1998V70 will have a similar engine management, 1999-2000 is much different. The diesel engineers overbuilt the first whiteblock found in the 850. There's no better engine than the 2.3L 5 cyl found in the 850, and imo it's worth getting the turbo but I *think* the non turbo is as good but without potential turbo problems. Theyare still a relatively safe car. But if safety is your question, a 240 is not the answer. A modern 2000’s car known for safety (VW Passat, for example) is much safer. A newer Volvo is always much safer. because of their age, unless they are fully refreshed, they are not reliable. Electrical problems. Veryvery expensive parts and service. Yeah, all dealers have that but in my experience Volvo is more expensive than most. If the car is in warranty, you have little choice but to go to the dealer. As soon as its out of warranty, go somewhere else, find a skilled independent mechanic, it'll be cheaper. ModernVolvos are certainly premium/luxury cars. Eddles999 • 4 yr. ago. Look at it this way - it's like VAG with Audi, Volkswagen and Skoda - all 3 produce cars on the same platform but Audi is considered luxury or more like premium as some commenters said, VW is considered mid-range and Skoda is considered budget even if they all share a lot Carswith those problems will be your perfect project car. Personally, I've had a couple of (non-Volvo) cars with very bad cooling and hydraulic problems, which taught me a lot, and I don't mind electrical work, so I'm happy fixing those things in future. But I Subaruawd is more capable than the Volvo haldex system, and eyesight has more standard safety features like adaptive cruise control. They're both similarly safe. The volvo SUVs handle better, and t5 is similar to the Subaru engines (turbo charged) offered in xt trims, but t6 is way faster. AComplete Breakdown Published 7 Mar 2023 in Reliability Find the best Volvo for sale on CoPilot. CoPilot Compare makes it easy to compare Volvo trim packages & features across year models. See BeforeI purchased my first car, I drove my parents Volvos. I love Volvos dearly and they hold a very very special place in my heart, but some parts did scare me away from purchasing a new Volvo for myself. We have a 2020 S60 and a 2018 XC90. Both T5 momentum and both acquired brand new on a lease. Volvomodels are more expensive than average when compared to a volume based brand such as Honda. Where it gets complicated is the specific type of engine—T4, T5, T6, T8, B4, B5. The less complicated the engine, the less likely the need for significant maintenance and repairs due to reliability. The T4 and T5 engines are largely trouble Noissues so far. I have a 2020 Volvo xc40 with 32,000 miles , while it seems like the engine is in good condition and reliable, different things randomly fail. The car is still under warranty luckily but I worry for 8,000 more miles from now. eOQ5K.