Help me Veeky Forums , should a poor college student still living at home put more money into my 1986 Volvo 240 DL station wagon or is it time to sell it and buy a newer car?
I bought it for $1200 and have pretty much spent more than it cost to buy just into general maintenance and fixing borked shit.
It still drives fine, though I think the back suspension may be a bit fucked as every time I go over speed bumps it feels and sounds as if my car has no shock absorption in the back.
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so buy new rear shocks.
Keep youre first car, youll regret it if you sell it
Normies don't think that way
Thats the truth, my first car needs a heart transplant bad, it drips oil like a leaky faucet
it looks to be pretty rust free so I would be inclined to keep it. Replacing rear shocks is pretty easy. I would just soak the shock bolts in penetrating oil every day for a week.
You might also want to check to make sure your spring perches and springs are still there before you buy the shocks.
Post pics of it. It'd be stupid to get rid of a car because it needs shocks.
I can buy it off you. No joke - I'm nearby in MD and I've been thinking about buying a Volvo wagon. Is it manual or automatic?
How many miles does it have on it and what engine?
Dosnt matter if it leaks, I live only like 10min away from work and my 1983 244 GLT leaks like 1 liter a week... But I get cheap oil...
If your rear suspension feels hard - check that its sitting level, if its leaning a bit then the bushings might be buggered.
probably 80% of remaining 240's on the road have bad trailing arm bushings. It's a very expensive and difficult repair because you need a special proprietary tool. The bushing themselves are cheap, it's the labor that's going to be pricey.
I bet you hear a horrible thud when you shift from reverse into drive.
there are work-around but it's a difficult job
I dont think you need special tools -
k-jet.org
It should be doable with a couple of large sockets and a threaded bar/bolt
The picture I posted is not mine, hence the file name. And the rear shock thing is just a guess, I'd have to take it to a mechanic and have them diagnose the actual problem and Im scared of how much it could cost.
Ok.
You're literally on the other side of the country from me my dude.
~142,000 w/ a 2.3L L4 SOHC 8V.
>I bet you hear a horrible thud when you shift from reverse into drive.
No, I don't actually.
Here's a pic of my car when I first got it 2 and a half years ago. It looks the same now except I took off all the hubcaps since I lost one
> ~142,000 w/ a 2.3L L4 SOHC 8V.
Its pretty low mileage, my 89 245 GLT has like ~250k on it when the odo stopped half a decade ago...
If you jack up the arse end of it you should be able to diagnose it yourself and nothings that complicated or expensive.
Look though the greenbooks on k-jet.org once you found what you need to do.
If the bushings are gone, you need new bushings.
If the shocks have crap around the seals then you need new shocks.
My rear end was feeling a bit hard and the car was leaning 1/2" to the right - my rear trailing arm bushing was gone (thats this weeks job)
Where are you located friendo? Im 717. Ive got an 96 850 wagon Ill trade you straight up, new shocks new rotors, new rack and pinion. I stopped driving it because I bought a 240.
>I'd have to take it to a mechanic and have them diagnose the actual problem and Im scared of how much it could cost.
No you don't, and your actual car looks in pretty good shape. Volvo owners are pretty good. Find the local Volvo club, buy somebody a beer and they will look it over and tell you what's what's. Buy em a case of beer and they will help you with your shocks.
3e carbed, filled to fuck with vaccume hoses and the kind of bolt placement that makes you scratch your neighbors head
If I didnt live in an apartment complex I wouldve pulled it out put a 4efte in
It has only 173k but some pinging and the work is the same if i rebuilt it
I'm in West coast, so pretty much on the other side of the country from you too.
It's only had 1 owner before me. Old Man Jenkins bought it fresh off the lot when it came out in '86. Unfortunately, the dude was a smoker so it's got some smoke damage but other than that its in pretty good condition.
I should also mention my uncle's a mechanic so diagnosing shouldn't be a problem, just the cost.
This thread is slightly derailing from my actual question which is: Should I be putting more money into this car or should I just sell it and move on?
I know all you guys are going to be a bit biased since you guys are all gearheads and have a hard-on for these particular Volvo's, but try to look at it through my eyes. I'm a young broke college student who cant really afford to put more money into a car that has diminishing value when I can sell it and get a newer, safer (something with airbags so i don't lose all my fucking teeth in a collision) more reliable car.
>that has diminishing value
those cars are going UP in value
> Smoke Damage
Smoke shouldn't damage anything?
> Diminishing Value
They have been holding value for awhile now - give it a decade and they will be going up.
> Newer, safer, more reliable car
Safety is subjective, 200 series were based on the Volvo Safety car so the body is pretty well up there.
Airbags are a meme, your dash is like 1/2" thick foam compared to modern cars with 'soft touch' plastic.
Unless you get a hot of the block 2016 model car, it wont be more reliable - Volvo's are renown for their durability for a reason.
AND - if anything goes wrong, its a normal car put together normally and parts are pretty cheap and available.
Dude 240s are cheap cheap cheap to take care of. Literally replaced the entire engine and trans and it was still cheaper than fixing a essential part of my newer car. Hold onto and put the $50 you spend on weed a week into it instead. They are gonna be sought after in a few years and wagons especially.
Is it turbo? I'm looking for a wagon.
I might want it, I'm in vegas
Fwend you want a new car, I think
The most economical choice is always wrenching, on an old car moreso
Volvo are cheap to fix unless its cosmetic
If you don't want to wrench, get a new car
If you want to feel something different, get a new car
If you want a money saving hobby and a new skill, wrench this shit until you can sell it to a yuppie