Quote:
Originally Posted by Timmilne
That sounds like a canny piece of car-buying there, John — well done. I won't say (out of embarrassment) how much I paid for my Gul 855, but the process was the exact opposite — I got completely seduced and took leave of my senses and even though I spotted most of its shortcomings, I still handed over the asking price!
But, it's coming together and is at D&A having the remaining mechanical issues sorted, leaving only a small rust spot on the tailgate and a lack of rear spoiler to rectify.
Its history is quite different — bought from new by a doctor who owned it and maintained it at Volvo main dealers until passing it to his son in 2016, who was less fastidious and eventually passed to a sketchy dealer in the midlands, who ignored it until I came along. Neither they or the son bothered registering it, so I'm the second registered keeper. It's currently on 130K but increasing as it's getting driven a lot
While I'm heartened by these potentially high values, it's very hard to determine without seeing any of the cars and how mine would stack up in comparison, but reassuringly, D&A reckon it's in good shape.
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Well Tim, we have all been seduced by a car at some point in our lives, me included. It took me nearly 3 years to find the "right" one for me. From what you've said, the history on yours is actually pretty good. For myself, I've never cared a bit about how many owners a car has had - to me it's utterly irrelevant and I don't understand why people get concerned about multi-owner cars. It what's sitting right in front of you when you view that matters and as long as you can reasonably check the history and maintenance then all you have to think about is...
Is it bodily sound, no rust, no past accident damage and paint intact. If all is good there, that's critical. Quite simply, bodywork is where real big money can be spent!
As far as mechanicals, suspension and steering go, that's down to maintenance history, a damned thorough inspection (preferably on a lift), checking the operation of everything and reading all the fault codes.
As long as the gearbox and engine are sound, most stuff is readily fixable without a second mortgage. I knew from all the bills that all the suspension, steering etc. and much more had been done less than 10K miles before and visually, all looked perfect underneath. I costed out what needed to be done before I bought it and came up with £2800 as a maximum including the re-trimming work. We have run well within budget.
I must confess, I was taken aback by the benevolence of the dealer when we came to a price! It seemed that he was way more concerned about it going to a good home rather than making any profit.
Out of interest, what are D & A doing on the car? Regarding your rust spot, try going to your local Chips Away franchise (my local one has done all sorts of ding, dent and rust spot work for me in the past). You might find that you'll get a very reasonable quote for an invisible repair. Regarding your missing rear spoiler, you may not be aware that the spoiler was not standard on the T-5R Estate - it was an option (though most specified it I think).
John