Well, I just flipped to 40,000 miles yesterday, so I thought I'd update you all on my experiences so far...
I'm still in love with my car. This car is such a head-turner. I've had people of all ages, literally, compliment me on the car and the car's interior color. The most surprising compliment came from a lady who must have been in her 70s. She said that she loved the color of the interior and exterior and that it's a really cool-looking car. I go on a 450-mile trek every other week and I end up getting about 31 MPG (my calculation, not the on-board computer) on the highway pretty consistently. I get about 22-23 (again, my calculation) in the city. I'm not sure where people say that the Sensus is hard to use - I think it's pretty easy to use. My phone pairs up with the system immediately.
Through this first 15 months, I've had a few quality issues:
- The air conditioning compressor noise is VERY annoying - I hate the whine so much that I sometimes turn off the A/C just so I don't have to listen to it.
- I had an issue with the car wandering off to the left on highways. I had the car realigned and it solved most of the wander. When I changed the tires from the ContiProContacts to Kumho Ecsta 4Xs. Additionally, I didn't read very carefully what was included in the Safe and Secure maintenance program. I didn't rotate the tires, as I thought it was included in the maintenance program. I'm better about this with these tires.
- The driver's seat lower outside bolster started to discolor due to wear. Volvo NA and Barrington Volvo were absolutely wonderful to deal with. They took pictures and replaced both front seats. I was impressed with the service I received.
- I had the harsh downshifts, so I had the TCM reflashed. For the most part, the harsh shifts stopped. However, it seems that the TCM gets easily confused and I've had an occasional harsh downshift even with the programming update.
- The front speaker rattling is VERY annoying. The door panels should have been designed to not vibrate or Volvo should have gone with a dedicated subwoofer. I'm quite disappointed in this. The sound of the premium sound system is excellent, but a dedicated subwoofer should have been included. I've read of people putting a subwoofer under the passenger seat - that might be something that I'm going to look into.
- I wonder if the paint is a little soft. I have quite a few stone chips. I wish I had put the clear bra on the front when I bought the car. Since I plan on keeping the car for a while (and probably to over 150,000 miles), I will probably end up repainting at least the front bumper and the hood at some point.
- I had some of the leakage that others have experienced from the moonroof when going through car washes. I have since learned to not have the moonroof visor open when I go through an automatic car wash.
- I continue to have some periodic squeaking coming from the upper rear portion of the driver's door. I'm sure this will become more frequent and more loud as winter arrives.
- My center console is starting to get a little nicked up because of me hitting it with the metal seatbelt latch when I buckle up. The plastic is a little soft by the cup holders.
- Recently, my brakes have started to pulsate. My rotors will probably need replacing at the next service update (42,000 miles).
Some wishes that I wish the car had:
- fully automatic headlights (2013 has it - could this just be a software/sensor update/upgrade?)
- make a sunglasses holder standard
- sliding sun visors (a major oversight, IMO) - I'd be willing to buy this from Volvo parts if they offered it
- subwoofer - again, I'd be willing to buy this from Volvo parts if they offered it
Even with these "issues", this is the best and most fun car I've ever owned. I look forward to driving my car every time I get in it. I love the looks, the gas mileage, and the overall driveability of the car!
When it comes time for me to get a new car (in the next 5-6 years), if a redesigned S80 takes on the design language of the S60, I will probably go with either an S80, another S60 or, if Volvo brings it to NA, an XC40. I will also consider an XC60 if the gas mileage comes up. I will definitely stick with Volvo because of the service I've received to this point.
I'm still in love with my car. This car is such a head-turner. I've had people of all ages, literally, compliment me on the car and the car's interior color. The most surprising compliment came from a lady who must have been in her 70s. She said that she loved the color of the interior and exterior and that it's a really cool-looking car. I go on a 450-mile trek every other week and I end up getting about 31 MPG (my calculation, not the on-board computer) on the highway pretty consistently. I get about 22-23 (again, my calculation) in the city. I'm not sure where people say that the Sensus is hard to use - I think it's pretty easy to use. My phone pairs up with the system immediately.
Through this first 15 months, I've had a few quality issues:
- The air conditioning compressor noise is VERY annoying - I hate the whine so much that I sometimes turn off the A/C just so I don't have to listen to it.
- I had an issue with the car wandering off to the left on highways. I had the car realigned and it solved most of the wander. When I changed the tires from the ContiProContacts to Kumho Ecsta 4Xs. Additionally, I didn't read very carefully what was included in the Safe and Secure maintenance program. I didn't rotate the tires, as I thought it was included in the maintenance program. I'm better about this with these tires.
- The driver's seat lower outside bolster started to discolor due to wear. Volvo NA and Barrington Volvo were absolutely wonderful to deal with. They took pictures and replaced both front seats. I was impressed with the service I received.
- I had the harsh downshifts, so I had the TCM reflashed. For the most part, the harsh shifts stopped. However, it seems that the TCM gets easily confused and I've had an occasional harsh downshift even with the programming update.
- The front speaker rattling is VERY annoying. The door panels should have been designed to not vibrate or Volvo should have gone with a dedicated subwoofer. I'm quite disappointed in this. The sound of the premium sound system is excellent, but a dedicated subwoofer should have been included. I've read of people putting a subwoofer under the passenger seat - that might be something that I'm going to look into.
- I wonder if the paint is a little soft. I have quite a few stone chips. I wish I had put the clear bra on the front when I bought the car. Since I plan on keeping the car for a while (and probably to over 150,000 miles), I will probably end up repainting at least the front bumper and the hood at some point.
- I had some of the leakage that others have experienced from the moonroof when going through car washes. I have since learned to not have the moonroof visor open when I go through an automatic car wash.
- I continue to have some periodic squeaking coming from the upper rear portion of the driver's door. I'm sure this will become more frequent and more loud as winter arrives.
- My center console is starting to get a little nicked up because of me hitting it with the metal seatbelt latch when I buckle up. The plastic is a little soft by the cup holders.
- Recently, my brakes have started to pulsate. My rotors will probably need replacing at the next service update (42,000 miles).
Some wishes that I wish the car had:
- fully automatic headlights (2013 has it - could this just be a software/sensor update/upgrade?)
- make a sunglasses holder standard
- sliding sun visors (a major oversight, IMO) - I'd be willing to buy this from Volvo parts if they offered it
- subwoofer - again, I'd be willing to buy this from Volvo parts if they offered it
Even with these "issues", this is the best and most fun car I've ever owned. I look forward to driving my car every time I get in it. I love the looks, the gas mileage, and the overall driveability of the car!
When it comes time for me to get a new car (in the next 5-6 years), if a redesigned S80 takes on the design language of the S60, I will probably go with either an S80, another S60 or, if Volvo brings it to NA, an XC40. I will also consider an XC60 if the gas mileage comes up. I will definitely stick with Volvo because of the service I've received to this point.