Automotive Emotional Bonding

[barrie013]

I can't say that I've bonded with a car, far less given one a name, but I certainly have fonder memories of some more than others. I have a theory that modern consumer items, including TV and music are 'pre-digested', to appeal to the lowest common denominator, but once in a while, a gem slips through. I believe that the 240/740 series are exaples of these gems, and perhaps the newer Volvos do't fall in to this categry for some of us. (No offence to ownwers of newer Volvos). From what you have said, you are looking for a car with character or personality...why not a 240/740 upgraded to your own desires, tuned as far as you want to take it ? There are already a couple on this forum that make my mouth water !

[Grizlyadams]

Originally Posted by barrie013

I can't say that I've bonded with a car, far less given one a name, but I certainly have fonder memories of some more than others. I have a theory that modern consumer items, including TV and music are 'pre-digested', to appeal to the lowest common denominator, but once in a while, a gem slips through. I believe that the 240/740 series are exaples of these gems, and perhaps the newer Volvos do't fall in to this categry for some of us. (No offence to ownwers of newer Volvos). From what you have said, you are looking for a car with character or personality...why not a 240/740 upgraded to your own desires, tuned as far as you want to take it ? There are already a couple on this forum that make my mouth water !

You can make any volvo really really fast, its easy enough to make 300+bhp with great handling and stopping power for any volvo...just takes money and time and skill...

Griz

[barrie013]

And yes Grizzly, yours was one of them !
Dribble
dribble

Originally Posted by dodgyken

My current car is a 1997 V70 T5 - which is a very good car. I have added Titan wheels and had her chipped. She can be driven very quickly, is comfortable and spacious. But there is a problem. I havent bonded with her.

I think it is a question of "handling". Several times you referred to how some of your old cars handled well.

Some years back, top gear did a test and concluded that the third best handling car in the world was not a mega ferrari or something like that but a peugeot 106 GTI! Reading the article meant reading Clarkson wax lyrical about handling and what it was all about, and how it wasn't just about what car could best hold the road round any bend.

I think your problem is that the car you have doesn't handle like you want it to. It will probably go round the twisty stuff better than most things out there, but maybe just feels too clinical or not 'raw' enough. I personally think you are looking for something that gives you a bit more of a driving experience (you obviously perceive your current car does not).

Now if you were a rich man (or maybe you are!) what you would (or should!) do is go and buy yourself a second vehicle, a "weekend" car, (or maybe even a bike!). This would be something rwd, sporty, a little 2+2 probably, and not silly money expensive. Maybe a semi-old classic rather than a modern machine. Maybe something like an old MX5. Maybe a caterham or even a lotus elise, I dunno.

But if you can only afford to run one car then you have a problem, because it sounds like you need something that gives you heaps more driving experience but also gets you from A to B in hot, sticky traffic jams. And there's your problem. Because there are very few vehicles that are all things to all men, and the ones that are usually cost a lot of money.

One of the few sorts of cars that I can think of which kind of achieve this are made by Honda. I've driven a couple of Accord Type-Rs and they really give it some when the VTEC kicks in and handling is good, but they can be driven quite happily in traffic. But they of course are fwd. If you want rwd in any sort of mid-range machine these days then you typically find yourself heading down the autobahn in the direction of the twin propellers. And that's a real shame because there are plenty of other BMW owners out there, so that exclusivity factor is definitely gone. But more than that, I absolutely loath BMWs, so you definitely wouldn't feature on my christmas card list!

Cheers,
Pete

[Grizlyadams]

Originally Posted by barrie013

And yes Grizzly, yours was one of them !
Dribble
dribble

Your way to kind!! shes still a bit slow at the moment, but the handling...bilstien and ipd are your friends
Griz

[RollingThunder]

I had an 850 estate and never bonded with it, despite liking the overall appearance. The ECU problems and the resultant no-starts were enough for me to start hating it with a passion. I took a loss of almost £1000 over 12 months but was happy to be rid of it. If you're feeling the same way - detached and uncaring - then I'd say you should find something else. Throwing more money at it won't necessarily change the way you feel, so find something that you can cherish from day one.

Personally, I've loved the 940 ever since buying my first one back in 1990 when they were released. I've had many many other cars, but have always returned to the 940. With careful choice of parts you can easily get 250-300 bhp from a 2.3 turbo - a real Q car. Of course, most people don't think of it as stylish, sexy, desirable even, but that fine with me - the thieving / vandalising scum usually walk past my 'old mans' car, and equally importantly, the local plod have the same attitude

[dodgyken]

Thanks for all the feedback.

I will book in a test drive with M-Coupe next week. It is a car that is more raw, more aggressive and certainly requires more effort to drive.

I have just cover 940miles (1500km to be exact) in the V70 (in 5 days). It demolished 200miles in well under 2 hours on the autobahn - peaking and still pulling at 144mph (230kmh). The fuel economy was getting very frightening though - consuming something like 7 gallons every hour!!!! The acceleration from 90mph to 130mph is near linear and brutally rapid.

The car was everything you would want a car to be on the motorway, smooth, fast comfortable and with presence that eased the passage!! But not once - not even on the Black Forest A road at the end - did the car make me feel alive.

I will keep you all posted.

And you are right my first Volvo love is a 240 - they are just anti-everything perceived as cool - but polished - on Virgos - with those large black leather seats - its monster fan sound - it is fantastic

[James_N]

my first car was a Hyundai amica on motability. A truely awfull underpowered car, but at 16, it was more than powerfull and it taught me properly how to drive over the 3 years i had it. And boy did it get some stick

My 306 HDI I never really got on with, and got bored with it after a year, so i part-exed it for:

Honda civic type r - amazing car mechanically, and the turn of speed was magic. I could now take corners at double the speed i used to take them in my 306. But the shoddy interior and constant alarm problems meant i kept my realistic dream car for a total of 8 months. I sold it and bought:

My current car - 740 Estate - cost me £100. LOVE IT It made short work of my trip to le mans fully loaded, and the fact that its not perfect means theres always something to be done. All my mates love the 740 more than my CTR, and thats because the volvo has character. My mates say when it dies, its going to have its own funeral whatever that might involve

Half of me wants an 850 T5 but i cant lose the RWD fun factor. I have so much fun on the backroads!