264DL or 260GLE wanted

[Dan J]

Hello all,

I'd love to find an exceptional 264DL (i.e. carb NOT injection) but with http://howmanyleft.co.uk/?q=volvo+264 showing 3 DLs and 2 DL Autos what are the chances of that?

So... with that in mind I am also looking for a 260GLE saloon with:

Full service history
Full ownership history
NO underbody rust (it is nothing short of depressing the number of "mint" and "time warp" 240s I have seen over the last 12 months that looked nice in the picture and like a pair of large Swedish lace knickers underneath on physical inspection)

I am seeking an exceptional car fit for long term ownership and am a private cash buyer.

I appreciate finding one of these in such condition is getting somewhat unlikely these days but you never know unless you put the feelers out. If you are considering selling or have any potential leads I would be most grateful – please PM me with details and contact number.

Regards,
Dan
P.s. Thanks to BarryS whose template I stole for this post.

[gary austin]

there is a 264 gle on car and classic mint http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C295746 i have saw this car in the flesh and it looks even better

[Dan J]

Thanks for the pointer Gary. I've seen that car ad (it's advertised on here also). Despite the fact I really want a later 260 (or carb 264) this price of this 264 is over the top for me. If a pristine 244 Thor goes for £3.2k in a bidding war on eBay and a 15k mile 244 ex-Volvo garage display car which for all intents and purpose was new goes for £4.75k there is no way a 264 in "very good condition" is worth £4,700. Not to me at least. If the seller can get anywhere near that for it then I congratulate them and wish them the best of luck in doing so. I'd have bought the aforementioned 244 if I had that much cash floating about!

[Rich 264]

I'd like to wake up one morning and find Helena Bonham Carter next to me snoring her head off, but thats not going to happen either! LOL

Wish you luck finding a rare 30+ year old car that doesn't expect you to get your hands dirty with full history & no rust!

Really hope you find the car you are looking for and I hope to hear Helena's snoring!

[Dan J]

Thanks Rich - I'm not convinced I'll find something but all I can do is give it a try. And for the record I've no bother getting my hands dirty with either old Volvos or Ms Bonham Carter :-) It's the rust that bothers me more than anything. There are still many 4 cylinder 200s out there that have been well cared for over the years and are largely rust free - is it too much to hope there are a few V6s as well? Maybe! I'll let you know if I find one...

And good luck with Helena your end!

[Rich 264]

I think if you find it a lot of us will be very jealous! The only one in good nick I can think of is a red 260 that was in some of the classic car mags a few years ago, it even had a manual gearbox but not seen or heard of it for a few years but I'd imagine its well tucked up in someones warm garage.

Several years ago I saw a 'GLT6' in the local scrappy. I believe these to be a 240 GLT with the V6 that was only sold for a few months. This was an estate that had been used by a painter/decorator so it was messy but basically solid. AND it was a manual!

I spoke to the yard owner and asked prices for various things and told him I'd be back in a few days to take some bits off it (eg engine, gearbox, prop!) and when I returned 2 days later it was in the squashed pile. The whole car should have been rescued, I feel 99.999999% certainty I will never see another!

Having stripped and welded a couple of 240s and a 740 from one end to the other I'd not be in a hurry to do it again, especially as it is always the bit I hate most on any car, inner rear wheel arches. Stick to Helena fantasies from now on!

[Dan J]

Really interesting that Rich - there was always the debate as to whether any of those early V6 engined GLTs actually made it to the UK. Clearly at least one did! I assume it was RHD? What a shame it got crushed. I wonder how many others there are?

[Rich 264]

Yes she was right hand drive. It had the large original stylee "GLT" badge on the tailgate. Just "Volvo" and "GLT" if i remember. Of course the tailgate and/or badges might not have been original although the colour did match (green).

Bit annoyed with myself that I can't remember which gearbox it had except it was manual, was it M46 or the holy grail Getrag? It is likely that the gearknob was missing, usually the first thing to go in scrap yards, and it was injected so B27E or B28E.

Pretty sure it was either 'T' or 'V' registered but might have been a 'W'.

One other car I saw in there many years ago, and I got a set of top strut braces from it was a 244GL, B21E. Metallic dark green, tan interior. Lovely car. There was paperwork in the glovebox. It had been bought new by a RAF officer under the diplomatic sales scheme in Germany but RHD, because it was Australian spec, hence the strut braces etc. (The Oz spec was noted somewhere in the paperwork). There was the rear blinds but they were broken and I think evidence of other goodies either broken or already half-inched. I didn't know about the bottom braces on Oz cars at the time or I would have made sure they didn't end up in the crusher! Anyway thats another one that should have never been in there.

[heckflosse]

Good luck with your hunt for a 260, most were scrapped back in the nineties due to mechanical misfortunes, fuel bills, or rot.
Not the best engine, but nice to drive and quite stylish too.
I always thought the steering was lighter on V6s, back when we used to get several in at the Volvo dealers I worked at ,at the time.
To get a good one, you might have to look abroad, many went to the USA.
Happy hunting!
James.

[Dan J]

Cheers James. To be honest I am looking passively more than anything else having my sense of interest piqued by the B280E lump that is sat in the front of my 760. A good 244 or 240 is massively more likely to come along sooner but you just never know and if there's a good one out there I'm prepared to give to a go.

The (power) steering on my V6 760 is akin to sumo wrestling at low speeds despite my best efforts with new ball joints/tracking/slightly higher tyre pressures. I had a 360 with the red block in it for a few months in the 90s and without power steering that was bordering on unsteerable below 10mph! I bet the 240s weren't any better.