The seller of today’s Nice Price or No Dice Volvo cryptically claims to not want to sell the car but is “ready to move on.” Let’s see if this seemingly tidy AWD wagon’s price is something we might move on.
A rare six-speed stick could have been the saving grace of the 2011 BMW 128i convertible we looked at yesterday, with the seller claiming it to be the only manual on offer in all of California. Still, that obscure factoid and the car’s $12,000 asking price couldn’t find overwhelming favor in the voting, eventually falling in a narrow but indisputable 53 percent No Dice loss.
Hey, if you’re an aficionado of old-school music, let me ask: In what genre would you slot the ’70s New York scene band Blondie? Are they New Wave? Punk? Maybe Disco? It’s not all that easy, right?
Today’s 2004 Volvo XC70 faces a similar genre or categorization question. At first glance, it looks tough, with its jacked-up ride height, providing over eight inches of ground clearance, substantial plastic fender flares and bumpers, and ‘Cross Country’ badging. It’s not, however, ready for the Rubicon. The XC70 isn’t a total poseur, though, as it does have AWD, but that’s more for on-road security than off-road shenanigans. This sort of vehicle is generally called a crossover, a handily amorphous term that also can used to describe the process of ridding your house of ghosts.
Regardless of what you call it or how you classify it, this XC70 has apparently been popular enough to have been well cared for and to have done a remarkable 207,000 miles over its two decades of existence.
Wearing Ocean Blue Pearl paint and its factory alloys, the exterior is in pretty good nick for that age and those miles. Volvos of this era tend to all have scuffed bumpers for some reason, but here, the XC70’s gray plastic end caps prove useful in shrugging off such parking lot miscalculations. The only noticeable issues here are a dent in the left rear door and some fading of the paint on the grille in the nose.
According to the seller, who can’t seem to find the caps-lock key, the car has been well-kept, and the interior backs that claim up substantially. There is some wear, as there always is, in the leather on the front seats and some obvious signs of use on some of the switchgear, but it’s otherwise laudably clean and intact.
The ad further notes that the car is mechanically sound and has recently passed its state smog test. Power comes from a 207 horsepower 2.5-liter inline five breathing through a light-pressure turbo and working with a five-speed automatic and Haldex-based AWD system. It comes with working A/C, brand-spanking-new Goodyear tires, and carries a clean title.
The seller claims that while CarFax attempted to goad them into a higher price, they are willing to ignore that and part with the car for $2,999.
What’s your take on this XC70 at the $2,999 price? Does that seem fair despite the car’s miles and possible genre confusion? Or does this Volvo have too many miles under its belt to invest even that paltry amount?
You decide!
San Francisco Bay Area, California, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to Ted Leahe for the hookup!
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