Well the 740 wagon was sold and it was a damn good car. Im looking to get a 850 wagon now. Im wondering what are som eof the things that are notorious for failure so i have an idea on what to look at. As usual i know the t-belt is of the utmost importance. But what are good for failure. Head gaskets? AC systems im know of. Some of the cars im looking at have 150K plus on them. Im expecting that there are some things that will have to be fixed.

 

throw out bearing if its a manual
pvc system
fuel relays
maf (sometimes)
plugs, wires, coil, etc
exhaust hangers

 

+1 Exhaust hangers

 

anything rubbery, like bushings and mounts,hoses
ABS module
odometer
ignition switch

 

That is why mine is being held on with a coat hanger

 

The odometer gears break on all of them that have a VDO instrument cluster. The PCV is problematic at that mileage. The A/C evaporator tends to fail on most of them - the entire dash needs to come out to fix that one. The recline cables on the seat back are a weak link.

There are several other quirks but they depends on the year and the trim level.

Once you get them right though they are very reliable.

...Lee

 

Heck, look at the 850 threads section. It's full of stuff. I was hoping it was because Volvo owners think they are smart and can fix things themselves. Or that there were like 40 million of the cars sold so more problems are surfaced. I was really considering asking the site moderators to wipe the thing clean so other people don't get scared off thinking that the cars are a big pile of crap.

I would focus on the STICKY threads. If you find a car that has been taken care of, you may not have much to full with.