Saying goodbye to an old friend............

[Blacklab467]

After 9 and a half years and 115,000 kms, I made the tough decision to part with Old Blackie, my 2003 XC70. It was a difficult decision to come to, partially perpetuated by my acquisition of a 2007 XC70 in nearly perfect condition with over 100,000 kms less on the odometer. When the 2007 XC first caught my eye, my motivations were to flip it and offset the cost of parts and repairs to the 2003, after all I paid about half of what it was worth by rough estimate, I've never been real fond of the 2005-2007 XC's with their plastic headlights and, in most cases 4C suspension.
Blackie was originally purchased by myself 9 years ago as a winter beater for $2600. It was my first Volvo and I had always liked the wagons but didn't know very much about them. The AWD didn't work and very shortly after, the car would be debilitated with intermittent "dead pedal" and sat unused in my alley for about 4 months while I contemplated its fate. I didn't trust the car and couldn't drive it without risk of being stranded and having to come home in an UBER. I decided to get serious about fixing it and got involved in this forum around that time........turns out it just needed a new fuel pump! Over the years I really started to appreciate the quality and comfort of the car, not to mention the perfect practicality of a low wagon with back seats that fold down flat, ideal for driving around 2 aging Labradors. As time went on, I repaired or rebuilt most things on the car. Being a bit of a perfectionist I wanted the car to be reliable and run and drive like a new one would. Spending hours in the garage learning, experimenting, and installing old parts with new I produced a reliable and attractive car (and amassed about $6000 worth of receipts for Blue Box Volvo parts!)
A potential buyer was introduced to me by scot850, a young girl fresh out of university and working out of town in need of a good car who just had a really bad experience with a used Honda Pilot purchased from a used car lot. I wasn't even sure if I wanted to sell it but was reassured that if I did, it would be going to an appreciative and worthy owner. After some contemplation, I decided to part with old Blackie and make the most practical decision to keep the lower mileage 2007.
Blackie had 330014 kms on the odometer as I watched the taillights disappear down my street on Saturday. I expect she'll offer years of good service to her new owner whom I offered my services should it need any repairs in the future.

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[matthew1]

What a great story. OB looks showroom quality to me.

[BlackBart]

But we’ll no longer have twins! (although yours had that nice tan interior and a cooler wheel)

[Blacklab467]

I put the wood wheel in that car when refinishing the leather 4 spoke one was cost prohibitive. They can be had at the wreckers with airbag and 2 wire clockspring for about $50CDN. I'll probably do the same on the new car.......you interested? I do miss the black color, not a big fan of Lava Sand.

[scot850]

What you talking about? You kept telling me your new car is 'mint'. Lava Gray is a color that tends to grow on you. As someone who dislikes black cars (Blackie excepted ) and owning a Lava gray XC70 since 2011, we have become rather attached to the color, but it did take time.

I know it was a wrench to release Blackie, but as you said it has hopefully gone a to good home. The new owner is the girlfriend on my young friend who has the 02 XC70 I did a lot of work on last year. His car has close to 400000km on it now and we recently worked on it together along with you. The owner just loves his car, and was excited when I told him about Blackie. As BlackLab247 mentioned, the new owner had a bad experience with a Honda Pilot, but also unfortunately crashed it on black ice writing it off.

She loves her new purchase and my young friend has promised to help maintain Blackie. I will watch that he does!!

I could have sold Blackie at least twice more if the first taker had not bought it. The P2 XC70's in good condition are commanding a lot of money up here these days.

Neil.

[LongNoseElk]

You did a great job in maintaining Blackie over the years. I hope you'll have a great time with your new purchase, and I wish you save travels wherever the roads may lead you.

[Georgeandkira]

scot850 said above, "...but also unfortunately crashed it [bad Honda Pilot] on black ice writing it off."
Assuming nobody was hurt, this could be construed as a blessing in disguise.
I hope the buyer's finances weren't destroyed too.

Did you remove the "dog guard" from Old Blackie before you transferred it? ..asking for a friend...with a 2007...me.

I had a 2002 for >9 years, with 319,360km which sold to the first prospective buyer.
It's a good feeling.
Selling to 'a deserving person', who's likely to maintain your baby is a good feeling too.

Best of luck with your 'new ride'.

[Blacklab467]

Yes I removed the dog grate before selling it, I'll need it on the new one. They seem to be plentiful in the auto wreckers here if you're looking for one, the little hydraulic shocks are pricey to buy, however and they all seem to be worn out.

[br0dy519]

Selling price if you don’t mind my asking ?

[Blacklab467]

$5000 CDN.