General: S60 petrol or Diesel...

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Viper_7

You'll never have to replace the exhaust for donkeys years either! along with the lack of water in the fuel and lets face the carbon in the exaust - it coats it nicely and they don't corrode the same why they do on Petrol vehicles. Vipes

Volvos dont do ehausts , they have all been stainless steel since the introduction of the 850 , S60/V70/S80/ S40/V40 XC90 etc except for 400 and 900 ...only the hangers corrode after 10 years or so as they are mild steel but you can get a repair kit ... its very common to see 1993 850 with original exhaust ,

[bigjohn7]

to try and keep this topic on an even keel i have had both a d5 and now have an S60 2.5t, really wanted a d5 but they were to pricey so got an 04 98k se with sports pack, electric folding headrests plus lots of extras. So if you get the chance of an S60 with a good service history and lots of extras pick the one that runs the best , i have really enjoyed running the 2.5 for the last 12 months 26mpg local 32mpg on a run and goes like stink when required ,just serviced it myself for about £80 inc fully synthetic oil, plugs, air filter,oil filter and tool for filter.I had 2 new Falken tyres fitted at £158 just got the brake pads to change next.Also fitted new poly flex bush £20 to the top engine mount slightly harsher at tick over but better gear change hope this helps with your choice

[Viper_7]

Originally Posted by Clan

Volvos dont do ehausts , they have all been stainless steel since the introduction of the 850 , S60/V70/S80/ S40/V40 XC90 etc except for 400 and 900 ...only the hangers corrode after 10 years or so as they are mild steel but you can get a repair kit ... its very common to see 1993 850 with original exhaust ,

Good point, I was generalising a little there with Diesels as a whole.

[JIM C]

I now prefer driving a diesel for every day use with the added torque but for a blast on the back roads for fun I think I would prefer the more revy petrol. Just a thought. Would agree I would buy the best car I could get for the money.

[pigapumbu]

at that kinds of miles per year, school runs, marketing,... get a petrol. i can never justify buying a diesel. Its more expensive to buy and hence buying second hand will be high too.

But if you are looking to buy a good secondhand car and keep for a long time, petrol is what I would get. And even if I were to do 20,000 miles per year in my petrol car, I would chuck in LPG and used both.

Cheers

[meta_volante]

Hi forum people

Thanks for all the replies to my question, I was amazed at the interest level the thread gained and for the brilliant honest advice

to be honest I think I was set on buying a D5 in the back of my mind at the time of writing the original first post to this thread, and I reckon I still am, but a couple of the later replies to the thread do have some subtle +'s for the petrol version,though I think I am still swayed 70 - 30 towards the D5.

While on a rainy Saturday afternoon drive yesterday in the S40 I had a disscussion with Mrs meta regarding the looming S60 purchase - "buy whatever version makes you happy, I just want to get back into part owning and driving an S60" was her reply...

"OK great, we just need to hold out for the car colour & trim level we want, I have seen a lovely colour" I replied...

"whats that?" she asked

"Titanium Grey I think its called" was my reply

"you are of course joking aren't you?" she came back with

"err no..." says me

"blue or silver or forget it" she said shooting me sharp glance

- silence-

Why do women always make make it difficult?

regards

Andy

[Viper_7]

Titanium Grey - can't beat it!!


Doesn't polish up well though no matter how much you polish it you just end up with a shinier grey! , but then it doesn't show the much either.

I think it's a good contrast against the black interior, looks very classy and not too in your face. Just don't do Gold!

[meta_volante]

Originally Posted by Viper_7

Titanium Grey - can't beat it!!

I think it's a good contrast against the black interior, looks very classy and not too in your face.

my thoughts exactly viper

Andy

[John_C]

Meta,

It all depends how long you're going to keep the car and what you're looking for from the drive.

If you're only doing 7k per year then the difference in fuel economy between a 26 mpg petrol (which is what I used to get out of my Geartronic T5 S60) and a 50mpg diesel really doesn't add up to much.

You're looking at (very approximately!)
650 litres of diesel or 1250 litres of petrol. Call it £600 a year in extra fuel costs if you buy the most guzzly petrol version of the S60 i.e. the one I used to have

So if the D5 costs a grand more than a petrol model version for version you're looking at about two years to recoup your costs given that the diesels cost a little bit more to service than the petrols. Obviously if you go for something like a 2.0T manual you'd get better fuel economy so the timescale goes out a bit longer. You've also then got to factor in the fact that at the moment diesels hold their value better but that is changing because diesels are outselling petrols in a lot of classes now so the residuals are softening.

That's the hard-headed stuff, me I'd go for the D5 any day over any of the petrols other than the T5 and it's only because I LOVE the T5 noise and performance so much that the T5 stays ahead for me. It's all that torque, a modern diesel is very hard to beat unless you love the noise and top end power of a petrol. Like me.

Go and drive 'em mate, then make your choice. Oh, and there's an '03 plate D5 auto for sale for 6k 84k one owner FVSH in the autotrader at the moment.......

Cheers,
John

[meta_volante]

Hi John,

I would be looking at a long term ownership when I purchase the car. I understand that I am making no real saving in fuel costs opting for a diesel, though I like the option of been able to service the car myself - surely this is easier with a petrol engine - yeah? My old S60 was a 2.0tSE auto and I liked the drive that the auto gave me, though maybe a manual petrol would save me a bit more in fuel costs again? problem is I can't imagine the drive in a manual S60, a test drive is a must even if only to gauge the difference between auto and manual and then again between the 2 fuel types. Am I correct in assuming that the ETM problem was sorted on cars '04 onwards? and that a silver '04 2.0tSE is in the same price range as a silver '03 D5 SE with approx same miles? someone mentioned that silver,black and blue cars were maybe more popular and had a couple of extra hundred £s on the value?

regards

Andy