Purchasing a v70 that needs repair ?!

musegimm · Post by **musegimm** » 08 Aug 2006, 21:29

This would be my first Volvo I've always wanted and Loved the Cross and have an opportunity to purchase a 1998 which has a possible head gasket problem....

seller say's "white smoke" comes from the exhaust and it also has 300k mileage on it would it be a BAD decision or not, not worried about the labor I have some one to do the work for free Seller asking $1595 or $1200 cash HELP ME OUT WHAT SHOULD I DO smash or trash lol

musegimm

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 08 Aug 2006, 21:58

Check everything else out on the car too...probably a lot more repairs at that mileage. A lot of maitenance items too. You know for instance about the timing belt...if it's not done and it breaks, there goes your repaired engine, so I'd do that while I was doing the head. It's not that bad of a gamble price wise. I'm 50/50 on this one. Oh, make sure the viscos coupler (what makes it a 4wd) is good. Those can be very expensive to have to replace when the prepellar shaft is damaged.

Post by **pfeener** » 09 Aug 2006, 07:02

Unless it's been well maintained by someone who knows what they're doing, I would pass and look for something with less miles and a 2 wheel drive version. The early 4WD model had a lot of problems.

Post by **rmmagow** » 12 Aug 2006, 16:51

Got to agree here. I've recently got a 98 V70R w/134000. It is a nightmare!! Overpaid at 6200, pumped 2K into it so far and now think the AWD system is going to sleep. A real junker. 300K I'm shocked it is still on the road.

babycarlover34 · Post by **babycarlover34** » 07 May 2008, 23:22

rmmagow wrote:Got to agree here. I've recently got a 98 V70R w/134000. It is a nightmare!! Overpaid at 6200, pumped 2K into it so far and now think the AWD system is going to sleep. A real junker. 300K I'm shocked it is still on the road.

Too bad...that's a waste of money indeed...

Kel · Post by **Kel** » 08 May 2008, 01:39

I was recently in the same position. I purchased a 97 850 GLT with a bad head gasket. It drove well, it was cheap and everything else worked so I bought it. I wasnt nervous about doing the work since I have plenty of tools and am not afraid to use em. You say you have someone to do the labor for free? This should be someone who will do anything for free beer, or owes you lots of money. I've done plenty of cylinder heads, and this car was the most time consuming to complete. Not really any more difficult, just lots of stuff to remove/replace, and tools to fabricate. At 300k might not be so bad if other things have already been replaced. some of the drivetrain could be failrly new by now. However, Ive seen cars with less miles go for better prices. Of course I dont know your area and only you have actually seen the car. It would probably be a nice ride for not a lot of money. Bring that car back to life!
Good luck, Kelly

Solutech · Post by **Solutech** » 08 May 2008, 02:24

As MIJ says check it over thoroughly . If the owner has been driving it with a blown gasket then it could of done some serious damage in there .

*pauses to wax lyrical about another old car (anyone seeing a trend here)*

I was given a Peugeot 309GTI as I was banger racing at the time and the guy thought it would race well . It had a blown head but the rest of the car was mint . I raced my road car and rebuilt the Pug lol . I too have a good wrench monkey who if supplied with beer will tinker for days .

Owner had driven the Gti for a few weeks with smoke belching out of it .

I ended up replacing the gasket and head bolts , piston rings and shells . Head and block had to be skimmed as the fool had slightly warped the head . The head had to be totally reconditioned with new valves etc as it was massacred.

New distributor cap and rotor arm, Sparks and leads , Oil filter and oil . Was lucky with the airfilter as it was K&N so just needed a clean and oil .

All in all it cost me close to

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 08 May 2008, 04:53

Last week I went to see an 850 that the seller only wanted $1300 for...great deal? After inspection and writing down everything that it would take to make it road worthy, I went home and started pricing parts on line. I was well over $2000 when I stopped....this is with me doing all of the work. needless to say, I passed on this car.

instarx · Post by **instarx** » 10 May 2008, 05:33

It seems to me that $1,200 isn't that much money even if it turns out to be a junker. Just don't buy it and immediately put a bunch of money into it. Will it pass inspection? Only you know how reliable a car you need.

I'd say buy it and put some of that gasket sealant stuff in the coolant. I normally don't recommend it, but on a $1,200 car it seems worth a try. It won't hurt anything and it might fix the gasket leak. You could get another year or two out of the car with no engine repairs. I repaired a badly blown head gasket in a 6.5L diesel engine (very high compression) that way with a product called Thermagasket and it lasted a year before I tore it down and replaced the head gasket for real.

Just don't let it become a money pit. Set yourself a repair limit ($400?) and the second it goes over that amount sell it. Get an AAA membership with free towing!

instarx · Post by **instarx** » 10 May 2008, 05:58

rmmagow wrote:Got to agree here. I've recently got a 98 V70R w/134000. It is a nightmare!! Overpaid at 6200, pumped 2K into it so far and now think the AWD system is going to sleep. A real junker. 300K I'm shocked it is still on the road.

On the other hand I recently got a 2000 V70 AWD SE with 132,000 and so far in six months I've spent $69 on an ignition coil - and the car runs great. It's just the luck of the draw.