2004 Volvo S60 R Reviews, Pricing & Specs
What owners say
"Overall, owners of the 2004 Volvo S60 R appreciate its impressive power, driving fun, and comfortable interior. Many rave about the car's performance, particularly its strong acceleration and handling capabilities. However, some drivers are frustrated with its poor fuel economy and wider turning radius, which can make city driving challenging. The blend of reliability and Swedish design also seems to leave a positive impression, though a few owners have experienced reliability issues."
I was never a fan of Volvos until my first wagon. The reliability and design ergonmics of the Rs have set the benchmark for me. Definitely not your cheap run of the mill American plastic and vinyl interiors and not quite over-the-top, flashy, faux wood either of Japanese and German luxury vehicles. The interiors of Volvos are much like practical and modern funiture with simple, yet tasteful design. The S60R and V70R are the embodiment of everything that represents Swedish/Scandinavian design. Simplistic, elegant, sensible, and sophisticated, yet unrefined. For the most part, the S60R and V70R go unnoticed as it looks practically the same as its lower trim counterparts, blending into the world as another typical sedan or wagon. With a 300-horsepower, 5-cylinder engine, this kitten is no kitten at all. AWD and a sophisticated 4-C with variable modes of "Comfort", "Sport", "and "Advance" makes this vehicle a multi-role vehicle. A 9-to-5 commuter on the weekdays and a road-warrior on the weekends. Simply leave the R in Comfort or Sport mode for regular driving and put it in Advance for those twisties down the Skyline. The S60R and V70R isn't your average, typical, soccer mom Volvo. The S60R and V70R are lots of fun to drive with a personality to match. With room for 5, the R cars would seat 4 full size adults comfortably. The V70R wagon adds the extra space to haul cargo loads and/or pets. And then there was the bad news. Despite all the goodies this vehicle has to offer, it does have its flaws. The turning radius for one is wider than most SUVs on the road. This means navigating through cities with two-lane highways can be bothersome when searching for locations and having to make u-turns. There are no u-turns; only 3-point turns with the R. It can take some getting use to and definitely worth get navigation to minimize those impossible u-turns. The other feature that sets this car back, is the fuel economy. The fuel consumption of this car can be quite ridiculous especially for those who have a "lead" foot or aren't carefully monitoring their throttle input. But hey, we all got to have our fun sometimes.
April 17, 2008as with any higher performance cars you have a little higher cost of upkeep/maintenance. I have under 50,000 miles on my car and am on my 4th set of tires. The body kit is low enough that if you pull in too quickly to a parking space you will hit it on the curb. I have let my friends drive the car and one didnt take my word of warning close to heart about how low it sits to the ground and when I got it back it was missing the front body kit. performance - its quick, still a volvo so its a bit of a sleeper. Turbo charged cars respond different than naturally aspirated and its fun when the weather is cooler (hard to come by in az) and has a lot of pep. build quality - I am on my 3rd suspension. the car has 3 suspension settings: comfort, sport, and advanced. I leave my car in advanced 100% of the time and it is very stiff. as a result I am on a 3rd suspension (front end) and luckily my warranty has covered it so far. appearance - one of the most stylish and comfortable interiors ever. designed by maserati. has white led lights that light the speedometer from the front and the speedometers are a bright blue brushed metal so it has a nice effect with a white led light showing on it. the exterior is brilliant! great job from the factory sport body kit. 19" 5-spoke aluminum wheels, body kit looks great from the factory. cost of ownership - touched on this a bit already, but gas mileage is around 16mpg in the city. highway youre looking to get around 20. not great, not bad considering the way I drive. maintenance - the volvo warranties (factory and extended) are amazing and cover cost of maintenance under the factory and then most of the parts on the extended. My car has 2 - 12" subwoofers with a large amp powering them (around 1000w) and I have a kill switch for the power going to the amp (it taps in straight to the battery) and I had forgotten to turn it off at one point and killed the battery as I went out of town. Volvo's warranty covered the battery, something no other car ive owned (bmw, cadillac, etc) did. fun factor - car is a blast... windows down front and back, sunroof open, stereo blasting, road trips from az to san diego are amazing.
February 18, 2010Good power, excellent Brembo brakes, more than solid handling with adjustable shocks. Build quality's alright, some vibrations from doors (I listen to the music loud). Appearance is excellent, interior's solid. Mileage is okay, and maintenance hasn't been too bad. Car's lots of fun to drive.
June 11, 2009What owners say
I was never a fan of Volvos until my first wagon. The reliability and design ergonmics of the Rs have set the benchmark for me. Definitely not your cheap run of the mill American plastic and vinyl interiors and not quite over-the-top, flashy, faux wood either of Japanese and German luxury vehicles. The interiors of Volvos are much like practical and modern funiture with simple, yet tasteful design. The S60R and V70R are the embodiment of everything that represents Swedish/Scandinavian design. Simplistic, elegant, sensible, and sophisticated, yet unrefined. For the most part, the S60R and V70R go unnoticed as it looks practically the same as its lower trim counterparts, blending into the world as another typical sedan or wagon. With a 300-horsepower, 5-cylinder engine, this kitten is no kitten at all. AWD and a sophisticated 4-C with variable modes of "Comfort", "Sport", "and "Advance" makes this vehicle a multi-role vehicle. A 9-to-5 commuter on the weekdays and a road-warrior on the weekends. Simply leave the R in Comfort or Sport mode for regular driving and put it in Advance for those twisties down the Skyline. The S60R and V70R isn't your average, typical, soccer mom Volvo. The S60R and V70R are lots of fun to drive with a personality to match. With room for 5, the R cars would seat 4 full size adults comfortably. The V70R wagon adds the extra space to haul cargo loads and/or pets. And then there was the bad news. Despite all the goodies this vehicle has to offer, it does have its flaws. The turning radius for one is wider than most SUVs on the road. This means navigating through cities with two-lane highways can be bothersome when searching for locations and having to make u-turns. There are no u-turns; only 3-point turns with the R. It can take some getting use to and definitely worth get navigation to minimize those impossible u-turns. The other feature that sets this car back, is the fuel economy. The fuel consumption of this car can be quite ridiculous especially for those who have a "lead" foot or aren't carefully monitoring their throttle input. But hey, we all got to have our fun sometimes.
April 17, 2008as with any higher performance cars you have a little higher cost of upkeep/maintenance. I have under 50,000 miles on my car and am on my 4th set of tires. The body kit is low enough that if you pull in too quickly to a parking space you will hit it on the curb. I have let my friends drive the car and one didnt take my word of warning close to heart about how low it sits to the ground and when I got it back it was missing the front body kit. performance - its quick, still a volvo so its a bit of a sleeper. Turbo charged cars respond different than naturally aspirated and its fun when the weather is cooler (hard to come by in az) and has a lot of pep. build quality - I am on my 3rd suspension. the car has 3 suspension settings: comfort, sport, and advanced. I leave my car in advanced 100% of the time and it is very stiff. as a result I am on a 3rd suspension (front end) and luckily my warranty has covered it so far. appearance - one of the most stylish and comfortable interiors ever. designed by maserati. has white led lights that light the speedometer from the front and the speedometers are a bright blue brushed metal so it has a nice effect with a white led light showing on it. the exterior is brilliant! great job from the factory sport body kit. 19" 5-spoke aluminum wheels, body kit looks great from the factory. cost of ownership - touched on this a bit already, but gas mileage is around 16mpg in the city. highway youre looking to get around 20. not great, not bad considering the way I drive. maintenance - the volvo warranties (factory and extended) are amazing and cover cost of maintenance under the factory and then most of the parts on the extended. My car has 2 - 12" subwoofers with a large amp powering them (around 1000w) and I have a kill switch for the power going to the amp (it taps in straight to the battery) and I had forgotten to turn it off at one point and killed the battery as I went out of town. Volvo's warranty covered the battery, something no other car ive owned (bmw, cadillac, etc) did. fun factor - car is a blast... windows down front and back, sunroof open, stereo blasting, road trips from az to san diego are amazing.
February 18, 2010Good power, excellent Brembo brakes, more than solid handling with adjustable shocks. Build quality's alright, some vibrations from doors (I listen to the music loud). Appearance is excellent, interior's solid. Mileage is okay, and maintenance hasn't been too bad. Car's lots of fun to drive.
June 11, 2009Classy appearance with lots of performance with the planted feel of AWD. The brakes are great - 4 position brembo brakes front and rear. Lots of comfort in very luxurious seats in Gobi soft natural leather. Fun to drive, more like addictive to drive.
July 18, 2009Just got this with 57,00 miles on it. The 300 hp inline 5 turboreally kicks some tail, then the Brembo brakes bring it to a quick and safe stop. Handles like a dream in advanced chassis mode, but is really very comfortable in comfort chassis mode. This is one of not many that came out of the factory with the sport body kit. Black leather interior is a very nice touch, not to mention the 13 speaker dolby pro logic stereo.
April 20, 2008This car had so much god damn potential. Front seats are the most comfortable of any car I've ever been in. Shifter feel is great, and MAN do these things go. Only problem is how unreliable the damn thing was. Little electrical quirks here and there, bulbs going out, HID headlamp ballast went out 3-4 times in 6 months, collar gear let go after a few thousand miles costing thousands to fix, previous owner must have messed with it because it'd go into limp on high boost runs. Handled excellent, adjustable suspension was impeccable as are the 300mm brembos. Just needed to be more reliable and I'd still have it today.
August 14, 20122004 Volvo S60R Turbo, twin intercooler, 2.5 inch dual Heico exhaust, Heico body kit. Otherwise she is stock, which isn't very stock at all, 13 inch 4 piston Brembo brakes all around, 3 in-motion adjustable chassis and suspension settings, 235/40/18 Pirelli P-zeros for sticky factor, and then just some tint to keep me ridin' dirty!
May 13, 2008litle too big for me, turning radius big, but very fast acceleration. love the interior, the seats are very comfortable, we can go on long trip and won't hurt our backs. hasn't had to repair anything yet. but only 21 mpg though and premium gas only. overall i love it.
August 29, 2008getting behind the wheel makes you wanna race everything
February 28, 2008
