1998 Volvo V70 consumer reviews

We have owned this car for 20 years, through many moves and job changes, it has always served us well.

I like the size and space in this car. Even after all these years, all the controls work. I?m enjoying the car and hope to have it a few more years

This particular V70 has been from Maine to Colorado, Miami, Carolinas, and 2 cross country trips from Seattle to Ft Lauderdale. Good on gas, comfy, roomy, heated leather seats. This one has a tow package and roof racks for the snowboards and bikes. I picked this V70 up for $2000 have put about 30000 miles on it in the last 3 years and will definitely get another Volvo when this one needs to be retired. Great car!

1998 is the Last true Swedish Volvo car as Ford took over in 1999. they cheapened the brand. Then Geely (Chinese company) purchased in 2005. The 98' v70 T5 (850 under neath redesigned nose/dash board) has been a great car for me. 236 HP, leather interior, sunroof, big back seat. its also better looking in my opinion , than the later 2001 body v70. this car is comfortable to drive , quiet on the highway. mine has 170k and still corners well, accelerates with zing. I would recommend the FWD v70's not the AWD, there drive lines fail and axle transfer setup fails. You pick up a decent FWD below $5000.

I've had this car now almost 6 months. So far this car has only needed general maintenance and some small pieces replaced considering the car is almost 20 years old. I've owned a few cars and one being a Cadillac DeVille and in comparison the Volvo hands down I'd stick with the Volvo because it handles like a touring car and the turbo performs wonderfully. Plan to later do some mods for enhanced performance to the engine and suspension.

I purchased a 98 Volvo v70 t5 station wagon as my first car from a repo lot. Since it was at that lot I didn't know if there was anything wrong with it starting out, but other than having to be jumpstarted from sitting so long, it ran great during the test drive. It had a tiny used battery in it that never failed to start for almost the entire 3 years I owned it. I loved the smooth ride and the speed. I typically kept it in economy mode, but when in sports mode it really had power. It is comfortable to ride in, although it didn't have much headroom. It has a ton of room, especially when you put the seats down. The AC in mine was absolutely incredible. It would blow so cold that you could see your breath, and I kept it on almost all the time. The seat warmers were also amazing during the cold weather. The outside temperature gauge always seemed to be accurate too. I averaged about 19.5 mpg city and got about 23 highway. As I was saying I never really had a problem with the used battery or anything else up until the end of the time I was owning the car (just shy of 3 yrs). I replaced the battery with a proper sized one and had no issues starting it up. I believe it was the fan for the AC that started to go out towards the end. I would have tried to fix the AC, but I totalled the car in an accident on the freeway avoiding hitting a horse that had gotten loose that night. I was uninjured, other than seatbelt bruises. I know that car had a lot of life left at only 172000 miles.

I've owned Volvo for a long time now and started with a S70 which I still own and have put over 140k miles on. It currently has over 230,000 and drives better than most new cars. I fully intend to easily surpass 300k and keep right on going. The high ownership costs have been completely missed by me as both of my Volvos have been very trouble free other than routine maintenance and of course tires. I purchased the V70xc as a vehicle for my wife to use but I must admit that I love driving it as well. It has been a pleasure to own and has also been very trouble free. I think that the S80 has averaged slightly more miles between tire changes and likely will continue the trend. The V70xc has been fantastic on the winter roads and unstoppable with a set of studded snow tires. This thing is a beast in snow and will easily walk off and leave my 4x4 pickup that is many times as expensive and twice as heavy in snow and ice. I am sure that the high expenses encountered by some are legitimate and i have seen many instances where things would have cost significantly more for routine things had i taken it to a dealer. But i maintain all of my vehicles myself and compared to my BMW and my several American vehicles these cars have been a breeze to maintain. I look forward to eventually passing these fine cars on to my children.

I picked up a '98 V70 GLT with over 250,000 miles for my kid for $2500 with a newly rebuilt Turbo. It had a fabulous leather interior that looked like a car with 50k miles. I ended up driving it as my everyday car. I was really nervous about the miles, but other than the ignition key lock going out, which had to be replaced by the dealer for $450, it has been a great car for nearly 30,000 miles, and like another review said, it has been super easy to work on. Anything you don't know you can find on the internet. The power windows went out - $90 for a used master switch, the flashers went out - $15 for a used flasher, and both installed in 5 minutes with NO tools! I did my own major tune up for the first time in 30 years and enjoyed it! Other problems have been easy to solve with some shopping and research. I got a full brake job including rotors for less than $200. I probably could have done it myself even cheaper, and a radiator on line only cost $119 + an hour labor with my local mechanic. The clutch on the A/C compressor started to give out, so I found a solution on the internet that was easy and free, if not permanent, but it is still working. Same with the flakey ABS. I did not realize the real value of a Volvo until I was rear-ended at a stoplight by a full sized car doing 50+ MPH who's driver was texting and never looked up or braked. His car was totaled, the passenger went to the hospital, and I only had a crumpled bumper and a slight warping of the quarter panel on one side. The collision did not even crack a tail light, and most important, we were unharmed! This is a superbly built car that is so simple to work on and understand, and cheap to own if you avoid the dealer. It has plenty of power, a smooth and comfortable ride, prestige and a fantastic sound system. I will definitely buy another one if I ever wear this one out!

Great vehicle. Safe, and fast. Gas mileage should have been a lot better. Cuts through snow like a hot knife thru butter! Repairs are expensive but at least I don't worry with a car payment every month. I love the legendary Volvo history that is tied to this car!

Bought this car with 155,000 miles on it. The car seemed to be well cared for and the dealer I bought it from did do a fair amount of work to make it reliable and the purchase price reflected that work. I have put on 3000 trouble-free miles on the car and find it to be one of the better cars I've owned. Although initially reluctant to get this car, high mileage, AWD and a Turbo I find my fears are so far unfounded. I've done some "work" on it myself, couple of burnt out bulbs, Tranny fluid change, angle gear fluid change and an oil change and have found the car to be easy to work on. There's an awful lot of Internet based support for this car and I expect it will be in my posession for many years to come. Very comfortable, great A/C and sound system. The wagon has the utility of an SUV without the soccer mom appearance. 24.8 MPG avg since I began tracking. Runs best on mid-grade to premium fuel. Will run of regular but decreased performance. I' be getting another of these soon. 95-97 850 or another 98 V70.