He was going to do it for $350 with me helping. 1st off, no-one touchs any of my cars but me. But if I were to consider anyone on the Volvo's, it boils down to just 2 people. The guy that was going to do it for $350 has become more than just an associate, I've been dealing with him for years. He basically buys Volvo's at auction, repairs then sells them. Also does other europeon cars as well on a smaller scale. On the plus side, he also has a large inventory of parts cars now. They are easily concealed on his property & you'd never know they were there. The replacement 138K engine cost me $650 , deal!

Though he's only in his 20's, he's had a health issue where his doctors demanded that he take it easy & leave the cars alone for a while. Instead of him doing the engine swap now as we had scheduled, I asked if I could do it myself at his place and use his expertise when I got into a jam. He said sure, and his tips along the way helped the process flow easily. He's very knowledgeable on all Volvo's for his age, including swapping engines on the XC.

I still gave him $300 after it was over, and his technical tips during the removal & install were easily worth that alone. I really would have struggled through some of it at home and probably would have created a lot of unnecessary work for myself without his insight. I tied up his lift for 8 day's plus the $300 included many other parts that I needed, like an air pump, good used nivomats, rear windshield pump & a pile of smaller stuff. Knowing great people like Ben is a huge resourse. I feel that I still owe him a little more & will do so as funds allow. Now I realize that most people will not have access to the deal I just got, and I feel very fortunate things worked out as they did. It took me 8 days because I suffered a very serious accident myself a few years (about 13 yrs) ago & doing a major job like this was extremely difficult. Recently did the RMS on the 940 & that took 4 days. Actually it was that accident that made the funky, boxy Volvo, suddenly a very appealing vehicle.

When I found out Ben was unable to do the swap (& before I asked if I could do it at his place), I asked the 2nd person that I would let touch my car how much he would want for the job. He wanted $500 as a start, & I'm sure it would have climbed from there. And I would not have been able to help. Since I do maintain & repair my own cars, it would have been hard just to turn it over to this guy & not know how complete the job was done. But that's just me, I'm a hands on guy. And if I listen to the wife, that is a flaw. But we differ on that. I've turned my own wrench for over 30 yrs. Although it takes longer since the injury.

Yes, it would have been much easier on me just to drop it off & then pick it up, but I have learned much about the XC & my wallet is a little heavier as a result. I prefer RWD for ease of working on, & the 855 will be sold once the XC is put back into service. The XC has completed about 600 trouble free miles of testing & is just about ready. I did have an issue reinstalling the bevel gear & going to look at another one Tuesday. That's another story.


Wow, this got long. Thanks for reading.