Where each one leads
Buick Roadmaster
Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.
Volvo V40
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2004 Volvo V40 uses 10.7 l/100 km, the 1996 Buick Roadmaster 13.1.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Buick Roadmaster | Volvo V40 | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1989–1999 | 1993–2013 |
| New cars registered in Europe | — | 474,889 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | — | 94,693 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | — | 42,987 |
| In traffic in Finland | — | 16,365 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Buick Roadmaster | Volvo V40 | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | — | 73% |
| … against cars of the same age | — | −4% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 0.9% | — |
| … against cars of the same year | −29% | — |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | — | 2.9% |
| US owner complaints | 331 | 73 |
| Most complaints about | Service brakes, hydraulic | Service brakes, hydraulic |
| Model year with most complaints | 1992 (87) | 2000 (50) |
| US recall campaigns | 11 | 5 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 98 | 1,230 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 6 | 3 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Buick Roadmaster | Volvo V40 | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 13.1 l/100 km (1996) | 10.7 l/100 km (2004) |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | — | 89 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | — | 88 kW (118 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | — | 1,391 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | — | €32,859 |
| Average odometer in Finland | — | 181,000 km |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).