiosity, is the 3.2 unit shared with any other marque? Or is it purely Volvo derived?

[Rawas]

1- 3.2 is a 6 cylinder in line Volvo engine.
2- V8 is an 8 cylinder Yamaha engine developed for Volvo, ceased production in 2010. runs 3-4 miles less per gallon than the standard six.
Both power plants are reliable, clean bill of health. Trouble free six speed Aisin-Warner transmission drives both cars, very short first gear.
3- Haldex of Sweden Makes the AWD system.
4- Nivomat self levelling rear suspension.

Feel free to ask for more.

[Ron_XC90]

The 3.2 petrol is a great engine for the XC90 but they are quite hard to find as people tend to go for the diesel.

Bonus is that 2nd hand price for petrol engine is lower than a similar D5 but you will have more problems selling it when it comes to it.

Based on your annual mileage I don't think you have to worry about a few more mpg. Petrol is slightly cheaper than diesel at the pump, so it probably evens out.
Also no worries about DPF clogging with low mileage diesels

In your situation I would go for petrol...

[cath123]

Thanks for replies it seems the v6 maybe the one to go for.
I am a little concerned about the demand come resale but will be planning on keeping the car for a few years.

What's the service plan like on these?
I am coming for VAG where there is long life servicing, not that I am great fan of keeping the oil in for 20k miles!

I guess the AT oil needs every 40k miles?

Is there a cam belt on the 3.2?

Sorry for all the questions!!

Cheers!

[Gucci]

Although not a Volvo, I bought similar a few years ago. I had a Mercedes 3.7 V6 ML (living in London too). Mileage was about 6,000 and not too problematic for petrol - and it sounded very nice indeed! I do miss the sound. Sigh.

I got itchy feet about escalating road tax and some big bills were around the corner in maintenance, so I threw in the towel on big V6 4x4.

Want a V8 now

[Jim314]

Originally Posted by cath123

Thanks for replies it seems the v6 maybe the one to go for.
I am a little concerned about the demand come resale but will be planning on keeping the car for a few years.

What's the service plan like on these?
I am coming for VAG where there is long life servicing, not that I am great fan of keeping the oil in for 20k miles!

I guess the AT oil needs every 40k miles?

Is there a cam belt on the 3.2?

Sorry for all the questions!!

Cheers!

The Volvo 3.2L is an inline six cylinder of a new design, called the Volvo short inline six or si6. The si6 was designed by Volvo and is manufactured at the Ford engine plant in Bridgend Wales. It has a timing chain (not a belt) which should last the life of the engine.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_SI6_engine.

The 6-spd Aisin AW auto transmission has a special long lasting ATF which has no specified change interval and may last well over 100k mi. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AWTF-80_SC.

My experience with the Volvo 3.2L is that is has plenty of power and is extremely smooth running.