RE: Volvo 850 T-5R | PH Auction Block
Discussion
You'd have to be an absolute chump to pay that for this old nail. Surely, there can't be less desirable spec for an 850 T-5R.
The constant references to the BTCC in the article are nothing short of cringeworthy. I can assure you that the moment you sit down in this car and move off under the slushy pull of that torpid gearbox, any idea you had in your head that you'd feel any connection to the BTCC race car will vanish. All you'll be left with is a £24k turkey that doesn't drive very well at all, isn't all that fast, isn't much for handling and that bleeds off whatever power and response it might have been able to muster through that awful automatic transmission.
On this particular example, I can imagine the suspension, bushes, mounts and subframe will all be well past due for a refresh. I wouldn't be surprised if it drove like a right bag of slop now, because surely if it had been refreshed you'd make that absolutely clear given the ludicrous guide price.
The constant references to the BTCC in the article are nothing short of cringeworthy. I can assure you that the moment you sit down in this car and move off under the slushy pull of that torpid gearbox, any idea you had in your head that you'd feel any connection to the BTCC race car will vanish. All you'll be left with is a £24k turkey that doesn't drive very well at all, isn't all that fast, isn't much for handling and that bleeds off whatever power and response it might have been able to muster through that awful automatic transmission.
On this particular example, I can imagine the suspension, bushes, mounts and subframe will all be well past due for a refresh. I wouldn't be surprised if it drove like a right bag of slop now, because surely if it had been refreshed you'd make that absolutely clear given the ludicrous guide price.
I have owned a 850 T5r and V70r and could never see what all the fuss was about as for me they were sub £2k load luggers at the time and i preferred my Merc 300TE.The Volvos were unreliable too and big bills were looming so never stayed more than a couple of years with me.
Silly money nowadays..
Silly money nowadays..
When I worked at a Volvo dealership in 2002-3 we would occasionally take these in part exchange, along with the 850R and V70R.
The 'R' suspension made them handle far better than a standard T5, but made everything in the back creak and rattle once they hit about 30,000 miles.
The auto is disappointing, but as a manual you drive it like any old-school turbo with a load of lag while you watch the boost needle swing then it surges down the road (or sits there spinning the P-Zeros if it's wet). I always enjoyed running them around, but can't imagine spending that sort of money on one.
The 'R' suspension made them handle far better than a standard T5, but made everything in the back creak and rattle once they hit about 30,000 miles.
The auto is disappointing, but as a manual you drive it like any old-school turbo with a load of lag while you watch the boost needle swing then it surges down the road (or sits there spinning the P-Zeros if it's wet). I always enjoyed running them around, but can't imagine spending that sort of money on one.
I went to a track day at Goodwood around 1994. I had a passenger lap with Tim Harvey in a T5. Before we started he asked if we wanted fast or entertaining. We said entertaining of course and he was sideways at every corner! Volvo was suddenly cool in my eyes!
Fast forward 20 years and my wife and I were in a restaurant in Mallorca. I pointed out a guy on a nearby table and told my wife I recognised him but didn’t know where from. I was thinking Come Dine with Me. When we left I asked him if he had been a contestant. It was Tim Harvey!
Fast forward 20 years and my wife and I were in a restaurant in Mallorca. I pointed out a guy on a nearby table and told my wife I recognised him but didn’t know where from. I was thinking Come Dine with Me. When we left I asked him if he had been a contestant. It was Tim Harvey!
Criminal pricing, these were changing hands for around a tenth of that in the early 2010s.
I had a manual estate in black, for around 18 months. A great yet flawed car; spacious, comfortable(ish) despite some aftermarket alloys that looked like the S60R's Pegasus wheels and blistering in gear pace, traction off of the line could be a larf though, especially in the wet.
Good stuff
I had a manual estate in black, for around 18 months. A great yet flawed car; spacious, comfortable(ish) despite some aftermarket alloys that looked like the S60R's Pegasus wheels and blistering in gear pace, traction off of the line could be a larf though, especially in the wet.
Good stuff
Always loved these,Clarkson described it as 'Beelzebub's wheels' or something similar.
A red one like in that Top Gear episode has always been a desire for me.
I saw a standard 850 estate recently and was amazed at how small it seemed in comparison to everything else on the road nowadays.
I have a £10k price in my head for one of these, just can't see it making more than twice that.
A red one like in that Top Gear episode has always been a desire for me.
I saw a standard 850 estate recently and was amazed at how small it seemed in comparison to everything else on the road nowadays.
I have a £10k price in my head for one of these, just can't see it making more than twice that.
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