Volvo Diesel Schwagon

[Mutch]

A new vehicle in the fleet - we just bought a 82 diesel volvo 245.

It should make a great baby and dog hauler!

Any advice on bombing it?



cheers,

Drew

 

[Uncle Joe]

I,m sorry... ... .

just wait till you need to hunt for parts,at least you could have gotten the turbo version.

 

[Motorhead]

I don't want to burst your bubble but I have not heard a lot of good about the engines in them. Is it a 5 or 6 cyl VW diesel? They were prone to over heating and with that comes blown head gaskets. I had a VW diesel (4 cyl) for 19 years and thought of transplanting one of the bigger ones in it. a Volvo guy told me to avoid them. If you like it and keep it, the best thing that I did for my 4cyl diesel was to get rid of the factory head bolts and change them out to aircraft quality studs. They had "memory to them and they expanded and contracted with the heat/cool down cycles of the engine. If you need the name of the outfit that supplies the studs, drop me a line and I will get that address for you. I hope you have good luck with it. Chris



P. S. Don't bomb it! You can do some VERY mild enhancements with pump timing and turning up the pump but you have to be careful

 

[illflem]

Many times folks here ask how they can bomb their diesel tractor, Volvo, etc. Truth of the matter is that most are already at the hp they were designed for unlike our Cummins which were down tuned in order to get the drivetrain though warranty. Most of the engine bombing that folks do on their Rams is just to get the hp back up to where Cummins designed it to be. The guys who go beyond Cummins' design parameters, around 350 hp, are looking at a much shorter engine life with many problems, most will admit it.

 

[Ray Torresdal]

volvo diesel

We had one, ran 176,000 miles and would have continued to drive it, but spun a bearing. If someone has the head off, be very careful to refill coolant per the manual! Not following the instructions will lead to airlock, and serious overheating. I was happy with mine (except for the low power), the mechanic put it to me when he didn't follow the antifreeze fill instructions. Another mechanic told me the oil pressure light had to be an electrical fault, since the mechanical gauge showed good pressure. I never tore it down after the bearing went out to see what was causing intermittant pressure loss, but the idiot light was working properly!



I would have a hard time looking at a new one, knowing that Ford owns them now. On the other hand, Volvo trucks seem to be very good quality, and improving.



Good luck!



Ray

 

[RustyJC]

Re: volvo diesel

Originally posted by Ray Torresdal

I would have a hard time looking at a new one, knowing that Ford owns them now. On the other hand, Volvo trucks seem to be very good quality, and improving.

Ford only bought the automotive part of Volvo. Volvo Trucks (who bought White, etc. ) is still an independent company.



Rusty

 

[drees1]

Don't bomb it

I had a 82 volvo diesel. At about 140,000 miles head gasket went. It is 6 cyl volkswagen engine. Also, do not over tighten the rear cam belt to the injection pump as it will wear out the nose bearing in the pump.



You can advance the timing a little if in a warm climate, that is it.



These engines will break their cams too. Happens a lot.



The best way to get more power is to swap in a turbo diesel motor from a volvo 740 or 760. Much better. If yours is automatic, swap in the trans too the 740's used 4spd autos. The turbo motor is better design.



Same volkswagen 6 diesel is common industrial engine in european equipment. Parts are available if you know where to look. forget the volvo dealer.



I replaced my injection pump due to the nose bearing problem: Volvo dealer = $1,700, Volkswagen industrial, $1,100, Auto Zone! $875, Local diesel shop rebuild, $385.



P. S. Mine was 3 sped auto, 240. Best mileage was 26mpg And the slowest car I ever driven. Way slower than my current 83 Jetta 5 speed.



Doug Rees

 

[stg2500]

Hey someone else that has a Volvo diesel.



That was my second car that I ever owned. I had it all through in high school and continue using it to this day. It is a 1984 245. It has the 5 speed manual with electric 5th. It is a great car except for being a little slow. I have over 130,000 miles on it. My Dad still uses it as a daily driver. It is dark blue with dark blue interior. I did have to have the motor rebuilt at about 100,000 miles due to low compression. The Volvo dealer will give you strange looks when looking for parts. The industrial dealer is a good place to look that I never thought of.



My wagon has worked hard, it was previously owned by my uncle who used it as a tow vehicle for his boat and utility trailer.



I wish you a lot of luck with it.

 

[drees1]

Fuel mileage?

A 240 5 speed deisel... now there's a hen's tooth!! I always felt the shushy automatic robbed the engine of power and mileage. What fuel mileage does the 5 speed get??



I re-read my post and did not mean to be that negative, with the problems. On the plus side, the car itself is one of the best built and most solid of any made.



Doug Rees

 

[stg2500]

Depending on the driving situation. We can get anywhere between 25 - 30 mpg. The manual does not make the car lightning speed but it is fun to drive

 

[Motorhead]

I like my wifes '84 MBZ 300 turbo wagon. 201,000mi and we would take it anywhere. If you can find one that is decient, they are good, safe cars.

 

[fredflinstone]

Well gentalmen I also had a 1984 volvo wagon with the naturally aspirated diesel and a five speed that my folks had bought new and I later bought from them. That was a great car that lasted roughly forever mostly due to the fact it couldn't get over 80mph down hill with a wind behind it. I sold it with about 200k miles to a friend who drove it for another 100k till the cam finaly broke. I even considered buying it back and rebuilding it until I looked into the cost of parts. It would almost allways get 30mpg at 60 mph and would even do better than that down hill with that wind following! good luck with the new car ! Volvo's are well built cars my folks still have one as do I .



Seth