Three Pedals and AWD: 2004 Volvo S60R Sedan

This holiday season will be the first holiday that close friends of mine will be celebrating without their son/brother, Don Nemeth. Don, who passed away in June of this year, originally grew up in Rahway, New Jersey; when he was 21, he moved to Farmington, Maine (about 33 miles northwest of Augusta, the capital of Maine) before settling down to live out his years in Chesterville, just outside of Farmington. He did frequent to Pennsylvania quite often, however, and it was through his brief living and visits to the Keystone that allowed him to meet my dad. After losing touch with one another for some time, Don rekindled his friendship with my dad about ten years ago in 2008. A marine veteran and former tree climber and trimmer, I first met Don in April 2010; one of his many passions that he shared with my dad, my brother Kurt, and me was cars, especially Volvos. He often talked about his Volvo 850 T-5 R that he used to own, claiming it was one of the fastest cars he ever owned. (For some perspective, he also used to own a Z16 Chevelle, a four-bolt main 350 SBC-powered 1940 Chevrolet Special Deluxe Coupe, and a 1996 Taurus SHO, among other high-performance vehicles). When I saw this 2004 Volvo S60R sedan pop up on Craiglist, I immediately thought of Don, who I spent a lot of time with this past March and April, helping him and his parents. Featuring a six-speed manual transmission and all-wheel drive, this Volvo high-performance sedan would make for a fun, spunky daily driver. Find it here on Craigslist in Cinnaminson, New Jersey, with an asking price of $4,900.

Introduced in 2004, the S60R was the performance variant of the S60 sedan, which debuted back in 2000 as a 2001 model. Just as the S60 was intended to compete against the BMW 3-Series and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, the S60R would go toe-to-toe with the likes of the BMW M3 and Mercedes-Benz C32 AMG. To make the S60R stand out from ordinary S60s, Volvo added a more aggresive front fascia and 18-inch Pegasus wheels to the exterior for a gentleman's hot-rod esque look. Out of a total production of 7,500 cars worldwide, this S60R is one of 3,800 produced for the US market in 2004. Though this particular car appears to present well, it is not without its (albeit minor and easily fixable) faults: the bumpers have some minor scrapes and scratches, and the front struts need to be replaced. The tires are said to be all matching and in good condition, though their age and mileage are unknown; all four wheels were recently given an alignment, and the control arms have been replaced with brand-new parts. I'd touch up the bumpers, replace the struts, detail the paint, use some plastic trim restorer to bring some luster back to the side and bumper trim, order some new performance tires and tuck them away until their time comes to be swapped, and use this car as a nice-weather daily driver.

For high-performance motivation, the S60R utilizes a 2.5L turbocharged five-cylinder engine. Rated at 300 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque, the S60R also came with all-wheel drive and the option of a 5-speed automatic or a 6-speed manual transmission for the 2004 model year. From standstill to 60 mph, the S60R took 5.4 seconds (5.5 seconds according to an August 2004 Car & Driver road test); the quarter-mile took 14 seconds flat at 101 mph, with the top speed being electronically limited to 155 mph. This Titanium Gray Metallic example features the desirable 6-speed manual option, and has covered 140,200 miles in the past 15 years (averaging to 9,347 miles per year). The drivetrain was recently subject to a full tune-up, and a new clutch was fitted to the transmission. According to the seller, the turbo 2.5L inline five "has plenty of life left in it", "has plenty of power", and "runs smooth with no abnormal noises"; the transmission, meanwhile, is said to "shift smooth with no kicks or noises". In other words, happy travels are rarin' to go with the turn of a key, the depression of the clutch, shifting into first, stepping on the gas, and continuing to shift to sixth gear.

Oh my, how I wish that I was behind the wheel right now. Taking a peek inside, the driver is welcomed by a clean, Gobi (light tan) leather and black interior. Though not as striking and wild as the optional and R-exclusive Atacama interior, this car's Gobi interior presents very well; there is some minor wear and age, but thankfully the previous owner was a non-smoker, with helps keep the inside clean. All electronics are in full working order, and the heat and air conditioning are said to run like tops. I especially enjoy the look of those R-exclusive blue-faced gauges and that third pedal sitting to the left of the brake pedal. I could picture in my head right now heading down a twisting, quiet country road pretending I'm Thed Björk or Robert Dahlgren with each gear shift. Overall, this S60R is a very nice car, and with some minor fixes can make for a nice, reliable, high performance bargain that will turn heads wherever you go. What are your thoughts on this manual-shift all-wheel drive Swedish super-sedan?