1997 855 GLT flip it or keep it?

[rmmagow]

Get your daughter a good set of Craftsman's, a Haynes manual, VIDA/Vadis manuals and point her to this site. Fix the car as best you can now, TB is the biggest deal but seems like that might be OK. Do a complete PCV replacement per this site. Use this site and other's to see if you can find a good Volvo mechanic. Drive to their shop and see what's sitting around, lots of Volvos in pieces, a couple of 850's, 960's, 240's and EARLY V70's for sale would be a good sign.
CN90's given you exactly the right answers. I bought my 98 V70 AWD at 152K and have spent less that 800.00 on it so far and am now at 196K. Problems that I have could be ignored and I'm sure I can go to the next TB change interval at 220~230K. For peace of mind, do an "exhaust gas in the coolant" test to confirm a good head gasket. Be sure to instruct your daughter to stop driving the car if the temp starts to creep up, make sure she fully understands that overheat will kill the car. Do the drain-n-fill deal with the transmission. Be sure to have your daughter help you with the upcoming tasks so she feels comfortable around the greasy bits. This might be your last chance to "bond". My kid just turned 19 and we are going through a bonding so he will have a clue after the old man gets on the big-lift to the sky.

[erikv11]

Despite the great answers to questions you didn't ask , I actually fund your first post to be very clear: you simply asked for advice on whether you should keep this Volvo or get another Volvo.

Without a doubt, keep this one. You are well into it for repairs, any aging 850 you get will have a slew of things needing to be done.

1 - The turbos on these cars almost never, ever go bad. You were right, very high probability it is just the lines need fixing.

2 - On the ABS I am confused, you stated very clearly that you have already done the module. So what is wrong now? But ABS is usually an easy fix.

3 - Yes, the diode install you obviously already know about, is holding up long term for people.

I gave my daughter my 95 for the year, made her learn to check codes and oil, it's working out. And she is safe.

[pikngrn]

My shop said the ABS problem was the pump.
I did swap out modules to find there was no change. I had the shop check the sensor & they said pump. I have speedometer working and I wrapped the power supply cables because of them rotting away to bare wires. I haven't checked on a pump yet or the repair but I figure can do that.
The turbo lines/gasket is in a tough spot but is worth a try. Somewhere I saw someone mention a sound associated with the turbo going bad? Any thing to that? I can post the engine noise. It sounds great after running awhile. I make all kinds of noise too in the morning, but most go away once I take off.thanks!
Oh & I did the coolant test & it passed with flying colors ...or lack of.
I hate the thought of her leaving after school & sitting in that traffic to leave & it starts smoking or it would not be an issue. I use Mobile synthetic max oil for 2 changes now & used seafoam before the last change. I also use one quart MMO

[louty]

volvos have been great cars for me and my family. I have been driving and twisting wrenches on them and many many cars since I woned a 544. But.... if I was a young person wanting to put my kid in a reliable cheap to maintain car, it would not be a 850 or s70 type. Maybe an old 240 up to a 940, but not one of these
now notice, we have 3 of this version in the family now, a 98s70 glt, a 2000 s70 and a 2000 v70xc. But my kids are all grown and I can twist wrenches, so can they
but if I was looking for a car for a 18 year old daughter, it would be a toyota corolla

[pikngrn]

You are right about the Corolla but she wanted a Volvo and I only had a choice if color. The 2nd child syndrome. She remembers her sister's first car was nice & exactly what SHE wanted, so I had to oblige. No matter if I flipped this one or not , she would still have a Volvo. I just can't decide if I want to move forward with this one or get a more researched one that I will know more about. Thank you all for your input. I am going to start searching for another & possibly list this one to see if it will draw some calls. If nothing happens, we will keep this one!