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I am about to purchase my 8th Volvo and it will be my first diesel powered car. The model is a V50 2.0D with Powershift transmission. I drive between 18,000 and 20,000 miles of mixed motoring per annum. Would you advise using standard or premium diesel with this engine and are there any fuel additives you would recommend using? I am assuming that as this is a four-cylinder engine that it is a Ford derived unit as opposed to the original Volvo D5. Will this be prone to the DMF failures often reported in your column in the Telegraph?

Asked on 12 December 2009 by

Answered by Honest John
It's a Ford/PSA engine. But there are some new derivatives of it in Peugeots. The 150PS is particularly good. More flexible than the older 136PS. Yes, it will have a Dual Mass Flywheel and these have been a problem in VAG DSG transmissions. Powershift is the same sort of transmission, but it’s only been around for a year or so and I have yet to hear of any failures of DMFs with Powershift, or even many in PSA drivetrains. I'd try to run the car exclusively on BP Ultimate diesel if you can. No need for additives with that because it already has them.

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