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Purchasing a 144

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Old Feb 12th, 2022, 10:10   #21
Burdekin
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If the 144 is as good as they say and has never been welded which not too sure about as has been resprayed and looks like there is filler at the rear but if it is I don’t think it’s a daily car. In the nice weather yeah but with U.K. winters being wetter than ever and roads full of salt the old girl would deteriorate very quickly.

A guy I know in Devon, his son runs a automatic 144 daily as a student but his dad has owned 140s since he went to uni and has a collection of them with spare cars etc.

A 140 in good order will have no problem keeping up with modern cars. Mine will do 100mph, will pull nicely if I want to pass at 60 or 70mph. Mine has a overhauled engine and is slightly upgraded, suspension overhauled with geometry spot on and brakes overhauled so she drives lovely and I use it as a daily in the nicer months and is a joy. But it’s not a automatic. Doing the above doesn’t come cheap and takes time as well but it’s all stuff a home mechanic can do. A 140 is as capable as a early 240 in reality, not much between them.
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Old Feb 12th, 2022, 11:17   #22
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Originally Posted by Doocey View Post
Well, consider me convinced. I'll stick with what I know and look for a 240 or 740 then. Any idea on where I can find some good examples? All I can find on ebay are ones that seem to have driven to the moon and back, or have sills/arches riddled with rust.

I'd probably be broken down somewhere in Scotland cursing myself for buying a 60's car if you guys weren't so helpful, thank you!
Here you go, lovely car and should now be tax and MOT exempt!

https://www.carandclassic.com/car/C1419093
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Old Feb 12th, 2022, 11:42   #23
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Here you go, lovely car and should now be tax and MOT exempt!

https://www.carandclassic.com/car/C1419093
I've seen that previously, I think in these pages, so the seller is probably a member. That is a nice motor car; it would be up to everyday use, but I don't think it would be possible to maintain the standard it is now if one did that.

Still, a nice motor car, but very much with the historic vehicle premium :-).

Alan
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Old Feb 12th, 2022, 11:59   #24
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Here you go, lovely car and should now be tax and MOT exempt!

https://www.carandclassic.com/car/C1419093
If 'Doocey's budget might stretch that far, I agree, 'cassell'.

It is, however, an early example of the marque while I was thinking that one from mid to late production might perhaps be better suited to 'Doocey's requirements. That is why I'd be more inclined towards the one in London referenced by Alan. As Alan said, if bought for around £2K it would represent a good buy, while presumably leaving a little in reserve to spend on repairs and replacements. Another consideration is the availability of spares, especially for the earlier cars.

As 'Burdekin' very rightly says, a good 144 can be very good. In 1991, I purchased, from a club member who was giving up driving, at the full asking price of £600 (!), a 1972 one owner, 59,000 mile car, similar to the one advertised, also in California white and with 5 new Michelin tyres fitted, It was an excellent driver, but after another three years was beginning to rust quite badly.

'Burdekin' is also correct that there is little between a late 1 series and an early 2 series car. We've had both, and the most significant differences were the engines (1986cc OHV vs 2127cc OHC) and the steering (the 2 gained R+P, which, even when unassisted, was much lighter than the 1 series cars).

This is all on account of Volvo's policy of continuous improvement - the cars tended to evolve and models to merge into one another. We've owned Volvos continuously since 1984 and this policy was evident in the RWD cars until at least the late 1990's. My current 2000 V70 is a very different 'kettle of fish'.

That is a long-winded way of saying why I think that a mid to late 2 or a 7 series car would best suit 'Doocey's needs. As Alan says, to many, they represent the sweet spot in Volvo development.

Regards, John.
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Old Feb 14th, 2022, 08:57   #25
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I noticed the eBay ad for the nice 144 on Alloa had ended and wondered whether the OP had bought it at the weekend?

Alan

PS. If you did Doocey: Chapeau!
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Old Feb 16th, 2022, 06:56   #26
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PS. You asked about sourcing 240s, that one Andrew suggested in Enfield looks okay:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/154838253...53.m1431.l2648

... it is a long way from Newcastle, but if you were to be in Potters Bar this week it would be well worth a look at. The motor car will only have a few days worth of MoT left at the end of the eBay auction, and certainly will need a new set of tyres (£250) to pass another test. A motor car like that could certainly be driven as a daily driver whilst giving you much of the classic car experience of the 144; if it sold for £2,000 it would be a good buy.

... bidding on that 240 in Enfield is only at just over a grand - I think that would be as bargain - so get yourself down to London today Doocey (if you didn't buy that 144 from Alloa).

:-)
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Old Feb 16th, 2022, 08:42   #27
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I noticed the eBay ad for the nice 144 on Alloa had ended and wondered whether the OP had bought it at the weekend?

Alan

PS. If you did Doocey: Chapeau!
It's still on Facebook.
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Old Mar 16th, 2022, 21:38   #28
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I just wanted to update this thread to let those who may have commented on the white 144 that was for sale to say that I'm the new owner. I already have a 1800ES which I've owned for over 22 years and is currently undergoing a mechanical revamp which will take some time.

As an active member of the Cheshire section of VOC I needed another Volvo to participate in this season's classic shows and after scouring the internet I found the white 1969 144 in Scotland. My original thought was to re-sell the 144 after my 1800ES is finished but it's so good, I intend to (probably) keep both!

A brief history for those interested, registered on 13th August 1969 to a partially-disabled owner in Scotland who had a few dealer modifications made to accommodate his disability. These included moving the handbrake to between the front seats, lights, wipers, choke controls moved to the left of the steering wheel and a significant re-shaping of the driver's seat backrest. Apart from the seat, all of these remain in place today. The gentleman owned the 144 for almost 40 years and did around 50k miles in all that time. It was then almost lost to the scrappage scheme and banger racing fraternity but fortunately saved by a second owner.

A third owner bought the car in 2012, fitted a good used Amazon driver's seat, (same upholstery etc) and used the car for Sunday drives and Scottish shows until the pandemic hit us. By then the mileage had risen to 62k miles yet the car had apparently never been out of Scotland!

He had the car repainted in the original Volvo 42 white and fitted period Minilite alloys around 4 years ago and due to a house move with less garaging, decided to sell the car this year. I viewed the car after a 520 mile round trip to Alloa, found a few jobs that need doing and struck a good deal to purchase it. It has never been welded, doesn't need any, and is a good honest 53 year old Volvo which will be a pleasure to display at local shows etc. I'm already committed to attend the Volvo Owners Club event at The Silverstone Classic in August so I may take it there.

She finally arrived at her new home in Cheshire on Monday night by transporter and is now safely tucked up in the garage, I just hope the 1800ES doesn't get jealous!
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Old Mar 19th, 2022, 08:03   #29
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Quote:
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I just wanted to update this thread to let those who may have commented on the white 144 that was for sale to say that I'm the new owner.
Wonderful - well done.

Alan
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Old Mar 19th, 2022, 08:47   #30
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Wonderful - well done.

Alan
Seconded, Alan, 'cassell' is to be congratulated, both on hIs purchase and his write-up.

For those less fortunate who are still looking, there is a very nice blue car, being offered for sale at £8k, road tested in this week's 'Classic Car Weekly'. If I was in the market, I would certainly follow that one up. I've always liked the purity of the early cars with the slimline bumpers and small indicators.

Regards, John.
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