Has anyone worn out an 850 engine yet?

[Doug Warner]

Has anyone worn out an 850 engine yet? This assumes an it's had regular maintenance. From the rebuild manual, it looks to be an extremely well-designed engine. I wonder if this rigid construction translates to long life?

(My 94, with turbo, is still going strong at 190K)

Spammers are VERMIN. Please kill them all.

 

[Stephen M. Henning]

Has anyone worn out an 850 engine yet? This assumes an it's had regular maintenance.

My '93 didn't use any oil and performed like brand new at 180,000 miles and I didn't do anything special. I sold it in '01 and it went quickly. I changed the oil at 10,000 mile intervals as the manual (non-turbo) recommends and just used dealer oil, not synthetic.

 

[Bev A. Kupf]

My '93 didn't use any oil and performed like brand new at 180,000 miles and I didn't do anything special. I sold it in '01 and it went quickly. I changed the oil at 10,000 mile intervals as the manual (non-turbo) recommends and just used dealer oil, not synthetic.

At what mileage did you replace the water-pump? Every timing-belt change? Second timing-belt change?

 

[John Horner]

My '93 didn't use any oil and performed like brand new at 180,000 miles and I didn't do anything special. I sold it in '01 and it went quickly. I changed the oil at 10,000 mile intervals as the manual (non-turbo) recommends and just used dealer oil, not synthetic.

I'm trying hard to kick my synthetic oil habit and stories like this will help. I have a friend who routinely puts 300k+ miles on Volvo 240s with by the book servicing and never uses synthetic oils. His cars have problems like air mass sensors and such, but basic engine wear has never been a life limiting factor, and he sells his cars on to people who put more miles on them.

Of course the all iron 240 4 cylinder motor is one of motordoms great tributes to overbuilding. It will be interesting to see what reputation the 850 builds for itself. So far I hear reports of a number of aggravating common 850 problems (like the $500 ABS controller I just replaced ....), but engine wear out is something I have yet to hear or read about.

Anyone?

John

'96 850

 

[Gus]

And what about the $750 power seat control (when all it needed was a new cable that I did myself in less than an hour and $40 in parts). Or the $2500 job to replace the broken motor mounts (result of revious shop replacing the top mount with a hard plastic bushing so that it would never break again, well it didn't). And then there was the $2000 air conditioning repair because Volve didn't see fit to install a filter as original equipment (luckily this one was under warranty). And finally, the notorious unknow transmission repair that might be simply replacing the PNP switch but than again it may not.

Actually, my wife and I have enjoyed our Volvo very much but have finally given in to replacing it with a Lexus. The Volvo had started to not be reliable (e.g, guaranteed to start every time) which is absolutely required for the car my wife drives on the LA freeways. We will be keeping it for my daughter to use this summer.

Gus (95 850 Turbo Wagon)

So far I hear reports of a number of aggravating

 

[Stephen M. Henning]

At what mileage did you replace the water-pump? Every timing-belt change? Second timing-belt change?

No water pump replacements ever on any of my 10 Volvos with over 1.2 million miles total. The '93 had Volvo recommended dealer service at Volvo recommended intervals (10,000 miles). This includes timing belts.

 

[Bev A. Kupf]

No water pump replacements ever on any of my 10 Volvos with over 1.2 million miles total. The '93 had Volvo recommended dealer service at Volvo recommended intervals (10,000 miles). This includes timing belts.

That is indeed good to know. We've done the same with our cars. When the first timing belt was replaced, I asked Volvo service about a water pump replacement, and they felt it was in fine condition.

 

[JW]

Bingo.

This discussion is kind of akin to fanatics of, say, a certain computer company sitting around a table and asking, "Has the processor ever blown on any of your computers?" Even if the answer is "no", how is that paramount? If the accessories blow every couple of months, am I supposed to be a happy consumer because the processor didn't blow? How often exactly do the processors blow on any computer?

No, the engine in my 1996 850R with 107,000 miles has never blown. But that is immaterial to the literally 20+ other problems I have had (water pump, antenna, gas door lock, power seats, seat warmer, leaky moonroof, noisy/rattling fan, suspension rattling, A/C leak, TRAC/ABS control unit failure, top engine stabilizer failure, driver side wiper arm bending constantly, two O2 sensor failures, passenger side mirror failure, trunk mis-alignment, massive paint peeling from roof, speaker failure, etc. etc.
etc.).

However, I am eternally grateful to Volvo because a piston has not flown thru my hood yet!

I now await the usual fanatical "You have had all those problems because you did not properly maintain your vehicle and thus you deserved all those problems" responses.

I suppose it says something about the quality bar a car company sets. Volvo's appears to be, "Has your engine blown?" Lexus's appears to be, "Have you had *any* problems." My Volvo is a great car using the former bar and a PoS using the latter bar.

BTW... Despite all of these problems, I have "enjoyed" my Volvo as well. But the auto industry is competitive enough such that "enjoy" is not enough to ensure customer loyalty. I am positive I will "enjoy" *any* $30-$40k sport sedan out there right now (G35, 330i, A4, TL, ES330, GS300, etc.). But who is going to settle for a simple "enjoy" when they can get, say, "low/no headache enjoy"? Not I.

 

[James Sweet]

Bingo.

This discussion is kind of akin to fanatics of, say, a certain computer company sitting around a table and asking, "Has the processor ever blown on any of your computers?" Even if the answer is "no", how is that paramount? If the accessories blow every couple of months, am I supposed to be a happy consumer because the processor didn't blow? How often exactly do the processors blow on any computer?

No, the engine in my 1996 850R with 107,000 miles has never blown. But that is immaterial to the literally 20+ other problems I have had (water pump, antenna, gas door lock, power seats, seat warmer, leaky moonroof, noisy/rattling fan, suspension rattling, A/C leak, TRAC/ABS control unit failure, top engine stabilizer failure, driver side wiper arm bending constantly, two O2 sensor failures, passenger side mirror failure, trunk mis-alignment, massive paint peeling from roof, speaker failure, etc. etc.
etc.).

Sounds like your car was a lemon to say the least, however I still don't feel there was anything wrong with this post as we were talking specifically about the engine itself, which to some including myself is one of the more interesting parts of the car. Of course to someone who doesn't wish to understand the technical details of their vehicle it would be hard to understand that.

 

[Jeff Lesperance]

I think Porsche was brought in to help design it..

Has anyone worn out an 850 engine yet? This assumes an it's had regular maintenance. From the rebuild manual, it looks to be an extremely well-designed engine. I wonder if this rigid construction translates to long life?

(My 94, with turbo, is still going strong at 190K)

Spammers are VERMIN. Please kill them all.

 

[AB]

My water pump was fine before the 80,000 mile service - failed 1000 miles later.

My advice - change it!

AB

 

[John Horner]

I now await the usual fanatical "You have had all those problems because you did not properly maintain your vehicle and thus you deserved all those problems" responses.

You will not get such a response from me . I recently sidelined my '96 850 for a new Honda Accord.

John

 

[JW]

Sounds like your car was a lemon to say the least, however I still don't feel there was anything wrong with this post as we were talking specifically about the engine itself, which to some including myself is one of the more interesting parts of the car. Of course to someone who doesn't wish to understand the technical details of their vehicle it would be hard to understand that.

There's nothing wrong with the post and I didn't intend to say there is. I am just noting that a car whose engine does not blow up can still be a massive headache and very expensive for the owner.

As a scientific person well versed in statistics, I don't place a lot of value on anecdotal evidence usually -- including mine. However, when my experiences and unbiased third party studies of initial and long-term quality are generally aligned, the conclusion is pretty obvious. Also, the
*number* of problems I have had and the number of different parts they have originated from is too large to be possible from a model that is supposedly relatively problem free.

 

[James Sweet]

There's nothing wrong with the post and I didn't intend to say there is. I am just noting that a car whose engine does not blow up can still be a massive headache and very expensive for the owner.

As a scientific person well versed in statistics, I don't place a lot of value on anecdotal evidence usually -- including mine. However, when my experiences and unbiased third party studies of initial and long-term quality are generally aligned, the conclusion is pretty obvious. Also, the
*number* of problems I have had and the number of different parts they have originated from is too large to be possible from a model that is supposedly relatively problem free.

Well I have to agree that I don't have the highest faith in the long term overall reliability of the newer Volvos, however I've never owned one so I don't feel I have much authority on the subject. They're nice to drive, lots of bells & whistles, seems like lots of stuff to break, I don't know how it compares to other similar cars on the market though. But then again when my parents bought a new 240 back in '86 it had all sorts of little problems, but after a couple years things smoothed out and it just kept going and going and is still on the road. Many of the problems it had I blame on incompetent dealer mechanics.

 

[Bev A. Kupf]

Well I have to agree that I don't have the highest faith in the long term overall reliability of the newer Volvos

The newer Volvos are based on the 850 platform (basically - at least engine-wise -- 850, S70, V70, S60, S40, V50 share a common heritage). That was introduced -- 1992 in Europe, 1993 in North America. That's not so new anymore. I've seen plenty of 850s with close to or over 200,000 miles for sale.

 

[Sidney]

1994 850, Only 95000+-, expect to do 500000
Maybe a few small problems.
Nothing to be concerned about.

Sidney

 

[Jim Kelly]

Some 2003 XC70 [from Aug 2003 on?] have the 2.5L motor, B5254T2, [154kw, 320nm].

Any comments about this motor? How does it differ from the older B5344T3 [147kw, 285nm]?

Thanks,

Jim Kelly.

 

[Jim (archive)]

I have a 1995 850 GLT and have owned it since 33,000 miles. Had a blown rear seal at ~60,000 miles. I now have 298,000 miles and still going strong but using a little oil (~1 quart/1500 miles). I plan on retiring this old girl this spring but I just purchased a 1997 850 with only 97,000 miles....hoping to run it for an additional 200,000 or so.

Great car!

 

[res0t3iu]

I'm with you. $5,000 on my '93 850 in the last 12 months. Transmission, Air Conditioner Evaporator, Motor mounts, etc. Numerous problems with the power seats. Fortunately I am the only driver now and don't dare move them for fear the cable will come loose again. Also the air bag part of the dashboard cover has pealed back. $600 if I want it fixed. Also, for years there has been an annoying whistle like sound that comes and goes from the front left corner. The dealer has heard it but can fix it. It's back to Japanese cars for me. Norm

 

[JW]

My 1996 850R has relatively recently developed that whistling sound from the front left corner as well. I haven't tried to trace it yet -- given the list of problems I have with it right now worrying about the whistling is like someone who has been in the ring with Mike Tyson worrying about chapped lips. I figured it's something to do with the seal around the door. I'm surprised the dealer can't fix your problem.

How did you determine that your motor mounts needed to be replaced? Given that my top stabilizer blew and needed replacing, I wouldn't be surprised if the engine mounts needed to be replaced as well.