All,


Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.

I have been offered a wonderful opportunity to purchase a fabulous 240 - yesterday I was given the chance to buy a 1984 244 GL sedan, AW70 automatic, with every option except leather. It is a one-owner car that the owners ordered in early 1984 and purchased in May of that year. The car has 189k miles.

I know the owner very well - he happens to be my Volvo mechanic of many years.

My mechanic is selling the 244 GL because he is getting older and would like to reduce his fleet little by little. So, while I was at the shop yesterday, he asked me if I would like to buy this '84 car. I said why not - I'd been after it ever since I've known him and I figured, this would be a good addition to my collection, as I tend to only purchase Volvos if they have been owned by the original owner.

Now here's the bad part - the car has been sitting for almost 12 years inside his garage. He does start it up once a year to keep everything lubricated and what-not, but I do know that it's going to need a whole bunch of stuff before I put it back on the road. I'll need some advice. Besides the obvious needs, like timing belt, water pump and spark plugs, should I replace the valve cover gasket and adjust the valves? Also, do you recommend I replace the radiator hoses, flush the transmission fluid, and bleed the brakes? I would like to do everything at once and have that peace of mind before I take possession.

How are the tires? Probably safe to assume they'll need to be replaced. My '85 244 sat for 15 months so I'd move it about a foot every so often so as not to leave a
flat area on the tires. Good luck reviving that '84!
Dukester '85 244 M46 250K

Putting the car up on jack stands to elevate the tires helps prevent flat spots.

If your mechanic friend will wholesale you the parts, needed and not rape you on the price....it could be very doable....

All those things you mention above should be done. Basic maintenance as Nel621 says.

Here is a good maintenance list for high mile cars I pulled of a post (sorry, I can't credit who came up with it)

Replace all of the sensors (MAF, ECT, O2, don't worry about the knock sensor) if they are original
Flush coolant, trans, diff, steering, and brakes.
Install in-line filter (Magnefine or the like) on the power steering and trans (if automatic).
Fuel filter
All rubber lines - coolant and fuel especially
Ignition Tune-up (plugs, wires, cap, rotor)
Clean out the PCV system, throttle body, and IAC
Clean up the fuse block and replace any of the junky plastic-bodied fuses with ceramic
Check/adjust valve clearance

Aren't there wiring harness issues for 80s 240s? I've only have 91 and later bricks, so I'm not the expert there.

A car from the original owner who is a Volvo mechanic would be hard to pass up.

The only issue I see is it being in storage for 12 years and started once per year "to keep everything lubricated". Proper storage would have been to fog the cylinders with a light oil oil and rotate the motor by hand every few months to avoid the piston rings putting rust lines on the cylinders. Sure, it is a Volvo redblock and will run, but I'd guess there are ring lines that may cause early blowback. My guess is the owner being a mechanic will say otherwise, but if he were a "good" mechanic he'd know this... Steel rusts without oil protection. ???

As long as the car runs and drives it seems like a good buy. Not knowing how much you're paying I wouldn't go too high on the price. The items you are thinking of replacing are just the usual maintenance things, not too costly. It they give you piece of mind why not.