I'm looking at buying one of these, probably 2012 or thereabouts. Or maybe an S60. Either D2 or D3 engine.
I just read on another forum an older post saying how horrifically expensive it is to refill the tank - which I'm assuming is the adblue tank - around £100 at a Volvo dealer.
Is this true, or is it about the same cost whatever the brand (as I understand most diesels use adblue except VAG??)
Are there any gotchas with Volvo ownership, except maybe a dent to the image?
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Mines a 2011 S60 with the D3 163bhp diesel, and has no Adblue anything, if that helps.
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Isn't AdBlue the same stuff wherever you buy it? A local independent garage near us sells it and it's not that expensive.
Isn't the issue it's tricky to refill because you aren't given a funnel and you don't want to spill it in the boot area. Smaller top-up bottles of the stuff come with a filler/funnel, or so I believe.
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Should perhaps have added that I was given a spanketty new 2015 V40 at my last service as a courtesy car. I didn't rate it against my older S60 at all, even though the controls appeared similar. Can't put my finger on it but mine was/is a much nicer place to be. Everything from the seats to the ride quality to the road noise is just that hint nicer really. I don't know if the big old S80 is better yet.
Look out for the S60 (dunno about the V40) spare wheel game. It's an expensive extra (mine came with it unusually so I've got that as well as the standard tyre gunk). Anyway, there is nowhere to put it under the boot floor, so it gets strapped inTo the boot and reduces load space considerably. Or of course you don't carry it, taking the risk. That's one bit of poor Volvo design.
But there's lots of little design bits that you discover after months where you think "that's jolly clever". Like when you pop the boot. The rear lights come on - but only if it's dark. I'm sure there's a reason.
I like mine very much.
Last edited by: Crankcase on Mon 18 Jan 16 at 21:25
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>> just read on another forum an older post saying how horrifically expensive it is
>> to refill the tank - which I'm assuming is the adblue tank - around £100
>> at a Volvo dealer.
Is it adblue or some Volvo equivalent of FAP additive for the DPF - ie stuff for control of particulate emission rather than NOx?
EDIT Eolys is probably the generic term.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Mon 18 Jan 16 at 21:29
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I'm sure I read somewhere that it's very similar to urine. Suppose it all rather depends on where the filler cap is and the angle of approach...
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I've just changed my 56 reg V50 2.0D that had done 264,000 miles for a 12 reg D3 version of the same. The 5 cylinder Volvo engine is much nicer then the 2.0 PSA unit.
I have had a few of the V40's as loaners, usually D2's but once a D4 (nice). I find them a bit claustrophobic with the dark headlining and somehow not taken to them in the same way as the V50.
Volvo forum for info www.volvoforums.org.uk/forum.php
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2012 will most likely be EuroV and therefore not ad-blue equipped. The fluid is probably the DPF additive (Eyols in PSA speak) is dear, but only needs refilling every 80 - 100k. Adblue is for Euro VI and cheap to buy non dealer, but I expect there's a (big!!) premium for having it refilled at the dealer at service time!
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Wouldn't worry too much about the image thing Smokie. You mentioned elsewhere that you're over 60 now so it's really fine to have one...
;-)
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There's a door mirror in that box.
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>> There's a door mirror in that box.
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Cheaper than you normally have to pay too.
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V40 shares much of the Focus platform, S60 is a modification of the S80 & previous generation Mondeo.
2012 can be a bit of a nightmare as that was a cutover model year with the S60. If you opt for a pre-facelift D3 you get 163 PS, a facelift D3 is 136 PS that is not a typo. The D3 is a short stroke D5 5 cylinder, the D2 of that era is a four cylinder 1.6 which shares a lot with the PSA/Ford diesel. This is the one that requires topping up with Eolys.
Just to add confusion a V40 D3 is 150PS.
Dn is not an indication of engine but power output and has been in a state of transition. Make sure you're getting what you think you are getting.
Volvo cars don't do AdBlue, the alternative is a third cat/filter which other manufacturers are looking at.
If it were my choice, I'd look for a D5. The D2 is just about adequate, the D3 asthmatic and fuel consumption is about the same as the D5. I've got a D3, as previously mentioned the boot space is woeful if you opt for the spacesaver.
Last edited by: gmac on Mon 18 Jan 16 at 22:31
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Can't answer your question about the Adblue. Mine was a petrol ! But it did have a good interior but it was the NavLux version. I had a basic one as a loan car and it was a different beast. They aime to compete with the 3 Series as a "premium" car - They are still a few levels behind. My 3 Series is a finer car. Door shuts with an old fashioned BMW thump, window runs are smoother, general little touches that do it. The V40 I had was priced and specc'd up to nea ron 40k....not worth that. It was worth the 24k I paid for it....it had a spare wheel (option)
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Missed the edit: the Eolys 1.6 was dropped around 2010 for the self governing dry DPF. The V40 and S60 will not have a DPF additive tank.
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Interesting stuff, thanks all
I'm rather taken with the city safe thing where is stops automatically. I think that's on all 2012 onwards cars. Looks like fun in tandem with the adaptive cruise control but I don't think that came in till 2014. The D2 looks very economic though.
Last edited by: smokie on Mon 18 Jan 16 at 23:12
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>> I'm rather taken with the city safe thing where is stops automatically. I think that's
>> on all 2012 onwards cars. Looks like fun in tandem with the adaptive cruise control
>> but I don't think that came in till 2014. The D2 looks very economic though.
>>
Mine has all that, as well as the blind spot indicators, a lasery thing to detect pedestrians crossing and stop if needed, and lane awareness beeppery if you drift off course.
This is all good stuff and I can recommend it, mostly, although its not perfect and you have to get used to one or two oddities. It was always, and still is, an expensive option at purchase (about 2k now I think) so MOST don't have adaptive cruise, but yes, I think ALL have City Safe.
Anyway, as adaptive cruise was the main reason I went for this car at all, I soon discovered, if it's any help to you, that Volvo adverts often don't use the words "adaptive cruise", but DO use the words "Driver Support Pack", which contains all that stuff.
I think it was on the S60 a year or two before I got mine - I don't know when the V40 got it.
Economy - real world on mine is about 36-40 ish commuting and 48ish long run, with the odd 55 in perfect long run conditions - all of that on the internal trip though, not actually measured.
And just to add, I can't say I agree with gmac on the D3 being asthmatic, unless he means in the later 136bhp variant. I always think that mine pulls like a rocket when asked, and the D5 must therefore pull like a thing that pulls more than a rocket (I don't need that myself).
And to make it even MORE complex, you can of course have your Volvo seen to with an official Polestar upgrade, which for a few hundred quid boosts the bhp considerably. For my model, there is no upgrade to the 163bhp I have, but if I had bought the later 136bhp D3 version then Polestar would, for about £500, turn it into, well, goodness me, a 163bhp variant...
Last edited by: Crankcase on Tue 19 Jan 16 at 08:08
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To clarify my asthmatic comment yes, the car pulls well with 400Nm but with only a c.1500rpm useable rev range it's just getting into its stride when it's time to change gear again. Constantly runs out of steam.
Below 1400rpm there is no boost, peak power in mine is 2950 though that was revised to 3400 I think in later engines.
Going from an earlier S60 D5 to the pre facelift D3 the newer car requires a lower gear and more revs which does nothing for economy. The old car would drive from 30 mph to 130 mph in 5th, the newer car needs 4th for 30mph, 6th does not work below 55mph.
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Ah, gears. Dunno about them. Auto box just does whatever it does. Mine is post-facelift though.
I'm sure you're right, it just all feels perfectly fine to me is all, and not something I worry or think about at all. but I'm not a "proper" driver anyway. If I could afford a Tesla and sit reading the paper while it took me to work I'd have one in a heartbeat.
Last edited by: Crankcase on Tue 19 Jan 16 at 09:06
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>> anyway. If I could afford a Tesla and sit reading the paper while it took
>> me to work I'd have one in a heartbeat.
You need to move to a place serviced by the guided busway
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I am already there. It would be cheaper to buy the Tesla than use that thing.
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Volvo - Volvo V40 query - Crankcase
