Advice on buying an older Volvo

[Crap Master]

Wow! Everybody's opinions are really helpful and appreciated and
confusing at the same time!

Personally, I really haven't found that the Japanese cars have gotten
cheaper. Between 1991 and 1996, for less than $700 each, I bought an
83 sentra, a 72 toyota corona, an 80 something nissan pulsar, an 83
subaru gl, and an 83 accord. Except for the accord, which had 150K,
the others all had less than 100K when I bought them. It seems that
right now, you can't get anything japanese that you can even drive
home for that price. I just saw an ad for the very same 83 subaru
that I bought for $500 in 93 - 280K, needs a clutch - $600. firm.

A pickup would be nice, but wouldn't really work with the newspapers
and the baby too. Wilson is right that I don't really know how to fix
anything (but not right about me being a guy!) I'm open to learning
stuff, and I was so proud of myself when I replaced a piece of heater
hose in my Subaru, - I even had to move the alternator to get to it.
But it's frustrating because my only power tool is a black and decker
screwdriver with 2 AA batteries! Also, it's hard to try and fix a car
and watch a 2 year old at the same time. Anyway, I'm pretty good at
finding nice people who like fixing cars. Last winter a really
wonderful guy replaced the rack and pinion on my tercel and the clutch
on the subaru for only $400. But the sub no longer runs and the
tercel is making horrifying noises and I'm afraid it wants to kill
me...and I've spent way too much money trying to fix both of these
cars (which have 255K and 225K)

So Wilson is also right that money is a huge issue for me. Me and my
baby are living on about $1,000/month in Seattle. Cash flow is always
an issue and I'm completely dependent on my car for work. My contract
even requires me to have a back up car, so they could technically fire
me if I ever couldn't work because of a car problem. I really need
reliability.

I found it really interesting that many of the volvo classifieds that
I've seen mention that the car "never breaks down" and "won't die",
and I've seen lots of them with 300-400K. Not exactly what I'm in the
market for, but it sure does leave a good impression of the car's
durability.

I still talk too much, and I need a nap....

 

[Alex Zepeda]

I still talk too much, and I need a nap....

I'm going down this road with a friend of mine. She just bought a cherry
245 and I'm showing her how to fix some stuff for minimal financial
compensation (a few tools here and there, the occasional ride, etc). Up
next, valve cover gasket and timing belt. The mechanic she talked to
wanted $150 for the valve cover gasket and about $400 for the timing belt
and seals... all in all he came up with $1700 worth of *MINOR* repairs.
Ugh.

She's taken such an interest in the car, that she's browsed through the
Bentley, and can identify where the various parts are that she's going to
replace.

The topic of a good starter set of tools came up. A decent set of 1/4"
drive metric sockets, ratchet, and extension will set you back about $20
at Sears. Yeah, you really have trouble applying a lot of force with
those tools, but they're cheap, and they fit nearly everywhere you'd want
them to. All in all, something I'd highly recommend if you want to tinker
with a Volvo. I just think there are enough small areas that you can't
get 3/8" drive tools in.

An old Volvo is a great car to fix up, and it probably won't leave you
stranded (they don't tend to die without prior warning). But I question
whether or not any Volvo will be as reliable as most Japanese cars. I
love my two non running cars.. but certainly if I had sunk that kind of
money into a Japanese car, I probably wouldn't be having these problems

- alex

 

[Alex Zepeda]

Holy crap! You need a new mechanic, the valve cover gasket is under $10
and takes about 10 minutes to change, all you need is a 10mm wrench.

Yup. Why do you think I'm going to be doing the work and/or showing her
how to?

Altho in all fairness, the valve cover gasket is about $15 from a non
discounted dealer.

- alex

 

[Joseph Oberlander]

Don't even get me started on the belt - $400??? Ouch - the dealer charges
that much.

 

[hgawluk]

It's interesting that they have maintained a strong reputation among many
people, even though they are often a world of trouble.

If you are not a hobbiest with a good shop and plenty of money, stay away!
Even routine stuff is very expensive. The very fact that you mentioned
money at alll indicates to me that you are in for disappointment. The only
thing that that might work is a VERY old 240 or some such, manual shift,
carb model. This is something that you can work on, but even so it's still
a money hog for parts.

I have an old corolla with 170K that runs like new. A buddy has an older
one with 270K. How about a Nissan or Mazda pickup...simple and easy to work
on and you can carry more papers!

OR an old Voyager. Even with a $1500 tranny, they are cheap. My 1990 has
203K and burns NO oil. It did have the tranny at 175K.

The Volvo stories are interesting, and probably mostly true, but I'd bet the
owners have paid plenty for routine and serious maintenance.

Sure you pay for the parts. But when they last 2-300K you don't have to
worry about that particular part for probably as long as you're going to own
the car. Or you buy domestic, jobber or whatever and replace the parts every
50 or 60K. You do the math.

 

[Number1169]

That volvo had a full engine rebuild at 680K

WIth regular oil changes and plenty of good long runs any engine can do big
miles.

That may be true in theory, but no other car has managed to come anywhere near
Irv Gordon's car.
You have to give a lot of credit to the robust design of the Volvo mechanicals.

J.M.Copeland

 

[Joseph Oberlander]

That may be true in theory, but no other car has managed to come anywhere near
Irv Gordon's car.
You have to give a lot of credit to the robust design of the Volvo mechanicals.

Actually, his car was in second place for a decade until the owner of that
Mercedes got too old to continue driving it.

Something like 1.1 million miles on a Mercedes - quite impressive as well.

 

[Number1169]

mechanicals.

Actually, his car was in second place for a decade until the owner of that
Mercedes got too old to continue driving it.

Something like 1.1 million miles on a Mercedes - quite impressive as well.

Yes, Mercedes engines are also legendary for their longevity, especially the
diesels.
There was also a guy from California with an old Volkswagen Beetle who held the
high-mileage record for a while. Many say he cheated because he went through
something like a dozen engines and transmissions to do it!

J.Copeland