As a modern family man, acutely aware of the costs of maintaining your modern family, you may be tempted to make a trip into the City on a Sunday. Parking is free, museums are free, perhaps you want your youngsters to experience a Sunday service in a Cathedral? The roads will be a bit quieter than in the week. But in any case, you have an ever-so-comfy V70 with its superior front seats. You know that the clutch and steering are all feather-light around town. You can load push chairs and the like in the massive boot easily, because as well as a large flat load area, it has a low lip. Plus, the kids can watch the DVD via the screens in the back of the front headrests, because you cleverly bought a car that had the family pack and entertainment system fitted. What can go wrong?
Well, the problem with Sundays is everyone else knows that parking is free too. Around St Paul’s Cathedral in London all the side streets are choc-a-block. And the V70 is massive. It is as close as I have tome to threading a Camel through the eye of a needle. I noticed that I increased the amount of cold air from the air conditioning every time I parked.
But that parking difficulty, which is exactly the same in competitors like the Audi A6, is more a category problem than a Volvo problem. What is a Volvo problem is the shocking Sat-Nav. The way it comes out of the dashboard is very James Bond, but no one (and I have made several guinea pigs try) finds it easy to use. You have to have the heading read ‘City’ if you want to enter a post code. If it says Post code it will only let you enter the town or the street, I can’t remember it was all so confusing. You almost need to allow 15 minutes extra before setting off to set the damn thing up. Of course, you learn how to use it, but it never stops being a frustration.
Another surprise in a car that is so well made, of such fine finishes – the seat leather is better than some fashion wear - is the rattle from the boot area. I never quite got to the bottom of it, but it related to the false floor that you can slide out for easy loading. A terrific idea, especially for new Mums who are finding lifting the buggies etc up into the boot difficult. But the rattle will also leave them grinding their teeth; it is so irritating.
Leaving these relatively small design points aside, the V70 is a mighty mode of transport. In the test car’s R-Design spec, it made high motorway speed seem pedestrian. It was not so much quiet when cruising, but silent. The seats were so comfortable you could sleep in them. The handling was precise and firm. The alloy wheels tram-line slightly like a sports car, which appeals to the driver in your heart, even if you are restricted in your car choice to something that is well-suited to family days out and school runs.
Who is buying them?
A number go to company car fleets, either because the executive in question has a family or because they carry a lot of work equipment and trawl Britain’s motorways for their living. This provides much of the nearly new stock and means cars in great condition. But the main buyer of cars in the later used market is the family who can afford it. This means the cars tend to be pretty well looked after mechanically, but can take a hammering inside and out in terms of use. So shop around.
What’s the market like?
Most of the cars on used market are well specified cars with various packs of extra equipment: winter pack, family pack etc. They are also predominantly diesel. Prices for these start at £24,000 for very nearly new ex-demonstrators with just a couple of thousand miles on the clock. Depreciation is a steady 19-20% each year until the M.O.T. Then lots of families buy those that get traded in and so prices firm up briefly. A three year old car can be yours for just £12,600 having done less than half its potential trouble-free mileage. Looking at the 2.4 petrol-engined versions, despite there being less in the market, prices are actually softer. Nearly new examples are very hard to come by, but three year old cars are as little as £9,000 with mileage similar to the diesel car.
What else can this budget buy?
A budget of around £10,000 or £12,000 for a large family car means lots of options. Volkswagen Passats and BMW 5-Series are similar money for similar age cars. With a little more money, or if you look at a year older car you can have an Audi A6 too. But, if you look at Citroen C5s, Vauxhall Vectras and Ford Mondeos you can buy cars that are only two years old.
Summary
An enormous family estate like your Dad used to drive, but with all the benefits of a thoroughly modern all-rounder. A motorway mile cruncher, family load-lugger, luxury car at average money with sensible running costs. There is a specification for all styles of driving now that there is an R-Design sports specification.
By: Matthew Tumbridge