1997 Volvo 850 NA - look what followed me home!

[scot850]

Yes, it literally followed me home, actually behind a tow truck following me back to my house!

Poor old thing had to be saved! A little rough around the edges (mostly the front bumper which looks like it has been used for that purpose!) but what to expect for $750 CDN (under $600 US) which includes $100 tow!

Car needs some TLC and known issues are:

1) Front RH control arm ball joint is loose
2) Front RH wheel bearing noisy
3) Front RH outer CV boot has completely split
4) Front LH CV boot has failed (haven't looked too closely at it yet)
5) Possible PCV clean needed, but not checked yet
6) Top torque mount has failed
7) A/C needs work
Needs all season tires
9) Needs a good clean!!

On the positives for a 'base' model it has been spec'd up by the first owner as he apparently decided a high spec 850 was better than a base S90!

Car has:

1) Fog lights
2) 6-CD changer in trunk
3) Leather interior
4) ECC
5) Only 2 previous owners
6) West coast car until 3 years ago
7) Only 155,000km on it (about 97,000 miles).
Rear spoiler and high level brake light

Car hasn't got:

1) Moon/sunroof

This will be a challenging project to try and save on a budget.....(that worked well on the 'R' as regulars will know...hmm!).

97 850 NA

97 850 interior

Rear spoiler and high level brake light

Spares already from PnP

I'll update on progress.

Neil.

[oragex]

Not bad for the repairs, and 100k miles for less than one grand, don't say that on US forums, the americans will invade us
Driver's seat looks in amazing shape! Nice find.

[abscate]

Invasion plans on hold due to an opening in the EU

[Clemens]

How nice... Even the paint looks nice.
And please don't talk about this black day for Europe...

[MadeInJapan]

Those wheels are pretty much worth what you paid for her. Good luck and look forward to your work towards stage 0!

[scot850]

Remember the words, " Never buy a car in the rain....". Unfortunately we were in the midst of a thunderstorm when I snapped those photos and they are a little deceiving.

There are the typical 3/4 corners of scraped bumpers (someone appears to take their name to heart) with the worst being the front RH corner. I'll take more pictures when it is in the garage and dry. The front wheels also have been used to gauge the distance from the kerb, so have a fair amount of kerb rash. Neither is really a big issue in my book.

Question though, about wheel sizes. The car is fitted (correctly) with 15" rims and 195/60/15 tires. What is the correct 16" tires? There are a few 16" rims and tires for sale locally, but most are fitted with 205/55/16 tires. I think the correct step up is 205/50/16, but is the difference enough to worry about (I think I read it is about 2-3% low reading on the 55's). Car tires are winters currently.

Thanks,

Neil.

[Clemens]

I run 205 55 r16 on my second 850 and it works but you have to be careful whem turnimg the wheels towards full lock because they rub on the plastic inner fenders. Plus, they are too huge for my liking as looks go. I guess the speedo os still below what it should be. The 850ies were totally off from the factory.

And yes, the more expensive 205 50 r16 is what they come from the factory.

[scot850]

Strangely I have read that both 16" sizes were offered 50 and 55 but can't find what dictates which is fitted! I am running 225/45/17 on my 2000R and they seem ok on the inner fenders so far. I did notice that they bind on full suspension extension on the rears when the inner edge of the rim rubs on the rear AWD sub-frame. It clears fine when loaded up though.

Thanks guys for all the input so far!

Neil.

[kaneelschep]

They started out with 50 and went to 55 later I thought.
I think the 55 is just a bit too big for these cars though. I love it that the 50 doesnt touch anything. Even when the back is filled to the roof.
Too bad the 50 is never just there at any shop but 55 is.

[MadeInJapan]

Back in the 90's when we had our '94 850 wagon, it came with Coumba wheels and 205/50/16's. This was the correct aspect ratio for true mileage on the odometer, but then people started having a lot of issues with bent rims from bad roads. Volvo changed their official size after this to the 55's and recommended people switch to the larger size. If I recall, there was a time that Volvo offered to pay owners for either repairs or upgrades to the larger tire size due to this issue. I like the look of 50's too but if your roads are bad and you are using alum alloy wheels I'd stay away from the thinner tires.