Here are my 1st impressions with some pictures of the car:

Ok honestly I was a little dissapointed with the exterior conditions of the car. The interior had a few surprises as well but I think I can address all of them and it should be fine. The impression I got from the owner was that is was in great shape with a few rock chips on the front.

Exterior: It appears that the Hood, drivers front and rear doors have been repainted at one point (the surface clear is glossier and I can see evidence of tape lines). The rear wing, deck lid is sun damaged but nothing a good clay bar or some wax/buff can't handle. The rear wing would have to be repainted. The Black part on the bumpers are faded (pretty common for the 850's though) and the drip trim going up the A-pillars and down the roof is flaking off. Again I can repaint this stuff in our shop. Tires will need replacing. No real curb damage on the wheels but the driver rear wheel the clear is coming off the wheel.

I will post a 2nd thread regarding the interior.

 

That sounds like a lot of work to make it right.
How much is the guy asking for it???

 

Interior:
The Biggest negative is it is a smokers car and reaks of cigarette smoke. The Headliner is sagging in the back and there is a little bit of wear on the drivers side seat bolster. Also the passenger front airbag cover is lifting up a little on the top left corner.

 

He is asking $3500 for it. Mechanically it is sound. All the maitenance has been completed (timing belt, water pump, serpentine belt, regular oil changes, spark plugs have been changed).

 

There is NO WAY I would pay that much for that car. Maybe $2,500 if the milage is less than 140,000. What would make the clear coat peal off of a wheel? I have access to one of those wheels, at my Volvo used parts yard. From the photos it looks pretty good but a hood liner ($500), seat repairs ($250), tires ($800), detail ($150), paint fin ($200), trim recondition (time $200), not to mention what is probably 2 months down the line like PCV, Heater core, Evaporator, etc.. Used cars can get expensive real quick.

As for the windshield/roof trim, don't paint them. Install the S70 trim pieces, they have a rain/water deflector that stops water from coming in the car when you crack or open the windows while the windshield is wet.

 

Well there is a full size spare (same as the one on the car) that is in great shape so I was just going to swap it out with the one where the clear was coming off. I attached a picture of it. My thought on the hood liner was to either remove the fabric completly, sand the backing board smooth to get all the foam/glue/fabric backing stuff off and repaint it black. The other thought was to have the upolstery shop take a look at see what they would charge to redo it. He does great work and is very reasonable. Car has about 140,000 miles on it. I am not worried about the seat, some leather conditioner would take care of it (I can not fix the micro Fiber/Sued bolster but I am not greatly concerned about it). I can do all the detailing myself. What would guy's offer?

 

That's good news about the wheels. Howevery I couldn't help but notice that the wheel you pictured has the tires I have grown to HATE. Who is going to buy the car out of the shop? What is being done to it now?

The fiber on the seats can be fixed. I fixed the one on my car and I don't think anyone can tell, not even I have noticed it and I'm pretty picky. Hobby Lobby had the same fiber in stock and they gave me a sample that I used for the repair. Go figure.

I'm still at the same price because of the work that needs to be done. NADA Guides gives it $2,700 on average trade in. http://www.nadaguides.com/usedcars.a...2221&mi=140000

 

Well he is currently having a lower motor mount put on. I did not drive it but I did start it up and I pulled the dipstick tube to make sure no smoke was coming out. It did not smoke on startup and there was no check engine/ABS or any other lights lighting up. I want to drive it when it is finshed. I want to make sure there is no skips/studders/hesitation. Trannie shifts correctly. The A/C works good.

Quick question what kind of backing material is underneath the headliner? Does anyone know? Is is Fiber board, ABS type material.

 

Can anyone pull a Carfax or similiar report for me?
the VIN is: YV1LS5820V2359073

 

I think i'd walk away from this car if i were you. Here's why: 1) he's asking way too much money for it, given the condition of the car. 2) it sounds like it has gotten indifferent care....bad repaint from a wreck, headliner sagging, interior a mess, etc. Do you think that his indifference didn't also apply to doing preventative maintenance on it?

Just saying. I've found that people who let their cars get trashed dont care for other, more important areas, either. The converse being that folks who have immaculate cars generally keep up with everything else too.

 

I would not walk away, just make an offer that will guard you from a loss. As for pulling the dip stick, it should be done after the car is HOT. Not right after you start it. Most cars that are more than 10 years old have a LOT of neglect. It would be hard to find a clean, well cared for car over 10 years old unless someone has had it garaged and simply did not drive it much. In that case you will pay premium for it.

I think you said something in another post about a timing belt pully or something (tensioner) being replaced??? My be someone else. In that post it mentioned that the t-belt was replaced 10,000 miles ago. If that's the case, why would that be? That stuff should have been replaced with the belt. Goes along with ibified in the case of not wanting to go the extra mile when doing maintenance. I made the same mistake with my t-belt last year and now I'm thinking about doing another belt, pulleys and all.

I believe the hood liner is a thin phenolic material that can break if bent to much. Almsot like a pressed board material. You have to scrape the old liner off of it and glue on new roof liner material. There are a few threads on the forum about the task.

Again, I would purchase the car if the tail pipe isn't smoking. No appearent engine problems like head gasket, worn pistons, etc.. Why is it taking them so long to replace a mount? That's a 2 hour job. Buy the car and have fun with it. Don't expect it to last 10 years.

 

Supposedly they ordered the wrong mount!! I emailed the owner tonight and said I would not pay anymore than $2800 and that was contingent upon a test drive and another shop looking at it (I have a Volvo specialist down the road from me). We'll see if he bites. It was me that talked about the Timing belt in a previous post. This is my impression of the current owner. I think he is the type that will do what his shop tells him needs to be done. I can only imagine the shop might have sold him on that stuff even though it may not have needed it. I do not know but the thing is BONE stock right down to the factory exhaust. It did not smoke out the tail pipe at all and I kept it running for 10 minutes with out the dipstick tube on and I did not see any smoke. When I go back to test drive it I will check it again.

Aside from the terrible cigarette smell and the headliner the rest of the interior was pretty decent. If the owner bites I will do the 0 stage stuff 1st (well after I get tires). I plan on getting it running perfect and then I plan on doing some things to it for performance...I have some wicked idea's up my sleeve. Trust me I am NOT sold on it yet and I am still looking at some other cars but I really do like the 850R Volvo's (liked them for years). You guy's have been great thanks for the input!! Kepp the idea's and comments coming.

 

I got a 94 T wagon for 1000 bucks....I invested, on repairs, 1200....mostly on the head gasket. 3500 HELL NO MAN... wtf is it doing in the shop? 2000 max.. He's just salivating on how many packs of cigarettes he will be able to buy with 3500, I SMELL NEGLECT any oil in the coolant reservoir? little black strings floating?

 

Yeah, I say it you can't get it for $2,800, walk away from it.

Are you limited to the $3,500 range? It you can go a little more, like to the $6k to $7.5k, there are 2 really good looking '98 S70 T5 5M's for sale on SS right now....

Tune it, drop it and throw a V70R front bumper cover on there and you got a damn good looking and quick car..

 

White 850 R's with charcoal interior are fairly hard to find. I have 215K on mine and it runs fine. My interior is a little better shape than that one, and it does not smell like smoke. My exterior is in better shape but not great either. Mine has been wrecked in the front, but the repair was very good and you have trouble tellig it has been painted. I would not sell mine for $3,000, and I think anything under $3,000 is a good deal on that car.

Then again I really like white 850's with the charcoal interior. I paid $7,000 form mine, but that was five years ago and it had 140K on it at the time. I think I paid a little too much, but we've been driving it for five years now. I did do the head gasket on it shortly after buying it and did have to have the evaprorator replaced.

I like my white one better than my yellow one to be honest. I think $3500 is high for it, but under $3,000 would be a decent deal. What can you get that is better than that car for under $3,000? Not much.

 

Right after writing that last post I went out and washed and waxed my white one. Man does it look great!

My wife came out and said wow I can't believe you got it looking that good. Very unusual for the wife to say something like that.

I have just put shocks, struts, water pump, timing belt, new pulleys, tensioner, serpentine belt and brakes all the way around on it. Hope it's good for another 215K. Now it looks just as good as it runs.

Washed the yellow one too, but didn't wax it. I was still working on the white one so the wife took off in the yellow one. She next to never drives it. White one is hers. Now maybe she will quit bugging me to buy her a new car.

 

Well the thing that attracks me to the 850R is it is just Pimp looking...or cool for you old folks. The interior conditions/shape is actually not that bad once I get the headliner addressed. The smoke smell I think I can take care of (but it may always have a hint of smoke smell). As long as the mechanics are sound I can really make it look good on the exterior. I do not think the guy will go down to what I was offering though. So all this might be a mute point.

I am also looking at another 1997 850 T-5 this one has 130,000 miles. Check out the pimping car phone. I am not to crazy about the wood grain trim though.

 

If you only want to get a T5R because of the looks, then find an 850 Turbo and an R bumper, R wheels, and lowering springs. Done.

if you only want a T5R for performance, buy an 850 Turbo and buy an R ECU. Done.

 

Then find the combo suade/leather interior. Done.

Then find the interior wood trim from the T5R. Done.

 

well I do not need a 400hp Daily driver (well it would be nice but I think the gas milage might suck...besides I already have a 535hp play car). I want a good cruiser that can hold it's own in some impromptu red light street brawls (only in Mexico though)!

I am coming out of a Mazdspeed6 and I wanted something turbo powered and something that is somewhat comparable to the HP of the Speed6. Look a couple post up and this is another one I am looking at. It is also a 1997 but it is a T-5. Besides the HP difference and the obvious cosmetic stuff is it any difference than the 850R? The computer reflash on IPD's website nets the same type of HP figures. What do you all think? I can probably get this one for $3,000. Is that too much?