Volvo S40 update

Having clocked up 90,000 miles last month it was due a service. All previous servicing had been done by the dealer in Taunton where the car was purchased by the original owner, with stamps in the book to validate but which I also managed to get a computer printout as confirmation from said dealer. Anyway, locally there has been a change and Derby has a new Volvo dealer - which means they also have bugger all experience with servicing these older models so I took it to a young man I know, Jay at CarTec in Draycott, just down the road. After a thorough going over it came back running better than before but with a note that there was an error code stored on the on-board controller indicating an intermittent problem with the coil on #1 cylinder. The following weekend I replaced the coil (costing £32) myself, a 2 minute job.

Now that should be the end of this report, but as always, there's a little sting in tail. Every now and then, noticeable only when in stop / start traffic the revs drop to noting and then come racing back before settling down to the normal idle speed. No idea what is causing that but as it otherwise drives perfectly I see no need to rush into additional expense as I've just fitted a new pair of tyres on the front and we are off on holiday soon leaving the car parked up for two weeks.

The final piece of good news relating to my Volvo motoring is the cost of running it. The 2 tyres were £180 including full 4 wheel alignment check and adjustment, the service was just under £190 including all filters (the cabin filter had obviously never been replaced) plugs and oil change plus the previously mentioned diagnostic plug-in and read. Fuel consumption is running at 30 - 31 mpg overall with 37 mpg on a run but as I am using Annie the Tranny (my motorbike) to commute and run around on the car is getting by on £25 a week fuel - about 1/3rd the level of expenditure I'd become accustomed to with the Passat. Mostly the savings have come from not using my car for work and using hire cars provided through my employer. Washing it last weekend I noticed a ding where somebody has obviously opened their car door onto the side of the Volvo, and some paint missing (about the size of a thumb print) on the rear o/s corner where it would appear somebody has rubbed their bumper across the corner of mine - annoying, but it is a 2005 car with over 90,000 miles on it and it doesn't stand me at a lot of money so why worry?