XC70 (i.e. V70 XC) model year recommendations

[bdipert]

Greetings, all, first-time poster here. I rolled my Jeep Liberty on slick Sierra highways at the beginning of the month (www.edn.com/blog/400000040/post/1360049536.html), am thankfully in aok physical shape, and finally found out late last Friday that AAA is wisely declaring the vehicle totaled. As such, I've decided to satisfy a longstanding desire (along with getting my vehicle's center of gravity a bit closer to the road!) and buy a Volvo V70 XC (aka XC70) as my next vehicle. I'm new to the Volvo world and would therefore welcome recommendations on which model years to gravitate to (and conversely avoid) as well as any other pearls of wisdom that could guide me on my purchase path. I'm normally based at 7,000 feet, above Truckee CA, but right now I'm in San Diego and plan to do the transaction here. My desired purchase range extends only to the lower $20Ks, although I admit that if I could find a good deal on a brand new 2009 vehicle as part of a dealer's inventory closeout aspirations...

Thanks all in advance!

[uscgc70]

The newer you can afford the better seems to be the general consensus, but at least get an 03. they have a better ADW system (Haldex), fewer transmission issues, and no throttle body problems to deal with.