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Potential C70 owner looking for feedback

3K views 23 replies 14 participants last post by  88domer 
#1 ·
Hello. I am in the early stages of finding a new toy/project and thinking the 2nd gen C70's are old enough for me to consider one now. I haven't driven one but wanted to know how is the body rigidity of these cars with the top up as well as down? Haven't a car that rattles away when I'm driving it will make me crazy. Thanks for any feedback you folks can provide.
 
#2 ·
Just bought a 2011 a bit over a week ago. Rigidity is really good with the top up. Have one slight rattle in the drivers door. Other than that, no problem.

Haven't driven with the top down yet. Been too cold. I'm sure it's going to lose a bit of its stiffness when that top comes down.

I am very happy with my purchase. I was thinking it was going to be an occasional car, but it's quickly turning into my daily driver.

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#4 ·
Thanks folks for the insight on the C70. I guess since this model is a purpose built convertible it does better than the models that were modified to become convertibles. I know a lot is based on the S40/50 platform but it sounds like they did these right. I'll have to get behind the wheel and see how one is in person. Thanks again.
 
#5 ·
The second generation (P1) C70 is much better than the first generation base on the 850/S70 platform. Little or no cowl shake and reasonable visibility with the top up. I just bought one a few weeks ago (MY13) and am very impressed with how nice it is to drive.


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#6 · (Edited)
I'm a recent buyer of a C70. An ex-GM employee who makes the C70 the last bought of 96 cars owned. ( Probably Too old to reach my boyhood goal of 100).
Favorites:
2003 Thunderbird
1971 LS6 Corvette
1993 Cadillac Allante N*
2007 C70 T5
2009 Saab 9-3
Thinking this car will soon reach 1a or number 2 position.
Might not make 100 owned but I absolutely guarantee a '11, '12, or '13 C70 will be in my garage before I go to the great Pull apart lot in the sky. Hopefully the '07 lasts for a number of years but then the hunt begins. Absolutely love everything about this car. You will not be disappointed. Go for it!


Great ride with top up or down. Luxurious with all the right buttons. Will go down the road at 80mph all day long. Comfortable long ride for many miles. Looking forward to see how she navigates in the winter. Snow tires all around mounted tomorrow.
 
#14 ·
I'm a recent buyer of a C70. An ex-GM employee who makes the C70 the last bought of 96 cars owned. ( Probably Too old to reach my boyhood goal of 100).
Favorites:
2003 Thunderbird
1971 LS6 Corvette
1993 Cadillac Allante N*
2007 C70 T5
2009 Saab 9-3
Thinking this car will soon reach 1a or number 2 position.
Might not make 100 owned but I absolutely guarantee a '11, '12, or '13 C70 will be in my garage before I go to the great Pull apart lot in the sky. Hopefully the '07 lasts for a number of years but then the hunt begins. Absolutely love everything about this car. You will not be disappointed. Go for it!

Great ride with top up or down. Luxurious with all the right buttons. Will go down the road at 80mph all day long. Comfortable long ride for many miles. Looking forward to see how she navigates in the winter. Snow tires all around mounted tomorrow.
96 cars, wow. I'm only at about 25 in the past 30 years and my wife thinks I'm out off control. I've got a long way to go yet.

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#7 ·
Pretty much in agreement with wcoates... taken mine to Florida twice and St Louis twice, and numerous less ambitious trips... far nicer than any other car I've driven that far... first time I took it to St Louis my plan for the journey back to Philadelphia was to keep going until I got tired of sitting in the car and then stop for an overnight at a highway exit hotel... that didn't begin to happen until I was less than an hour from home so I just kept on going... a bit squirrely on the little bit of snow we've had in the last couple of years but that was with all-seasons, and not bad enough to make me rush out to buy winter wheels ... will be doing my snow driving in my S60 this year
 
#8 ·
Was able to put the top down for the 1st time yesterday. A little bit of cowl shake, but nothing alarming. I've wanted a convertible since High School. My junior year is when manufacturers began to bring back drop tops.

I was also surprised at how little wind buffeting around town. It was hard to wipe the smile off my face.



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#9 ·
The first gen def had some cowl shake. Once they switched to the hardtop those complaints went away. Very nice machine. When we get one in stock nice enough to retail they rarely last longer than a week.
 
#10 ·
I've had both a 1st Gen and now a 2nd Gen c70, as well as a few other convertibles.

This is by far the best of them. I daily drive it all year round. No issues except a couple ice storms freezing up the side windows.



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#11 ·
Thanks for all the feedback on the 2nd gen cars. I am going to try and find a decent one so I can get a good idea of what the driving feel is like. And then set out to find me a keeper. I never saw one in person but the vanilla pearl is a great color on the computer. I'm sure not many of them are out there but it sure looks perfectly suited for the car.
 
#13 ·
I never saw one in person but the vanilla pearl is a great color on the computer. I'm sure not many of them are out there but it sure looks perfectly suited for the car.
Yep, they don't show up often. Here's an '09 in ice white in the DC area if you're interested. Too bad the dealer reviews are so awful. Definitely needs the TB replaced if it hasn't been done yet. https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/697556810765456/

BD
 
#12 ·
Agree on everything said earlier on cowl shake and rattles. I've owned several convertibles over (way too many) years and the C70 is by far the tightest, especially top up. You should never expect any convertible to be as rigid and quiet as a closed car, but trust me a top-up C70 comes as close as I've ever experienced. I test drove a couple of 1st gen C70 and it was a real shaker...

As you drive ones out there, bear in mind that this car goes through struts and suspension bits faster than the lighter S40/C30. Depending on your driving style, there's also some torque steer, especially with Polestar or another tune. After almost 9 years in mine, I can attest to the impact of worn struts etc. on noises and rattles.
 
#16 ·
We have both the first gen (2001) and second (2008). Although the 2008 is tighter, the build quality I have found is better on the 2001, and it is also a faster car (both are the T5 version). Both are good cars but we've had a bit more issues with the 2008. We've driven the 2001 over 160K miles so far including towing a trailer over long distances and it still drives like new.
 
#17 ·
It's criminal they ever shipped the much heavier 2.5T C70 with less power than the 2.3 HPT. Every P1 C70 from at least the facelift should have shipped with Polestar.

Every car should have a stage 1 tune installed. It's a bear to keep the wheels from spinning with the manual, though. May have the torque limits put on my stage 2.
 
#18 · (Edited)
i've had my 2008 going into 8years now... it's my daily driver and i still love driving it every day. top-up it feels like a nice coupe and, as others have pointed out, you get the smile on your face the days you get to drop the top and feel like you're on vacation. much less cowel shake than the sebring? i've been given at rental places in the past. everything just feels solid (it does weight a ton)

there's a good chance i'll be giving the C70 up in 6-12 months though...planning to get an electric car...ford mach-e vs tesla y. but i am already missing the C70...

i love volvo seats and am worried...friends' teslas i've sat in (S and 3), the seats felt hard and uncomfortable. haven't sat in the mach-e yet but am hopeful. all the fancy tech in the world can't overcome not being comfortable especially if you plan to keep a car for a long time...

i've also done mods that, to me, make the C70 even more perfect. stage 1 tune gives it decent performance, 18" midirs are lovely to look at and improved the handling, ford e-focus mount tightened and quickened shifts, b8 struts & h&r springs makes it handle and corner in a way that inspires confidence when i feel sporty, replaced the halogens with HIDs so i can see, smartop makes using the top that much more pleasant. and as all things go vegan, my size 9 hands love the thick leather steering wheel wrap...will probably wrap the ford or tesla's steering wheel.

we'll see...

i'm sure i'll love the instant torque of electric and skipping the gas station visits, and all the tech that will be in the new car. but maybe it's just me getting older (mid 40s now), but there's something about familiarity and the simplicity of the C70s interior and controls (including hvac/radio) that just feels so great.

i just did a KBB check and am sad to see my 2008 w/105k is worth in the $6000 range (of course mods don't really help with KBB values, may even hurt).

but for the original poster, yes, you will find some great deals on this great car (P1 Volvo C70). check maintenance records for higher mileage cars...for instance, in the last couple of years, i did the timing belts, notorious leaking radiator hose and pcv/oil filter, ignition switch, as well as the shocks/springs...and enjoying summer tires, i go through a set every couple of years. so factor those type of things in when negotiating. but a well taken care of C70 will be reliable and a joy to own and drive for as long as you want it
 
#20 ·
#21 ·
It's a module that allows you to, among others things, open and close the top with you key fob. It plugs into the Cabin Roof Module in the trunk behind the liner on the right hand side near the antenna

Get it from Mods4Cars : http://www.mods4cars.com/sms/shop/i...yPTI=&action=products&cat=201&mode=view&id=86 It's a bit north of 300 bucks

Install is a bit fiddly because of the module being so tight in the trunk and tucked in behind the carpet lining, but no rocket science involved.... from memory you unplug two plugs from the car module. plug them into the supplied harness and plug the harness into the car module - almost impossible to dowrong, although I did manage to bend a pin on the CRM first attempt which caused considerable anguish for a few days
 
#22 ·
They also show up now and then in the forums, either here or the far sale forum. That’s how I got both of mine. You do need to splice into the wiring with 3M connectors in addition to the plugs, but it’s not too bad as long as you carefully distinguish between the wires (I can’t recall now if it was white with a red stripe or vice versa, but the online instructions are good about describing which is which).

As others have noted, it’s a tight fit with your hands and you have to do some of it a bit blind, but not awful to install. Well worth it when it’s done - DW was thrilled when I finally added it to hers.

BD
 
#24 · (Edited)
The newer version of the smart top doesn't need to be spliced. The harness just plugs in.

It's my favorite upgrade.

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Oh yeah, I forgot about that. I had to go back to their website and grab the right install instructions for the used one I got from Socalc70 - pulled the updated version initially.

BD
 
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