Pros & Cons re: purchase of high mileage XC70

[volvster]

Hello Volvo XC Forum!

There are several pre-owned XC 70s (2001, 2004 & 2005) for sale in our area however all with high miles ranging from 77K to 111K. They are priced right, or rather within our budget constraints I should say, whereas other Volvo XC 70s with lower miles (44K and lower) are priced significantly higher ($19,000-$24,000).

Question:What are the biggest concerns about buying a Volvo XC70 with high miles vs lower miles, and would high miles raise significant concern regarding reliability? Would a high mileage XC70 have more failures & repairs in the short term vs the long term if I were to purchase a lower mileage XC70?

Thanks!

[KCsXC]

Great car (my 02, 190k km's and still strong), I would shy away from the 2001 unless you can verify the throttle body and transmission service records. With any used vehicle it will cost you when you first buy it as previous owners may have neglected maintenance. You should do a cost assessment based on up front costs. If you buy a high milege car I would set aside at least an extra $2k as within a few months the gremlins will appear. If the high milege is still a good deal when compared to a lower milege vehicle, go for it. You will pay for the maintenance eventually so it depends when you factor that cost in.

Cheers,

KC

[Brave855]

If you are located in the North East contact JRL on this forum.
He can probably get you a new(er) MY model with low miles for a, compared to a dealer, better (= lower) price.

Basically the rule is the newer the model the better, meaning 2005 and up.

The early MY's P2 of 2000/2001/ some 2002's are notorious for their ETM failures if manufactured by Magneti Marelli.....

The newer models have also Haldex AWD instead of a viscous coupling.

High(er) miles are normally no issue as long as the service history is known and listed in the servicebook.

Good luck

[b.anthony]

I bought a 2004 XC70 with 120,000 km on it one year ago exactly. I love this car, got it at a very good price, and put an additional 40,000 km on it so far. It did require some maintenance (couple of wheel bearing hubs, control arm bushings, one ball joint, sway bar links front and back, brake pads, tires). All of these are routine wear/maintenance items in my book. As a previous poster said, be prepared for some initial expenses with a lower priced unit. The advantage however, is knowing what has been done.

[Q-ship]

Stick with 04 or later, you'll be statistically aligned to get a less problematic car. I just got one myself!