[Swagger XC]

I bought my 2014 S60 in 2017 for my sophmore year of college. I highly recommend these cars especially in college towns where drivers tend to be inexperienced. Volvo's built in strength has held up well to several rear endings and City Safety has saved me from red light runners twice. I'm a little particular about maintenance so it has been kinda pricey with work I've done, but if you buy CPO like I did, it shouldn't be overly maintenance intensive. be sure to find a good Volvo dealer near you though. I go to school in Iowa and the cxlosest dealer to me is an hour away and their customer service is some of the worst I've ever seen. I would go to independents for basic stuff (oil changes, alignments, etc.) but no one in the central iowa region wants to touch anything european. Weird, but definitely something to consider prior to purchasing.

 

[MyVolvoS60]

As an S60 owner, I’d recommend against an S60 in college for the primary reason that it has horrible cargo capacity due to the swoopy roofline, confined cabin, and high trunk floor with a smallish trunk opening. It’s ok for carrying bags of groceries but terrible for the sorts of bulky items you’ll want to carry. An XC60 or XC70 or just about any hatchback or wagon would be a far better choice given all the stuff you’ll be carrying, either on moving day or doing cool Active Lifestyle collegey stuff. As a homeowner I constantly lament my inability to carry anything big and boxy in my car like a box of furniture I’d want to assemble at home, stuff that would easily be swallowed by a hatchback or wagon.

If I were in your position I’d strongly consider looking at a MK6 or MK7 Golf or GTI which would be fun, safe, and incredibly practical while also reliable, good on gas, and cheap to own. A carefully bought MKV could be an option, too. I had a 2008 GTI for 6 years, bought new and then extensively modified and driven hard for 144k miles and it was the best car I’ve owned so far. Also a Jetta Sportwagon or Alltrak would be tremendously practical and cool at school.

Good Point. A V60 / XC70 / XC90 / etc might be a better choice for a college kid needing to haul stuff home during breaks.

 

[MrThatcherite]

As an S60 owner, I’d recommend against an S60 in college for the primary reason that it has horrible cargo capacity due to the swoopy roofline, confined cabin, and high trunk floor with a smallish trunk opening. It’s ok for carrying bags of groceries but terrible for the sorts of bulky items you’ll want to carry. An XC60 or XC70 or just about any hatchback or wagon would be a far better choice given all the stuff you’ll be carrying, either on moving day or doing cool Active Lifestyle collegey stuff. As a homeowner I constantly lament my inability to carry anything big and boxy in my car like a box of furniture I’d want to assemble at home, stuff that would easily be swallowed by a hatchback or wagon.

If I were in your position I’d strongly consider looking at a MK6 or MK7 Golf or GTI which would be fun, safe, and incredibly practical while also reliable, good on gas, and cheap to own. A carefully bought MKV could be an option, too. I had a 2008 GTI for 6 years, bought new and then extensively modified and driven hard for 144k miles and it was the best car I’ve owned so far. Also a Jetta Sportwagon or Alltrak would be tremendously practical and cool at school.

I definitely second the vote to go for an XC60. My XC60 has definitely saved me a lot of trips to the storage center after moving out of my dorms. Although, considering the height of the XC60, I definitely wish I had the air suspension to lower the vehicle to make it easier to load items into it.

 

[xHeart]

Hey guys so if I were to get a newer car for college possibly! What do u recommend I really lovvvvvvvveeeee Volvo’s they’re so safe and gorgeous. What s60s year mode do y’all recommend also are Hyundai’s good.

Congratulations on your acceptance!

Good college campuses have their own transportation system. If you can, lease a new car that comes with maintenance schedule while you are in college studying, making new friend, and discovering (unless I missed something). You'll have an attractive lease-end buy option from Volvo. It will be a loss if you are mired with auto repairs -- not worth your time, money, and inspirations.

I'm hoping you are a finance major.

 

[Highwayman]

You are right the newer T6 is a 4 cylinder. Specifically, a 2.0L inline 4 that is turbocharged AND supercharged.

Cool, that's gotta be one fast ride ! How's the 2018 S90 doing ? Nice car !

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a21967027/2018-volvo-s90-t6-luxury-sedan-alternative/

 

[gobluetwo]

Congratulations on your acceptance!

Good college campuses have their own transportation system. If you can, lease a new car that comes with maintenance schedule while you are in college studying, making new friend, and discovering (unless I missed something). You'll have an attractive lease-end buy option from Volvo. It will be a loss if you are mired with auto repairs -- not worth your time, money, and inspirations.

I'm hoping you are a finance major.

A new, leased Volvo is one of the last cars I would want on a college campus, tbh. College kids tend not to be the most thoughtful when it comes to other people's cars in parking lots, on the street, etc. I'd go the beater route for college and save the new Volvo for AFTER college.

 

[meade18]

Congratulations on your acceptance!

Good college campuses have their own transportation system. If you can, lease a new car that comes with maintenance schedule while you are in college studying, making new friend, and discovering (unless I missed something). You'll have an attractive lease-end buy option from Volvo. It will be a loss if you are mired with auto repairs -- not worth your time, money, and inspirations.

I'm hoping you are a finance major.

The first thing he'll learn (or should) as a finance major is that leasing a new car is a terrible financial decision. Would not recommend.

 

[MyVolvoS60]

The first thing he'll learn (or should) as a finance major is that leasing a new car is a terrible financial decision. Would not recommend.

I Disagree! The first thing he'll learn is that never bring a leased car to a college campus. It might sound like a good plan, until you realize everyone around you doesn't care about keeping the car looking nice. Hell, my car has gotten scratched and dinged in parking lots by ordinary dickheads. And I make a concerted effort to park away from people! So you can only guess how well a leased car would fare in a college parking lot.

Buying any car new (or leasing) is a "poor financial decision" for almost anyone!. Hell, my $32k 15.5 S60 I got 4.5 yrs ago books in at around $13-14k if lucky. Any newer vehicle drops in value like a rock. That being said, I have a 7 yr / 100K old school CPO which has fixed loads. So ownership costs been minimal on repairs outside of routine.

If OP wants to make a prudent choice, getting a 4-5 year old car with a good maintenance history is a wise investment. The bulk of depreciation has already hit and the car is still new enough to be safe, but old enough where a few dings and dents won't matter.

My 2 cents. Also a station wagon or SUV for college is a wiser choice since you'll be hauling crap to and fro.

 

[XC__]

Hey guys so if I were to get a newer car for college possibly! What do u recommend I really lovvvvvvvveeeee Volvo’s they’re so safe and gorgeous. What s60s year mode do y’all recommend also are Hyundai’s good.

My sister drove a 2012 S60 T5 through all 4 years of college and now has it across the country for law school. All in all, she's put about 60k miles on it and it hasn't cost much to own (for what it's worth - we got the car at 60k and it had a full dealer service history).

Volvos are excellent cars. Get one that has a full service history though

 

[T6dude]

My sister drove a 2012 S60 T5 through all 4 years of college and now has it across the country for law school. All in all, she's put about 60k miles on it and it hasn't cost much to own (for what it's worth - we got the car at 60k and it had a full dealer service history).

Volvos are excellent cars. Get one that has a full service history though

Similar to XC__ I got our first Volvo, a used 1993 850 for our youngest daughter's college car. Wanted a safe car for her travels and figured she would drive it for 4 years then can get something on her own. She ended up keeping it for 8 years and got an Outback after getting married. She still misses that car and it was very reliable.

Got our second one for my older daughter when she was expecting and my wife wanted something safe for our first grandchild. Got a used 1999 S80 T6 and she loved that car. It did eat motor mounts for some reason and did have a few other problems as it aged. She too got an Outback so gave me the S80 to use since I was driving an old Ford wagon. I named her Brit after Brit Eckland, the Swedish actress because like her, she was sexy, Swedish and expensive to keep happy...

Finally had some major work needed on Brit so went from the service department over sales and saw another newer used S80 T6 with AWD. Looked really good so made an appointment to take a test drive when they had it prepped and ready for sale. Came back only to see it being driven away with another salesman and his customer. Asked my salesman what else do you have that has AWD?

He took me down to this nice S60 R Design T6 AWD and took me for a spin. Had me go to sport mode and took me to some twisty roads and the highway. Man, couldn't believe the performance in the wet and was sold! Only 4,000 miles on the clock and a CPO. That was back in 2012 and still love my S60, it's been solid and I still smile when I get behind the wheel.

Good luck with finding your perfect car!

 

[Highwayman]

Still digressing from the OPs question but being the OP has not chimed in on his decision, I would say if he is really in love with Volvo, the 2012 S60 T6 with AWD is a solid choice for an upgrade. From the sense I'm getting to the limited availability of that model (even better with an R design as expressed by last post) it's the S60 to get for newbies in the Volvo fanclubs or enthusiasts. If the OP has money and can take his T5 to a Volvo dealer for a trade they may knock down a bit due to all the repairs the OP's presumed inherited car has. Tough decision though, I would say repair your T5 if you can find an indy that will get you a deal on labor.

 

[MyVolvoS60]

Still digressing from the OPs question but being the OP has not chimed in on his decision, I would say if he is really in love with Volvo, the 2012 S60 T6 with AWD is a solid choice for an upgrade. From the sense I'm getting to the limited availability of that model (even better with an R design as expressed by last post) it's the S60 to get for newbies in the Volvo fanclubs or enthusiasts. If the OP has money and can take his T5 to a Volvo dealer for a trade they may knock down a bit due to all the repairs the OP's presumed inherited car has. Tough decision though, I would say repair your T5 if you can find an indy that will get you a deal on labor.

Forgive my ignorance but I assume the 2012 T6 AWD was a 2.5 liter engine? Did they suffer the same oil consumption issues as the 2.0L? As I know 2012's are in the affected range for oil burners.

 

[p.rico]

Still digressing from the OPs question but being the OP has not chimed in on his decision, I would say if he is really in love with Volvo, the 2012 S60 T6 with AWD is a solid choice for an upgrade. From the sense I'm getting to the limited availability of that model (even better with an R design as expressed by last post) it's the S60 to get for newbies in the Volvo fanclubs or enthusiasts. If the OP has money and can take his T5 to a Volvo dealer for a trade they may knock down a bit due to all the repairs the OP's presumed inherited car has. Tough decision though, I would say repair your T5 if you can find an indy that will get you a deal on labor.

Forgive my ignorance but I assume the 2012 T6 AWD was a 2.5 liter engine? Did they suffer the same oil consumption issues as the 2.0L? As I know 2012's are in the affected range for oil burners.

No, our T6s are the same 3.0l as the R-Design (mechanically).

 

[npn]

So what's extra in the RD? I've seen the interior is about the same

 

[Highwayman]

The 3.0 T6 does not suffer from oil consumption as far as I know.

Was just reading up on the 2012 S60 T6. If Rico keeps posting those wonderful write ups of his he's easily going to make the T6 the more popular choice. We're lucky to have him on the board, he's what I call a true enthusiast. I'm barely a shade tree mechanic.

My mechanic friend who took apart my T5 and removed the head I took to the machinist for a rebuild was a humbling experience. Mechanics work hard and deserve their bread.

 

[npn]

If Rico keeps posting those wonderful write ups of his he's easily going to make the T6 the more popular choice.

LOL I agree. What I wasn't clear about is the difference between "regular" T6 AWD and "R Design" T6 AWD with the same 6 cyl engine. You can read what's different in RD in the link below. The transmission is the same, the "problematic" 6 speed auto, however, researching here and there, suggests that the issue was resolved in 2015 models.

https://www.media.volvocars.com/us/en-us/media/pressreleases/148205/model-overview-20155-volvo-s60

 

[Pauls90]

Yes He defiantly should take KIA for or Hyundai they care about safety so much from 2015 til now they have new feature "Engine failure and fire problems" I guess if the car trying to kill you or it just dies it be TOP safety pick . I guess Volvo cant beat that and defiantly worse than KIA.

Hyundai, Kia fined $137 million for delaying U.S. engine failure recalls

Hyundai and Kia must pay $137 million in fines and safety improvements because they moved too slowly to recall over 1 million vehicles with engines that can fail. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced the penalties on Friday. They resolve a three-year government probe into...

www.winknews.com

 

[Highwayman]

Yes He defiantly should take KIA for or Hyundai they care about safety so much from 2015 til now they have new feature "Engine failure and fire problems" I guess if the car trying to kill you or it just dies it be TOP safety pick . I guess Volvo cant beat that and defiantly worse than KIA.

Hyundai, Kia fined $137 million for delaying U.S. engine failure recalls

Hyundai and Kia must pay $137 million in fines and safety improvements because they moved too slowly to recall over 1 million vehicles with engines that can fail. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced the penalties on Friday. They resolve a three-year government probe into...

www.winknews.com

Thanks Paul for bringing this to our attention.
It's a huge slap in the face to Hyundai and KIA, 1.6 million vehicles with the 2.0 or 2.4 Theta II engine are effected. This is very serious as Hyundai & KIA dealers will be flooded with huge engine jobs. Ouch , that's a lot of cars with those 2 engines that now need to be taken apart.
Anybody on the board who knows any owners please notify there is a potential for engine fire in effected vehicles ranging from Sonata, Sante Fe, Optima, Sorento and Sportage.
Here's another article from Car and Driver which mentions year ranges and models :

Hyundai, Kia Fined up to $210 Million over Handling of Engine Recalls

NHTSA concluded the automakers didn't respond well enough in recalls of 2011–2014 models including the Santa Fe Sport and Sonata.

www.caranddriver.com

Ouch

 

[MyVolvoS60]

Yes He defiantly should take KIA for or Hyundai they care about safety so much from 2015 til now they have new feature "Engine failure and fire problems" I guess if the car trying to kill you or it just dies it be TOP safety pick . I guess Volvo cant beat that and defiantly worse than KIA.

Hyundai, Kia fined $137 million for delaying U.S. engine failure recalls

Hyundai and Kia must pay $137 million in fines and safety improvements because they moved too slowly to recall over 1 million vehicles with engines that can fail. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced the penalties on Friday. They resolve a three-year government probe into...

www.winknews.com

Well the car is safe so long as you don't drive it! So the IIHS is 100% accurate on their Top Safety Pick. Look at the fire prone Pinto! Best and safest car ever made, as long as it never leaves the driveway!

Although in all fairness, I believe this only affected 2011 to 2014 Hyundais?

 

[Pauls90]

Well the car is safe so long as you don't drive it! So the IIHS is 100% accurate on their Top Safety Pick. Look at the fire prone Pinto! Best and safest car ever made, as long as it never leaves the driveway!

Although in all fairness, I believe this only affected 2011 to 2014 Hyundais?

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