Following on from my £400 bangernomics - £500 Volvo

Bargain, definitely looks ok for 500 quid

Yep - it's a bargain but the owner knows I'll tinker it and keep on top of it and with it a part of her dad's legacy will continue (he had it from new).

This is MrsRNP V70 and some of the work I've done on it.

A Volvo is for life not just PCP.

https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/volvo-estate-appreciation/

I'd love an XC90 D5, but the tax and fuel economy would make me weep.

I do love bangernomics and big mile Volos. I picked up a 2004 focus 1.8TDCI estate two years ago with 100k on the clock for £500. It's been absolutely faultless. Cruises up and down the motorway effortlessly. Makes me wonder why anyone would spend 50k+ to do the same thing.?

Because a 50k modern car will be a much nicer place to be than a 2004 Focus?

Love an early Focus, had plenty and was running a 2004 ST170 a few years ago but time moves on and pretty much any current car will be better, let alone a 50k one. I can absolutely see why people would if they have the available cash although it's certainly down to personal preference and priority.

Nice Volvo BTW.

Because a 50k modern car will be a much nicer place to be than a 2004 Focus?

I can't help it, but every time someone gives it the 'a nicer place to be' thing on a car thread, I imagine some louche bohemian dick lounging on a velvety chaise longue in a smoking jacket with one of those six-inch cigarette holders from the 1920s. Honestly, are people really bothered whether their car has cleaner, more modern patterned fabric and lavishly-contoured centre console?

Cars are not 'a nice place to be' full stop. They're just a planet-trashing and practical way of getting from one place to another. I get the enthusiasm for fast or characterful cars, but the whole 'nice place to be' thing baffles me. Genuinely.

My boss has identical one in colour, age and mileage. It just clatters on.

Her only moan is the fuel economy and when it needs work, it can get steep...

Obviously assuming a 3rd party bluetooth radio is installed, I'm actually not sure modern cars are 'nicer places to be'. If anything they're made to a cost now. A Mk5/Mk6 golf is significantly nicer build quality than a modern golf - which is now a bit of a tin can, for example. And taller sidewalls 'of old' make for more comfortable cars on our shit roads compared to these joker wheels that come on even 'entry level' cars now - disagree all you like, it's fact

"Because a 50k modern car will be a much nicer place to be than a 2004 Focus?"

Can't argue with that but how nice do you want it ? It's a box with an engine in for carrying shite up and the motorway not a holiday home.

I spanner our own cars have VIDA/DICE Volvo diagnostics and my own workshop space in our house so running costs are minimal. The MPG will be better than our petrol 2.4NA! but we only do low mileages.

Came here hoping it was an XC90 - is not disappointed

These were in my searches earlier in the year when it looked like I might have needed a cheap tow vehicle that could be used along forest tracks and fields.
At £500, if it doesn't work out for you...

That’s proper.

Cars are not ‘a nice place to be’ full stop. They’re just a planet-trashing and practical way of getting from one place to another. I get the enthusiasm for fast or characterful cars, but the whole ‘nice place to be’ thing baffles me. Genuinely.

I've only ever owned 2 cars, and when the first one died (a 14 year old Mondeo diesel estate), I replaced it with a 7 y/o Mazda. Now I'm not a car person, but I can't deny that the Mazda was quieter, smoother and more comfortable, despite being their bottom-of-the-range family hatchback. It's better in a lot of ways actually.

I'd never base a car-buying decision on it, as I only do about 3000 miles a year anyway so I don't really care. But of the two cars, one is definitely 'a nicer place to be' than the other.

Quality cars. As you say not the best of the fuel but really good motorway cars.

Honestly, are people really bothered whether their car has cleaner, more modern patterned fabric and lavishly-contoured centre console?

I am no car but and would never spend load on A car but traveling is a nice Merc / BMW or similar for a few hours is so much more comfortable it can make a massive difference to a long journey especially if it's a regular one. It's a bit like business class on a plane Vs economy. Economy is not that bad but if you were doing long haul weekly it starts to look a lot more appealing if you have a business you can write the expense off to.

We've done the long slog from Lancashire to Perpignan (French/Spanish border) numerous times in our V70 and they are a fantastic way to cross continents with the dog happily snoozing in the back.

We also have a low mileage but old Berlingo and it's a great little car but comfort / NVH levels it is so far removed from the soundproofing and comfort of our Volvo.

Swirl flaps on that engine fail. Well, they get abit gummy and the actuator motor overwhelms the strength of the rod and it can fail.
Dpf equipped so will need a monthly Italian tune up to keep it clear.

Swirl flaps on that engine fail. Well, they get abit gummy and the actuator motor overwhelms the strength of the rod and it can fail.
Dpf equipped so will need a monthly Italian tune up to keep it clear.

👍
Hopefully get it inside workshop this afternoon and starting making a list.

Ive been looking for a V50 / V70 for around 3k most of them with traders and are absolutely FKD. First to see will buy my arse. Not bought a car in over 10 years but the second hand stuff Ive seen so far is putting me well off and there doesn't seem to be many private sales without driving 100 miles to see them. Many been looking at Autotrader and some on ebay, any other places to look?

Bargain rather than banger surely! 500 is ridiculously cheap for a 2010 car based on current prices.

But of the two cars, one is definitely ‘a nicer place to be’ than the other.

I agree to an extent, but how much better?

Two years ago I changed jobs and had to buy a car after years of company ones.

I got a 13 year old mk5 Golf as a stop gap. It doesn’t have heated seats, steering wheel, DAB like my last company car but for a 20 mile motorway commute it does the job. It has some niceties like leccy windows, aircon, parking sensor. In comparison, if you bought a 12 year old car 10-15 years ago what would that be like.

I’ve toyed with changing it but the tax, insurance, service cost per year is less than c 3 monthly lease payments or finance of something newer. Going for an older car (with current Covid premium) I don’t think will put me anywhere better/risk of an unknown quantity.

To be fair I had a panda before which was fantastic around the narrow lanes of Devon where I live but on a 200 haul up the M5 it was an absolute ball ache. By comparison the Mk1 focus is a Rolls-Royce.

Ive had a few Volvos - currently on a 2012 Xc70 which I’ve had for four years now and put about 50k in it since I bought it - superb car - now has 110k on it but I’m planning on still having it way past 200k…..

I didn’t pay banger money for it but I plan on holding on to it until it is one, and beyond!

That's excellent buying! Second hand cars in Oz are ridiculously expensive. I'm in the process of selling a 2012 4x4 Ute for almost as much as i paid for it 6 years ago and triple the mileage.
Bought a 2018 Alfa Stelvio last week and I can tell you now it's a much nicer place to be. Admittedly it's a different type of vehicle but it will play the same role as commuter and long distance holidays. On a 2000km drive to bring it home (via some very rough roads) i noted the following differences:
- better suspension than the 4x4 on both rough pothole wrecked roads and fast smooth roads
- quieter and less road noise
- way less fuel consumption (~50%)
- more comfortable seats
- far better sound system
- a/c that just works well
- faster... much much faster.

currently on a 2012 Xc70 which I’ve had for four years now and put about 50k in it since I bought it – superb car – now has 110k on it but I’m planning on still having it way past 200k…..

Aye, I had 2013 D3 V70. Put 90k on it in 4.5 years, up to 160k.
I bailed out when the garage quoted £4k of maintenance and repairs, plus turbo started being a numpty that week...
I do miss it and wonder if I should have 'stuck', but that repair bill was 40% of my new car....

Dpf equipped so will need a monthly Italian tune up to keep it clear.

Ah, that old chestnut.

I had a very early XC90 (2003) and I kept it for something like 12 years. It was good while our 3 girls were growing up and I see it's still going.
Notable issues were:
4WD died so it became 2wd!
The hand/foot brake system was truly crap and needed attention every year to get it through the MOT (I see nothing's changed looking at the recent MOTs)
It ate suspension parts and brakes.

Other than that is was a comfy place to be although a bit underpowered and thirsty for what it was.

Cars are not ‘a nice place to be’ full stop. They’re just a planet-trashing and practical way of getting from one place to another. I get the enthusiasm for fast or characterful cars, but the whole ‘nice place to be’ thing baffles me. Genuinely.

Tell you what else will blow your mind: Some people pay a bit more to have a nicer seat on an aeroplane, when it's not even their own aeroplane! Same with trains!

Love an early Focus, had plenty and was running a 2004 ST170 a few years ago but time moves on and pretty much any current car will be better, let alone a 50k one.

Really not convinced.

They're all just variations on a black and grey plastic theme with ergonomic seats designed to be ergonomic around someone 3" shorter than me. At least my old Berlingo was blue inside for a change.

Had a few hire cars recently too and the only change seems to be that in old cars the bluetooth just works once you've hit shuffle, in new cars you now have to plug your phone in again to get carplay/android to work.

Basically this:

Cars are not ‘a nice place to be’ full stop. They’re just a planet-trashing and practical way of getting from one place to another. I get the enthusiasm for fast or characterful cars, but the whole ‘nice place to be’ thing baffles me. Genuinely.

Nothing will ever make a car more enjoyable than a train, whether that's a packed ECML train Vs the M1 or the Bakerloo line Vs trying to drive down Mayfair, car's suck.

It’s a box with an engine in for carrying shite up and the motorway not a holiday home.

Ever considered a career in marketing? This would be a great strapline for VW vans.

Nothing much to report yet - my to do list so far is;

General service (oil & filters, brake fluid)
Rear discs
Timing belt and water pump
Aux belt, idler and alternator one way pulley
Swirl flap linkage/rod (will probably replace the entire flap mechanism as it's passed a bit of oil)
Flush autobox
Investigate clock spring/DTSC issue
Clean EGR and cooler

Longer term MrsRNP suggested rebuilding it as an 'Overlander lite' - small lift kit, AT tyres, roof rack, recovery points, etc. We've had an overland Defender and a Transit camper and have done Morocco/southern Europe, this '90 would be a good vehicle for the Scandic countries we want to explore/roadtrip.

Longer term MrsRNP suggested rebuilding it as an ‘Overlander lite’ – small lift kit, AT tyres, roof rack, recovery points, etc

That's something I'd love to see

I like all of this.

I've joined various FB XC90 groups and was showing MrsRNP a similar one which resulted in the comment "get it mechanically sorted, don't bother with the paintwork as you know how knocked they get and we'll go overlanding in it"

One of the many reasons I married her!

Its also cheap enough that if something did happen to it and it had to be left behind/financially written off it wouldn't smart as much.

I'd check to see if it's still got 4wd first then!

Oh and mine devices to drop a core plug after a service resulting in most of the oil being dumped on my drive.
The fix was a £5 part but £700 to remove and replace the gearbox which was in the way 😩
Good job it wasn't 2 days later as we were due to drive to Bristol airport (3 hours) for a big holiday.

This was the final straw and I moved it on fairly shortly afterward.

I'd check to see if it's still got 4wd first then!

Oh and mine devices to drop a core plug after a service resulting in most of the oil being dumped on my drive.
The fix was a £5 part but £700 to remove and replace the gearbox which was in the way 😩
Good job it wasn't 2 days later as we were due to drive to Bristol airport (3 hours) for a big holiday.

This was the final straw and I moved it on fairly shortly afterward.

For the DSTC issue check the ABS rings on the front hubs.... I had to replace mine after they corroded and cracked.

.... And is the sound system working ok?
It's a MOST fibre optic system that can and does go wrong.
Mine stopped working which also took out the built-in sat nav so nothing that went through the head unit would work.
Pretty spendy to fix and that was another reason why it went!!!

Not much to report yet, but one interesting fault though - it had the "Anti Skid Fault Service Required" message displayed.
I know the previous owner (friend of MrsRNP) took the car to a reputable local garage for a Steering Angle Sensor replacement (£300 part). Two weeks later the message flagged up again and not long after the car came to my ownership.
I have VIDA/DICE which confirmed it was a SAS fault. Removed airbag/wheel etc and noticed a few broken clips on the SAS. Disassembled the SAS unit itself and found the ribbon cable had been damaged. The garage was knowledgeable enough to know you can clean the optical sensor rather than replace the unit as instructed (and paid to do) but weren't good enough to reassemble it correctly. The cable lasted the two weeks before the rotary element wore through it.

This is why I maintain our own cars.

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Aww don’t talk. Left my Octavia in to a supposedly trained Vw mechanic to track down a coolant leak. Couldn’t find it so said just keep topping it up and it’ll be grand. Ordered myself an endoscope and tracked it down in 5 minutes to the charge cooler.

@RustyNissanPrairie - where did you get the VIDA tool from? Any idea if it would work with more modern Volvos? (18 plate v90)

I think I would be taking up with the garage on behalf of the previous owner daughter. Really hate scammers. They have basically stolen the money and if they have done it once I bet they will do it again.

@RustyNissanPrairie – where did you get the VIDA tool from? Any idea if it would work with more modern Volvos? (18 plate v90)

I bought and sold mine via Facebook marketplace, some also come up via Volvo forums. Mine was bought for £100 and sold for £100. It is a faff to set up on laptop (runs on Virtual Machine thingy), but once running is superb.
Works with all ages of Volvo I believe.

I've bought my DICE (the hardware dongle) a few years ago from Alibaba but never needed it for my V70.

The best place for the VIDA software is Volvodiag.com - it's a 24gb download that the guy charges $5 for the download but there's an option of a VMWare pre packaged version which I did.

Download and install VMWare on Win10 in my case then run the download. Dead easy and no faffing.

Doesn't work on newer Gealy era Volvo ~2015 onwards.

Forgot to say - VIDA/DICE is absolutely brilliant not least because you can increase over standard the heated seat temperature! (within set prescribed limits)

hehe - that is one of the reasons I bought ours, someone had maxed out the seat heaters to hot, hotter and *sizzle*. I had to turn them down!
I noticed this week on a cold morning that in the Leon we had cold feet while the cabin was warm and setting said auto and 21*c - the V70 it would have been at 18/19*c indicated and we *never* got cold feet while it was automatic.

Slight update - £1700 of parts ordered and delivered (£500 Volvo genuine parts, £1200 from Autodoc)

New OEM or Volvo;
Shocks x4
Springs x4
Top strut bearings
Bottom ball joints
TRE's
CV boots
Control arm bushes
Brake discs x4
Brake pads
Handbrake shoes
Timing belt, aux, water pump, tensioners.
Swirl flaps & seals
General service items.
Gearbox flush.

Probably have another ~£500 of parts then 4x tyres. So it will stand me at ~£3500 all in.

The rear two row of seats are being removed and a double cooker and our Waeco fridge are going on a slideout. A false floor is going in with a water pump, air compressor and our spare Eberspacher heater. The space saver spare wheel is being removed from underneath and a water tank going in its place. A full size spare is going on the roof rack.

Sleeping will either be in the back or a rooftent. Lightweight Eziawn side canopy on the roof rack.

Plan is to drive to Finland next year in it via Germany, Norway and Sweden.

Yeah..... they're heavy on the suspension!

How are the droplinks? I had to replace mine as it getting quite noisy.

You might also want to check the ABS rings also whie you're in there as mine cracked and that throws an ABS error on the dashboard - I had them replaced with some aftermarket ones which were better quality.

Oh yeah forgot about them - new HD droplinks F&R and I'm replacing the ABS reluctor rings whilst the driveshafts are out having their CV boots replaced.

All the original removed components are still in good condition - top strut bearings,springs etc. Bushes are getting tired but it really doesn't show it's mileage.

Replacement shocks are Sachs F&R, I'm ditching the rear Nivomats and going with standard shocks but with HD Suplex springs.

Control arm bushes are Meyle HD - I don't think they are going to be as long lasting as Volvo/Lemforder but I don't want to fit polyurethane.

How are autodoc for p&p along with import duties? You got a hefty payload there plus high value.
I sold on my 263,000 v70 and bought a s211 e320cdi. The merc is newer and not made as well. The 7g box is uncanny after 5 mins of drving, the shifts are almost unnoticeable but sluggish on cold atf, and autodoc are the cheapest by far
Plus these cars have an built in, designed to destroy the car via rust, water catch box behind the front spring. Any road spray sits in a slot 6in long 2in wide , 2in deep eating away the metal.

Plan is to drive to Finland next year in it via Germany, Norway and Sweden.

Go Rusty!
Will you be posting updates of your epic journey - a la TJ's euro cycle?

How are autodoc for p&p along with import duties? You got a hefty payload there plus high value.

Free P&P over £135, £8.95 below that. I've been okay customs duty so far. The problem is they use Evri in the UK and they are useless - they lost the parcel with the front discs in (£100value). Autodoc were good to deal with.

Use the app and keep an eye on the discount levels, order when it goes over 40%.

Takes just over a week to arrive so no good for emergencies. Autodoc is far better than Eurocarparts or GSF as you can get proper decent OEM stuff - Corteco/ATE/Lemforder/Sachs etc etc and it's far cheaper.

I sold on my 263,000 v70

MrsRNP has a V70 with 200k miles. I gave it a midlife freshen up with £2k of parts and it still drives like a new car.

This era of Volvo are great to work on, well designed cars.

Agreed, the MB is not user friendly at all. Way too much reliance on electronics and ecu control. The om642 lump is smooth and quiet but i struggle to get over 40mpg, but its got 220bhp and 1800kgs
No black death yet, but a central drive shaft bearing had to be replaced, plus a rear airspring. Gearbox service is next, plus tailgate struts, then the radio ariel which is the heating element on the rear window.
The D5 2.4 163 was faster though andcway more economical at over 50mpg over like for like journeys.
Will keep an eye out for the autodoc discounts The gearbox service kit is £99, add 2 x boot struts and a fuel filter and i think that's the free shipping point hit.

The D5 2.4 163 was faster though andcway more economical at over 50mpg over like for like journeys.

I take it those were downhill journeys as I never got anything even vaguely close to 40mpg out of my D5 XC90 over a period of about 12 years, let alone 50mpg!!

(The reality was about 32mpg average)

Phase 2 V70, with a manual gearbox.
I have seen 54mpg in the summer with my relaxed driving style, that miraculously only seems to take almost the same journey time as driving like a cock. It's just cocks wanna be cocks, accelerate really hard, drive far too close to the car in front, brake later and harder than everyone else. When most of the time they are in a never emding flow of traffic and, inevitably, there is always someone else in front.

few small updates to report for anyone vaguely interested!

1. Designed a 20mm suspension lift for the front struts. Mk1 version shown before pressing to shape and welding. Since redesigned a little to fit better.

2. Made a handbrake spring tool (even though you can buy them from Volvo)

3. Designed and made some tools for replacing wishbone and trailing arm bushes.

4. Made a tool for splitting the propshaft - this thwarted me for a few weeks. Most people just smash them apart but I don't like that approach!

5. Stripped the rear seats and trim out ready for designing a cooker/fridge slide out.

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It's a big old bus....

Yep - they are 7seaters as standard in the UK.

Subframe out ready for removing the Haldex diff unit to reseal/service. Disassemble and remove the bushes then media blast followed by either zinc rich epoxy or possibly hot dip galvanzing.

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Loving this, great effort. Keep the updates coming!

It's easy to see why people don't keep older cars running! I cannot imagine the bill if you had all of that kit fitted at a garage.

I'm impressed at your skills and mildly regretful I'll always have to take a car to a garage if it needed that amount of refreshing

Great work

It’s easy to see why people don’t keep older cars running! I cannot imagine the bill if you had all of that kit fitted at a garage.

This car was coming to the end of its financial life with its previous owner as bills were starting to mount up, thankfully for it I don't subscribe to the 'beyond economic repair'!

I'd be interested to know what you end up putting in to the car, both financially and in time. Once done the car will be good for another 1-200k and if you look at it that way, £10 grand spent would still be good value.

10k

"But, but, you can buy a new car for that!!"
Not a volvo though.

I’d be interested to know what you end up putting in to the car, both financially and in time. Once done the car will be good for another 1-200k and if you look at it that way, £10 grand spent would still be good value.

I estimate by the time I'm finished I'll have spent £4k - £4.5k including cost of car (£500). Its getting 4 new tyres and probably some new 'overlander' wheels which are a chunk of that spend.

Just like WheelerDealers - my time isnt factored in or costed!

I did a similar refresh (suspension, brakes, a few engine bits, steering rack a bit of paintwork) of our 200k mile 2004 V70, that cost £2k in parts.

It results in cars that I know inside out and that I trust to carry us long distances.

https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/volvo-estate-appreciation/

The good thing about doing a DIY refurb if you have time is that you end up with a nearly new car and now know the car better so when you need to repair it's much easier. First time taking something apart (or really the rebuilding) is the worst

No, rebuilding is the easy bit, rust is the worst.

Re the “is a £50k+ car worth it” question.

I’ve just come into company cars and have switched from an 175k mile 07 plate Avensis to a brand new car. Is it a “nicer place to be”? Yes. Is it £50k nicer? No. The Avensis did exactly the same job - actually a bit better as it was a roomy estate car and I didn’t feel a need to fret about it getting scratched with bikes inside and in car parks etc.

As and when I’m buying a next car with my own money it’ll be back to the cheaper end of the market again, and I won’t feel I’m missing out.

Small update.

Subframe, some of the rear suspension components and general brackets all shotblasted.

Now 2kg heavier with Zinga zinc cold galvanising applied.

Rear end of bodyshell, derusted, Jenolite (to remove any pitted rust) and Fertan (to convert any remaining rust).
Next stage is Jotunmastic epoxy.

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