Buying Advice on 1995 Volvo 940 2.3 liter turbocharged wagon

[howard]

I am looking at a 1995 Volvo 2.3 liter 4 cylinder Tubo charged station wagon
with supposedly 61000 miles. Consumer Reports says there have been more
problems with; engine cooling, transmissions. electrical, and braking. I
would appreciate advice on this vehicle as to:

1. Problems experienced?

2. Problems specific to; engine cooling, transmissions, electrical, and
braking?

3. Is the the turbo more trouble than it is worth, early failure or making
repairs more complicated? Should one go for a non turbo 4 cylinder?

4. Does this have a in-tank fuel pre-pump?

5. Is the heater core positioned like the 240's making it expensive to
replace?

6. What should one check during a test drive?

7. What should one have your own mechanic check prior to purchase?

8. What is the value of this vehicle, Kelly blue book is much higher than
Edmunds and other price sites. Ebay is lower still?

9. Living in a snow area, is this car decent in snow? Should one look at
an 850 instead, although I've heard they have problems in the early years
also?

10. I think this has a timing belt, what is the change interval for this
engine?

11. Does this vehicle handle well in emergency situations, I beleive it is
equiped with dual airbags and ABS brakes?

12. I'm on a budget but am looking for a safe dependable car which I can
maintain myself. This car has rust on the brake rotors and when I asked the
dealer when it was last test driven, they said probably at least a month,
which I take to mean not much interest in it.

Thank you for any advice you post or refer me to.

 

[Tony Stanley]

I am looking at a 1995 Volvo 2.3 liter 4 cylinder Tubo charged station wagon
with supposedly 61000 miles. Consumer Reports says there have been more
problems with; engine cooling, transmissions. electrical, and braking. I
would appreciate advice on this vehicle as to:

These consumer reports are rubbish, Volvo's don't go wrong enough for them
to collect any useful data. I think they just ask a bloke down the pub.

I have a UK 1995 2.3 SE Turbo (194BHP or 230+ with a small mod) Estate/Wagon
with 114,000 miles. Manual with no AC.

1. Problems experienced?

Nothing serious
-Sunroof drains leaking because tubes were too big
-Plastic Clutch pedal and master cyclinder linkage wears reducing clutch
travel
-Alarm occassionally doesn't switch off due to bad contact on aerial or
something, works close up but usually ok at 50m or so. Happened last
winter, but not this year so far.
-Incorrect tow bar fitted by previous owner, exhaust modified (by turning
rear box upsidedown) and hits suspension.
-Heater valve entry distorted due to overtightening of hose clip, causing
heater to not fully turn off.
-Drive shaft suffering slightly from power increase, think it needs a new UJ
or support bearing.
-Cam leaks oil vapour into distributor cap causing hesitation, typical of
cam end distributors (someone should ban them).

2. Problems specific to; engine cooling, transmissions, electrical, and
braking?

3. Is the the turbo more trouble than it is worth, early failure or making
repairs more complicated? Should one go for a non turbo 4 cylinder?

Turbo is great, yes more complicated, maybe will need replaced at high
milage, but can be done for a reasonable sum. Mine still fine. Change the
oil regularly and use synth oil. Turbo is water cooled so that helps with
reliability and cool down.

4. Does this have a in-tank fuel pre-pump? I think so.

5. Is the heater core positioned like the 240's making it expensive to
replace?

I don't know where the 240s is but it looks easy to replace.

6. What should one check during a test drive?

It works? at 61K it should be a showroom mint car, engine and suspension
should be smooth and tight.

7. What should one have your own mechanic check prior to purchase?

A bit of everything, maybe special attention to drive and turbo being high
powered. Check electrics, motors could seize up with low usage, especially
rear windows and sunroof.

8. What is the value of this vehicle, Kelly blue book is much higher than
Edmunds and other price sites. Ebay is lower still?

In the UK it would go for about GBP2500, but US probably much higher.

9. Living in a snow area, is this car decent in snow? Should one look at
an 850 instead, although I've heard they have problems in the early years
also?

RWD is not as good in snow, but if you're in a snow area you need studded
tyres anyway. RWD works fine then.
940 is an older but more robust design, younger 850s looks as aged as the
same age Ford.

10. I think this has a timing belt, what is the change interval for this
engine?

80,000 I think, can go longer but probably not worth the risk, breaks are
rare even then.

11. Does this vehicle handle well in emergency situations, I beleive it is
equiped with dual airbags and ABS brakes?

ABS has saved one kid who chased a ball across a road in front of me. Think
its just one airbag, but also has SIPS and seatbelt tensioners and good anti
neck damage head rest (recently highlighted in UK). Volvos are almost
always better than other cars of the same age safetywise, Merc's have been
judged better occasionally.

12. I'm on a budget but am looking for a safe dependable car which I can
maintain myself. This car has rust on the brake rotors and when I asked the
dealer when it was last test driven, they said probably at least a month,
which I take to mean not much interest in it.

Give him a really low offer, you're in a good position. In fact I would
offer to take it away as is/ trade or what you do in the US to not have a
guarantee, pretend you're a trader, should be half price. As long as the
body work is good, mech problems can always be fixed. I had to buy mine
privately as all the trade ones were snapped up very quickly.
Its a doddle to look after, I had to sort a few fiddly things as above, but
mainly just service items, disks, pads, shocks, oil filter, tyres in 2 years
and about 35K and those are mainly my choice to tighen things up, rather
than absolutly required.

 

[Gunnar Eikman]

3. Is the the turbo more trouble than it is worth, early failure or making
repairs more complicated? Should one go for a non turbo 4 cylinder?

Reasonably driven, the Turbos last almost forever, while non-Turbo Volvo
do last forever.
My Turbo is a 1984, badly worn, I am the 14th owner according to the
official records. In spite of this I would rather not part with it! I
installed new shocks (after 200 K miles!) and on the highway it runs
great. If you need to pass a truck, just do it! Tows a heavy trailer
like nothing.

4. Does this have a in-tank fuel pre-pump?

Yes, and also a second pressure pump, located below the driver's seat.

5. Is the heater core positioned like the 240's making it expensive to
replace?

Different design. The 240s have heating in center of car. 740/940 in
front o passenger. Supposedly less tricky, but under-dash work is not my
favourite.

6. What should one check during a test drive?

I would listen for strange sounds or vibrations, from worn transmission
(if car abused).

7. What should one have your own mechanic check prior to purchase?

If the turbo concerns you, you could check for excessive oil in the
intercooler (assuming yours has one). Large amounts of oil there
indicates a worn turbo unit. Other than that, just standard checks.

9. Living in a snow area, is this car decent in snow? Should one look at
an 850 instead, although I've heard they have problems in the early years
also?

If you like rear wheel drive, it is OK in snow. Have to be more careful
with the gas foot than in non-turbo of course.

10. I think this has a timing belt, what is the change interval for this
engine?

It does have one. Interval is 80 000 km /50 K miles. Easily replaced!

12. I'm on a budget but am looking for a safe dependable car which I can
maintain myself. This car has rust on the brake rotors and when I asked the
dealer when it was last test driven, they said probably at least a month,
which I take to mean not much interest in it.

Included with Volvo's famous "safety thinking" are oversized brakes (in
my opinion). I alse live in snow/moist/salt country. If you drive
reasonably the brakes never heat up in winter and as a result the rotors
get rusty and the hand brake parts fail. In Sweden those parts are
cheap, so you will replace them a few times during the life span of the
car. If you live in Death Valley the brakes are perfect!

Buy it and enjoy!

--
Gunnar

240 Turbo Wagon '84 200 K Miles
940 Wagon '92 150 K Miles
on Swedish roads