I have made some posts here in the past and found the responses most enlightening, now I am at a crossroads, so to speak...
My Volvo-
97 850 Wagon GTA$
193,000 miles
5-speed (original clutch)
Leather seating, third row seat.

This car has treated me to 10 years of great service, but now needs some major work done to return it to its glory.

The engine is strong and the clutch is loose and still very forgiving when I need to get up and go quickly. Though with 193K on the clutch, replacement is probably a good thing.

Trouble spots:
Needs Brake pads and rotors all around
New Tires all around
Radiator leaking in the expected upper right corner
Needs Shocks, Struts (all original)
Time for a new timing belt.
Replace vacuum hose that controls cruise control
Rest of engine hoses are original, ought to be replaced.
Lower cowling under engine broke off and exposed the air pump, both needs replacing
Front leather seats wearing out through the padding
Interior lift gate panel falling off.
Ubiquitous instrument panel lights
fresh paint on leading edge of car because of road debris that chipped paint.

Any insight to this work would be helpful. Is it worth the expense to the car. KellyBB states this car should be worth about $3500.

Thanks
Tom

 

Man that's a tough one. I had a 94 850 Turbo since it was practically brand new. It was all original just like yours, but from the sound of yours, mine was probably in better shape. Leather and exterior paint was as good as it could be for a 11 year old car. Well at 205K the engine went suddenly. I had to make a decision whether to put a used engine in it or get rid of it. To repair it would have cost in the neighborhood of $3,000. The repair shop offered me $800 and I took the money. Still not sure I made the right decision, since I have had quite a bit of trouble with the 97 850 R I bought to replace it. My feeling was that I thought I would just keep having more trouble with the car and I had never put much money into it. Many times when you start throwing money into an older high mileage used car it never quits, and I have been in that position in the past.

My personal opinion is sell it for whatever you can get for it and buy another Volvo in better condition for a little more than what you would have to put into this one. You can probably get about $2,000 for it as is.

 

If you sell it, what are you gonna do? Buy a brand new car or a used car? If you're gonna go brand new, I'd probably just drive the car until it dies...Or just keep it as a winter beater...

I will tell you this, buyers (me especially) are EXTREMELY hesitant to buy a car w/ 193k miles especially for such a large sum of money.

I will tell you that I got my car for $$3500 US and the car had 124k miles. It's been good so far (2000 miles) but apparently my RPM sensor needs to be replaced. The suspension on the car is old and creaky and I think my AC is broken/needs to be recharged..

But I am a bit confused with your post. You state your car has 194k MILES and you're from the GTA. Is it 3500 US or Canadian?

 

RedTurbo850.

I forgot that this is an international forum. I am in South Carolina, US. Since we have only a little winter weather, I am more inclined to run this car to work until it just dies. My only concern that it will die in one of our notorious cell phone dead zones on my 70 mile round trip trek to work each day.
I bought this car nearly new 10 years ago, it was a custom order reject from a Volvo dealer that I got a real good buy on then.

Thanks,
Tom

 

I would think a lot of this depends upon how long you would hold onto to the car if you did a lot of this stuff, as well as how mechanically inclined you might be.

There isn't anything on the list I haven't done before, but for most, some of these jobs (like the clutch) can be a daunting task. If you need to pay out of pocket to have the major stuff done: Clutch, Shocks/Struts and Timing Belt, you might consider selling it, for even with a inexpensive mechanic, that is going to be a hefty bill.

It comes down to a balance issue. There are VERY few used cars out there that don't have something that needs to be done to them. If things on your list can be spaced out over a period of time, the car might be worth holding onto.

Good luck with your decision. My wagon is the first Volvo I've ever owned and I'm amazed at how happy I am with it. - AB

 

Where in SC are you? I'm in Charlotte. - AB

 

I pretty much run my cars until the door fall off or the engine drops out of the car.

But that's just me.
[align=left] [/align]

 

Hello Tom,

Greetings from Chicagoland.

I personally agree with Mr. RedTurbo850, I would drive it as is until it quits for good.

I just did a bit of research on parts at FCP Groton of Connecticut, and here's the estimate for parts, means you'd have to spend at least the following on parts alone, should you decide to repair your car:

BRAKES:
Front Brakes:$119.50 (both rotors & pads)
Rear Brakes: $86 (both rotors & pads)

TYRES*:
Estimate: $300
*If you don' care about the performance, you may be ableget by withcheaper generic tyres.

RADIATOR*:
Radiator: $205
*If the leak is just a drip, I would keep a bottle of pre-mix coolant in the car and keep an eye on the coolant reservoir. If the leak is actually from the upper hose to radiator attachment, try tightening the clamp (but be careful, if it gets too tight, the plastic inlet may break off).

SUSPENSION:
Struts: $190
Shocks: $110

TIMING BELT*:
Belt: $27
Idler pulley: $48
Tensioner pulley: $48
Hydraulic tensioner: $110
Water pump: $49
*If you don't hear any noise or see no coolant seepage, you can just replace the belt only.

CLUTCH*:
*Non-Turbo: $195 for complete kit (disc, pressure plate & release bearing)
*Turbo: $289 for complete kit

VACUUM HOSE:
Hose: A few dollars ea.

ENGINE HOSES*:
*Which hoses, just the coolant hoses, or others as well?

ENGINE COWLING & AIR PUMP*:
Cowling: ?
Air pump: $345
*If you don't notice any drivability problem, I wouldn't spend $345 for the air pump. eBay/Junkyard may suffice. I think the cowling (lower air dam?) can be neglected, I've been driving my 850 with the cowling off the car (due to frequent access in that area), and have been ok so far.

FRONT SEATS*:
Seats: $? (assuming $500 or more each?). *I would have them professionally restored, rather than spend a few hundred dollars buying new seats, unless you can find them at eBay/junkyard.

INTERIOR LIFTGATE PANEL*:
* Can you fix it by yourself to save $?

INSTRUMENT PANEL LIGHTS*:
* I would buy a Haynes' manual and do it myself. Bulbs are cheap but labour isn't. You just have to be careful with pax-side SRS and have to have various sizes of Torx bits. You can find the bulbs at Wal-mart or auto parts store.

PAINT ON THE LEADING EDGE*:
*I would first try colour-specific polish & wax. Most fading can be fixed with these, except asevere fading may require rubbing compound. For chippings, I would buy aftermarket touch-up paint (Volvo paint is expensive and not very durable).

SHIPPING:
Shipping would be about $30 for all the above (wild guess)

WILD-ESTIMATED TOTAL: $1500-$1700 for parts only (May be reduced via eBay).

Should you decide to buy another used car, please note that many used cars that are over10 years/100,000 miles may require the same amount of $ or more for repair, due to normal wear & poor maintenance.

Best of luck,


JPN

 

Hello JPN,

Looks like you did a little homework for me. I was estimating with labor (I have little free time these days) that an investment of about $3000-4500 would get the major parts repaired. I just would really hate it if I spent all that money for the engine to give out at 225K.

What I probably wind up doing is at least put a new set of brakes and some inexpensive tires on it then put shocks and struts on later. Everything else will be let alone until it is time to retire the car. I am hoping I can get at least another 18 months out of it before upgrading..

Thanks,
Tom

 

Just down the street in York County

Tom

 

You should do the timing belt too. If it needs a new one, that would be my #1 priority.

 

Excellent point. I has been about 70K since the last change.

Tom

 

18 months is a long time.

My recommendation would be to just do all of the mechanical issues and things which can be potentially dangerous (tires, brakes, etc). And then just save money for another car.

That being said, it would suck if you drop 3-4 grand and then your engine breaks...

 

It's really tough to decide when to cut your losses. My thing on the 94 was that I had not put hardly any money into it for about two years. At one point I didhead gasket and the evaporator around the same time. Then I had no problems until the engine went. I was afraid to put $3,000 into it and then have it nickle and dime to death. So I bought another car that is costing me more to maintain than the other one might have. I really wanted an "R" though.

 

Well, the long awaited refit has begun. I just replaced the radiator (did it myself), thermostat and upper and lower coolant hoses. Thanks again for the tips and suggestions.
Now that engine is running at the optimum temperature, I noticed an improvement in fuel economy. I plan to gauge it soon to see just how much better the MPG is. Next step is to replace the suspension. That will no doubt put me back about $500 on shocks, struts and accessories.

Tom

 

Hi,

I hope your car would soon be ready for another 100,000 miles.

This thread may be of some use for you:

https://volvoforums.com/m_48928/tm.htm

I update my post in this thread once a while, trying to be as accurate & up-to-date as possible.

Wish you luck,


JPN

 

AAAHHHHH!!!!
I Repeat; AAAHHHH!

Just 10 days after I replace the radiator and change the oil, I now have an oil leak on the driver side right about the transaxle.
Just cannot get a break on this car..!?@%$!

I hope it is not the main seal again. The flame trap looked good to me.

Tom

 

Is it a large leak or a minor leak? Get under the car and see where it's coming from...

If you're like me, it's a minor leak from the turbo...Apparently my PCV system needs to be serviced/cleaned.

 

>AAAHHHHH!!!!
>I Repeat; AAAHHHH!

My God Bless America...

Anyway, if yours has a turbo, RedTurbo850's advice is a good place to start. If the PCV system has never been replaced, I would just clean or replace the entire system. Turbo & Non-turbo use different systems, and it also depends on VIN or engine number as to which system you need.

NA: http://www.fcpgroton.com/volvo850oiltrap.htm
TURBO: http://www.fcpgroton.com/volvo850oiltrapturbo.htm

If the leak is minor, I would keep an eye on the oil level once/week and keep topping off. If, however, the leak is heavy and is definitely from the seam between the engine & transaxle, the worst case scenario is the RMS. Recently, a gentleman by the name of Robrike has had his RMS replaced. I would search for Rob's post, if the problem turns out the RMS is shot. If you have another car and are willing to work on it by yourself, you could save a few hundred $$$.

I would also double-check on the engine oil cooler lines for leak. You may only neednew seals & O-rings, which should be a few dollars.

Wipe the oil & locate the leak so we can go from there.


JPN

 

^Yeah, for minor leaks, you might just be better off checking the level and topping it off.