Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) | Technical matters | Back Room Forum

What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks

Wed 29 Sep 2010 17:43

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - Wulbert

I'm looking for a car to replace my ageing Saab 9000 CSE. I've been looking at '95 plate Honda Civics, Skoda Fabia Estate 1.4 diesels and lately, the Volvo V50 Estate.

I'm quite taken with the Volvo, looking at them in dealers yards it seems to be solid, well built and attractive. I'm not so sure about the reliability though. A few horror stories around the internet, which seem to centre on the 2.0litre diesel(poor fuel economy, engine probs)

I wonder if the 1.6 diesel unit is a better, more reliable unit. It should also have better fuel economy. Monthly running costs are very important to me, I can't afford a car which is going to let me down. I do about 1k miles/month.

Does anyone have a view on these cars?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Wed 29 Sep 2010 17:54

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - Collos25

Would you buy a ford focus because thats what it is.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Wed 29 Sep 2010 18:45

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - shara

I own a 2.0 diesel focus which shares engines with Volvo and my brother has a 10 plate Volvo V50 estate with the 1.6 diesel engine so I am well placed to comapare the two. The main issue I had with the 1.6 was power, its a small capacity engine pulling a big car and at times it does feel lacking in power especially when getting up to speed. Other than that its quiet and relatively refined. With regards reliability, the 1.6 also has its share of problems so I wouldN't discount the 2.0 in this regard, reliability wise they are probably very similar.

As for the Volvo being a Focus, they share also share the platform with the Mazda 3 and I think the Mazda was the first of the trio to be released so if I'm perdantic the Volvo is actually a Mazda! A lot of manufacturers share platforms-ask a premier league footballer if they would buy a VW Phaeton and they would most likely say no-yet they drive around in Bentley Continentals which is more or less the same thing as the VW.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Wed 29 Sep 2010 20:43

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - Collos25

The V50 is hardly a large car in fact its a quite small a 1.6 motor should make the car fly.

Ford Focus drive train, engine probably sourced at PAS,platform .suspension etc supplied by Ford I agree its probably the same as Mazda but thats Ford owned as well.

But I must admit they look very nice and thats important .

As far as Pheatons go they build them in Dresden where I live a superb car.

Edited by Andy Bairsto on 29/09/2010 at 20:53

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Wed 29 Sep 2010 23:39

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - Wulbert

Thank you for your thoughts. Interesting to hear from someone who knows the 1.6 and 2litre engines. I probably would buy a Ford Focus but I know very little about them either. I have read some reports that the Focus can be patchy when it comes to reliability.

The Volvo has excellent seats and a sturdy interior. Given that these are the parts of the car that I'll be sitting on and touching they are pretty important. And yes, I don't mind admitting it, the look, feel and ambience of the car are important to me, however they are not as important as the mechanical reliability of the vehicle.

I liked the Volvo because it is small but seems to have a big car level of finish.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Thu 30 Sep 2010 01:48

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - happy polo

A 1.6 might be a pretty adequate size lump if it's a small-ish car and you're talking petrol, but even my ladyfriend's 206 diesel has got a 1.9 lump. I'd think 1.6 oil burner in a Volvo is pushing your luck a bit for anything other than town driving!

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Wed 15 Aug 2012 15:39

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - laurentvl

V50 hardly a large car? Compared to what?
The V50 is a decent size car, it's spacious and the booth is just fine too. I drive the 1.6D and I like the car, it drives good, is reliable, comfortable, it looks nice etc.
The only things I find wrong with the car is the turning circle, personally I think it's too big. The A pillar is quite wide, I'm a tall guy so I tend to sit a bit further away from the steering wheel and there are times that it really bothers me that it's blocking my view. I was used to driving 2.0 diesels so this engine to me feels like it's lacking a bit of power. But for cruising around town this is a perfect car. On the motorway it's enjoyable too but if you're on the road a lot and drive long distances regularly I'd suggest you get one with a little more power. With the booth filled and some people on the backseat the lack of power is just tremendous.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Tue 15 Mar 2011 16:32

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - KingKenny

I've driven both 2 and 1.6 litre - 2 litre as a rental a couple of times in Sweden, as it happens, and the 1.6 because I've just bought one!

Main difference in driving in my opinion is the torque and power delivery - 2 litre has a wider spread and you can put your foot down anytime and take off. 1.6 does nothing at all below about 1500 rpm (you can probably do a million mpg staying down there as it feels like you're being pushed by a lawn mower) but it's absolutely fine if you keep it 'on the cam' (or 'on the turbo' is more to the point I guess).

My 1.6D S feels very solid and well built and I agree that 'feel' and quality materials are a subjective thing, but I do feel I am in a quality marque.

Someone here compares a 1.6 petrol to the 1.6 diesel. Note the 'T' on the back! My V50 feels and is a lot quicker off the mark than my old 1.6 petrol Zafira, even though that car is substantially lower geared - with fuel figures to match. As for out of town, V50 will sit happily at 90 all day. But I strongly suggest driving both to see. They are different experiences.

Finally there ARE differences in engines - most problems I''ve seen on line refer to the 2.0D and the new eight-valve 1.6.

Finally if buying second hand note the diesel particulate filter replacement due at 75,000 on either before buying a high-miler.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Wed 15 Aug 2012 20:24

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - grimep

Its basically an "upmarket" Ford Focus Estate, much as an Audi is a posh VW... although Volvo do re-engineer the car a lot for safety.

Of course, you pay a lot more for the equivalent vehicle. Not sure what year you're looking at, but the main difference AFAIK is the V50 always has a DPF fitted, whereas not all Focus1.6TDCis do.

The DV6 engine is regarded as a bit of a dog in the industry due to reliability issues surrounding carbonised oil causing blockages and thence the turbo to fail. Leaking injector seals can also cause big engine problems. That's true of the Focus, and I'd guess its the same in the V50. However, they can't all be bad, regular oil changes at 6k with fully synthetic should help.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Wed 15 Aug 2012 23:30

Volvo V50 Diesel - Wise buy? Volvo V50 1.6 Diesel (better than 2.0l?) - grimep

Ask Honest John

Sell Your Car

Real MPG

Fuel Calculator