General Query on best diesel model to buy from V40 range

[Nogbad the Bad]

Hi

I have an S80 petrol, and am considering a V40 D2, 3 or 4 of the current shape but of any year.

Is there a particular model year and type/power output of diesel engine that is considered to be more reliable than the others?

Also, having owned diesels before I know the high cost and pain of a diesel pump replacement. For VAG vehicles as well as the Vauxhall I had, they tend to go at about 180,000 miles. Does anyone have experience of how long they last on Volvos?

Thanks in advance.

[GrahamBrown1]

Avoid the non Volvo engine d2 it’s awful. It’s a 4 cylinder psa engine. I would be going for a 5 cylinder diesel older d3,d4 which is a Volvo engine.

The new VEA Volvo engine is 4 cylinder but did have issues with EGR valves however there is a fix in place for it. Other than that they seem good engines.

[Billggski]

D2 engine is fine, it's in millions of cars of many marquees and has impressed motoring journalists around the world.
Some folk just don't like Ford/PSA engines.

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-rev...ong-term-test/

[Proghound]

Originally Posted by GrahamBrown1

Avoid the non Volvo engine d2 it’s awful. It’s a 4 cylinder psa engine. I would be going for a 5 cylinder diesel older d3,d4 which is a Volvo engine.

The new VEA Volvo engine is 4 cylinder but did have issues with EGR valves however there is a fix in place for it. Other than that they seem good engines.

5-pot D3/D4 would be my engine of choice also. I can recommend from experience because the D3 is in my C70 (the D4 is just a higher-powered map on the same hardware). If you're looking at the adverts, you can spot a 5-cylinder lump because it's 1984cc whereas the VEA 4-cylinder D3/D4 are 1969cc. The changeover came in 2015, I think all '64 plate but certainly all earlier D3/D4 will be 5-pots.

[Leyburn]

The 185 5 cylinder D5 in my S60 was a pleasant surprise; my next dreary daily driver will probably have a four cylinder diesel, it will be gruff, ruff and run out of puff before the red line.

[GrahamBrown1]

Originally Posted by Billggski

D2 engine is fine, it's in millions of cars of many marquees and has impressed motoring journalists around the world.
Some folk just don't like Ford/PSA engines.

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-rev...ong-term-test/

Still no patch on a 5 pot Volvo engine, why would you settle for something less when they are plenty available in the age of car the man is considering.

Just my opinion but id never have one.

[Billggski]

Just saying... Experienced car journalists like the engine and think it matches the characteristics of the model.
Less is sometimes more. 🤔

[Rooster]

5 pot D3 or D4 engine,

wouldn't bother with any other

[Bonefishblues]

Life's too short to drive a 4 cylinder diesel of whatever breeding. Go 5.

[Tannaton]

Back the the OP - I would say it depends on what you want from the car.

If you aren't going to do 100k+ and you prefer economy over "appliance like" characteristics then the 4-cylinder 1.6 will work well. That 1.6 engine is the most commonly fitted in the world, it's in everything from BMW Mini, Ford, Citroen, Puegeot, even the S80 Driv-e. It is fairly reliable but Volvo's own engines are exceptionally reliable.

If you enjoy driving and/or are looking for a "keeper" which will go round the clock a few times, 5-pot is the answer.

The VEA engine is good but it feels like a highly turbocharged small engine rather than a really lusty diesel. EGR issues have been pretty much sorted now.

As with most engines, good maintenance and mechanical sympathy is the key to a long life...