Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve 940
😀😀👍👍
Yes, bit of a pity as it's my main car at the moment, I have access to SWMBO Rav 4 but she needs that during the week.
Just might need to find a 145 as a second 'luxury' backup vehicle, been looking on and off since I started my Volvo ownership experience, although they look to be rather scarce or complete rust buckets.
Whilst being self employed I do have the luxury of being able to set aside a few days (weeks the way the snag list is expanding!!) so will perhaps see if I can get to Xmas, trouble is then getting hold of bits over that period, weather also probably not condusive to boosting morale to get out and crawling around the old girl.
Cheers
Steve
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At the risk of stating the obvious Steve, the youngest 145 is going to be 48 years old now and as such, even the best are likely to have age-related problems, even on an apparently well-sorted vehicle. That's not to say a 145 wouldn't be a great back up car but the snagging list could end up longer on it than it is on yours.
On the subject of rust, again anything 50 ish years old is likely to have a bit of tinworm so the obvious answer is to go newer. That points at the 245 but many early ones (up to ~1979) were built from cheap Russian steel, same as Fiats and Lancias of the time. The only reason this problem didn't come to light sooner than it did was because of Volvos anti-corrosion program.
This was rectified and soon they were building cars that would not rust spectacularly again but by then, the 240 series in general had blaoted somewhat (as had most other cars in the world) but the engines were still the same so they tended to be somewhat lethargic, wallowy old barges.
Enter the 740 series - tighter suspension, PAS throughout and livelier engines (from 1986 on at least) although the 2.0 should still be avoided.
Better anti-corrosion, more comfortable IMHO, smoother and better economy/performance. Also shares a lot more parts with your 940 so reduces the need to keep two sets of spares on the shelf!
Chances are you'd be able to pick up a half-decent 745 for a bit less than a 145 and have better parts availability plus the other advantages listed above.
There are a few other non-Volvo alternatives to a useful estate that would be reliable as long as they were serviced, something like a Honda Accord Aerodeck comes to mind.