Looking at joining the Volvo family

[ZenBass]

Hello,

Been lurking for a while in the background so thought I'd better register and start asking all the questions that car dealers cannot.

I am looking to swap my Skoda Superb L&K Estate for something a bit different as I have had 3 of them in the past...time for a change.

A rather nice Volvo V90 CC Pro D4 has come across my bow, it's a 67 Plate with most of the bells and whistles on including the B&W system..it doesn't come the Pano roof which is a bit gutting.. It does have the 21 inch open 5 spoke wheels on it (Polestar upgrade ?) which may have to be swapped out depending on how much they detriment the ride.

I have a viewing booked on Sat at Volvo - Doncaster but there are a few questions I 'd like to ask before heading on in.

1, I've heard the gearboxes are a bit hesitant and tends to either hold on to the gears or refuse to kick down when a burst of acceleration is needed, is this actually true ?, I come from a 7 Speed DSG which uses wizard like choices

2, The D4 vs D5 ? , is there a massive difference in performance ?, the PowerPulse technology should spool up the Turbo's quicker but from what I've heard fuel economy is not particularly good in the D5 and I should expect low to mid 30's around town and around mid 40's on a long run. True or not ?


3, Boot Space, okay so I've looked at a few and tbh nothing on the road (in Estate form) is bigger than a Superb. The V90's boot is wider and longer than the Superb but noticeably shallower. I have 2 large dogs (GSD and a Lab), bar trying to persuade a dealer to let me thrown them in the boot..do we think it will be large enough considering they love sitting up and watching the world go by out of the back window?. Difficult to gauge really

4, Those Wheels, although they look lovely I guess they pretty much ruin the ride and would cause crashing and shimmering on Pot Hole'd and uneven road surfaces (so that's pretty much all roads near me). I would also assume they make the ride fidgety. Test drives are often performed with Rose tinted glasses on and the day to day niggles don't become apparent until you actually live with the thing. My Superb runs on 19s but does have Adaptive Dampers all round which I don't believe the CC has unless they were spec'd as an option , thus no luxury of turning on 'Comfort' mode to soften the ride out.

5, Anything else I should be looking out for ?

Here is the link to the beast

https://www.riversidemotors.co.uk/vo...s-and-wilkins/


Any advice would be greatly welcomed and thanks for reading my rambles

[Beavis]

Originally Posted by ZenBass

Hello,

Been lurking for a while in the background so thought I'd better register and start asking all the questions that car dealers cannot.

I am looking to swap my Skoda Superb L&K Estate for something a bit different as I have had 3 of them in the past...time for a change.

3, Boot Space, okay so I've looked at a few and tbh nothing on the road (in Estate form) is bigger than a Superb. The V90's boot is wider and longer than the Superb but noticeably shallower. I have 2 large dogs (GSD and a Lab), bar trying to persuade a dealer to let me thrown them in the boot..do we think it will be large enough considering they love sitting up and watching the world go by out of the back window?. Difficult to gauge really

welcome, i cannot comment on most of your questions, but can add a couple of bits.
i too had a Skoda Superb SE-L estate 190 model which i got rid of last year due to quality issues and appalling customer service - a failed steering rack on a 2 year old 20k miles car was met with a reply "if you're worried about driving it, don't do the journey!!".

my response was to cancel the PCP contract i was on.

I'd previously had 10+ years of Volvo models and whilst my local dealership is pants, there is a good one a few miles further on, plus Volvo UK was very good on some issues i had on a 4 year old XC90 a few years back.

So whilst i was considering my next move, i went into an old school Audi A6 V8 estate for a few petrol thrills.

i had the Superb 190 diesel DSG model, and it was fantastic - particularly in sport mode - handling and acceleration very good for a diesel estate.

i wanted a petrol car as i do low miles, plus i'm worried what will happen to diesel fuel costs in the future, and the cost of my petrol T4 is £100pm less than the same D4 model. i am due to take delivery of a new T4 momentum plus on Monday. My initial impressions on viewing it is that is it is more "barge like" than the superb, bit more wafety and leans more in bends, but overall i thought i nicer place to be. i'd have liked the extra torque of the D4/D5/T5, but they all came in over £100pm more than the T4 - i'm sure i'll manage for the next 2 years, although as a petrolhead it was something which crossed my mind.. :/

i almost bought the V90XC last year, but chickened out at the last minute as i thought the boot was very shallow, and i too have a dog which i put in a cage. The boot floor is flat, whereas the Skoda dropped down around 2 inches from the boot sill - so it was a bit taller. overall, its only around 5-10 litres smaller than my A6, which was slightly smaller than the superb. i've got over the size and only time will tell about how it works. i've got this new car for 2 years, at which point i'll probably get fed up and change again (i usually change every 1-2 years - usually going for a 2nd hand car, but this new model came in at a price too good to refuse.

i'm going with 18" wheels - my current 19"s on the audi are too firm even when the suspension is in comfort mode - and thats will air suspension which is usually a bit more giving than normal shocks/springs.

the auto boxes on my previous volvos were not as good as the DSG - usually a bit hesitant - i've not tested the v90 one long enough to make a definitive decision, but i'm sure it'll be better than the last generation volvos i used to own.

good luck in your viewing and making a decision.

[badonkadonk]

I find the gearbox very hesitant in normal mode, but a lot better in dynamic mode. Give it a shot and see what you think.
Personally I would be more woried about the 21" wheels, and their ability to avoid pothole damage to wheels and tyres.

[Zebster]

Lovely cars in general, however I'd strongly advise against buying a 2014 to 2018 Volvo diesel... loads of reported EGR problems and a current 'recall' (no fix yet!) for an intake manifold problem which may result in the manifold deforming or even catching fire. Apparently the used values are dropping off a cliff-edge.

[skippyfox]

Hello ZenBass and welcome to the forum.
Firstly, yes some times I've noticed the auto box hesitates, usually when coming up to a roundabout or a give way junction, if it's clear and I put the foot down the gearbox sometimes feels like it doesn't know what gear to be in.
Regarding performance the D5 has more grunt but at a cost. It is a thirstier engine. Round town I'm getting roughly 35mpg, a pal of mine with his D4 is up in the early 40's
The boot space is a bit limited due to the sloping rear window, having had a XC70 with a more vertical tail gate, it's something I've had to get used to.
Has for the 21 inch Wheels, I personal would dump them and go for 19's
Other than that the V90 is a cracking car to drive.

MY68 V90 R Design D5 AWD.

[ZenBass]

Hey All,

Thanks for the Welcome

So a few of your replies pretty much confirm what I already thought, I've put a small deposit down the car so it doesnt get away from me, I missed out on a V90 D5 R-Design Pro with pretty much every options ticked. I am not a mad man and will walk away, I guess my issue is my car is currently up for sale and I think I've already sold it in less than 24hours

I am not massively worried as the next potential owner wants a couple of weeks as their are going away on holiday but wanted to secure the car before they went.. #BONUS !!!

I've been ummming and aaahhhrring over what to purchase next but pretty much (for those who are in the know) the L&K Superb has pretty much every bit of kit on it just and is lovely to drive, I am moving it on purely for financial reason as the amount left on my loan is pretty much half of what the car is worth, it's hit 45k on the Clock and with the imminent release of the next gen model, used values are only going south so it's time to cash in and walk away with a useful £7-8k in my back pocket. Not bad considering I didn't put any deposit on it, got it on a 2% loan and slightly overpaid the monthly figure...

I do have 2 x Large Dogs and a 2 year old daughter with all the clobber that comes with it so the boot is a massive selling point to me, it appears (even though I really like them) A V90 may, afterall not be the right choice.

I do have several other options up my sleeve

1 being a rather nice 65 Plate Merc E Class 220CDI 7-S Night Edition with Premium Plus Pack and the much wanted drivers assistance package. I won't go back to a car that doesn't have BLIS, Lane Keep Assist and Adaptive Cruise Control, they are a must. Volvo's pretty much have this as standard. This is just pre the new model so its a W212. Now that has got a huge boot.....

The other options is see if I can get a XC90 in my budget. That would be a totally impractical but practical choice as I wouldn't get it in the garage and my partner needs the other space (She has a Tiguan, same issue with the garage). However anther 'Want' of mine is not to have a standard sound system. The Superb's Canton System is one of the best in the business without going silly...(hence I eyed up the V90CC as it has the B&W). I wish there was a way to upgrade the Volvo's standard system with the HK version, but a few calls to dealers ...ermm no...

The last option is just do something rather daft, buy another Skoda Superb but newer. Why Daft ?, I think I'd go for the L&K but the 272 TSI 4x4 (Golf R Engine) and watch the fuel simply evaporate.

Interesting comments about the ERG values and stuff, I've never had anything mechanical go wrong and I've always used a VAG Specialist for my maintenance once the warranty ran out, they've always been excellent

I will continue to ponder......I will still go and see the V90CC, and yes the wheels are ridiculous but its B&W that is the selling point. They have 3 x more CC's with the 19's on so that my be a bargaining point....swap the wheels please ..and I'll buy it !!!

Sorry, a long ramble of a reply there

[Berkshirebob]

Hi.

I have a DSG TDI Golf so my input with regards to the gearboxes..

My issue with the Volvo gearbox is not its laziness, infact the opposite. The Golf will use the torque and stay in the same gear if you ask for a bit more. My D4 is way too keen to change down with the slightest of extra throttle. There is a lag pulling away, but you soon get used to this.

Economy - 20mpg running the kids the mile or so to school, 55mpg ish on a typical M4/M25/M23 motorway run with loads of roadworks and 50 average limits.
43mpg average for the life of the car (first service tomorrow 18K in 10 months). Never in ECO, stop/start off in individual profile, and always flat-out in dynamic on my way home!
Mine is an R-Design on 18’s - ride is as soft as soft can be, presume the reports of it having a hard ride were due to big wheels.
It keeps up with traffic well enough and shines on the motorway past the speed limit.
I did get ‘done’ by a new shape 1.6 diesel Astra away from some lights this morning which broke my heart!

Great car, I love it.

[St Evelyn]

Whilst there were numerous issues with the EGR system when the VEA engine was first introduced (2014 onwards, mostly V40/V60/V70) can't say I've heard any horror stories around the same for Spa cars so it's certainly not something that I'm in any way worried about.
Same goes for the recall - it's a preventative measure, no reports of fires so far - as far as I'm concerned I have 0% worry on this front. Ultimately, if by some chance the worst should happen and my car were to catch fire I'm in the fortunate position of having paid for Fully Comprehensive insurance so it'll get fixed or replaced anyway...

There was a software update a few months back that is said to have vastly improved the gearbox. It gets applied for free as part of the service update / Selekt preparation (don't know if this would be when the car is prepared for the forecourt or being readied for customer collection) so you'd get this applied anyway. My next service is booked for Tuesday so I'll hopefully notice a difference after that. To be fair though, whilst it does seem to hold the gear a long time when changing up on occasion it doesn't bother me - I just sit there and enjoy the surroundings, relaxing as I drive.

[anotherv60]

There are a lot of options for separating the V90 boot for multiple use - you just have to forgo the automatic luggage cover:

https://www.volvopartshop.com/protec...cc-25289-p.asp

https://www.volvopartshop.com/load-l...cc-25377-p.asp

https://www.volvopartshop.com/dog-ga...cc-25293-p.asp

https://www.volvopartshop.com/load-c...cc-25291-p.asp

We had a V90 with two young children and the occasional large dog (looking after the inlaws) and the V90 boot was plenty big enough, but try it out yourself.

[SuffolkBoy]

We fit our 2 English Setters in the boot and one of their beds in the boot - lots of room for them to stretch out.
We have the Dirt Cover fitted which covers the whole boot area, saves getting dog hairs on the carpet and any muddy feet marks go onto the cover which is easily wiped.
I am very impressed with the V90 CC - it is I great long distance cruiser and the T5 petrol engine is very smooth and even better now with Polestar installed.
Good luck with your test drive tomorrow.