The cleanest Volvo 240 for sale, perhaps?

"SmugAardvark" (SmugAardvark)
08/07/2020 at 20:06 • Filed to: Volvo, 1980s, AutoTrader

I was reading Future next gen 2000 owner’s !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! about a cheap Volvo S40 , and it brought a memory back in this old skull of mine. A few years ago, I was thinking about converting a Volvo 240DL into a pickup. It made perfect sense to me. I love older Volvos, I love older pickups, and at the time, the old bricks were still a dime a dozen. There’s approximately 2-4 times a year when having a truck would kinda come in handy for me. Not enough justification to buy a truck . But to have one as a project? Two birds, one stone, and so forth.

So I head over to Autotrader to see what the current 240 market looks like. Sure enough, prices have climbed a bit for clean examples, but they still are on the whole not unreasonable . And there’s definitely less inventory than their used to be. But that’s to be expected. These cars were workhorses, often being passed from new driver to new driver within a family until they absorbed as many french fries , hair gel, and farts one could ask of their trusted steed.

And then I saw !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . Wow, I don’t remember seeing one that clean since they were still on showroom floors. And that price, $19,000. Holy crap on a crap cracker. But still, it looks like the car has never even been sat in. I’m guessing someone really loved this car. Only thing I’m noticing is the corner lenses on the front. Weren’t they orange from the factory? The price is outrageous to me, but I’m still impressed that someone kept their “ boring family car” in such amazing condition after 35 years.

DISCUSSION (23)

SBA Thanks You For All The Fish > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 20:28

That’s just weird. Most people did not buy these as museum pieces...

did it just sit most of the time?

SmugAardvark > SBA Thanks You For All The Fish
08/07/2020 at 20:31

That’s my guess. It’ s only averaged about 2,600 miles per year since new.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 20:32

I love when people keep mundane cars absolutely mint. I also do not regret at all paying $1500 for a 245 wagon earlier this year. The prices for these things are starting to get a little crazy.

ranwhenparked > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 20:35

The trouble with buying an old Volvo like that is you spend $19,000, take it to one car show, and the interior plastic disintegrates to dust after 8 hours in the sun.

SmugAardvark > ranwhenparked
08/07/2020 at 20:37

I would just park in in a garage and rub it with a diaper.

At least until my son and his no-good friends took it out for a joy ride across Chicago.

onlytwowheels > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 20:38

Cut the price in half and it is still too high, but might find a buyer, $19k is enthusiast/collector pricing. I don’t think there are many enthusiasts interested in a base model sedan with an automatic.

SmugAardvark > Snuze: Needs another Swede
08/07/2020 at 20:40

Yeah, it brings to mind one of our own Oppos here with his Pontia c Sunbird. Anyone who keeps a relatively tame car in showroom condition deserves a heartfelt high five, followed by some hand sanitizer, because Coronavirus.

As for prices, they’re all over the board. At least on Autotrader, it seems like there’s two dealerships in the country that have pretty much cornered the market on these cars. But costs range from $2,000 to $19,000. I suspect one could do better by scouring Craigslist and FB Marketplace, but I wasn’t really prepared to put in that level of (minimal) effort.

Dead_Elvis, Inc. > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 20:40

That’s an mighty ambitious ask, even for a 245 with three pedals. For even the nicest AW71/72-equipped 244? Nah. Not without a 5.0 under the hood [eta: and transmission that can handle it, w/G80 or similar] + all gauges & AC functioning perfectly. Yes, it’s gorgeous. But as is? Never.

Snazzy factory armrest up front! That’s surely worth at least $250 towards the asking price :-/

SmugAardvark > onlytwowheels
08/07/2020 at 20:45

Bingo. I could see someone with more money than sense offering up $9,000 or so. A good gauge of overestimated value is a quick check of the BaT website.

This car would be the second highest final sale of a Volvo 240 in the site’s history, only being surpassed by a totally bonkers 242 with a full S60R drivetrain.

SmugAardvark > Dead_Elvis, Inc.
08/07/2020 at 20:46

Agreed, no question about it.

SBA Thanks You For All The Fish > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 20:51

Don’t misunderstand... I really kinda dig it, but always worry when cars have sat around a lot. I never believe the old “it’s harder on a car to be parked than to be driven continuously” adage, but the more I screw around with ‘em, the more I think there’s truth to it.

I’d rather have a car driven 10,000 miles a year than one driven 10 miles a year-- if that makes sense?

SmugAardvark > SBA Thanks You For All The Fish
08/07/2020 at 20:55

It absolutely makes sense. When I see a car with unusually low mileage, it sets off red flags for me too. As an example, when I bought my C5 two years ago, it only had about 40k miles. I went over everything I could (within reason of course) before agreeing to buy it.

My big concerns with such cars are that the fluids have sat stagnant for too long, or that it was broken and neglected for a few years, then gotten up and running just to make a quick sale.

SBA Thanks You For All The Fish > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 21:01

Yeah, I have one of those going right now. One of my personal fave tow rigs had LOTS of miles racking up but then sat 24 months for a confluence of reasons— and within 500 miles after putting it back on the road it’s “over-heating”. Damn. Clearly the radiator corroded just sitting even though it’s got perfect Dexcool and nothing else in it from new.

But, at 150K miles I guess it forces me to do a new water pump, belts, hoses AND radiator... to do it right.

promoted by the color red > Snuze: Needs another Swede
08/07/2020 at 21:11

Same, I felt silly paying about that much for a 245 in 2018 but it’s almost impossible to find a wagon for what I paid these days.

Grindintosecond > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 21:31

19k ? crack pipe all day long. Allll dayyyy. Very clean though. But just keeping it clean isn’t worth a $7k markup over what it really should be at best.

My 242 always had a leaky valve cover gasket and went through water pumps every 30k miles. ( Could be from the 4k rpm cruise on interstates due to the m45 non-OD tranny though.....)

Junkrat aka Rick Sanchez: Fury Road Edition > Snuze: Needs another Swede
08/07/2020 at 22:25

I snagged an 81 Canadian model here in the US for $1100 bucks a week before everything shut down in March. It needs some engine work now, it suddenly lost oil pressure, but it’s a manual and everything works so I still think I came out ahead. The engine work is no big deal to me, but fixing all the little stuff can be maddening.

SmugAardvark > Grindintosecond
08/07/2020 at 23:37

Full agreement here. I’d argue it’s listed at $10k more than it should be, although I readily admit I don’t know what they really should be worth.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Junkrat aka Rick Sanchez: Fury Road Edition
08/07/2020 at 23:42

Mine runs, more or less, but needs a full tune up. Its issue is it needs some major body work. But I want to keep it a while (aka possibly forever) , I’m planning a resto-mod (Volvo V8 swap), so I didn’t necessarily want to buy a perfect specimen to hack up. I’ll take my already hacked, borderline beyond redemption car, and make it what I want.

That sounds like a good score on the Canadian car. Those Redblocks are pretty stout. I was reading today, and I don't want to push potentially bad advice, but consider changing oil with 3 quarts of 10w30 plus 1 quart of ATF. The aggressive detergents in the ATF can/should break up any deposits in the engine that may be blocking oil passages. Only run it like that for a bit (like 15 mins idle and maybe a bit of light driving). As always I am not a mechanic or layer, YMMV, etc. For what its worth Im doing my first oil change with Shell Rotella diesel oil because it has similarly aggressive detergents and is thick to compensate for all the old rods/bearings. Apparently a lot of the "million mile" folks swear by it.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > promoted by the color red
08/07/2020 at 23:43

I bought my 850 for $400 and it started my love affair with Volvos. I knew I needed a 245 and when mine popped up, well, I jumped on it.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 23:49

I love Jolene the Sunbird. Sadly I dont think my Volvo is destined to stay stock. But I feel like I found a car in the right position - enough there for me to fool with and do what I want, but not good enough to restore to pristine condition. So I can build what I want without feeling guilty that I cut up a mint specimen.

I found mine on FB marketplace during an unnecessary car shopping without E90M3 session. Basically I bought a set of really nice ASA wheels and a Thule roof rack and got a free car. Hell, the rear facing folding jump seat is worth a good chunk of the purchase price. I could probably part it out and double my money, but why would I want to with all that janky wagon sexiness?

Grindintosecond > SmugAardvark
08/07/2020 at 23:51

KBB says $ 2400-ish.

Junkrat aka Rick Sanchez: Fury Road Edition > Snuze: Needs another Swede
08/08/2020 at 00:38

I have been thinking of the V8 swap, I have a good vortec small block/4l80, but I would really want to keep it a manual. That will make the cost jump quite a bit.

I just finished replacing my civic’s steering rack and timing belt, so now I can futz around with the wagon. I will replace a quart of oil with Marvel’s Mystery Oil once a year to clean up sludge and have had good results. I let it run at about 2500 for fifteen or twenty minutes. It might be a bad sensor for all I know. I have been crazy busy with work since this all started.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Junkrat aka Rick Sanchez: Fury Road Edition
08/08/2020 at 07:28

Yeah, take some time to troubleshoot it first. According to a lot of strangers on the interwebz the red blocks have a really good design in terms of oil management and drain back. Sludging mostly occurs from 2 things - never changing the oil, or having oil pool in places in the block. Apparently the red blocks really don’t have anywhere for oil to pool.

A Vortec V8 would be pretty cool, but I agree that you should keep it manual. It may cost more but I think its worth it. Another thing to consider is an LS, it would be quite a bit lighter than that iron Vortec.