Buying / owning a classic estate

[griston64]

Slowprops car ( Dartford one ) sold on the 12th Jan

[Steve 940]

Hi Andij,

Good luck with your quest, I'm around 18 months into life with a 940, 2.0 Turbo estate with auto box.

I Think the prevalence of autos, is probably due to the demographics of the buyers when they were new, although perhaps that is just a stereotypical viewpoint. Mine was owned by a chap who bought new when he was in his '70's

Regarding what to pay... mmm, I think you did indeed answer your own question, for myself I paid over the odds, but I needed wheels at the time, and after 18mths I'm a happy chap.

My only caveat would be avoid rust buckets, check mot history online, and be prepared for leisurely motoring, much more enjoyable anyway😀

Cheers
Steve

[Mistericeman]

I have to say getting my late Dad's 850 wagon automatic back on the road after being parked since 2019 has been a revelation ...

Lovely to drive ,
Comfortable
Decent amount of power
Huge cavernous load space

Cheap insurance (only cost me a £25 admin fee to add to my fleet policy as its 25 years old )
And really enjoyable to drive ...
Simple to work on with little in the way of complicated electronics etc
And a great looking vehicle IMHO

Loving it ...

[andij]

Originally Posted by griston64

I'm selling my auto 740 if it's of interest

Only 72k with the last owner for 30 years

Fully stage one serviced by Luke ( all genuine Volvo parts )

Sounds like a really good example, and looks gorgeous

If you're based in Lenzie, it's unfortunately too far from me as I'm in Woking. An 830 mile, 14 hour round trip.

[andij]

Originally Posted by griston64

Slowprops car ( Dartford one ) sold on the 12th Jan

Yeah, this was snapped up! No surprise.

Bob12 notified me of his advert the day it was posted, but I decided not to get in contact as it was an auto. I'm now kinda regretting that, I think it may be wise to open my search to include auto's.

[Ross 63]

Originally Posted by andij

Sounds like a really good example, and looks gorgeous

If you're based in Lenzie, it's unfortunately too far from me as I'm in Woking. An 830 mile, 14 hour round trip.

Rarely will the right car land in your lap. My last 3 Volvos have involved 800+ mile round trips.

[andij]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

You've more or less summed up the market place, not just for Volvos either! There's a huge disparity of prices for the exact reasons you mention, also the occasional "private dealer" - a dealer masquerading as a private seller because the car was bought cheap, sold with a huge profit and he wants no comeback if there's a problem with it.

You'd be well advised to have a look at the Dartford car, i remember when he first appeared on the forum with it, pleased as punch and he's not been on here much so fair to assume that his statement of no problems in that time is right. He's also more likely to be amenable to price negotiations if you see them as needed and a reasonable price to start with i would think - i didn't check to see how much he's asking so can't be sure.

Volvos were always considered prestige cars and the buyers of those tended to prefer autos, in the same way as Granadas, Rover SD1s and 800s, Jags and similar were generally all auto too. I prefer autos and yes, there are many that prefer manuals - it's your choice but if you have no real preference, the auto is just as good to drive as the manual and if you do any town driving, much more relaxing.

I wouldn't like to predict the outfall of the ULEZ expansions but i can see the market being flooded with all kinds of cars from dodgy things that can barely pass an MoT to exceptional looking cars - all relatively low mileage but also that mileage will have been the most mechanically stressful on the car so not necessarily the bargain they may be percieved to be.

Bottom line is, do you like the car, is it the right colour/engine/gearbox (try an auto, you might be pleasantly surprised)/body style/price etc and do you like how it drives? If the answer is yes and the price is ok and/or you can negotiate to within what you think the car will cost and any obvious rememedial work (eg new tyres) then go for it.

Thanks for the info! I certainly don't like the idea of a "private dealer", sounds like a scam. I've seen a few adverts saying things like "Fast sale as I'm moving abroad." I asked one seller after a few messages "Who would be dealing with the sale in their absence." Funnily enough I didn't get any more replies.!

As griston64 mentioned, the Dartford car was snapped up. It was a failure on my behalf not to enquire. Solely on the basis that it was an auto and I've been focussing on finding a manual.

It makes sense about the original marketplace for these cars being prestige and the customers had a preference for an auto box. I've owned an Audi S4 tiptronic/auto for almost 10 years, so I'm very familiar with the ease and comfort of the drive. However, all my previous cars were manual which I think is why I have a preference for owning a manual again.

Sounds like there's potential for the secondhand marketplace getting a bit more of a minefield with the fallout of the ULEZ with car owners being peeed off about having no choice but to sell their unfinished project car, or their immaculate pride and joy.

As for the bottom line, there's some sound advice in there, thank you. I'll hopefully be arranging some viewings and test drives soon, so fingers crossed 🤞🏼

Much appreciated!

[Moomoo]

Originally Posted by Ross 63

Rarely will the right car land in your lap. My last 3 Volvos have involved 800+ mile round trips.

A trouble free , 400 mile trip home with a fresh purchase will cement the relationship very well.

All being well, eh!👍

[andij]

Originally Posted by Steve 940

Hi Andij,

Good luck with your quest, I'm around 18 months into life with a 940, 2.0 Turbo estate with auto box.

I Think the prevalence of autos, is probably due to the demographics of the buyers when they were new, although perhaps that is just a stereotypical viewpoint. Mine was owned by a chap who bought new when he was in his '70's

Regarding what to pay... mmm, I think you did indeed answer your own question, for myself I paid over the odds, but I needed wheels at the time, and after 18mths I'm a happy chap.

My only caveat would be avoid rust buckets, check mot history online, and be prepared for leisurely motoring, much more enjoyable anyway😀

Cheers
Steve

Thanks Steve,

It's great to hear that you're still happy with your decision to buy your car, even though you may have paid over the odds. But needs must and all that. And after 18 months you have no regrets, then that's the kind of ownership I'm hoping for too.

There's some fantastic info at the beginning of in this thread about what to look out for when viewing a car including where to look for potential rust spots that could be costly. I'm going to re-read those messages again soon.

Drew

[andij]

Originally Posted by Mistericeman

I have to say getting my late Dad's 850 wagon automatic back on the road after being parked since 2019 has been a revelation ...

Lovely to drive ,
Comfortable
Decent amount of power
Huge cavernous load space

Cheap insurance (only cost me a £25 admin fee to add to my fleet policy as its 25 years old )
And really enjoyable to drive ...
Simple to work on with little in the way of complicated electronics etc
And a great looking vehicle IMHO

Loving it ...

That's a great outcome, must be so nice to have your dad's car on the road good to hear that you're loving it.!