Seriously?

[Othen]

Originally Posted by 360beast

Alan, I can't find your post for some reason about why people will pay a couple grand for a 30 year old car that's nowhere near tax and MOT exempt and I've been thinking about this in terms of the 940 this morning.

The con rods are 9mm thick until I think it was 1989/90 then they went to 13mm rods as the 9mm rods have been known to snap in standard tune with a bit of wheel spinning. Then in 1994 I think it was they fitted oil squirters which was to help prevent (and it works) the piston slap that the 80's Volvo's and early 940s had.

The most desirable gearbox is the M90 manual which was introduced on the L reg so 94 onwards, this went through two revisions to make it stronger in 1996 and again at the very end of 1997.

The door cards peel but the glue was revised about 1995 so they're much less likely to peel... They still do though just not as bad.

The interior was updated about 1995 too so it looks much nicer. Honestly if you sit in an early 940 and then a later 940 the subtle changes make a big difference!

Then the celebration model in 1998 had the faux wood trim and egg crate grille which are desirable.

Around 1995/6 they did the sports edition too with turbo +, galaxy alloys, egg crate grille and the boot spoiler.

So ironically unlike all the other Volvo series it's actually the later ones that are the most desirable which is why they fetch more money than the earlier ones even though they're closer to tax and MOT exemption. The ones that command the most are factory sports editions that haven't been stripped off all their goodies and celebrations so it is literally the last few years of production that command the big bucks. Especially with us younger folk getting in to the Volvos we want a strong engine, turbo and manual so 97/8 are the ones to go for.

Then you have the 740/60 turbos which are so rare at this point that a factory turbo 700 series even in dire condition will fetch decent money, but they're quite close to exemption now, my MK1 760 turbo is only two years away from exemption.

I can't remember exactly what I said Luke, but it was probably along the lines of I can't see why people pay such good money for 30 years old cars when they are a decade away from being tax exempt, but don't benefit from modern engineering. I think it was in the context of someone asking daft money (in my opinion) for some VWW. I doubt very much that my comments were specifically aimed as Volvos. Most motor cars reach the nadir in value at about the 20-35 year point: when they are old enough to be a bit worn out, have a touch of the rust and the original manufacturer has stopped providing spare parts - as they get older they get near the tax exemption point and start appreciating a bit as it starts making financial sense to run them on.

Anyway, I think that is the gist of what I said. This is just my opinion though, I have no view on what other folk should spend their dollars on; if folk want to pay £15,000 for a 30 year old machine and then another £350/year to the government for the pleasure of driving it on the road then that is entirely their business.