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Anon

Thinking about buying a 2005 Volvo S40, auto, front-wheel drive with 90,000 km on the clock. Will a replacement Cam belt be required soon and how much might that cost? Also, as a general rule, are the maintenance and repairs costs greater for this car as it is European? And finally, is there anything I should know about this model? Thank you.

ABayliss

Volvo recommends cambelt replacement at 150,000km or 10 years, whichever comes first, so this car has a while to go yet. We're told it's around a $1,000 job when the time comes.
This model was developed during the Ford/PAG association. It enjoys a better reputation than the previous S40 that shared many Mitsubishi components.
Being European, it is likely that maintenance costs may be higher than a Japanese car, but there's nothing that has come to our attention that should be of major concern.