2004 Volvo XC90 User Reviews

Volvo Xc90 — Good car. Fuel mileage is horrible, even acknowleging the weight of the vehicle. Really nervous about the transmission, as have heard horror stories about the GM trans mated to the 2.9L motor wearing out at 50-100K. Car has just over 50K on it now, and is starting to make some interesting noises from the front end. Goes like a bandit in the snow, though!

Big, Chunky, Solid And Reliable —

As this is a Volvo, I think its best to start with the safety aspect, as this is what volvo do best. The lights always stay on, like every other volvo, and this is highly annoying. Especially when your driving on a motorway at 1pm in the middle of the summer. This car also boasts about 2 million airbags, which means you have more chance in having a fatal accident whilst watching TV, then you do driving this car. The one thing I do love about the safety on this car is a little button on the dashboard with the letters DSTC on. Flick this switch and suddenly you feel like your on a broken roller coaster, but this is great, this is what makes you appreciate the design of cars because we like to feel unsafe, we like to experiance adrenaline. On to the car itself, the version I drove was actually a 2.4 D5 (turbo diesel). It has a very slow acceleration at low speeds, but stick it on a motorway and 60-100 mph will seem quicker than the average handgun firing a bullet at a wall 2 inches away. The build quality is amazing, and for a base price of around 30k, the leather interior and stylish dash makes you feel like youve just bought a bargain bentley. The Sat-nav is cool but extremely annoying. It comes out the dash in a very slick way, but try programming it and you suddenly feel like Bill Gates working on the original IBM computers. The car looks good on the outside, the wheels are big (18 inch) and the front looks fierce.

Not As Hardy As We'd Like —

I was hesitant to purchase this car due to the transmission issues that are well documented on the internet. We decided because of the perfect service records and low milage that it was worth the risk. I think we made a mistake. With only 128km the transmission service light is on and the gears shift roughly once we get into city traffic and the engine is warmed up. We are dreading the visit to the mechanic. With all the horror stories about transmissions being replaced we feel we may be in line for one ourselves. Update. Well before we could even take it in to the mechanic, the transmission failed on the highway in traffic with my wife and kids aboard on Christmas day. We had to be towed at 40 miles an hour to our destination taking 4 hours. More to come on the outcome. Mechanic recommended rebuilding the transmission costing 2000.00 usd. That was over a year ago and we have not had any other issues other than a rusted tailgate rod that kept us from opening the back. We had to have it replaced for about $100. Other that that we have taken long road trips with no problems. Hopefully we will get another 128,000 km out of the rebuilt transmission.

Primary Use: Family transportation

Because of the great reviews. My wife loved the car for its safety feature and its space. Volvo has a great reputation for making family vehicle. We have two girls plus another one the way. Would definitely give this vehicle 5 Star's.