Volvo C30 1.6 petrol - opinions?

Banzai600

Just looking for some guidance / pointers re Volvo C30.

Ive been driving small cars for years, i get my kicks from motorcycles.

But looking at a c30 to upgrade my current tidy frugal reliable yaris. Ive always liked the c30. Sporty looks, safety & a bit of oomph is swaying me. The diesel engines dont suit my needs so has to be 1.6 petrol as the 1.8 tax band is fuggin ridiculous.


Spoken to my mechanic and he asked a colleague who knows a bit too, and said being based on the focus, the c30 should be an ok buy with decent service history, with a view of timing belt/water pump if high mileage.

Anyone out there with a c30 with any experience appreciated.

I know the 1.4 focus is comparable but id like a C30 over it.

Tks ����

bazz26

They might be based on a Focus but they still use a fair amount of Volvo specific parts which can be expensive especially if you have to source them from a Volvo dealer. I had a Volvo S40 so I'm speaking from experience here. Also the rear of the C30 has two individual seats and the boot is tiny. Nice as they are don't expect to run one as hassle free as a Yaris.

Mad_Mike

Having previously owned an S40 MK2 also, personally, if going for a petrol one (mine was 2.0D), I'd go for the 1.8 for the sake of an extra 2 euros a week road tax.
The 1.6 is only 99bhp, and the 1.8 adds 25% more power. I think the 1.6 would really struggle with the weight of the car and feel very sluggish

Granted, the rear seats are purely there for show, as you won't fit much into them, but like yourself, they are a car I wouldn't mind trying myself some time as they just stand out a bit more than the other stuff around.
One thing the Volvo has and I loved it, is a small parking ticket holder on the A pillar. Tiny detail, but missing from so many cars!

Banzai600

Sorry for late reply, flat out.

Yeah, sensible says stay with Yaris but would love to try the c30! They're just a little different.

1.8 might be a stretch re road tax. Will check it out.

Thanks again ����

kirving

I had a 1.8 Petrol S40, and my housemate had a 1.6 Diesel C30. Keep to petrol, unless your driving style really suits a diesel, they're very sensitive. 30 minute commute on N roads caused two DPF issues in a matter of months.

C30 is nice inside, but the boot is extremely small, unusably small nearly.

Try to get an SE Lux if you can, it's a very substantial upgrade over the S or SE and really finishes the car nicely. Electric memory seats, Xenon, cruise control, climate control, and you don't really pay a premium for it on the second hand market.

My 1.8F petrol was very reliable over 125k km with basic servicing. Few little bits but nothing major.

1.6 is supposed to be reliable too, but is no more efficient in real life, some times less in fact, and the 1.8F is thirsty to begin with.

Have had three 1.6 Focus's in the house since 2004 until now, and have for the most part been very reliable with basic servicing. One had serious issues (piston rings), but think this was due to exclusively doing extremely short journeys under 5 minutes.

Banzai600

Thanks Kevin.

Im not too hung up on power, so 1.6 be fine for me / running costs. I just have to take the plunge on a good motor. Vrt is around 1100e on a 2010...i reckon if i find a good one I'll be ok

Sexual Chocolate

The 1.6 most likely won't suffer with oil burning issues like the 1.8

kirving

Sexual Chocolate wrote: »

The 1.6 most likely won't suffer with oil burning issues like the 1.8

It was certainly not a particularly refined engine, but they were robust from all I've read. Mine didn't burn oil in any case, conversely the 1.6 in the Focus which I believe is the same engine, did burn oil - but I guess that's only a sample size of 2.