Trailer capacity of Volvo 740, 850, and 940

[--Christopher] (Sat, 18 Dec 2004 23:10:11 +0000):

You got your answer in your last thread on the same subject!

Hello

I have been checking out the used car ads looking into buying Volvo models 240,

740, 850, and 940.

One thing I have noticed is the large number of 850 Volvo cars for sale is there any reason for that?

--Christopher

They're simply at the age when a lot of people are turning them in for something newer. The 240, 740 and 940 cars are old enough that they've already been through that stage and the people owning them now tend to be the ones content with or who prefer older cars so there's not as much churn.

Total conjecture but...

The 240 and 740 are getting older--the folks who own them are people who will not sell them to buy a NEW! Consolidated Cars 3.0 L V6 camryotypicalclone with cyberdigiplex multi DVD entertainment system, while

850's are around the 8-12 year old mark where many folks just feel uneasy with a car--even a Volvo or Benz...that and I guess the older Volvos might be diminishing in number due to accident and expensive repairs issues as well.

Let us all praise the Madison Ave consumer culture that allows us to drive a real car, a safe, wonderful Volvo for a small fraction of the cost of a Camry, while allowing us to support the independent shops that are the modern home of artisans, the very places that Toyota with their soulless idols are driving to extinction.

Before the entire euro zone rises in angry disagreement to say nothing of my esteemed friends in the great white north (on the X day of Christmas my true love gave to me Y...and a beer :) ) I remind all that my comments apply only to a state that's growing into less and less of a nation, located between 2 oceans, and 2 other states where inexplicitly, no matter how slowly and loud one makes a request, **in correct English** many natives simply look on in puzzlement, perhaps muttering something akin to the word 'kay'.

Since 1993, about all that Volvo sold was 850s and 70 series.

As of 2001, the production totals were:

Model Years Produced Number

Volvo PV444/544, 1944-1965, produced .4 million, 18k/year

Volvo Amazon/120, 1957-1970, produced .7 million, 50k/year

Volvo 1800, 1961-1972, produced .04 million, 3k/year

Volvo 140/160, 1966-1975, produced 1.4 million, 140k/year

Volvo 240, 1975 to 1993, produced 2.2 million, 116k/year

Volvo 260, 1976 to 1985, produced .17 million, 17k/year

Volvo 340 1976-1991, produced 1.1 million, 65k/year

Volvo 760, 1982 to 1990, produced .12 million, 13k/year

Volvo 740, 1984 to 1992, produced 1.0 million, 111k/year

Volvo 480 1986-1995, produced .08 million, 8k/year

Volvo 440 460 1988-1996, produced .6 million, 86k/year

Volvo 940, 1991 to 1995, produced .36 million, 72k/year

Volvo 960, 1992 to 1998, produced .11 million, 16k/year

Volvo 850, 1992 to 1997, produced .72 million, 120k/year

Volvo 70 series, 1996 to 2000, produced .62 million, 124k/year

Really? All I know is that, as of the 50K miles mark, and nearly 4 years, I'd spent over $3,000 more on repairs of my 2001 S60 than I had on any Honda or Camry I've ever owned (and we're talking 6 Hondas and 1 Camry) at that number of miles and years.

So far the 2004 Subaru, 19K miles and 15 months, has a perfect record.

Yes, I know, you're talking about buying 8 or 10 year old Volvos, and indeed someone else has paid all that depreciation. But there's no free lunch. I don't want to have to wonder each morning whether the car will start, or each night whether my wife's car will make the whole distance of her 17 mile commute. If you're the gambling type, and "Will-It-Work-This-Time?" is your game, go for it; enjoy your vintage Volvos. In my experience, either you pay the bank (on newer car purchases) or you pay the mechanics, er, sorry, artisans that you mentioned.

HW

Depends on how well the last person has taken care of it, as well as a bit of luck. More than once I've dealt with used cars where the previous owner had dumped a bunch of money into them, then given up and sold them, found and corrected that one or two minor issues remaining and gotten many miles of service. I've also encountered cars that were running but WAY behind on routine maintenance. Long or erratic oil change intervals, shot suspension bushings, worn belts, dirty air filter, nasty old coolant, broken interior accessories, a little problem ignored here and there adds up and sooner or later comfort and reliability begins to really suffer and the cost of fixing everything skyrockets.

I never wonder any of those things about my '87 740, I bought it with over

200k on it and several years later I'm past 260k miles. Never once has it failed to start, only twice it's broken down due to a burst hose that I should have replaced and the second time a rat chewed up the alternator belt, that could have happened on a brand new car. I haven't hesitated to take it on 1000+ mile road trips and it's never let me down. I spend perhaps $500 a year on maintenance and that includes consumables such as brakes and tires, fluids, I just can't see how it could be cheaper to pay $400 a month on car payments. I know I'm not the only one with this sort of experience.

That said, these cars are ideal for someone who enjoys doing their own maintenance, I wouldn't let a "professional" mechanic touch my cars, they're good at throwing away tremendous amounts of someone else's money throwing new parts at it trying to guess the cause of a problem rather than taking some time to diagnose it and verify before buying new parts.

I am sorry, Hal, but it's folks like you that let me drive near luxury cars for not much more then a Kia!

A well maintained unstressed well designed car like a Volvo, a Mercedes, or even a Ford pick em up will serve for 300-500,000 miles.

Will it break now and then--YES!

Will it be as reliable as anything else--Yes--even more so.

The s60 is new, its a high tech car, and its fancy.

Lexus manages to do all that and be reliable out of the box, takes Volvo a bit, and for some reason I would just as soon let someone else take the hits you are.

I think that when you are ready to sell the S60 it will have much life left, and while it may never be as reliable as a Camry, it will usually give the sensitive driver a warning before something breaks.

I suggest you keep the S60!

And isn't it better economically to let someone else take that hit?

Huh. My wife's two Volvos start reliably down to -30F (one is a 1990

244 and the other is a 1993 245). They've never not started. I never worry if they'll "go the distance" and her commute is sometimes 200 miles. The issue is not age of the car but whether it is well maintained. The standard Volvo maintenance schedule will get you 250,000 to 350,000 miles out of a brick without any trouble at all.

Paying the mechanic is cheaper than paying the bank and of better value. The bank pays stockholders and the mechanic puts his kids through school with that money. I'd rather pay the mechanic. The economics of cars are well known, you can read about it in many places on the Web. New cars are an economic disaster for the buyer.

I've only driven 240 wagons for years now, starting with a 1981, and currently a 1993. I've never, ever had a problem with starting or stalling or anything like that. All of them have made many interstate trips many times a year, as well as the daily work commute. I hope I continue to drive nothing but 240 wagons for many years to come.

I much prefer to buy cars that have at least 80K miles on the odometer, and even better to have at least 100K miles. At 50K or less, it is hard to tell how the car will hold up, and how well it has been treated (even with maintenance records). At 100K it is hard to hide.

Buying higher mileage cars puts a premium on the buyer's ability to deal with much of the maintenance him/herself, but just having a trusted mechanic can make it a winning proposition. My son bought a '94 Acura a couple months ago, and we knew at the time it would need driveaxles and a timing belt. No biggie. In addition, parts are widely available in wrecking yards.

At the same time, whether you buy a car new or well used, it helps to be able to make clear-headed choices about when it is just getting too troublesome to keep. That seems to be a problem for me.

Mike