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  1. #31

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    Hi Tom,
    I am so happy for you--what a lucky vehicle.

    If you're still searching for German hotels, consult biddingfortravel.com. I use it for all my European trips and have gotten the  Marriott London for $65 per night.  They help you with bidding for priceline. I've also had great luck with Best Western. The ones in Italy were definitely 4 star safe properties and included a buffet breakfast for about $89 per night on a weekend.

    Thanks again for picking up the waste basket. Safe journey!!!

  2. #32
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    Bryson City, NC
    Posts
    365

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    Sorry we haven't been able to post many pictures as promised thus far, just not as many computers with easy access to picture programs or even CD-ROM drives for that matter.

    Here's a list of countries we've been to so far;
    1. Sweden
    2. Denmark
    3. Germany
    4. Amsterdam
    5. Belgium
    6. France
    7. Andorra (very tiny)
    8. S P A I N ! ! !
    9. Currently in Italy 10 miles from Slovania
    10. Tomorow-Slovania for some cave searching (splunking??)
    11. Then Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Chek republic.  I don't think we're going to get to Switzerland or Leiktenstein.

    Quick notes... Tolls in France are very high, but the roads are great, Cannes France is a Jewel!!!, Venice, no place for a car!!!, Barcelona Spain, horrendous traffic, gorgeous town.

    Incredibly, the car is still without a scratch!!  We're having a few problems with the DVD nav system, but it is working enough to get us to where we want to go.  Otherwise, car is great thus far.

    Current mileage, sit down for this one, 4155 miles to date, we'll probably exceed 5500 before we turn it in.

    Does anybody know if the odometer can be reset to km instead of miles??  I'd be grateful for an answer as I can't find it in the owners manual.

    The radio has to be heard to believe it.  If you're considering the Audiomax and the subwoofer, JUST DO IT!!!

    Lastly, I gave the car it's first bath a couple days ago.  I have before (truely gross) and after photos.  I'm shooting more every day, and will post all as soon as we get back.  RIght now they are HUGE jpegs, and Taylor would kill me if I posted them for sure.  I have to adjust the brightness on a few, shrink them and crop them for maximum viewing enjoyment.  I think that'll have to wait until I get home.

    For those who haven't seen it yet, the official photos of the 2005 Corvette (C6) are out, look for them, it is a gorgeous car.  So much for getting an Aston Martin for me...

    Will be in touch...

    Tom

  3. #33
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    Venice, CA; 2004 XC70, Silver (AKA: Silvia)
    Posts
    45

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    </span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (SpudRacer @ Jan. 07 2004,14:51)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Does anybody know if the odometer can be reset to km instead of miles?? I&#39;d be grateful for an answer as I can&#39;t find it in the owners manual.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
    SpudRacer,

    Unfortunately the only way to change miles to kilometers is through a dealership/manuf. software change.

    I would have thought Volvo would program OSD cars while in Europe to have metrics settings then change it to miles (imperial system) when it gets shipped to the US.

    That would sure help navigating while driving in Europe.

    Future OSD&#39;s can probably have that requested prior to picking up.

    Enjoy your trip&#33;
    2004 Volvo, Silver XC70, OSD, 113,000 mi; AKA: Silvia

  4. #34
    Join Date
    Nov 2003
    Location
    Eastern Oregon
    Posts
    44

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    Spud,

    Sounds like you are having a great trip&#33;

    Had I known you were going that far south I would have suggested the Hotel Toplicia in Bled. It is on Lake Bled and is one of the nicest hotels in Europe (but with a rate like a Holiday Inn-at least it use to be that way). There are also some nice hotels around Lake Como if you head up that way. Rates should be good this time of year.

    In part because of your posting, we have just committed to a March 12 delivery of a XC70 with DSTC and load leveling system). Your work with the headlights influenced our decision to go with halogens. Maybe next time we&#39;ll do Xenons.

    Continue in safety with your great trip&#33;

    ORGramps
    &#39;04 XC70 March OSD-Crystal Green/Taupe, Premium, Touring, DSTC, Load Levelers, Auto-dim Mirrors, HU803, Wood Steering.

  5. #35
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Foster City, Ca 94404
    Posts
    424

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    How are your headlights--I thought your wife liked the xenon--
    would like to know your afterthoughts--merv
    2010 XC60 3.2AWD; 2004 XC70 OSD both models

  6. #36
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    Bryson City, NC
    Posts
    365

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    Headlights:
    1. My wife has now begun to notice that the low cutoff on the low beams is very unnerving at speed. &nbsp;Even on the freeway, she finds herself getting anxious every time she approaches a curve because she just can&#39;t see the road ahead without using the high beams. &nbsp;I agree with everyone else, stick with the halogens for now unless Volvo makes an upgrade of sorts to the headlights.
    2. We&#39;ve noticed that the low beams are coming on during most of the day unless we are in sunlight or bright light conditions. &nbsp;The DRLs then come on. &nbsp;To me, the car seems a little too sensitive and turns on the headlights long before I feel they are needed, but this doesn&#39;t really hurt anything, simply makes the car that much easier to see, hence safer.

    IAQS:
    1. Despite having &quot;Auto&quot; selected and having the AC automatically selected, we are still able to detect exhaust fumes when stuck behind smoking cars. &nbsp;Is this normal? &nbsp;I thought the filter eliminated these odors?

    Rear View mirror:
    1. We asked Hans to adjust it to it&#39;s maximum darkness setting for us before we hit the road, and it was a great idea (thanks Barry). &nbsp;It is NOT too dark, and seems just right to me. &nbsp;Of course, I can`t say how it was before the adjustment, but I recommend having the factory adjust it for you the day you pick up your car as we did.

    Seat Heaters:
    1. We also had Hans adjust our seats to their hottest settings prior to leaving the factory. &nbsp;At their current settings, they heat up quickly and eventually become too hot to leave on at their high setting. &nbsp;This heats you and your passenger up quickly and is a wonderful comfort. &nbsp;At the low setting, the seats remain comfortably warm without getting too hot, and my wife often leaves her seat on this setting untill she falls asleep whereby I turn it off. &nbsp;If you live in a cold climate, I also recommend this Vadis adjustment.

    Engine/Transmission:
    1. No leaks or problems to date. &nbsp;The engine has a rather interesting-sounding roar at full throttle, I assume it is due to the 5 cylinder engine as I´ve never driven a 5 cylinder before. &nbsp;It is a smooth engine and puts out plenty of power for close-quarter passing. &nbsp;As for the transmission, I rather like the manual-mode when driving in the mountain passes and use it to keep from overheating the brakes. &nbsp;I´ve gotten used to just flipping the shifter over to manual and then down one notch when coming to a stop when I have plenty of time to stop so I ease the wear on the brakes. &nbsp;Is anyone else doing this?

    Auto-sensing Windshield wipers:
    1. OK, I have to gripe about something, and this is it. &nbsp;I find them very annoying as the sensitivity never seems to be constant on our car. &nbsp;Sometimes the windshield is so full of raindrops you can hardly see through it, but the wipers do not wipe despite being at their maximum sensitivity. &nbsp;At other times they wipe ferociously at a mid or low sensitivity. &nbsp;It makes me wish the car had the option of a standard intermittent wiper as on other cars so they wipe on a regular basis, not when the car feels they should wipe. &nbsp;Yes, sometimes I just turn the wipers onto a low-continuous wipe just to ease my frustration. &nbsp;Anyone else with this problem?

    OK, more to come, we are now in Austria, and change of plans will put us in/near Switzerland tomorrow. &nbsp;Will write more when time allows, sorryx for any typos, no time to proofread.

    Tom

  7. #37
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Dimock, PA
    Posts
    1,559

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    Tom,
    Great write up. &nbsp;I have one question: &nbsp;I occasionally use the manual mode to downshift in serious downhill situations to avoid brake overheating, but I don&#39;t do it in situations like approaching a stop sign on the theory that brake pad replacement is cheap and easy while transmission work could be very expensive. &nbsp; Am I being too cautious about the transmission?

    Bill
    Bill
    63 PV544 (attempted restoration)
    83 245 DL OSD (transferred to son)
    85 240 GL OSD (transferred to son)
    03 XC70 OSD (traded-in 4/12)
    05 AWD S80 OSD (transferred to son)
    12 XC70 T6
    16 S60 T5 Drive-E (FWD)

  8. #38
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Posts
    15

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    Hey Tom,

    If you&#39;re going to be in the Kaiserslautern Area (Central Germany),give me a ring. My duty phone is 0637146 2249. Home is 06374802895. Hope your trip is going well.

  9. #39
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    Bryson City, NC
    Posts
    365

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    FINALLY we are back on line again in North Carolina. There is no internet access in Bryson City except dial-up modem and the phone lines can&#39;t handle 56K, only a speed of 28K. Can you believe that?&#33;?&#33; Well, once you go to cable, you can NEVER go back to dial-up. What does one do?

    We are now the proud owners of a satellite internet access that I just tested, and runs just a tad slower than an ADSL line, and about 2.5-3 times faster than a plain DSL line.

    What does this have to do with a Volvo, nada.

    Latest update, our XC70 arrives at the dealership on February 28th and is already in the country. We made them swear not to wash the outside of the car, and they agreed eagerly.

    Now that we have access, we&#39;ll get started loading up our pictures, starting in Sweden and working our way across europe as soon as time permits. Look out Taylor, here they come&#33;&#33;

    Tom

  10. #40
    Join Date
    Nov 2003
    Location
    Eastern Oregon
    Posts
    44

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    Spud,

    Glad you are back safely and had such a wonderful trip&#33; Thanks for all of your posts.

    We are leaving March 7 for pickup on the 12th. Will be in Sweden and Norway until March 25.

    ORGramps
    &#39;04 XC70 March OSD-Crystal Green/Taupe, Premium, Touring, DSTC, Load Levelers, Auto-dim Mirrors, HU803, Wood Steering.

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