50 replies to this topic

[NJGreenBudd]

Hey fellas,

Hope everybody is having a good Saturday morning so far. I am going to look at a local '98 V70 AWD w 155,000 miles tomorrow and would like to get some input from the community before making any agreement. I have been looking for an AWD wagon for the past few months, having seen a few XC and AWD specimens that were a bit rougher than I woudl like. I think we might a winner here as long as there are no surprises tomorrow.

Basically the story is the car's been sitting for a year since the owner took the head apart. Accoring to the history I have the car tended to run hot, not overheating but hotter than normal. Owner replaced the t-stat, tested the fans and eventually pulled the head to find a crack in the gasket around cylinder #4. Bought new gasket, timing belt and water pump while it was apart. He had the head magnafluxed and checked out good, reinstalled the head with the new gasket and left it like that due to work/time constraints. As it stands now it needs the cams reinstalled, t-belt, water pump, ignition, etc...all the parts are there.

I am hoping to simply button it up and drive it for the winter. I am a bit suspicious of the hotter than normal operating temps and crack in the gasket. I wasn't there for any of the previous work so I am kinda stuck taking his word for it and hoping everythign is honky dory once reassembled. Just in case there are problems, I do have an entire spare 2.4T longblock sitting in my garage.

Anyways, he's asking $800, I think $600 and i'll take it home tomorrow. I know it's a risk since I can't test drive it to test the transmission, AWD, suspension, steering. Any advice, tips, concerns would be appreciated. Thanks very much for taking the time!

Here are some pics of the car as it sits now:













I have a few pics of the exterior at home but they are unremarkable, no significant damage to the body, it looks like a regular black V70. I'll post them later on.

[Ghost Shadow]

potential whole lot of fail there.

i did not take the head apart that way. looks like it was done half assed.

if the car was neglected and overheated/blown head gasket. it might be safe to say the rest of the car is the same way.

$500, if the car is in AWESOME condition $800. Mind you i bought my 98 v70 t5m with a blown head gasket for $1000 and the car was in AWESOME condition. look at my link in the sig about the project and you can see what is involved before you do this.

[okoye]

i personally think its a bad idea unless you know how to work on the car. or have a new engine for it

[Ghost Shadow]

okoye, on 28 January 2012 - 04:28 PM, said:

i personally think its a bad idea unless you know how to work on the car. or have a new engine for it

actually, i would agree with you. Knowledge is key.

[NJGreenBudd]

I hear you about the potential for more trouble than expected, I don't normally buy a car unless I can driv eit home but it's local and I can get it towed home for free. What exactly looks half assed in regards to cylinder head in that pic?

And yes I have done a bit of work on my own S60, never opened the motor but everything besides that. I have done a few engine swaps, overhauls, etc.. on various makes from Fords, Mazda, BMW, Dodge, Toyota, etc... And I mentioned in my first post that I do indeed have a spare engine sitting at home.

Might be worth mentioning I have VIDA/Dice and would be following the book on any engine work.

[okoye]

well as it sits it's basically a shell at this point.

either swap an engine in or part out the vehicle

you seem set on it and have had some experience swapping engines so that might help too.

[Ghost Shadow]

like i said, take a look at my project thread on how the head is supposed to come off.

all the PO did was take the cam cover off. nothing else, you can see the PO knows nothing about this car and attempted to do a HG job himself and when the cam cover came off, he problably was like holy shit this is not like my chevy small block LOL.

Swapping a engine is easy, this requires knowledge and time. if the awd does not work, then this car was a lost cause and now became a money pit.

ok re-read first post.

i would not trust a sellers word for shit, since there is so much potential fail about to happen if you buttoned it up the way it stands.

• new or old headbolts?
  
• was it torqued right?
  
• gasket put on right?
  
• was the cams put on and not aligned right? the valves could have hot the pistons.

just a whole lot of what if??

[831t5r]

If you buy it, i would take it back apart double check everything and use new parts. I wouldnt trust someone esle. My coworker bought an 850 from someone who didnt finish paying the mechanic who was fixing there car on the side. He found couple of headbolts loose and other little things.

[NJGreenBudd]

Ghost Shadow, on 28 January 2012 - 05:18 PM, said:

like i said, take a look at my project thread on how the head is supposed to come off.

all the PO did was take the cam cover off. nothing else, you can see the PO knows nothing about this car and attempted to do a HG job himself and when the cam cover came off, he problably was like holy stuff this is not like my chevy small block LOL.

Swapping a engine is easy, this requires knowledge and time. if the awd does not work, then this car was a lost cause and now became a money pit.

ok re-read first post.

i would not trust a sellers word for stuff, since there is so much potential fail about to happen if you buttoned it up the way it stands.

• new or old headbolts?
  
• was it torqued right?
  
• gasket put on right?
  
• was the cams put on and not aligned right? the valves could have hot the pistons.

just a whole lot of what if??

831t5r, on 28 January 2012 - 05:21 PM, said:

If you buy it, i would take it back apart double check everything and use new parts. I wouldnt trust someone esle. My coworker bought an 850 from someone who didnt finish paying the mechanic who was fixing there car on the side. He found couple of headbolts loose and other little things.

I just read the 6 pages of your V70 thread, very, very helpful as that's almost the same situation here.


Exactly what I was worried about, picking up somebody's abandoned project. If it were a perfect world I could just finish it up from where he left off but in reality I find that a big risk. So, plan is to at least test the function of the angle gear, hook up the battery and check for major codes, if those are both okay I am gonna try to bring it home. I think the safest way to proceed is to pull the head back off, check for witness marks etc... and reassemble with new gasket, new bolts, etc....

Thanks guys, it helps to get an idea of what I am getting into, good discussion points for the negotiation. I'll update and let you know how it goes. Wish me luck and have a great day!

[mojojo]

If he took it apart and went back together, but stopped here...
I would probably not even consider it, but for parts.

He's already done most of the work involved, it appears. Installing cams and cam covers would probably be done in 2-3 hours, if... so the fact he says he started a ~ten+ hour job only to 'run out of time' with a few hours left is very suspicious.You can perform a leak down test on the engine as it sits, before you buy it... Mention it, if he gives you any reason he wouldn't comply, he's definitely hiding something. If he tells you he's done *any* repairs to it, make sure you get receipts, and not old, faded copies from AutoZone that can't be made out at all.

Like others have said, look at this as a car that will at least need an engine as-is, but most likely so-much-more.

These old cars aren't worth what he's asking when they run, but with some issues.

If you are dead set on it, don't let him get you for more than $500. I'd offer $300 and leave if he wanted more. Give him a few days to think about it... he'll probably call you back, especially if he doesn't 'have the time'.

FWIW, usually, a more telling picture of a used vehicle's engine bay, is from underneath the car.

[Deimos]

$200.

[tizio]

Is more than a year he try to sell that car, I checked out time ago (was asking 1K at that time).Rusty is the second name. Same car like this running is for sale $1000 white color and less hassle.

[Ghost Shadow]

op: think about this before you buy it, price break down:

$500 for the car
$250 for t/b, w/p, tensioners
$75 for fluids coolant, oil, filter, awd ect
$40 for rad hoses
$40 for heater hoses
$125 for pcv system
$30 for cam seals
$30 for injector seals
$15 for spark plug seals
$40 for plugs
$40 for cap
$25 for rotor
$65 for wires
$125 for turbo hoses
$300 for just in case i forgot something

$1200 ish...gamble for a non running car, treat it as a parts car and walk away if he thinks he can get more. i'd buy a beat running car vs a overpriced non running car.

[NJGreenBudd]

mojojo, on 29 January 2012 - 06:34 AM, said:

If he took it apart and went back together, but stopped here...
I would probably not even consider it, but for parts.

He's already done most of the work involved, it appears. Installing cams and cam covers would probably be done in 2-3 hours, if... so the fact he says he started a ~ten+ hour job only to 'run out of time' with a few hours left is very suspicious.You can perform a leak down test on the engine as it sits, before you buy it... Mention it, if he gives you any reason he wouldn't comply, he's definitely hiding something. If he tells you he's done *any* repairs to it, make sure you get receipts, and not old, faded copies from AutoZone that can't be made out at all.

Like others have said, look at this as a car that will at least need an engine as-is, but most likely so-much-more.

These old cars aren't worth what he's asking when they run, but with some issues.

If you are dead set on it, don't let him get you for more than $500. I'd offer $300 and leave if he wanted more. Give him a few days to think about it... he'll probably call you back, especially if he doesn't 'have the time'.

FWIW, usually, a more telling picture of a used vehicle's engine bay, is from underneath the car.

Right on man, this engine might not be good but I do have a spare. Plus the auto trans, angle gear, viscous coupling, all steering/suspension could be bad for all I know right now.

tizio, on 29 January 2012 - 07:00 AM, said:

Is more than a year he try to sell that car, I checked out time ago (was asking 1K at that time).Rusty is the second name. Same car like this running is for sale $1000 white color and less hassle.

You went a looked at this same car a year ago? What was your impression? Rusty? I think I saw the white one for sale for $1000 but I like the black on black.

Ghost Shadow, on 29 January 2012 - 12:09 PM, said:

op: think about this before you buy it, price break down:

$500 for the car
$250 for t/b, w/p, tensioners
$75 for fluids coolant, oil, filter, awd ect
$40 for rad hoses
$40 for heater hoses
$125 for pcv system
$30 for cam seals
$30 for injector seals
$15 for spark plug seals
$40 for plugs
$40 for cap
$25 for rotor
$65 for wires
$125 for turbo hoses
$300 for just in case i forgot something

$1200 ish...gamble for a non running car, treat it as a parts car and walk away if he thinks he can get more. i'd buy a beat running car vs a overpriced non running car.

That adds to more like $1700 if my math is right....Even if I swap my good motor over I'm still going to need most of that stuff. Thought it does come with new TB, H20 pump and pulleys. Could be a fun project, good winter car, could be a loss. We'll see how it goes. Trying to get a hold of the guy now.

Thanks guys!

[Ghost Shadow]

NJGreenBudd, on 29 January 2012 - 02:54 PM, said:

That adds to more like $1700 if my math is right....Even if I swap my good motor over I'm still going to need most of that stuff. Thought it does come with new TB, H20 pump and pulleys. Could be a fun project, good winter car, could be a loss. We'll see how it goes. Trying to get a hold of the guy now.

Thanks guys!

thats even worse LOL, my math sucks and you need to treat it as a parts car

[tizio]

All depends on you/r project! Time? Fun? Final result? The AWD look fine to me at that time, car overheat and the guy run out of time due to new job. Happens to a lot of people specially if you don't have garage/tools/time to fix problems right away. Your Call buddy.

[dublin14]

Deimos, on 29 January 2012 - 06:35 AM, said:

$200.

[NJGreenBudd]

Well I bought it for $500. The car's obviously not perfect but it's in good enough shape for what I want to use it for.To be safe I think I'm going to go ahead and swap my spare motor in for now, take the old motor back apart and maybe rebuild it for future use. Anyways, here are some better pictures of it from today. I'm going to start a new thread for this project in a while. Thanks for all the input!

[Ghost Shadow]

looks like the spare motor is still in the other car

[mojojo]

Well, good luck... it can be done.

I bought one of my 850s in a similar scenario (my DD, in my avatar). It is Blk/Blk as well. I ran in to some obvious issues once I started working on the swap, but I really should have been more skeptical. Really, why would a complete stranger be honest about selling a car that was $500 let alone anything more?

So, once you get it apart, do another eval. If it turns out worse, try not to spend any more money on it, just in case you need an exit strategy, you could still part it for $500, probably (if you sold only the parts you knew were good).