V70 AWD 1998 - Pre-sales inspection questions

[jonesg]

If the fuel pump burns up, take it apart and replace the elec motor, AC Delco or Delphi, most are made in Korea, I bought one at autozone.
Parts guy said its listed for a chevy pickup truck, I said you can add volvo. .
All you need is the part number on the motor and google it.

[callumalden]

... and this is how things seem to work here: even after you make contact and arrange a time to view, after researching and asking pertinent questions to the owner... who treats you like a total annoyance for being concerned about trivial matters such as timing belt and yearly service.... after a week of waiting around the guy replies and explains it has already sold. So scrap that plan! Argh.

In the past 60 days I have travelled 18 hours to view three classic Volvos, all lemons, yesterday I asked another seller to confirm the model photographed was indeed an AWD version (it had a lurid graphic fixed on the passenger door "4x4 off road") but no telling badge on the boot confirming this. The seller explained it was not in fact capable of AWD or 4x4.

I am considering asking sellers if the advertised car is in fact a car, with four wheels and an engine (working). Haha. The universe is telling me that selling the 240 was a very silly thing to do indeed.

Thank you to everyone for their input on the V70s, one day I might get to exercise this valuable information.

[scot850]

Have you considered (I'm sure you have) contacting the Volvo Owners and Enthusiast Clubs if they are still around to see if anyone there is selling a car?

When it comes to buying a used car, I assume that every seller is a immediately forgetful of the truth and issues with their cars. Even the, 'I'm buying a new car' is often due to some known issue with their car that prompted the decision.

Neil.

[callumalden]

And as if I had contracted some weird addiction to a car that is clearly going to be bad for me... another 1998 V70 XC happens to be on sale in a nearby town to where I am travelling next week.

Let me give you the lowdown:
- 350,000km (217,000 miles)
- front suspension just renewed, mounts, wishbones
- brake pads all round renewed
- new battery
- new headlights (?)
- comes with winter tyres and set of rims
- detailed service history (oil and filters every year)
- new abs control unit

Current owner has been driving it for four years, he's just bough a discovery that better suits his needs. He has every single receipt of items renewed and replaced.

Screenshot 2025-01-23 at 14.32.00.png (596.72 KiB) Viewed 825 times

He has sent me some verrrrrry detailed videos as I required a close look at the rear mounts and general state of things under the car. The engine bay appears to be in remarkably good condition, with no oxidisation on the exhaust manifold. I think the state of it is pretty incredibly underneath compared to what I have seen on sale in salty Britain.

Anyway. I am being silly, right? Would anyone with a keen interest enjoy to look at some fun videos of the underside of this car? I suspect he will come down a touch on his asking price as the ad has been live for a while, but at 3000 EUR / 4500 CAD / 2500 GBP

For context: This is the land where a 940 in reasonable condition (infinitely repairable, hardy car) will cost about 5,000 EUR. A runaround fiat panda 4x4 (2005) in good shape is around the same price. For comparison, in the UK I recently bought and sold a runaround fiat panda for around 1000 EUR.

I am unable to find a modern V70 AWD within my budget or within visiting distance, with less than half a million miles.

[scot850]

Couple of pointers on the car you are looking at:

1) Coolant level and colour - My Volvo mechanic friend says you should not use red coolant in these engines. It can damage the internals of the engine and gaskets. The level is low. Check for boil off residue around the header tank cap (in case it has a head gasket issue) and check the underside of the carpets for damp from a leaking heater core. The carpets are rubber backed so touching the top may give no indication the core is leaking. There could also be other coolant pipe leaks. I can't recall if the heater core on a RHD car is on the passenger side as on LHD cars.

2) Headlights lose their silvering over time and having had then replaced is a bonus.

We have the same issue here in Canada on the price of used cars. The prices being asked are double what they were for a similar car 8-10 years ago with half the mileage and no lists of major faults on those high prices!

Neil.

[callumalden]

Thank you very much, everyone. In the end, after spending an exhausting amount of time travelling to view classic Volvos around the country we landed on a early 90s 940.

Here's a forum post all about her 1990s 940 Station Wagon. Thank you everyone. Great input. Hopefully of use to future Volvo hunters looking to (not) buy a 1998 V70 AWD!