Re: BMW's V. Volvo 80 series

["John Ward" <jtward@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Regarding BMW's vs. Volvo's:

Since our family has a couple BMW's and a Volvo, I thought I'd give my
opinons. The 750iL is obviously a very different car so I don't think it's
worth comparing to a Volvo. My '92 E36 325i is though. My mom drives a 1997
Volvo 850R. Just as I am a BMW enthusiast, she likes Volvo's. It's her 4th
one ('82 240DL, '86 240GL, '90 740 Turbo were the past ones). Just today I
got new BMW "star spoke" alloys put on my E36 and tomorrow it's off to the
bodyshop to remedy the rock throwing incident. I will be driving the Volvo
for a few days during this time and it is not the first occasion on which I
have done so. While the 850R is considerably newer than my car, and lower
mileage (11k vs 122k), they are still very much alike. Acceleration is good
in the BMW (an automatic w/Jim C & K&N) but far better in my mom's Volvo. It
will eat my car apart in straight line performance actually. (0-60 in 6.6
seconds) It also has a higher top speed (155mph) The handling is much the
same, but my mom's car has 17" rims and Pirelli P-Zeros. (factory along with
a nice rear wing w/led brake light) The ride in my BMW is softer which is no
surprise given the 15" rims. Volvo's are naturally stiffer anyway. On a
windy road, nothing beats a BMW but the Volvo comes awfully close. I'd dare
say it's an M3 competitor in many ways. Sticker was around $36k so it can be
had for marginally less. On the downside, it's front wheel drive. That hurts
the feel of the car, but in bad weather it handles well. (has traction
control) The M3's brakes are certainly better. While I've seen quite a few
M3's around, the 850R seems to be a rare bird. I have seen only 2 others
since we took delivery of ours in September 1996. (A black/black suede 4dr)
Given the wagon option, it makes a good hauler. (especially the R version!!)
The newer models offer 4WD which is also a big help in lousy weather. At any
rate, I'll miss my BMW and look forward to getting it back in 2 or 3 days
but am prepared to enjoy the Volvo in the meantime. Don't let the old 240DL
stereotype fool you. :-)

Regards,

John

1990 750iL
1992 325iA w/new star spoke rims and taking a vacation to the bodyshop for a
few days. :-(
1997 Volvo 850R temporary BMW replacement. <grin>

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