Volvo S40: A great car for style; weak mechanically.

I bought my 2006 S40 T5 Manual in March. It has every option available except AWD. For 3 weeks, I considered it stunning. Friends complimented the spoiler package, the pebble texture of the dash and the comfortable matte black leather seats. All the guys I know dug the brushed aluminum accents and the remote control-styled a/c and radio knobs. The CD sound in Dolby, even at highway speed, is superb. And speaking of high speed, we even took it out to a deserted country road and found the handling in the twisties quite good-- a little torque steer in turns, but it's not rear drive after all. Everybody liked the idea that a "safe" Volvo could also be a cool car to drive.

Fast forward 9 months to 6300 miles, and I'm torn between trading it in and enduring a bloodbath/slitting my wrists to get the bloodbath over with early/pursuing Lemon Law protection and letting an attorney bleed me dry.

Let me first say that although this is my first Volvo, it's my 5th European car. I comprehend the risk (i.e., more frequent maintenance, typically) involved in owning a premium, non-Japanese product. I traded in a 2 year old BMW 330 coupe, thinking the Volvo would be a step up in design and comfort. While the 5 cylinder Volvo is certainly "greener" and more Scandinavian in its design, the inline-6 BMW (and frankly, my Jeep Liberty work vehicle, too) was overall more agile and thrilling to drive. And surprisingly, the BMW 3.0 engine with VANOS technology also delivered 30mpg on the highway, as opposed to the 2.5 Volvo's 28mpg.

So, onward. I initially loved the weight and feel of the S40's wheel, until the steering system failed at 300 miles. The car locked up and had to be transported by flatbed to the dealer for repair. Thankfully it only took 3 days, but you just don't expect this sort of thing from a brand new car. And speaking of steering, it's apparently the source of an odd whirring noise emanating from the vicinity of the dash. My parents borrowed the car to drive on a trip, and they nicknamed the noise "the chipmunk." The racket is louder with steering movements, but the dealer says there's nothing wrong(this time....). I've asked the dealer mechanic why the loaner S40s don't make this noise, and his reply is that my car is "operating to spec." (i.e., no smoke is coming from under the hood; no one has died; the car still moves from left to right when you shift the wheel position).

On the "options" front, I paid extra for the Automatic Climate Control, which is sort of a misnomer. I live in Florida, and I've found-- for example-- that the car's ambient interior temp stays at around 78 degrees F when you have the thermo set at 70. It doesn't seem to know that the back seat is not the same temp as the air flowing tepidly from the front vents. The worst part is that the ventilation system constantly acts up, switching air from defroster to dash to feet in an endless cycle of circulatory indecision. Sometimes it does it for an hour, sometimes not at all. The dealer has replaced the flap motor and reprogrammed the software 4 times, but with little improvement. The Volvo mechanic even told me that a number of the S40's have this problem and the manufacturer is still tinkering with how to remedy it.

Some other general functional complaints with the S40: small side mirrors that require you to look very carefully before making lane changes; the auto-dimming rearview mirror begins to dim after about 5 seconds of blindingly bright light shining in your eyes; brake and gas pedals are placed so closely together that wearing size 10 boots is out of the question (only sneakers or dress shoes in the S40); front wheels spin on take-off on even the dryest pavement because the tiny gas pedal provides little of the resistance of German cars; Dolby FM Stereo only works correctly when you have a massive radio station nearby-- forget using this feature during interstate travels.

So all-in-all, would I recommend this car to a prospective buyer? Maybe to a former Volvo owner, because all of the Volvo owners I know seem to be comfortable with what I call the "Volvo Vacation package". This is the 4 weeks out of every year that your Volvo gets to spend away from you, getting wrenched and fluffed and coiffed by your dealer. I couldn't in good conscience recommend the S40 to anyone who has owned a Japanese car, because my car's reliability would drive them nuts. And I couldn't recommend it to a former BMW owner because the S40 simply doesn't perform like a rear-drive car. In my opinion, it's a svelte and environmentally sensitive Mazda 3 in Scando-drag. But I'll tell you this, the Volvo people are the best-educated on their product of any sales force I've witnessed, and if you can be swayed by aesthetics and high-brow curb appeal, you'll own one before you know it.