But there are extenuating circumstances, judge!
The Volvo has been SOLD. A nice guy from Eugene, OR saw it in the IPD classifieds, drove up and bought it. It's been replaced by a 1996 Volvo 850 Turbo wagon.
He also has a house which attracts lots of company, being right on Puget Sound. The truck is not a fun time with three abreast for any length of time (trust me), so something with 4 doors and room for his black lab, Buddha, was also not a bad idea.
What about a Volvo 240? Great, sturdy, large enough to hold four 90% adults + dog + stuff....no AWD, though. Hmm....
Then fate intervened:
A woman the Old Man volunteers with mentioned she had an '82 245 GLT she needed to sell...2 owner car, all records, always garaged, etc. Car had been sitting for a year or more as she'd bought a 4Runner. Apparently had a transmission noise. She was thinking $3500...
So we go look at it.
First impressions: Wow, VERY gold...metallic gold outside, gold leather inside. Not the 1st choice. But in *great* condition...amazing shape cosmetically in/out for an 18 y/o car. Starts on 1st try...a little smoke...clutch a little stiff, WHOA, what is that noise from the transmission? Houston, we definitely have a problem....
The good:
engine great--excellent compression and no more than 4% leakage; clutch ok; brakes are good; new Bosch alternator; new, upgraded watercooled turbo ($1200); evidence of recent tuneup; new rear muffler/tailpipe; no obvious evidence of body or paint work.
The not so good:
transmission needs teardown and rebuild; tires need replacement, struts/shocks need replacement, needs alignment, rear suspension bushings are shot (as they are on every 240 with more than 100k)....
