Hello all!

I am new to the forum and I am considering buying my first Volvo! It is my dream car: a 1993 black 240 wagon, good cosmetics, no rust, all working... but with 210k miles.

My (maybe not so) trusty Chevy Celebrity wagon is threatening to give up the ghost. 4 years and 50k miles later, this garage car is piling up the repairs and hurting my wallet.

That being said, a 17 year old car with twice the mileage makes me a little wary. I've heard that Volvos can basically run forever if they are well maintained, but that they can be very expensive to repair when they aren't. This car is in another town, so I must get the best out of my visit to go check it out.

-Are there any common problems I should watch out for?
-Should I do a pre-buy inspection at a Volvo specialist? If so, how can I locate one? If not, will any old repair shop do the trick?
-How well do these cars hold up beyond 200k miles? If I pamper it, can I expect another 100k miles of happy life? Or is this the beginning of Expensive Problem Time for the life of this car?

Thanks for your help!

 

If the car has been serviced, regular oil changes, high milage is 300k. 200 Is really nothing for that motor. Is it the B230 engine?

 

Not really sure who started the falsehood that volvos run forever. That is true for a small minority of Bricks; essentially those few cars that are one owner and received regular maintenance. Eighteen years after the last 240 rolled off the line there are precious few that fall into that category. Most Bricks today are 3, 4, 5, 6 or more owner cars. As they take their inevitable downward spiral towards becoming fodder for 2 or 3 Kias it is possible to save one by infusing money and labor. And, occasionally, one stumbles across the 1 or 2 owner car for a reasonable sum that needs little to bring it back to stage zero. Today, the primary concern is not the mechanical end of the deal...motors, transmissions and rear ends can be had w/ little issue. The real concern, and it sounds like you have lucked out, is cosmetics. If the interior is trashed and the seats are broken down, there are no better ones at the jy. So...when I look at one, I check the cosmetics. At 200k, a multi-owner motor is on borrowed time, transmission too. At this late date, regular oil changes are nice...but in the grand scheme of things...most likely too little, too late. I am by no means saying don't buy the car...I'm just saying get into the car as cheaply as possible, knowing full well there will be repairs down the road...

 

Cool! My chevy has all sorts of ignition trouble that needs to be taken care of to get it back on the road... but including the rest of the non-immediate work the repairs I need would total the price of this volvo. And the cosmetics on this chevy are completely shot at this point. I would be breaking even from a money stand point for a car with better cosmetics. If I could get... 40,000 miles out of the Volvo on regular oil changes and maybe an odd part here and there, it would be more than worth it.

The current owner received this car in lieu of a debt from a mechanic. Before that, I suspect it would have been a one owner car. I'm going to take it to a mechanic for a pre-buy inspection. Are there any questions I should be sure to ask so I can understand the condition of the engine?

 

Well, a compression test would be great. It's important that all 4 cylinders have close to the same compression; not being so means there is an issue on the affected cylinder. Have them check the suspension bushings, engine and transmission mounts, tie rods...all the usual stuff.

 

listen for rod slap (sounds like its out of oil if bad) a little slap is normal, look over the wiring harness, they like to rot. Check oil for water and gas. Look in the fuse box and check for corrosion

 

I drove a 240 wagon from 210k to 317k. Transmission was replaced at 180 so I didn't need to worry about that. With a wagon with this kind of mileage there will be a fair amount of maintenance. I definitely remember doing exhaust, charging system, timing belt, and brakes. That being said the car will keep on going until you decide its not worth the money to repair, I retired mine when the charging system gave up and diagnosising was going to cost a ton in labor.