I'm hoping to get back in a volvo after a few years away, and going to take a look at an S60R this afternoon. It's covered just over 100k miles and has had the cam belt and angle gear replaced. Just after some advice about things to check/look out for. Cheers
There been a few threads over the years on this subject, the following links may help: http://www.vpcuk.org/forums/showthread.php?19334-Help-need-S60R-Buying-Guide http://www.vpcuk.org/forums/showthread.php?46382-S60r-buying-advice http://www.vpcuk.org/forums/showthread.php?38745-Volvo-phase-2-v70-r-and-s60-r-buyers-guide-and-tuning-advice http://www.vpcuk.org/forums/showthread.php?51765-thoughts-of-s60R http://www.vpcuk.org/forums/showthread.php?39764-S60R-advice-please In summary though, check all the things you'd normally check plus AWD system, suspension, service history etc. AWD, doing a burn out in a car you are about to buy is probably a no no, but make sure the tyre wear is fairly equal front to back and that there are no weird noises. (More advice in those threads above probably). Get underneath if yu can and look for any weeping of oil from the Angle gear, rear transfer, diff etc. Suspension, make sure you feel the difference between all the modes, make sure you can go around corners at a fair heft of speed without the car trying to launch you into a hedge. Also things like leaks at stuff. Hope the above helps, unfortunately I dont have quite enough time to be more detailed at the moment.
I am not an expert, but good service history is a must, I have found in my 3-4 months of owning an R, the forums and the advice has been great, the car will have issues some of which you can plan for and get put right, I have some electrical gremlins, but fairly easy to fix for example, no cruise control, reversing lights not working, fuses here and there blown so doable when you get the time, other issues as mentioned here may need more attention, if like me you are not that handy when it comes to mechanics etc, budget of money put aside may not go a miss, as if you cannot mend the car yourself you will have to pay for somebody to do this, volvo dealerships are wild expensive, but there are dotted around independent volvo specialists who are more reasonable, having said that it is a performance car and they do tend to need a little more TLC, alternatives are I guess the Audi S4, RS4s, Beemer Msports and AMG. Mercs, I have owned the beemers and mercs but not audis and although I am not going to debate what's the best, I know I cannot get a low mileage German equivalent for the same money as a nice R, which means I have an extra few quid to deal with the maintenance issues, so I think they are value for money and give you very good performance. So best advice really is do some homework, get onto the forums as you have done and yes go for it., hand on heart it's the best car I have owned if it continues to stay reliable, and given mine is low mileage intend to keep it for a few years.
Maybe a bit of an obvious one but check for overheating. Not saying it's common but the liners can split. Check the top radiator hose - is it hard. Check the history - has it been looked after with regular plug changes for example