Hi all. Been a long time since I've looked at a Volvo! Our last Volvo was an s70 too. Several others before that.

Looking at a 98 GLT for my son to purchase. Price just under 3K and I think room to go down. Just over 100K miles.

Assuming test drive feels good and solid, have some big ticket maintenance item questions.

Timing belt was changed at 53K miles (weird, I know) so I figure we have miles left before doing that.

Will the radiator need replacing as preventative (as my 240 did due to the plastic side walls)?

Is checking condition of turbo as simple as listening for whine? Any input here appreciated.

Those are the biggies I can think of. Test drive should reveal AC, suspension, brake, tranny condition.

Any input welcome.

Other options include similar year / miles subaru with the flat 4

 

Change the timing belt every 70,000 miles OR 7 years, whichever comes first. If you don't know how OLD the belt is, I would change it soon. Also change the pulleys, tesnsioner, water pump, serpentine belt. Radiator should be fine, never had an issue with one and our old one was sold at 260K on the original radiator.

The sound of the Turbo does not tell you much (unless it is screeching or grinding) Mai nly look for strong steady boost and no abnormal smoke when the turbo is boosting.

 

Thanks. Appreciate any input. If the oil is changed consistently, how long do turbos generally last in the glt application?


BTW. This appears to be a one owner car with dealer maintenance records (haven't seen them yet, but that is the claim). We will see.

 

We still had the original turbo on ours at 260K, so with regular maintenance (and I recommend synthetic oil) they should last quite a while

 

Turbo rebuild kits are about $40. You did not mention whether you repair your own cars. The 98 is a very reliable car. This was kind of a "last good year" for traditional Volvo reliability. However, it's still a 20 year old European car. I wouldn't want to own one if I was taking it to a mechanic for anything.

 

Yes, good point.

We plan on turning the wrench ourselves. And we had a 98 S70 5 spd in the past. Sold it at 160K miles to acquire our very first minivan! Woohoo! Third son was born and the back seat got too small with a booster and two baby seats.

Skill and desire level at doing stuff like timing belt (have done on Volvo 4 and 5 cyl motors), brakes, changing out calipers if needed, basic stuff etc...

Not interested in rebuilding a transmission or motor. Prefer not to get involved with cars that have known common electrical issues. Will hurt myself and family trying to do suspension work. So, fairly competent shade tree level stuff.

 

BTW - thanks for the tubo rebuild heads up. Video looks straight forward. Only having had non turbos before, I wasn't aware of rebuild options. Takes some of the $ fear out of it.