Coworker with a cheap Volvo I could possibly bring to life...

[abscate]

Ryan...get the car in your driveway for two weekends with us and I think we can give you a good idea if it's good candidate

There are really on;y a handful of things that cost bucks to repair, if I read you right you don't mind putting in the labor for a nice ride, within reason.

[precopster]

Alternator is different to 850/98 models but has new bracket system shared with P2s (so easy to remove with loosening 2 bolts and removing 3)

Can't think of a more reliable and gremlin free car. Denso engine management has cam sensor in full view so more or less a Toyota for reliability (ETM aside). MAF is virtually bulletproof also being Denso. No CVVT at all for non turbo. PCV wasn't heated until 2000 model for non turbo however non turbo crankcase pressures are low and can be neglected longer.

I've owned just about all Volvos up until 2006 (apart from S80s) and the 2000 V70 non turbo was by far the easiest to work on and easiest to diagnose as only breakdown issues were occasional coil pack failure and ETM.

[theWIFES_S70]

the 2000 V70 non turbo was by far the easiest to work on and easiest to diagnose as only breakdown issues were occasional coil pack failure and ETM.

Thanks for posting this.

I have to replace our family beater sometime soon and my dad is curious about driving around a Volvo. He sees how much my brother and I enjoy our Volvos and wants to join in the fun! (If only he knew...) What can I say, he wants to feel safe as he drives his dog to the park and escapes to Belmont Park every weekend! He's a bit apprehensive about a car from the 90s because, well, most 90s cars around here rust to all hell. So I've been thinking about a 99 or a 00 S70 N/A but have to say I'm a bit apprehensive about needing to go to a dealer for some stuff... But the 99/00 P80s in NYC are simply not selling (unless of course they're 5-speed MTs) so I'm going to give this a bit more thought.

[precopster]

Hope it all helps. Dealer for ETM and even that can be bypassed by using Doublebug or his local friend Yagger and a Dice. A ELM 327 hooked up to a smartphone can get all coil pack and ECM/TCM codes. I drove around with ELM327 permanently connected to OBDII port

How often do we need keys unless we lose them of course?

[j-dawg]

I have never taken my 99 to a dealer.

My take on the is-it-worth-fixing-up-an-old-Volvo is: if you're committed to it indefinitely, then resale value doesn't matter much, and it's worth fixing up so you'll have the satisfaction of driving a sorted car. That's why I keep throwing parts at mine.

If you aren't committed to it but it's $500, buy it and drive it til it dies, and it doesn't matter because that's what the next guy would have done anyway. You can put $4000 into changing out the suspension, cleaning up the interior, doing timing/PCV/turbo/oil cooler lines/ETM/valve stem seals/rear main seal/whatever other P80 weaknesses you like. After all that it'll be worth $2000. You're never, ever getting back the money you put into a P80 unless it was nearly free and had nearly nothing wrong with it.

[Cees Klumper]

The way I look at that question (should I fix up or not): we invest in cars not to maintain or increase resale value but to get from A to B. If a car is worth $500 that does not mean spending $600 on new parts that it needs is a waste of money: what it buys you is future transportation. My two Volvos are worth next to nothing should I decide to sell them, but I know they are each good for at least another 60 thousand miles with minimal, normal maintenance, so I happily buy new exhausts, batteries, suspension parts and tires, because no matter how much a car's resale value, they all neeed that to keep going - which is why I have them. In a way, older Volvos that are is decent shape are bargains as they provide dependable future transportation at very low cost.

[sleddriver]

Abscate is a good reader. I had a 96 850 a few years ago... did a full tune-up, a throttle-plate mod write-up, full brake upgrade, odo gear fix, positive battery cable fix, new starter, shock mount fix, heated seat fix......the list goes on. And I've been working on cars literally since I could walk...so...not worried about the work.

Here's what I know: It runs and drives though it hasn't really been driven much in the last couple years. It's a base model with a 5 speed. Body and interior are in decent shape. Oil changes were neglected so it may need PCV work. Probably a general tune-up which is easy enough.

Short backstory - I have a 64 Corvair as a daily driver by accident. It's been in my garage since we bought a house last year because I replaced the front floor pans. A week after I got it back on the road (just a few weeks back now) the transmission I rebuilt a while back started making strange noises. I've got the trans pulled apart again (can't find anything wrong, either which is absolutely maddening). My wife and I share her car and we drive about 50-60 miles a day in it. It's a 98 Camry that turned 239,000 yesterday morning and recently had a catastrophic water pump failure which I managed to fix but now the car has a lifter tick and all the struts are worn out anyway, etc... Anyway...her car is still plenty reliable but it's old and putting all those miles on it every day can't be good for it and ontop of that sharing her car is a pain in both our arses.


And finally - unless one of you can point me to a pre-electronic ignition P80 in running and driving and not rusted out condition for 5 or 6 hundred bucks, let's not quibble over whether or not your personal tastes gravitate towards this particular year for whatever reason... It's a coworker, it's cheap, it's not a 64 Corvair, and I already have experience under the hood of a Volvo.

So...yeah. LOL

Dude...so I'm guessing your post here is directed at me. You asked if a 99 was similar to a 96 850. I replied not the electrical system. Completely different animal...because it is. My warning wasn't about the work or your ability to do it, it was about the (potential) electrical gremlins.

You asked yet bristle at opinions contrary. Then, why ask in the first place? Sounds like you've already made up your own mind.

LOL......

[RyanGLT]

Abscate is a good reader. I had a 96 850 a few years ago... did a full tune-up, a throttle-plate mod write-up, full brake upgrade, odo gear fix, positive battery cable fix, new starter, shock mount fix, heated seat fix......the list goes on. And I've been working on cars literally since I could walk...so...not worried about the work.

Here's what I know: It runs and drives though it hasn't really been driven much in the last couple years. It's a base model with a 5 speed. Body and interior are in decent shape. Oil changes were neglected so it may need PCV work. Probably a general tune-up which is easy enough.

Short backstory - I have a 64 Corvair as a daily driver by accident. It's been in my garage since we bought a house last year because I replaced the front floor pans. A week after I got it back on the road (just a few weeks back now) the transmission I rebuilt a while back started making strange noises. I've got the trans pulled apart again (can't find anything wrong, either which is absolutely maddening). My wife and I share her car and we drive about 50-60 miles a day in it. It's a 98 Camry that turned 239,000 yesterday morning and recently had a catastrophic water pump failure which I managed to fix but now the car has a lifter tick and all the struts are worn out anyway, etc... Anyway...her car is still plenty reliable but it's old and putting all those miles on it every day can't be good for it and ontop of that sharing her car is a pain in both our arses.


And finally - unless one of you can point me to a pre-electronic ignition P80 in running and driving and not rusted out condition for 5 or 6 hundred bucks, let's not quibble over whether or not your personal tastes gravitate towards this particular year for whatever reason... It's a coworker, it's cheap, it's not a 64 Corvair, and I already have experience under the hood of a Volvo.

So...yeah. LOL

Dude...so I'm guessing your post here is directed at me. You asked if a 99 was similar to a 96 850. I replied not the electrical system. Completely different animal...because it is. My warning wasn't about the work or your ability to do it, it was about the (potential) electrical gremlins.

You asked yet bristle at opinions contrary. Then, why ask in the first place? Sounds like you've already made up your own mind.

LOL......

No, multiple replies. Seemed like maybe a few people who weren't aware of my experience or skill level or the fact that I'm stupid poor and that a cheap car that runs is a good deal for me. haha. I don't even see a reply from you on page 1 which is mostly where that was directed... In any car forum there are few things more annoying than guys who love the stuff they love so much and hate the stuff they hate so much that they'll go out of their way to tell you that the thing they hate sucks. Not really helpful. Not saying you did that but...in the first page it happened. All good.

I was going to look at it yesterday...he rescheduled to today and then we never hooked up... So sometime maybe this week... I'm in no hurry as I don't have the cash right now anyway. Trying to get the Corvair back on the road hopefully this week.

[abscate]

Good luck with it and let us know what you find.

Mod note...we don't do the back and forth here thing on MVS, we delete stuff that should be private or even not said.

[PeteB]

My advice is to find a cheap car that is not known to need so much work as these Volvos
and that has cheap OEM parts available.
Also, find one with a timing chain rather than belt to save you that work/expense. All
of our cars except for the Volvo employ chains.
Mazda 3s, 323, Prelude are a good choice as are Ford Focus that use the same engine,
but there are others.
I'd rather work overtime and buy a better car than have one that is in constant need of
repair where the repair may or may not work.