narly57
Howdy all . Just signed up because I'm looking at a 1994 Volvo 850 T5. Body is straight , paint is good , leather is cracked as is some of the woodgrain on the dash . It's done 290,000 with a good service history . What should I be looking at mechanically ?
Cheers for any help
Ghettobird
Timing belt, PCV, Does the AC work?, Heater core, ABS Unit, CV Joints
narly57
Thanks Julian , what sort of money am I looking at for timing belt and pcv ? Probably a stupid question but how do i check if ABS unit is working ?
Ex850R
It's the standard $2000 worth of parts ( get em cheap from USA or UK and your time to do everything that needs done to get to stage 0 , back to where it was factory.
Firstly check for the usual oil in coolant , vice versa cos a head gasket is not cheap unless you do it yourself , probably cost more than the price of the car.....
Ex850R
ABS light will stay on.
You can resolder the joints if you are handy , pull it apart and do it. Although I am not sure if the 94 has different unit to later there are changeover ones available via Midwest ABS USA , cost effective to post. Or a dude in Melbourne does em.
All the parts you will need in that $2K will fail once you start fixing stuff so just do it.
These things have the ability to run and go hard with very worn out bits but at this age ALL of it needs done and it will love you for it.
egads (she/her)
94 should be the early type so if it is dead it is not as easy of a fix as it electronics that tend to die in the unit not dry solder. Good news is that the early type rarely dies.
narly57
Thanks guy's for your info . It seems to have quite an extensive service history which I'll go through and probably an Inspection by the local motoring organization .
Ex850R
If it has a good history that means water pump , belts , radiator and heater core should have been done. Coolant bottle and hoses , THERMOSTAT MUST BE CHECKED , temp sensor too , all other vacuum lines , fix them as you get time as the will be toast.
The PCV should have been done too , mayba cam end seals as well. Hopefully rear main seal is OK...
AshDVS
Sound advice I'd say.
It's getting harder and harder to come across a decent T5 or R model that has been well maintained.
Front suspension items can add up too - LCA bushes, balljoints (requires arm replacement on MY94 and on cars), swaybar links, spring seats and strut mounts.
timing belt tensioners may need replacing too if they've not yet been done or if you have to do a timing belt.
PS pump noise is becoming more common too.
narly57
Thank's again for the advice , I found out that it has been maintained by a Volvo specialist not far from me , might contact them and see what they have to say . Might actually get a chance to see it in the flesh this weekend , what with work and it being on the other side of town and all.
narly57
Knocked this one on the head . Interior fan not working for climate control , engine management light stayed on , noisy tappets on start up ( maybe not a big thing ). Found out from the workshop owner that used to service it that it had climate control problems & when they last saw it in 2009 it had done 298,400 k's , odo is still showing 298,400 k"s !!!!!!!!!!
Workshop owner has put me onto an 850R that could be for sale , which he knows is a good car.
I'd like to thank everyone once again for their advice . I may have contracted Volvoitis :P
narly57
Seems I've purchased an 850R :P
egads (she/her)
w00t! Good stuff :-D
jagardh
@narly57 tell us more please
narly57
White 850R , everything works , 190,000k's . Tiny dent around 50mm in diameter on the rear fender (extreme top corner) . Front of bonnet has a slight dent on right hand side of the grille , to be honest I didn't even notice it. It's been chipped , will find out more when I get it serviced .Couldn't really try it out in the suburbs plus it's been peeing down in Adelaide today , Take delivery during the week . Can post some pics next weekend if interested or should I start a new thread in the Garage section ?
No owners handbook though , are these available ? Would really like one .
Ghettobird
Congrats!!
Was the T5 you were seeing a green 94 with a white hood?
Definetly start up a thread, Im always interested in reading them!
narly57
Ghettobird;55631 wroteCongrats!!
Was the T5 you were seeing a green 94 with a white hood?
Definetly start up a thread, Im always interested in reading them!
Nah it was red ...
http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/Volvo-850-1994/OAG-AD-2135874/?Cr=2
nickm
Pictures of the 850R please.
DCW242
nickm
that is Julian's one.
