I am interested in purchasing a 1990 volvo 740with 193000 miles. I'm new to volvo, but not new to swedish cars, had a 84 saab for 3 years before it died. What should I know? IS there anyting I need to beware of or pay attention to

thanks

 

I guess I would want to know about the engine. At 193,000 miles you don't want to get a car that needs a rebuild. I just bought one at about that mileage but the owner documented every 3,000 mile oil changes for the entire life of the car so I didn't have to worry.

If it's a 16-valve engine you might want to avoid it. Replacing the timing belt on schedule is *mandatory* since losing the belt while the car is running pretty much destroys the engine. The 8 valve engine is not like that.

Any noises are suspect. Volvos are pretty damned quiet and don't generally rattle when they're being driven. E.G., vibrations at the drive shaft tunnel behind the console indicate a worn main drive shaft support, ~$300, a common problem.

If it's a turbo, I'd want to know that the owner has stuck to maintenance schedule pretty strictly. That's one reason why I avoid turbos, even though Volvo turbos are better than most.

The 8 valve four cylinder engines and the transmissions are pretty much indestructable if you take good care of them.

I'd want the air conditioner to work. For my latest purchase it isn't and it's costing me over $700 to fix it and upgrade to the new environmentally safe coolant.