Well, my mother's 2001 volvo v70 T5 blew out a camshaft seal a few weeks ago. Rather than fix this lifelong lemon, we finally broke down and sold it to a volvo shop. A week later, we lined up and bought a brand new 2011 Subaru Outback 3.6R limited. One of only 3 Green outbacks left in california due to the shortage of parts coming out of Japan.
I convinced her to buy it, subarus are always very reliable (er, with one exception....
) and this one was at a better price than any of the other cars we considered (TSX sport wagon, hail damaged V70R sport wagon, Hyunda Elantra Touring).
It may not be the best looking vehicle out there, but the interior is excellent, it is very competent on the road, and the 3.6H6 engine is a BEAST! (and runs on regular gas)
This thing is seriously fast, good in the corners, and stops on a dime. This ought to be a good, reliable car for the next 10-20 years. certainly better than that swedish piece of crap we used to own...
On a related note, I'm looking to close a deal on a 96 Volvo 850....
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