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After spending almost my entire life in Southeast Texas, I am preparing to move to the Pacific Northwest (North Seattle/South Snohomish County area). From my earlier trips to check things out, there appear to be some pretty good Volvo shops in the area. I prefer to most of the work on my own though. Anyone have any good resources for parts? How many Bricksters are in the area? Could probably use some help when I get settled in doing the TABs that I have been putting off.
Charles
Houston, TX (soon to be Seattle/Everett)
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Charles,
Oooooph, I'm so bloddy jealous!!!
Mighty, gorgeous, beautiful, wonderful, lovely WA-state. You'll need to acclimate, of course, yet breathe deeply. The clean air, clear as a bell, the fresh delicious tap water ... Oh I'd rather be there.
I'm close, yet a universe away from you in Spookylou, oooop, no Spokanegeles, nope, that'd be Spokane, WA. Void of culture and opportunity and diversity. I could write volumes about it and nearly all negative.
Like TX, WA-state has, thankfully, no income tax, yet the counties levy a good deal of property tax (up to 15%+ per annum and can vary in the county). Sales tax is not so bad.
Welp, I can advocate, in gorgeous, lovely, fresh, and pretty beautiful, beautiful Bellingham, WA, just to your North by an hour or so by your Volvo. You have:
http://www.rainbowautoservice.com/
2729 Jensen Road
Bellingham, WA 98226-9423
(360) 734-6117
Hours: Sun, Fri-Sat Closed; Mon-Thu 8am–6pm
Ring up Larry if you plan to visit. That's sort of far for you.
I'm sure you'll have some other choices in gorgeous Snohomish county. Snohomish county is truly swell. No directly in the Seattle metroplex (and the horrid traffic and expense). Yet you are so close to one of the most perfect jewels the North American West Coast offers - the Emerald City. Yet all of WA-state offers such varied acclimes from dry and hot Walla Walla (with onions and the state pen) to the Olympic Peninsula and the Pacific Coast.
You'll find self service yunkyards in some abundance. Volvo that contains that parts you'll pull shall be rust free.
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www.ipdusa.com is in the NE Portland area. Shipping to you in Snohomish from IPD is one day via UPS ground. No sales tax.
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http://www.discountimportparts.com/
In Milwaukie OR (Clackamas County)
Shipping to you in Snohomish from these folks is one day via UPS ground. No sales tax.
15100 Southeast McLoughlin Boulevard
Portland, OR 97267-2828
(503) 659-7444
Maybe offer up more premium parts like LEMFÖRDER ball joints or rubber bushings versus some questionable made in China junk quality you may find at the usual Web stores we Volvo enthusiasts use to research and sometimes buy from. LEMFÖRDER is owned by ZF. ZF also owns Boge and Sachs.
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There may be a Volvo enthusiast group or groups in the wonderful, yet might Puget Sound area (from Olympia to Everett or so and all within).
In Portland, you have the:
http://ovtuners.org/
If I wrote a slogan for the OVT, it'd be something like:
"A group of Volvo enthusiasts working together to tune group member Volvo well tuned in Oregon and beyond!"
Maybe some OVT members in your area.
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The PacNW has a less fettered quality to it than anywhere in the lower 48 state. The climes, weather, way, vistas, and air all seem from another older time. Please take drives and check out the powerful Northern Cascades on the SR-20. You have snow sports and outdoors all you want to do run a mock as well all the indoorsy cultural arts and music and literature you can hope for.
Please check out beautiful, beautiful, Bellingham. The jewel of all jewels in WA-state. You are also close to beautiful British Columbia and Seattle's sort of lovingly lovely twin, expansive and gorgeous Vancouver BC and all the offering of there in spades.
Congrats on the move. A colder, way cleaner climate than TX.
While no hurricanes and such awful droughts and heat you have in TX, check out the Cascadia Subduction Seismic Zone and Juan de Fuca plate. When Cascadia lets go, all the TX hurricanes and droughts and tornadoes in recorded history won't compare, yet that the exciting risk.
Learn to be prepped in such an event.
Hope that helps. Sorry to go on.
Hope it's everything you hope for and spectacularly beyond anything you can expect!
cheers,
kittysgreyvolvo with the fuzzy kitty driving the 1990 red Volvo wagon on the SR-20 to Bellingham to never return to slummy owld you know where I am now.
-- ol' sig--
MacDuff and his three OvLovs (That's Volvo spelled backwards - Of Love!)
1991 240 grey market with the B230 HC
1990 245 DL (li'l red) Vagon (Kumba!)
1992 240 GL (metallic verdigris)
All with stick shift, both sedans with moon roof
RIP:
1975 244 DL, B20, M40 - the Maroon Cartoon
1979 245 DL, B21, M46 - Velveeta Yellow
1976 242 DL, B21, M46, SRO. Sorry to have wrecked you in Marin County, on Lucas Valley Road near Big Rock just West of Skywalker Ranch in 1988 (I did not use the force).
1979 242 GT grey market import from Holland, SRO, B21, M46, locking differential, the best. Made dreams then broke them. RIP at Taylor's Junkyard on St. Charles Rock Road, St. Louis, MO (misery)
I've only ever OWNED a Volvo 240 or three. Hee-hee!
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Thanks for the great info. I must confess, i have been visiting the Seattle area since the mid-80's for work reasons. But the last time i was here was in 1992.
I have been on temporary assignment here since this past July and feel very fortunate I got to enjoy the marvelous Summer here compared to what was occurring in TX.
I may have to find another Volvo (or 2) once I get settled. I had to sell my 1969 BMW1600-2, 1983 BMW 320i, and 1970 VW Deluxe Bus. Cars weren't in terrible shape, but certainly would cost more to ship them than they are worth.
Look forward to future conversations.
Charles
Currently in Bothell, WA
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Uncle Charles,
Oh, I'm I can be a hepkat (helpful and hip cool cat).
Sorry you had to part with your classic BMWs and the VW. Not ever owned such wee beasties but they, like same-era Mercedes and Porches hold a fascination.
Yes, the nature here in the PacNW. It feels so much less ruined like the Midwest or the Northeast. You get up into the Northern Cascades in SR-20 near Canada or travel well East of Bellingham like Mt. Baker, the nature seems unfettered and ancient and clean. Mighty and lovely WA-state seems to have some respect for the nature here for all time.
You get the best. You get all the best of WA-state nature North of your and the Olympic (breathtaking as in let me die now) Peninsula across Puget Sound. You then have one of the best, most intelligent cities in the lower 48, the Emerald City, lovely Seattle. And some of the best road trippin' you and yours can share in your fabulous Volvo! Volvo's are meant for road trippin'!!!!!!
Welp, a few positions opened in gorgeous, yet lovingly lovely and beautiful, beautiful Bellingham in the last week that I discovered today. I about had an Aneurysm (like the Nirvana song of the same name). So, here's hoping I can live on the West side of might WA-state not too far from you, where the fun is!
There is one person named Jan somewhere's in Kitsap Co-WA-state that contacted me about windshield removal and replacement on a 240 a little while ago as I have prior posts on that frustrating matter. While Jan is across Puget Sound from you, it may be another Volvo 240 contact for you (and Jan).
Welp, until I get to Bellingham, and Boundary Bay Brewing Company (English style) and Chuckanut Brewery (Germany-N. Euro style and deeeelicious), I'm holding my breath! They have sidewalks and bicycle paths and just neat as a pin sparkly lovely with views and the cleanest air you can hope for. Bellingham is WA-state at the very best!
Bellingham is so beautiful. I can't say it in words. If I ever knew love at first sight of a place, it's Bellingham. I new something special about the area from the Northern Puget Sound Area where you are well up the B.C. coast makes the place so special years before I ever saw it.
Bellingham, WA is like an unfettered Marin County, CA.
Boundary Bay IPA. Delicious!!!!! (Just don't drink and drive, okay, everybody?!?!?)
Sorry, I do go on.
Charles, talk to you again. One huge Welcome to the best of the Western Coast States in the Lower 48 - that's WA-state!
Thank you,
Imaginary kitty takes the keys to the 1990 (li'l red) 240 wagon and has a kitty-nip party over looking wonderful WA-state vistas with the tail gate open in the cargo area. Crazy kitties!
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KITTIES: DON'T CATNIP AND DRIVE!
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NO ON WA-state 1183! Keep our WA-state roads safe!
--
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Hi. My wife and I are planning a post-retirement move to the Seattle area, and just wanted to share with you, in case you aren't aware, that in zip-codes east of Seattle (about 20 miles or so out) you don't have to have your cars emissions inspected. The WA DOT has a website page that lists those zip codes where inspection is required, and they're all around Seattle.
We're planning to move into the inspection-free area, at the foothills of the Cascades. If you've got old cars, you might want to consider this.
Regards,
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Thanks Ken. I have been to the Emissions Testing website before but I hadn't clicked the link for the testing zones. BTW, only cars 25 years old and newer need to be tested. By the time I get settled, my '87 will be exempt.
Charles
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Here in N.J., there are a couple of special categories for cars 25+ year old cars.
One is a category for "show cars" that are given QQ prefix "historic" license plates -- but these cars (or rather, their license plates) are only street legal on weekends (presumeably to go to and from car shows) -- if you need to go to a shop for repairs during the week, you have to trailer it. No inspection at all (no windshield sticker) with those plates.
The second is a category for "little-used" cars -- they need an inspection every two years just to certify their accumulated mileage which must be less than 3,000 miles a year (6,000 miles between inspections), and to show that they're covered by a special "collectible" insurance policy (that many insurance companies cannot issue). Such cars get a distinctive triangular windshield sticker in lieu of the regular square ones.
Other than that, older cars such as my own '84 need a regular emissions inspection every two years like any other car.
Because Washington has recently (in 2008) adopted the same emissions criteria (for zip codes close around Seattle) as California and the northeast states (including my own NJ), I'm wondering if the 25+ rule applies as it does here in NJ, or alternatively that you're "scott free" on that. I've been through the WA DOT website and didn't see the 25+ exclusion waiving all cars that you wrote about.
Are you sure?
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Ken,
Below is the link for the contractor that does the testing for the state of Washington. http://www.emissiontestwa.com/index.aspx
If you go to the FAQ and click
"I'm new to the state. What do I need to know about emission testing?"
It states that cars older than 25 years don't need testing. Judging by the number of old and classic cars driving around this Summer (with regular WA plates) I'm guessing it's true.
Here in TX, only people that live in certain areas have to get tested and the cutoff is also 25 years. Difference hare is that most people still think they have to get new cars every couple of years. Unbelievable how many late model cars with no body damage show up in the pick-n-pull.
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Welcome to the rain! In North Seattle (Swedish Ballard) is Northern European Auto Recyclers. They sell quality, guaranteed parts. I've bought an ECU, a distributor and other small parts from them with sucess. Hard to find, but check them out.
TM
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Thanks. I have seen their sign (I think) while on a recon drive around the area. If it's the one you can see the sign of while driving North on the Ballard Bridge, I know the place.
Charles
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Hi and Bye -
Somewhere in that area is IPD, ipdusa.com/ . If they can't help, no one can.
Since you are leaving the Houston area, you are likely not interested in any of my old 240's parts and stuff, but maybe you know someone who might be?
Good Luck and Good Trip,
Bob, near Cypress
:>)
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Thanks B.C. Even though we never met in person, you have been very helpful to me over the years. Couldn't have done the motor mounts without your tips.
Charles
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