1985 245 wants me to buy it, advice please

panamared · Post by **panamared** » 18 Sep 2011, 09:48

It's for sale by a volvo enthusiast who needs cash for other pursuits, a 1985 245 manual transmission, 193,000 miles with beautiful paint and fantastic interior. There are a couple issues that I'd like to ignore, but need some input on. Firstly, he only has one key. He purchased it about four months ago in NC and thats all they had. Secondly, I ran the Carfax and it showed a warning on the listed milage, indicating a possible rollback. It sold on 6/6/1997 with 148,245 miles on the clock, then several listing for sales and registration in the state of NC did not list any milage. The seller mentioned that the car had NC antique plates, which negate the requirement of listing milage at sales and registration, but NC doesn't issue antique plates for cars less than 35 years old. I need to clarify that issue with the seller. So 43,255 miles over 14 years is pretty low. An average of less than 4000 miles a year. Should I stay away, might it have twice as many miles? Does it matter?
The car is in great shape with a few issues, but it appears to be well taken care of, and spent its first 75000 miles in California. My mechanic will check it out this week, and render his own opinion.
What do you all think?

Post by **billofdurham** » 18 Sep 2011, 12:57

I am trying to work out how long it would take me to get over there and buy that beast!

My Volvo 244 only had one key when I bought it. My local Volvo dealer cut me a key in about 5 minutes using a pattern he obtained on his computer. There were no fancy electronics in the keys then, well, not in the UK.

The mileage could well be correct. I have just bought a Ford Galaxy for my daughter. It is 10 years old and has the grand mileage of 31,752 on the clock. All service records are with the car and these show that in the last 7 years it has covered just under 3,000 miles. The previous owner kept it as a "spare" in case his new car went wrong. He has now bought another new car and is using the previous one as a spare so has no need for the Galaxy. There are some strange car owners in this world.

If your mechanic's check is OK I would say buy it.

Bill.

panamared · Post by **panamared** » 18 Sep 2011, 15:26

that reminds me of another issue...hardly any service records. I'm thinking that if it checks out ok with the mechanic I'm all in. Or rather, I'm all in already, unless the mechanic unearths a major problem. I look forward to being on this forum even more for tips and info.

Post by **phils94850** » 21 Sep 2011, 03:41

If it checks out, id say buy it ! keep us posted

panamared · Post by **panamared** » 21 Sep 2011, 23:15

I bought it. It's at the mechanic now getting new tie rod ends and a new rack and pinion. It should pass VA inspection after that, my total investment is at about $2200. No rust on the undercarriage! It also has a leaking head gasket, but I'm hoping thats not as bad as it could be. I'll let you know after I get it checked out by another mechanic. I couldn't resist its lovely tan paint and near perfect interior. If I have to get the head skimmed I'll make it happen, even if its not on the road for another month.

Post by **billofdurham** » 22 Sep 2011, 13:47

Good for you! I guess I shall have to cancel my flight.

Bill.

panamared · Post by **panamared** » 22 Sep 2011, 14:13

Ha! If the seller put you up to it, it worked. Can you share some knowledge on the leaking head gasket? I haven't seen it, and the mechanic who brought it to light wasn't very specific. I trusted the seller when he said oil levels have never been an issue, and that it never ran hot. I saw it after 20 minutes of highway travel and it didnt seem that hot to me.

Post by **billofdurham** » 22 Sep 2011, 16:19

Where is the oil coming from? Usually with a leaking head gasket oil gets into the coolant or coolant gets into the oil, but it is rare for it to show on the outside. One exception I had was my 960. Under heavy acceleration pulling a large caravan I could see a small trace of oil coming out of the head gasket and running onto the side of the engine. Under normal driving conditions there was no leak.

On both my 240 and 740 I had a small oil leak but they were both coming from the rocker cover gasket.

Bill.

panamared · Post by **panamared** » 22 Sep 2011, 19:17

Not sure where its coming from. I'll have to get back to you on that one. Whats the worst/best case scenario for this kind of problem? Maybe that question is pointless without more info...
Thanks!