If you’re looking to change the coolant (antifreeze) on your modern Volvo, slow your roll! There’s a couple things you need to know beforehand that could save you major frustration, and possibly even ruining your beautiful automobile.
Volvo Antifreeze & Coolant PN 31439821/31338284
MVS user headrc recently asked the MVS forum how to open the draincock on his 2012 Volvo XC70 so he could flush the radiator. A lively discussion broke out on coolant replacement (Isn’t that just always the case?)
MVS user Jimmy57 provides a very important warning when replacing your coolant:
The engines with thermostat on block (V8, all 3.2 short 6, 3.0T short 6, P1 5 cylinder, and all P3, and any platform with the Drive-E 4 cylinder) are all designed to use the ‘cooling system vacuum evacuator and fill system’.
What’s a ‘cooling system evacuator and fill system’? On your Volvo, these tools allow you to easily get coolant to the engine block. If you don’t take care to fill it up, you could run the risk of ruining your engine. These tools allow you to easily remove and refill your coolant. You can buy them on Amazon, like the Universal Radiator Pressure Tester and Vacuum Type Cooling System Kit, but they cost quite a penny and unfortunately, most LAPS (Local Auto Parts Stores) don’t carry them either.
So what to do? Jimmy57 has the answer, and it’s pretty simple:
Absent having that tool then you take upper hose, the one NOT going to thermostat housing, and fill it with 50/50 coolant/pure water mix to get the block filled up. The coolant often does not get into block due to the upper hose routing and can’t go through closed thermostat.
If you’ve got a short 6 engine under the hood, here’s a few specific tips to make the process easier:
“On the short 6 engines to fill block you can slide the pinch clamp up on the short hose from rad to the trans cooler on left (driver’s) side and slip that hose off the cooler nipple. Use a section of heater hose or clear vinyl tubing that fits the nipple and put funnel into the hose. Add the premixed coolant/water and fill that. It will take about one gallon but you’ll add, water 30 sec and add again a few times.”
So if you’ve got one of these engines below, take care when replacing your coolant! Engine damage is a very real concern.
Jimmy57 also notes that, to fully drain the engine block, you also need to open the drain plug on the back of the block (there’s two for V8s) in addition to the draincock at the radiator.
However, several MVS members noted that these draincocks can break easily or are gummed up with old coolant and can’t drain, so they recommend simply disconnecting hoses instead.
Luminar’s lidar is on display in a Volvo concept car, and the point is to show how the laser-based sensor dovetails with Volvo’s system for reading pedestrians’ body language. At the impressive distance of 250 meters, Luminar’s lidar can provide enough detail to let Volvo do what the carmaker calls “pose estimation.”
Volvo’s $30 billion IPO is officially off, and Trump’s trade war may be to blame. You won’t see the effect of this on showroom floors. Nothing is happening to Volvo or its recent revival to the top-level of the automobile world.
Volvo And Google are developing a new Android-based automotive operating system. This is one of those things where we’ll see it in 2-4 years, and it’ll be good, bad, or stillborn. There’s no telling from where we are right now. But there is always a sliver of hope that it will be something great, something revolutionary.
2019 Volvo S60 R-Design First Drive Review | Beautiful and almost the best. This is a really, really good car from Volvo. The auto enthusiast magazines even like it. If Volvo can push it only one tenth more toward performance Volvo would suddenly be challenging the likes of BMW for performance sedan glory. As it is, it’s a superb car and forget the rest, just buy one and don’t look back. (We at MVS have no relationship with Volvo at all.)
Irv Gordon dies Gordon, who gained fame for his 3 million-mile Volvo, was 78. Yea, the guy who was all over the Internet from time to time with his wonderful red 1966 Volvo P1800. RIP Irv.
Volvo Forum Happenings
MVS t-shirts are in! I’ll have more on how to get your hands on one in the next few days. Check the General Discussion forum.
“Dear diary, After having my license for just over a year, today I got into my first accident. I must admit, it was pretty scary. But there’s good and bad news. Good news: We were all okay, I got off with a warning, insurance did not get involved, and her car was perfectly fine.”
MVS member and photographer Hadrien75 not only buys a pretty 1996 855 R, but he drives it home to Paris, with a stop at the famous Nürburgring.
“I always wanted a T5R or 850R but living in France almost none are ever for sale, so i decide to buy mine in Sweden and bring it back. I bought this 855 R with an M59 box in Stockholm and drove it all the way back to Paris. Here are a few pics along the way. Still lot of things to fix on it so i will have a few questions soon :)”
MVS member BigRed in Pittsburgh is selling parts of a 1996 850. “I still have shelves of things that are worth less to me than the space they consume.” Items: 3rd row seats and seat belts, Leather wrapped steering wheel, Airbag, Front seatbelts with charge, OE alternator recently (in miles) rebuilt at local Indy shop, and much more. In addition, we also got a flood of items put up for sale in Long Island, NY. See the MVS Classifieds.
Speaking of June, she found a leather conditioner after much searching that leaves her S80’s seats soft and supple. If you know June, you know she’s picky and wants the best for her Volvo.
Q&P OTM
QOTM – “My V70 had a single tip sticking out of the bumper for a 5 cylinder and these new Volvos have two tips sticking out for a 4 cylinder? Twin exhaust system was needed for huge American V8 engines 45 years ago, but a 4 cylinder?”
POTM from is from Hadrien75’s drive in his just-bought 850 R
Surprise!
The number one result for my search “how to adjust a single-handle shower faucet” turned up a good video … to my amazement, it was none other than our famous Robert DIY!
CarPlay
If you have CarPlay or are interested in knowing how well it works, check out my site CarPlay World.
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This Amazon link helps MVS. It helps keep us on the Web by giving a small portion of what you spend on Amazon to MVS. It doesn’t cost you a penny. But you must use the link before you put something in your cart. THANKS.
Wondering if you need to change the transmission fluid in your P1 generation — 2004-2012 — Volvo S40/V50? MVS user cleve33 had a similar question after his mechanic recommended every 30k miles and worrying it was just a cash grab. Turning to the good people of the MVS forum, he asked how often to change his S40’s transmission fluid.
This Information Covers North American Market P1 Volvos
Although this is written about an MVS member and his second-generation S40, it applies to a group of Volvos that share their “bones” with each other.
Let’s take a look at how often to change the transmission fluid in your P1 S40/V50 and whether you should do a full flush or a simple drain-and-fill. But first, let’s start with how to change your S40/V50’s tranny fluid.
How to Change the Transmission Fluid on Your S40/V50
In response to cleve33’s question, MVS Moderator MadeInJapan noted that he’s been changing his own transmission fluid each year for quite a while. He had this to say:
The drain and fills are easy and you can do them fairly quickly and you don’t need to pay a mechanic to do it for you.
Good enough for us! If you’ve ever changed the oil in your car, you won’t find any real surprises when you go to change your transmission fluid. And even if you haven’t ever changed any oil, you’ll be surprised how easy it is! Let’s get started:
Trans fluid draining tools
First things first, drain your old fluid. Underneath the car you’ll easily find the tranny drain plug. (Helpful tip: Don’t get it confused with the engine oil drain plug.) Just unscrew it and wait for all the fluid to come out. You’ll only get about 40% of all the fluid, but that’s still about 4 quarts, so be ready with a large container. Once all the old fluid is gone, replace the drain plug with a new washer (same as the oil drain plug).
Now, remove the transmission dipstick and add in the same amount of fluid that you removed. To make the process easier, MadeInJapan recommends finding two identical jugs (he uses old windshield washer bottles), pouring the old fluid in one and filling the other to the same level with new fluid. After pouring in all the new fluid (a long funnel helps), replace the transmission dip stick. You’re done!
If it’s been a while, consider doing the drain-and-fill two or three times to get out most of that old, useless fluid:
You are at 40K miles now since it was done last. So,instead of 1, I would recommend you do 2 drain and fills back to back and you will be fine and this will prolong your transmission, more than you suspect. Do one drain and fill and drive the car for a bit…even do the second one the same day if you want. At your miles, this should be plenty.
MadeInJapan finishes off with a warning on fluid type:
Last things: make sure and use the correct fluid, either Volvo ATF, ToyotaType -IV or Mobil 3309 – they are all the same fluid specification. I would however avoid any other ATF no matter what you read on different websites. The fluids I mention are all tried and true, but with the Volvo fluid costing an arm and a leg so most people avoid buying their ATF from the dealer.
Volvo doesn’t give a hard-and-fast rule on how frequently to change your transmission fluid. For automatic S40/V50s, they officially recommend inspecting the transmission fluid every 15,000 miles (every other oil change) to see if it needs to be replaced, up to 90k miles.
Beyond 90k, Volvo refers readers to their “Warranty and Service Records Information Booklet” for more info, but that can be a rather elusive item considering the newest of the Volvo P1 generation S40/V50s are nearing 7 years old.
Tip: If you’re doing the old drain-and-fill, then some of the old transmission fluid will mix with your new, bright red fluid, so keep this in mind when you pull the dipstick out.
Taking a peek at the 2015 Warranty and Service Records Information Booklet, Volvo recommends owners take their high mileage vehicles (150k + miles) to the Volvo dealer and letting them sort out the fluid change intervals. Not too helpful.
For most high mileage vehicles, the general consensus is that you should change your transmission fluid every 30,000 miles.This keeps your transmission running in tip-top shape, and gives you a chance to watch for tell-tale signs of any damage or issues.
The best advice for your high mileage Volvo? Learn to read your transmission fluid. Quickly check your tranny fluid every other oil change, just like Volvo recommends.
Color, smell, and particles in the fluid give you clues on the health of your tranny fluid, the transmission itself, and whether or not it’s time for a fluid change.
Most transmission fluids you’ll see today start off bright red. As you drive around mile upon mile, that fluid get shot and turns into a reddish-brown color. This is completely normal for any transmission fluid. As the transmission continues to function, that fluid will change from reddish-brown to dark brown. There’s your warning sign that it’s time to change your transmission fluid.
If your fluid is black, smells burnt, or you find metal shavings or particles in your fluid, that’s a sign that your transmission is working with bad fluid and is getting slowly and quietly clobbered.
Should You Change Your Transmission Fluid in Your High Mileage Volvo?
There’s a lot of misinformation around whether you should change transmission fluid in a high mileage vehicle… it’s not just Volvos, the concepts are universal. It seems like everyone’s cousin has a story about changing the transmission fluid in their old car, only for the tranny to completely die the next day.
What’s going on? Should you change your transmission fluid? Absolutely yes. Changing your transmission fluid will never damage your transmission. If the components in your transmission are in great shape, changing the transmission fluid isn’t going to suddenly break them.
However, if your transmission fluid is burnt or there’s small metal shavings floating around, the answer becomes a little more complex. Instead of should you change your transmission fluid? the question becomes HOW should you change your fluid?
Over on YouTube, the extremely knowledgeable ChrisFix covered this issue exactly, breaking down a transmission and showing exactly why some fail after a transmission change.
Turns out, a lot of it depends on whether you drain-and-fill your transmission or do a complete flush.
Drain-and-Fill or Flush?
We mentioned that a healthy transmission can never be damaged by a fluid change. If you’ve kept up with your transmission service and you’ve got nice, bright red fluid, you’re good to go. No matter if you drain-and-fill in your driveway or take it to a shop for a power full flush, you don’t need to worry at all!
Flushing your transmission however, can create problems if your tranny is showing signs of damage – burnt fuel and/or particles in your fluid. As your tranny’s clutch wears down, that clutch material (ie the metal shavings) is floating in your transmission fluid,helping the clutch engage as you change gears. If you fully flush your transmission, you’re removing that clutch material that’s helping create friction and introducing new, clean fluid. Now, you’ve got a worn out clutch and you don’t have any clutch material floating around to help out, so your gears can begin to slip.
On top of that, the labyrinth of small passageways in the transmission valve body can accumulate grime and dirt from the old, worn out transmission fluid. The detergent used when flushing the transmission can shake up all that grime and dirt, potentially blocking these small channels and leading to hard shifting.
If you’ve got an older Volvo S40/V50 with less-than-stellar transmission oil or you don’t the service history of your vehicle, it’s probably better to play it safe and simply drain your transmission fluid instead of a full flush.
Unlike a flush, which removes 100% of the fluid from the tranny, draining only removes about 40% of all the fluid per drain/fill cycle, so it’s less invasive and leaves much of the oil in the gaskets intact, which prevents new leaks.
And unlike a flush that forces all the fluid out, with a drain you’re just letting gravity do the work, so all that gunk stuck inside is also left undisturbed, giving you better chances that you’ll have no issues when you drive to work the next day.
MVS Contributor Joost (jvl) bought his 1999 V70 XC — our Wagon Wednesday car — two years ago. Being a camping enthusiast, it fits his lifestyle well.
My name is Joost and I live in The Netherlands. I’m 28 years old and work on infrastructure projects as a project leader.
I’ve always liked tinkering and engineering, and I’ve also always liked Volvos. My father has owned a bunch of them and I grew up in two of the three 240’s he owned.
“This is the picture I sent to my girlfriend asking whether I should buy it.”
When I was 15, he bought a P2 V70 Edition Sport which I really loved as well. My dad missed his 240 though, and felt that the V70 was too big of a leap in time and style. He doesn’t have the V70 anymore.
But he did encourage me to buy an older Volvo because they’re REAL Volvo’s as he said. So after I had to part with my Land Rover, I started looking for a P80 V70XC.
Fixing ABS during a road trip
The V70 XC has a drawer system Joost fabricated and installed — “It can be (de)installed in about two minutes by attaching/releasing 2 ratchet straps and disconnecting the 12v plug that powers the solenoid locks.”
Joost’s introduction to MVS in 2016… “After my first visit to the gas station, the car started to idle roughly. Sometimes the RPM’s drop to below 600, and without me touching the accelerator, it does get back up to ~900 rpm by itself.”
Second battery
This V70 XC is my third car and my first Volvo. I’ve moved up from a Honda Jazz (solid but small) and then a Land Rover Discovery (Big and always broken).
I bought the Volvo late 2016 with 273.000 KM on it. It’s never let me down so far, but has required a load of work, some of which I do myself. It now has 335.000 KM.
Most of the MVS-users will be familiar with these topics… ETM rebuild, B+ wire, ECC sensors, MAF sensor(s), brakes, control arms, radiator, heater core, Nivomat suspension…. angle gear rebuild (it now whines again, unfortunately) and the list will probably grow longer!
Despite the extensive work that is required to keep it rolling comfortably, I really love the car.
It’s been reliable, is relatively quick and comfortable and it is great for roadtrips (especially after trying to do a roadtrip in a Land Rover: you get to appreciate the peace and quiet in the Volvo).
In the past two years I’ve added this and that to the car because I just like tinkering.
Whenever something happens to me that is annoying, I try to engineer a simple solution.
Therefore, it’s got some special options that are described in my signature.
It didn’t take long for it to earn its nickname as a Land Rover Recovery
V70 XC Modifications
“I like to do all the builds in such a way that if I would ever have to sell the car, I can undo all the modifications without damage (except the holes I cut in the trunk panel for the LED lights, but this was a conscious decision).”
electronics
2nd battery (with isolator)
2200w pure sine wave inverter
LED work lights in tailgate
LED traffic advisor
RC parking lights
audio
stock tweeters front and back
8″ underseat powered sub
camping extras
‘drawer system’ in trunk
solar panel on roof rack
Especially the drawer system is great for quickly finding your stuff in a packed car without having to take stuff out first.
It can be (de)installed in about two minutes by attaching/releasing 2 ratchet straps and disconnecting the 12v plug that powers the solenoid locks.
The LED spots in the trunk run off the 2nd battery but are switched by the trunk latch which is really handy.
During camping trips, I add a solar panel to the roof rack that charges the 2nd battery, which supplies me with enough juice to keep all of our food cold in a compressor fridge. It also powers all of our tent lights.
LED spotsSolar panel
Thanks to Joost for the time he took to write details and send photos of his Volvo.
They’re very soft and on the lighter side as far as thin/thick. The cut is a little longer than the average t-shirt, good news for when you work on your Volvo and want to avoid “Plumber’s crack”.
They’re dark grey, and they’re the best quality of four quality levels the print shop offered.
When I was putting this project together, I checked my closet for which brands I like best… softness, durability etc. American Apparel came up as the brand I like most and has held up the best over the years. I like to keep t-shirts ten years. That’s my standard. I have some AA shirts that hit this mark and a few that beat it. (I actually have a shirt from 27 years ago, I’m a little obsessive and nuts with shirts I love, and I take good care of them.)
I blew an engine at 83K (timing belt slipped due to accessory belt shredding). I’m planning an engine swap. Can anybody please direct me to a how to? Is there anything else that I should replace at the same time? Donor engine is 2016 with 80K (50k miles). Any seals or anything that I must replace? I’m planning to pull tranny and engine at the same time and then separate on the bench.
Put a rope on a steering wheel spoke and to brake pedal so the steering wheel can’t move out of that rotation. If the steering wheel goes one revolution either way it will not be synchronized for stability control and the contact reel could break.
Disconnect hoses. Unbolt the a/c compressor and tie it aside and nothing will have to be done to recharge it.
Pull cv axles to wheels.
Disconnect the trans selector cable for transmission.
The wiring harness to ECM on air cleaner box can be unplugged by depressing latch and swinging handle over. If you follow the wiring harness closely you can see which side goes to engine and which one stays with car. I think the 58 pin one is the top and that stays with the car.
The fuel hose can be disconnected with a cuff tool behind engine.
The hard plastic line to canister purge valve can be disconnected from purge valve and tied aside.
Starter cable, ground cable, and braided ground cable to firewall area.
Disconnect transmission control module connector by the shifter cable area (trans module is under the shift cable).
Push in on the red sleeve on the hard plastic brake booster vac line where it sticks into intake manifold. When you push in on that line and push the sleeve inward then the plastic line can be pulled out.
The subframe bolts are at the 4 corners of subframe.
The trans and engine will not come out the top unless you remove intake, exhaust manifold with turbo, alternator-a/c bracket, and maybe even the oil filter/breather box assembly. Then the trans will have to be unbolted from the mount and pulled to the left and tied there in order to give enough room for the flex plate(flywheel) to come out of the trans bell housing far enough to come out so engine could be lifted up.
Here’s an interesting take on the degree of theft-proofness of Volvo cars, by a “former tow truck driver and professional thief (Repo man)” TerrDawg.
TerrDawg »
As a former tow truck driver and professional thief (Repo man) the one car in the 80’s and 90’s we absolutely hated was Volvos … The lock out kit included packing strap that was plasticy and tough, known as the Volvo tool. It’s intent was to be folded in half, slid past the weatherstrip on the rear door (that’s what we were instructed to do) until it is in and visible .. Then hook the lock button … And pull it until it pops up and opens Having worked on many Volvos in the body shops over 16 years, these are incredibly well designed with a plastic sheath the covers the lock/unlock rod that goes to the door mechanism … For what it’s worth.
I spotted this a few days ago here in Denver. It’s a Cream Yellow first generation S40. So what, right? Well, kinda.
I’m sitting here writing about it only because of its paint… Cream Yellow Volvo (color code 607… maybe).
The awesome 1995 Volvo 850 T-5R made Cream Yellow famous because of its extremely low production/import numbers, namely 2537 worldwide and 413 imported to North America.
So What’s With the Cream Yellow S/V40?
No other Vovos could boast of this pretty color until sometime in the run of 2000-2004 S40 and V40 siblings. I’m not even sure it’s the same color code 607 on these cars because no paint lists I read through name it. No other Volvos have this color besides the T-5R and these odd 40 twins.
I’ve seen a handful of these before, but never had my phone ready until now.
Does it make these S/V40s more valuable? Almost certainly not. It’s just one of those automotive mysteries that make cars so fun as a hobby. If you have insight on this, please let me know what you know in the comments below or an email.
There’s been several interesting and helpful forum topics lately regarding improving Volvo headlight output. Given that some P80 models we’re talking about are up to a quarter-century old, you might consider putting this at the top of your to do list.
Headlight reflectors, old vs. new.
Headlight improvements are an attractive use of your time for several reasons:
It’s a safety item, so you get that warm rewarding feeling after you’re done.
It makes driving more fun… literally, seeing things better makes you relax and have more confidence.
It’s a clean repair, no crawling around under the car and getting dirty fluids all over yourself.
It’s a project that has immediate, obvious results, and those results can make for an easy, measurable 100% improvement.
As an example, MVS Forums member Eddystone did a full reflector and bulb upgrade, and his results are nothing less than astounding. That’s not a word I use here much, but it’s entirely appropriate. Here’s the backstory forum topic, and here is the results topic with photos.
So What Did He Do?
First he tried bulbs, like most people would (I did, years ago when I went down this road).
I’m still thinking that the reflector is the key component in lighting, and nothing will fix that if it is bad. I replaced my standard low beam headlight bulbs with some that are supposed to be 30% brighter and saw no difference whatsoever.
So then he shifted this project into second gear.
Still kicking around this headlight issue. I have two new TYC headlights I have not installed yet. $80 each.
Eddy installed these new TYC headlight housings (housings include reflectors) then took photos of the bad old headlights and how little light they project compared to new ones, and WOW.
The Results are Shocking
Full Headlight Upgrade – Old . vs. New test at night against a white fence
So that’s about as clear an illustration on the benefit of this upgrade as anything here at MVS.
If the reflectors are bad, you need new ones because no source of light will compensate for bad reflectors.
It’s built in the brand new Charleston, South Carolina plant, and while it’s got that distinction, it might as well be the sexy and fast compact sedan that it is. Some S60 reviews: Car & Driver Motortrend Jalopnik
The entire interface will be run by Google’s Android OS, specifically its Android Auto offshoot. Entertainment, climate control and apparently the dashboard and gauges will be Android. Try it out on a phone or tablet.
Volvo Not Giving Up on Spinning Off Polestar
This isn’t a move born of disdain for its performance electric division. Typically companies spin off divisions into their own discrete company to provide funding, or to inject it with autonomy and a sense of self-determination. Its like a business version of sending your kid off to his/her own first apartment, away from home. They get smart, fast. Reuters
Volvo Dealers Fire First Legal Shots vs. Care by Volvo
The group pushing to stop Care by Volvo is the California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA), which represents more than 1,000 franchised car and truck dealers across the state, according to the filing. The CNCDA calls Care by Volvo a “clever, but illegal, marketing ploy.”
By offering all these services that are typically included in a traditional lease, the CNCDA says that Volvo “usurps the traditional sales role of Volvo dealer franchisees.” This violates state laws that prohibit competition between manufacturers and dealers, the group argues, because the franchisees are trying to sell or lease the same vehicles that Volvo is offering subscriptions for. It also violates the franchise agreements Volvo has with dealers, they say.
2019 V60 Review: Good, But No Love for Its Suspension
Like the throng of write-ups a few years ago on the initial SPA cars, the reviewers love the car but have reservations about the suspension. The reviewed V60 T6 Inscription had the mid-range suspension with adaptive shocks and large 19-inch wheels, and it felt busy. Sport Chassis (lower ride height, firmer, $1800 as part of the Sport Package) is available, and they drove one, but warned readers away from the option.
ZionXIX » “I just never imagined the price they would sell it for. I almost died laughing when he told that girl the pcv job required taking most of the engine apart. Volvo 850 T5-R on wheelers dealers”
If you like Volvo, this news will interest you. If you like Volvo and electric cars, this article will really interest you.
Volvo’s racingperformanceluxury electric car sub-brand will show its new Polestar 2 in three weeks. We had word of this new Polestar 2 model back in the summer, and it looks like the information is holding steady.
Likely Polestar 2 Features
The Polestar 2 will be an electric (EV) four-door sedan
350 mile range, probably on the top-end Polestar 2 trim
It will take on the exploding middle ground of the EV market which is anchored by the Tesla Model 3
It will start at around $40k
It will be followed by an SUV, presumably named Polestar 3
Beyond that, information is hard to come by. If you know anything, drop us a line.
As we’ve reported here in the January newsletter, the car’s interface is very unique in the automotive world, and one we’ll see a lot more of in the future:
The entire interface will be run by Google’s Android OS, specifically its Android Auto offshoot. Entertainment, climate control and apparently the dashboard and gauges will be Android. Try it out on a phone or tablet.
Photos? Not So Many Of Those, Folks
The teaser photos are surprisingly sparse. Usually on press material weeks before a launch there will be an appetizer of sorts to get the appetite into second gear, but this debut is photo thin. Here’s what they are showing…
The user interface (UI) is the Achilles heel of car design. Outdated, inflexible, and old upon arrival, UI has often been an unintentional time machine, showing drivers of even the newest cars what phones in 1997 looked like. And given that this has been the case, society at large has accepted it. For the last fifteen years (give or take), UI has been a bridge too far, both in usability and appearance. Is a modern, capable, well-designed, future-proof UI really too much to ask?
Now’s your chance to own one of ipd’s most unique project cars. ipd’s 2011 S60 T6 AWD has thousands of dollars in upgrades. Everything has been customized from the ground up. This project started at Galpin Auto Sports in California. GAS painted the exterior in their custom pastel blue paint. They outfitted the S60 with front and rear R bumpers including a new grille and rear diffuser. The S60 boasts one-of-a-kind interior. GAS installed custom blue leather seats with French stitching and piping to match the exterior paint. A custom suede headliner and dark navy carpets really compliment all the features and detail.
After ipd brought this vehicle into their stables, a few additional changes were made. A complete Stage 3 turbo kit was installed and this includes an ipd/MTE custom turbocharger, ECU upgrade and fuel system. ipd also used this vehicle to develop a full stainless steel exhaust system along with many suspension upgrades. ipd designed and installed a matte black top body wrap with a few contrasting accents. ipd drastically changed the look of the vehicle by adding a set of 20” Rotiform RSE wheels.
2011 S60 Stage 3 Specifics
Mileage – 67k, horsepower – over 450… that’s crank hp, according to IPD’s bullet point below.
Exterior
Custom Pastel Blue Paint by Galpin Auto Sports California
Partial Matte Black Wrap with IPD accents
Rotiform RSE Wheels 20’ ”
245/30/20 Hankook Ventus V12 Tires
ipd HD Aluminum Skid Plate
ipd Billet Valve Stem Caps
Suspension
ipd Rear Sway Bar Kit
H&R Lowering Springs
ipd HD Front Endlinks
ipd HD Rear Endlinks
Interior
GAS custom blue leather seats with French stitching and piping
GAS Suede Headliner
GAS custom carpets
Performance
MTE 56MM Custom Turbo producing 18psi and 450chp
MTE 650cc Injectors
ipd SS Downpipe
ipd SS Catback Exhaust
Factory Specs
3.0L 6 cylinder Turbocharged
6 Speed Geartronic Transmission
300hp 325lb ft factory
Safety
Active Bending Light, Dual Xenon (ABL)
Blind Spot Information System (BLIS)
Speed Dependent Steering
Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with Distance Alert
Collision Warning with Auto Brake (CWAB)
Front and Rear Park Assist with Park Assist Back Up Camera
Rain Sensors
Audio
MP3 Compatibility
Bluetooth Handsfree Communication System
Volvo Navigation System (VNS) with Real Time Traffic Capability
Consumer Reports is an interesting thing. It runs no ads, and that alone marks it an outlier in the publishing world. But when you throw in the fact that it’s not an expensive, high-art quarterly or technical trade journal but rather a product review magazine, well, you end up with a really strange animal.
Consumer Reports has always struck me as a just-the-numbers, please magazine. My mental image of CR is one of grey-faced technocrats with tape measures who don’t care for driving fun or performance, or really automobile beauty even. I’ve never passed up an automobile magazine for a copy of CR in the dentists waiting room.
It’s the car magazine for people who hate cars.
That rant out of the way, let’s look at their look at the Volvo S90. From their April 2019 issue:
Among its Luxury Midsize group, it’s mid-pack in terms of price, acceleration, fuel economy and owner satisfaction, but it got absolutely destroyed in “Predicted Reliability”. Consumer Reports’ definition of this term:
The Predicted Reliability, also called New Car Prediction, forecasts how well a new model that is currently on sale is likely to hold up based on its recent history. For this Rating, we average a model’s Overall Reliability score for the newest three years, provided the vehicle did not change significantly in that time and hasn’t been redesigned for the current model year. Over the years, we have found that several years of data are a better predictor than the most recent model year alone. One or two years of data may be used if the model was redesigned within that three-year time frame, or if there were insufficient data for some years.
The one double-green was front seat comfort, a category for which Volvos are legendary. (My 1997 Volvo 850’s driver’s seat was far more comfortable than my 2017 VW Golf Alltrack’s seat, for what it’s worth.)
Speaking of legendary, those four “S”s you see in a row in the chart all stand for “standard equipment”, in this case standard safety equipment.
FCW = forward collision warning
AEB = automatic emergency braking
Pedestrian = pedestrian detection
The 23 MPG Consumer Reports tallied is disappointing, especially because Volvo sacrificed (or rather we, the buyers, sacrificed in terms of refinement) so much to produce a one-size-fits-all (literally, it’s in all Volvos) 2-liter four-cylinder. This low fuel economy score isn’t an isolated, one-off outlier either. Volvo’s new 4-cylinder has been widely reported to return mediocre fuel economy in every Volvo, not just the S90.
To summarize: the Volvo S90 ended up 14th out of 17. Given CR’s evaluation of the S90, it’s a good thing safety is at the top of what people look for when buying a car!
Volvo Cars said on Monday it will introduce a 180 km per hour (112 mph) speed limiter on all new vehicles as the Swedish automaker seeks to burnish its safety credentials and meet a pledge to eliminate passenger fatalities by 2020.
While Volvo, whose XC90 flagship SUV currently has a top speed of 212 km/h, has made progress on its so-called “Vision 2020” target of zero deaths or serious injuries, Chief Executive Hakan Samuelsson said it is unlikely to meet the goal without additional measures to address driver behavior.
