Somewhat on a whim and partial to potentially fill a need for a neighbor, picked up a severely neglected 1998 V70 GLT today with 227K miles. It needs ME or someone like me and I have always wanted to play with a first gen FWD Volvo end to end.

Real problems:

Strut mount shot and new ebay struts incorrectly installed making the driver's side camber (and realistically toe and caster) screwed up. And the noise...

No heat...suspect vac issue

Oil out the fill cap and or PCV lines...suspect vac leak and potentially plugged oil seoerator

engine down on power in my opinion unless at WOT over 3K rpm.

Dirty...so very dirty and I have not cleaned my 940 wagon "dog car" that hauls 385 of dogs to the groomer 6 times a year...plus vet visits. Still dirty.

Air director requests seem to do nothing.

Temp gauge consistent and steady over the 100 minute drive home but one tick over mid-range (not sure if that is normal)

No timing belt change sticker but belt has no indications of oil fouling or cracking.

lets not talk about the sunroof fabric on the retractable cover.

So, lots to look at but despite the abuse/neglect still drives nice for the most part if you can understand where the bad verse good came from.

So actual questions...is it safe to assume 90% of my issues (outside the struts) are vac related be it the lines, check valves or motors?

Is there a good brand of struct mount and what all do I need north of the cartridge?

Is it prudent on a "beater" to replace certain bushing preemptively.

Why would it seem down on power unless at WOT over 3000 rpm for a 2.5 turbo. granted, my 940 NA wagon could not keep up but until 4K, it was close. Clogged cat or all those vac leaks?

honestly not expect long response more good links to existing answers and even after a gazillion years here (all RWD) I have yet to master our search on the BB.