Volvo 850r estate
Discussion
Hi guys, been thinking recently that i need a more practical car.
been looking at these, always fancied one since i was a child watching them in BTCC.
Just wondering what to look for, and how to tell it's an 850r.
whats the difference between the models, ie, t-5, t-5r, R?
oh, and how come when i did a quick plate check on an advertised 850r did it come back 850 t5 SE?
thanks
been looking at these, always fancied one since i was a child watching them in BTCC.
Just wondering what to look for, and how to tell it's an 850r.
whats the difference between the models, ie, t-5, t-5r, R?
oh, and how come when i did a quick plate check on an advertised 850r did it come back 850 t5 SE?
thanks
A quick summary for you:
The 850R has the last R version of the 850's made in the last year (or a little longer) of the model run. They should be N or P reg.
The 850R was the most powerful of the T5/T5-R/850R models, with 250hp with the manual transmission, up 10hp from the limited run yellow T5-Rs. Auto's had less power. Torque of the engine is quite good because of the mix of 2.3l, 5 cylinders, and a decent size turbo. The replacement V70R AWD were not as powerful (240hp from memory) and heavier. It took after 2000 for Volvo to produce a car that was quicker than it.
They didn't come in many colours, Black, Red, Green are the main ones.
Visually they have basically the same bodykit as the yellow T5-R's, and have 7 spoke grey 17" wheels. As specifications / options, they come with every option as standard basically, as it was the top of the line 850. You could pick light or dark wood dash bits (dark nicer), and black or beige leather/alcantara seats (black nicer). Otherwise, you got sunroof, heated seats, 6 CD changer, traction control (but it really doesn't do much) and A/C.
They feel alot more agile than you would expect, suspession is very stiff and crashes though potholes, bumps, pebbles. They can eat front tyres if you have fun, and the tyres are only 205 wide. From the factory they wore P-Zero's, and really these cars need all the grip they can get - there are not that many makers of good quality tyres in that size, and most owners will put good rubber on them. Front brakes are single pot, do the job fine, but no patch on a sportscar. They are quite happy on a frisky run on country roads, eat motorways with ease (what all T5's and R's are known for), and more than hold their own in the fast lane on Autobahns.
They aren't faultless, check the volvo owners club forum. CV's and rear crank seals are common problems with the 2.3l engine in all 850 V70 C70's etc. The engine and gearbox (manual, don't know about autos) are quite strong and looked after will keep running into high mileage. Same with turbos, if the car has been looked after, then they will last a long time - don't let the turbo cool down after driving it flat out and you will kill the turbo, just like any other car. Early life in their lives, most probably were company cars or private and maintained due to their price. Insurance group is 17 I think.
And you might have guessed, I have one
which is my run around / hauling stuff car - can easily take 3 guys and 3 mountain bikes with not much effort. I think it is a cheap car to run, as not much goes wrong with them - mines got 120k on it. They get very little attention from other road users or the BiB (Traffpol know what they are, as years ago one pointed out that it was alot faster than his V70, said with some envy), and boy racers get shocked when you smoke them. You can easily get more power out of them if you want.
Anyhow, that should get you started
Stuart
The 850R has the last R version of the 850's made in the last year (or a little longer) of the model run. They should be N or P reg.
The 850R was the most powerful of the T5/T5-R/850R models, with 250hp with the manual transmission, up 10hp from the limited run yellow T5-Rs. Auto's had less power. Torque of the engine is quite good because of the mix of 2.3l, 5 cylinders, and a decent size turbo. The replacement V70R AWD were not as powerful (240hp from memory) and heavier. It took after 2000 for Volvo to produce a car that was quicker than it.
They didn't come in many colours, Black, Red, Green are the main ones.
Visually they have basically the same bodykit as the yellow T5-R's, and have 7 spoke grey 17" wheels. As specifications / options, they come with every option as standard basically, as it was the top of the line 850. You could pick light or dark wood dash bits (dark nicer), and black or beige leather/alcantara seats (black nicer). Otherwise, you got sunroof, heated seats, 6 CD changer, traction control (but it really doesn't do much) and A/C.
They feel alot more agile than you would expect, suspession is very stiff and crashes though potholes, bumps, pebbles. They can eat front tyres if you have fun, and the tyres are only 205 wide. From the factory they wore P-Zero's, and really these cars need all the grip they can get - there are not that many makers of good quality tyres in that size, and most owners will put good rubber on them. Front brakes are single pot, do the job fine, but no patch on a sportscar. They are quite happy on a frisky run on country roads, eat motorways with ease (what all T5's and R's are known for), and more than hold their own in the fast lane on Autobahns.
They aren't faultless, check the volvo owners club forum. CV's and rear crank seals are common problems with the 2.3l engine in all 850 V70 C70's etc. The engine and gearbox (manual, don't know about autos) are quite strong and looked after will keep running into high mileage. Same with turbos, if the car has been looked after, then they will last a long time - don't let the turbo cool down after driving it flat out and you will kill the turbo, just like any other car. Early life in their lives, most probably were company cars or private and maintained due to their price. Insurance group is 17 I think.
And you might have guessed, I have one
which is my run around / hauling stuff car - can easily take 3 guys and 3 mountain bikes with not much effort. I think it is a cheap car to run, as not much goes wrong with them - mines got 120k on it. They get very little attention from other road users or the BiB (Traffpol know what they are, as years ago one pointed out that it was alot faster than his V70, said with some envy), and boy racers get shocked when you smoke them. You can easily get more power out of them if you want.Anyhow, that should get you started
Stuart
Due to the stupidity of a reactionary cabal of its members and directors the Volvo Owners Club forums are closed until later this year....in fact they may never return for the use of the members who pay for them if the old pipe and slippers caravaners have their way.
You will find many from the VOC site who have an interest in the more recent sportier Volvos now hang out at www.t5d5.org
Regards, Don.
You will find many from the VOC site who have an interest in the more recent sportier Volvos now hang out at www.t5d5.org
Regards, Don.
Edited by don kalmar union on Thursday 15th May 17:57
Jdavis said:
Thanks for that 'smack'. that gives me a good idea of what to expect.
need to know what to look for to identify an 'R', other than a badged t5/t5r.
will have a gander on that forum.
cheers guys
The main ones from the outside are the body kit, wheels (the grey 17" only came on the 850R), T5/T5-R/850R's run bigger front discs than your usual 850 if I remember right (the traffic cops uprated their T5's to the larger front discs ususally), and run a lot lower than other 850's. T5's had standard bumpers / body kit and 5 spoke turbine wheels, T5-R's came in a custard yellow. 850R's are pretty easy to spot if you know what you are looking for.need to know what to look for to identify an 'R', other than a badged t5/t5r.
will have a gander on that forum.
cheers guys
Hi, the 850 T-5R was produced for the UK market in Gul Yellow, Black and Green. The manual 850R has a viscous coupling LSD with a stronger engine than the T-5R. The manual stronger 850R engine was then put into the later S70/V70 T5s and Rs. The 302 front brakes were not standard on either the T5-R or the 850R as only the later S70/V70Rs had 302s as standard. A lot of the S70/V70 T5s had 302s as standard, however not all!
The T5-R does come in more colours than yellow. Mine is black and I think there may be green too?? I think that black looks the best but I'm seriously biased!
These cars have had a seriously drop in value recently, I think I managed to pick up a bargin. Hopefully now is the right time to buy as I can see them coming back up again, possibly even becoming a classic. Probably getting into a sticky spot here, but I'm fairly sure that the T5-R was built in smaller numbers (200 in black and 200 in yellow for the UK) than the 850R so that may be the way to go if you're hoping for a future classic.
And www.vpcuk.org is another useful site.
You won't regret getting one!
These cars have had a seriously drop in value recently, I think I managed to pick up a bargin. Hopefully now is the right time to buy as I can see them coming back up again, possibly even becoming a classic. Probably getting into a sticky spot here, but I'm fairly sure that the T5-R was built in smaller numbers (200 in black and 200 in yellow for the UK) than the 850R so that may be the way to go if you're hoping for a future classic.
And www.vpcuk.org is another useful site.
You won't regret getting one!
Ah yes, now I remember, T5-R's did come in black - my mistake. Maybe it only was imported in Oz in yellow (where I was living when they were released) and that confused me.
But they are getting rare these days. There is a very clean yellow estate that is see every few months around my area, otherwise I probably have only seen 2 others in the past year.
But they are getting rare these days. There is a very clean yellow estate that is see every few months around my area, otherwise I probably have only seen 2 others in the past year.
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