1994 Volvo 850 Reviews

It's a cruiser. Goes great on the highway at a constant speed, very very comfortable and quiet.

The soft suspension is nice on the highway or when you are driving someone else around, but when you want to take a corner quickly, you feel like you're going to fall out of the window. It has a LOT of body roll.

Since it's automatic and front wheel drive, it isn't much fun to drive, and it isn't very quick off the mark. Having said that, once it's moving it is fairly quick.

It has a inline-5 cylinder engine with 20 valves (4 per cylinder) which puts out 125kw at the crank, which compared to most peoples' first cars is pretty high. It does weigh near on 1600kg though.

As far as build quality, it's excellent. Unlike most new cars these days that feel like everything is going to break when you touch it, everthing is robust and feels solid.

If you have one of these, run it on BP ultimate. Put a bottle of injector cleaner in your tank for the first time you do, you will *definitely* notice a difference in power (or fuel economy if you don't use the extra power). A k&n panel air filter also improves the grunt a lot.

Also check that the thermostat in the airbox is working - if you take the stock air filter out, underneath it is a valve which directs the intake stream either from the front of the car, or from above the exhaust manifold. These get stuck fairly often and always receive air from above the exhaust manifold, which will reduce performance. You can either force it to stay on the cold side (if you live in a reasonably warm climactic area) or have it replaced if you live in a cold area.

This is also one of the safest models volvo produced, as most cars are designed to protect the occupants mainly from frontal impact, this model has the chassis designed to provide maximum safety against side impact. The system is known as SIPS (Side Impact Protection System) and deflects side impact energy down the chassis along to the centre console area and all around the body.

Apparently you can drive one of these off a cliff annd survive.

All in all, it's a great, reliable machine which is worth a hell of a lot more than I paid for it. These were worth between $60, 000 - $80, 000 to start with; these days you can pick them up for between $3, 000 and $10, 000 (Value in Australia, Australian dollars).

Nice family car, Well built, Easy to get parts. the 2.5 Litre motor is large  enough for most use. Smart detalis in the trunk (it's a station wagon). All in all a nice car to own. Do you want to by mine ?

I like boxy, and this is car defines boxy.

It's not the quality of old Volvos, but it is a lot nicer to drive than the old farm tractors, and a lot more fun as well.

The turbo charged engine is strong but slightly boring. The automatic transmission works smooth.

It has all the creature comforts one can ask for, and it will swallow a lot of goods in the back. The design is strict and functional making it look pretty good even today.

Parts are not the cheapes,t but availability is good and it is a fairly simple car to repair.

Performance: amazing at highway speed for a 2.4L and the weight of the car.
Build quality: this car never, never breaks down!
Appearance is sobre both exterior and interior but it's rusty...well, car is 14 years old...
It's a station wagon and very practical but still fun to drive!

great car! has the luxury of a big car but the of a smaller one. it got a great 5 cylinder engine that powerful yet fuel efficient. mine is a lemon though. its a blast drive when it having a good day... overall quality volvo! i adore every volvo made!