Volvo S70

1998 Volvo S70 (US)
Manufacturer	Volvo Cars
Parent company	Ford Motor Company (2000)
Production	1998–2000
Assembly	Torslanda, Sweden Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Predecessor	Volvo 850
Successor	Volvo S60
Class	Entry-level luxury car / Mid-size car
Body style(s)	4-door saloon/sedan
Layout	Front-engine, front-wheel drive / four-wheel drive
Engine(s)	2.4 L 168 hp (125 kW) I5 2.4 L 190 hp (142 kW) I5 2.3 L 236 hp (176 kW) I5
Transmission(s)	4-speed automatic 5-speed automatic 5-speed manual
Wheelbase	2,664 mm (104.9 in) AWD: 2,654 mm (104.5 in)
Length	4,722 mm (185.9 in)
Width	1,760 mm (69.3 in)
Height	1,402 mm (55.2 in) AWD: 1,448 mm (57.0 in)

The Volvo S70 is a mid-size luxury car produced by the Swedish automaker Volvo Cars from 1998 to 2000. The S70 was the saloon/sedan, and the similar V70 the estate/station wagon; they both represented mainly new styling and revised suspensions from the 1993 through 1997 Volvo 850. The S70 was replaced with the Volvo S60.

Introduced in the U.S. for the 1998 model year, the first Volvo S70 sedan and Volvo V70 wagon were updated versions of the Volvo 850. The S70's body style was a more rounded version of the 850.

1997–1998 Volvo S70 T-5 sedan

The six trim levels were: Base, SE, GL (Grand Lux), GLT (Grand Lux Turbo), T5 (5 cylinder Turbo) and R (exclusive to Europe). The exterior has new headlamps and a reshaped hood as well as a rounder front end. The new interior included dual front and side airbags.

New electronic brake modulation helped optimize performance in normal stops. Volvo's traction-control system now included throttle as well as brake intervention. A starter interlock was added to models with manual transmissions, while automatic transmissions gained "adaptive" shift logic. Engine immobiliser became standard. Dashboard airbags received new two-stage sensors that matched deployment force to road speed and belt use; they also automatically unlocked doors after the bags triggered. For a 700 dollar upgrade, the S70 came with a Dynaudio sound system ^[1]

In the 1999 model year, the Volvo badge was changed. For the 2000 model year (2001 in the U.S.), the S70 model was discontinued and V70 was replaced by a completely new car with same model designation. The newcomer was built on Volvo's new large car platform that is shared by Volvo S80 (the first that was to be available of this series) and Volvo S60. Also, seat-mounted side airbags were modified to improve protection to the head and chest in case of impact. Newly standard was Volvo's WHIPS system, designed to move the front seatbacks and headrests rearward in a rear-end collision, to minimize whiplash. The S70 Base models gained an all-new five-speed automatic transmission, which required a synthetic-based transmission fluid. The potent engine in the V70 R AWD now was rated 261 hp (195 kW).

Engine

The engine found in the 'base' model was a 2.4 litre double overhead camshaft straight-five petrol engine that produced a maximum output of 168 horsepower (125 kW; 170 PS). The GLT had a turbocharged version of that engine that increased the power to 190 horsepower (142 kW; 193 PS). The T5 had a more highly tuned 2.3 litre turbocharged petrol engine with an output of 236 horsepower (176 kW; 239 PS). The Base and T5 models had an optional five-speed manual transmission, the GL and GLT were available with only an automatic transmission. An option on the S70 was the TRACS traction control system that would apply the front brakes to limit wheel slippage. All models had disc brakes and anti-lock braking system. These were also among the first cars in the United States to offer side airbags, an option that has extended to nearly all models today. Drive-by-wire was added starting with the 1999 model year, replacing the traditional throttle cable arrangement with an Electronic Throttle System (ETS); also added was coil-on-plug ignition, first featured on the Volvo 960, replacing the distributor and hi-tension spark plug leads. Such cars can easily be distinguished from the 1998 model year versions by the presence of an ETS light on the instrument cluster. All-wheel drive was also offered with the GLT model in 1999 and 2000 years.

Trim levels

In 2000, the SE trim level was made available to the S70 "base" and GLT model. Therefore four trim levels were offered, Base, Base SE, GLT, and GLT SE. (Trim levels were named differently in Europe) Starting for the 2001 model year, the S70 was replaced by the S60, as the S80 had been introduced in 1998.

An S70-R version (which was not released in North America) was introduced later to offer higher performance. The engine was an extra-tuned edition of the 2319 cc unit, rated 250 horsepower (186 kW; 253 PS) and 350 newton metres (258 ft·lbf) for models fitted with a five-speed manual gearbox and limited slip differential. Models fitted with a four-speed automatic gearbox rated 240 horsepower (179 kW; 243 PS) and 330 newton metres (243 ft·lbf).

Models and engines

Petrol engines

Diesel engines

Others

References