I found a 1990 740 turbo wagon on craigslist near me for $400. It's an auto with "high mileage" (the owner does not specify) and they say the suspension is old and tired, but it runs and drives fine. From the pictures it appears to be in good shape, no obvious rust or dents. I was thinking of getting new bushings and sport suspension and maybe dailying or drifting it. Does this seem like a good idea?
Posted Aug 14, 2015, 3:55 AM UTC
It doesn't sound like something I would want as my primary mode of transportation, but it sounds like a fun second car.
Here's the list of whats he says it needs
4 tires
shocks
windshield
battery
overdue for timing belt service
rear seat bottom missing
a/c inop
radio is junk
power antenna stuck in the up position
heater works sometimes
tailgate latch does not lock
tailgate shocks no good
sunroof leaks and has been caulked shut
odometer does not work
one taillight cracked
I could probably fix most of these on my own or with a little assistance, the main expense being parts. He said it has over 200,000 miles on it as well, but it runs and drives fine.
[^(Mouseover to view the metric conversion for this comment)](#200000 miles = 321868.0 km "200000 miles = 321868.0 km Post feedback in r/ToMetric")
Ok most of those parts are no biggie, message me most of that is cheap
A $400 car is a great, fun beater. Get AAA so you don't end up stranded, but you could have a gem. Either way, you're "only" out $400.
This is what I was figuring. Even scrap its worth almost that probably.
I found a Saab 900 for $500 a couple years ago. It was a little clunky and saabish, so I talked him down to $400 and then drove it from western mass to Brooklyn every week for a couple months, beat around in the snow, took it on logging trails and road trips and generally had a great year with it before the transmission started to go weird & my mechanic declared the rusty frame structurally unsound. Beyond anything else, I more than got my $400 out of it, and mechanic gave me $300 in credit for it when I bought my Volvo from him. So even if it's krunk, you can't really lose much.
That sounds awesome, I've always loved older Saabs. Yeah I'm definitely going to get $400 of use out of it I'm sure.
I really want another one. It sucks that cars just get older and older, and if they weren't preserved well (and thus probably $$$), they're rotting, or they've been restored and then you're back to $$$.
Should be a good ride! Bushings are pretty cheap, turbos can be had from an early 850 for like $150 and are a good upgrade, transmissions are plentiful, pretty much anything you need to keep it running/driving is available and cheap.
Sweet! How easy are they to work on?
Very easy, a good metric toolset will handle just about anything on the car. I prefer a 7/9 to working on a 240 any day
That's good to know, thank you!
They might be the easiest to work on car ever.
I concur. Aside from any MK1 VW. I rebuilt the turbo on my '88 turbo wagon for under $150 on the desk I do math homework on and I just recently replaced a leaking waterpump for $110. The waterpump came with a new timing belt and all new front engine seals from FCP Euro. If you can wrench, these cars are amazing.
For that amount expect the following: Fluids in trans haven't been flushed in over 10 years. Very tired suspension (maybe broken springs) The turbo may need a rebuild. Misc electrical issues. A fair bit of neglect on the owners part as they more than likely used it as a "beater" but couldn't kill it so they are trying to get some quick cash for it. I'd say only go to "drift" it if you are willing to to put some serious work into it. Suspension, stage 0, and other upgrades to get it ready to perform. Remember those YouTube videos of drifting involve rebuilt machines and many upgrades. As far as a daily, probably a decent bet. You'll always know it's going to start up in the morning and you better believe the boxy styling gets looks and compliments.
Thanks for the help! I am most likely just going to end up dailying it if it is ok mechanically. As for drifting, it is just an idea right now as I know the time and money that goes into that sort of thing. A reliable DD is more value to me right now anyway.
It's also more than likely sat for a long time which means all your rubbers (gaskets and bushing) could be dry rotted. Also depending on where you live emissions/registration could be troublesome. If its tags are expired and it hasn't been non-opped there could be some heavy fees due at the DMV.
In Virginia that would be a perfect old car. It still needs safety inspections, but it is too old to need emissions.
I live in CT, so emissions shouldn't be too hard. If an f350 rolling coal can pass I should be able to. Vehicles older than 20 years have a pretty easy test. If it becomes a bitch to register for $400 I can make it into a beater woods wagon too.
Hey fellow CT volvo fanatic :D