Tips for Buying a Used P1 Volvo: Meet Embre

A little back story... We have been debating between buying a 6 speed C30 or a 6 speed V50 for about a year now. The V50 became the more logical option for transporting friends and family, my wife's recent interest in playing cello, and my weekend trips to Home Depot for large random objects. 

A Flint Grey Metallic V50 showed up 12 days ago on the local Craig's List for $4900. One of the better prices I have seen for a T5 V50, plus I figured there was some negotiating room being at a private dealer. It is a 2005 with 140k miles, clean history, good service records, and in great mechanical/cosmetic condition; it has less rattles than my C30 and is surprisingly quick! Quicker than I remember my S40 ever being in stock form... The few imperfections I can easily fix/replace myself, but my intention was to use those flaws for negotiation on price. 

2005 Volvo V50

It has all the options we wanted, but it is an AW55 (geartronic 5 speed automatic)... We can live without AWD, the C30 is the race car and this wagon will never be pushed to the limits nor will it ever see harsh winter conditions. Truth be told, FWD has less parts to break, more suspension options, and it's quicker off the line, so that was not a deal breaker.  The geartronic is a step up from the 850 and we do still have one manual car in the Swedish stable. But I was not fully convinced it was the car to buy and I was prepared to walk away from it. The dealer asked me how much I would pay, I told him $3500 cash. No negotiation necessary, we had a deal.  

Without further adieu, I introduce Embre [Em-ber], the latest MNIWT P1 build. This will be a slower build than the C30, but there are some unique plans for this car.  For those who have followed my previous progression threads on the forums, you may subscribe to the latest build here: MyNameIdeasWereTaken V50 Progression Thread

With the purchase of our new car, it got me thinking...  I have now owned 5 Volvos, 4 of which were on the P1 platform, and I have viewed hundreds of cars while trying to find the perfect buys.  With this arsenal of P1 information, I have compiled a check list for future P1 Volvo owners.  Tips for buying a used car, common mechanical faults on P1 Volvos, and clues to condition based on cosmetic wear.  Please visit FCP Euro to read my latest article: Purchasing a Use P1 Volvo: Advice