'96 Volvo 940 Estate - £3k, Bristol

[Badger vs Bodgers]

For very reluctant sale is my much loved and modified '96 Volvo 940. I have spent many hours upgrading and repairing this car, but unfortunately a change of circumstances (I'm now a dad) means I have very limited tinkering time, so I need to focus on finishing the project car I was building with my now late father. I know I won't be able to stop myself from messing around with it, so the Volvo must go for something a bit more… boring.

The car is definitely not a show queen but is in good working order and is a practical and usable daily sleeper, which regularly causes the drivers of bulky and characterless SUV's to rethink their life choices.

These things are spacious enough to move house with; bung a roof rack on it and you can move small countries. Hyperbole aside, the boot easily fits a double mattress with the seats down, and I have transported full length display cases in it in the past.

It is a sleeper with a good turn of speed and handles well enough to surprise people, whilst having enough room to be eminently practical. It has been very reliable, and I wouldn't hesitate driving it the length of the country tomorrow.

The following is a summary of the car:

-118k miles; good for the car and its age! Plenty of life left in it, these things go 300k+ fairly regularly.
-Electric front and rear windows.
-Half leather interior in good nick - the only damage is a cigarette burn in drivers seat bolster and some damage to rear carpet but otherwise fine.
-Heated electric door mirrors.
-Heated seats.
-P2 V70 wheels on good quality 25mm & 35mm spacers.
-Head gasket replaced, including head skim and valves properly lapped in.
-Timing belt replaced at same time as the head, about 6k/ 1 year ago.
-Manual Boost Controller set at just shy of 1 bar (max safe, somewhere between 170 and 190 hp by internet/bum dyno).
-Boost gauge in cabin (not lit).
-TTV single mass flywheel with 850R clutch.
-Osram night breaker headlight bulbs.
Internal lights are LED.
-Dash lights are red LED.
-Fuel sender repaired (new contacts soldered on). These are a regular issue with these, so it should be good for another 25 years or so.
-Battery trays welded up; these are known rust points on these.
- Bodywork is totally solid, including the jacking points.
- BC racing coilovers on front with softer 2 kg/mm springs (original 5kg/mm will come with).
- 40mm lowering springs with BC shocks on the back (will come with BC 6 kg/mm springs and adjustable seats).
- All suspension components have been fully refurbished and poly-bushed with Strongflex bushes (the softer type).
- Adjustable Panhard rod.
- Late type M90 gearbox with better ratios and strong 3rd gear.
- New centre carrier bearing.
- Gripper LSD.
- Front chassis brace (custom made).
- Custom 3" stainless cat-back system with a lovely burble.
- Clear indicator lenses.
- Stereo with CD, aux and USB.
- Turbo return gasket and seal replaced.
- Fully serviced in September
- MOT until September 30th

Bad bits:
- The paintwork is tired and there's a little surface rust in places. I didn't mind this as it added to the sleeper aesthetic. No major dents or dings though - it looks it's age.
- The PVC on the door cards are wrinkled - no surprise there!
- There's a crack in the lower driver side corner of the windscreen; it's not in the field of view and does not leak, so has never been an issue.
- There's a very minor oil leak on the filter; it's a really small leak so I was going to sort it out at the next service with the filter change.
- The hazard switch cover is missing but still works.
- Dust covers on the front ball joints aren't the best and were pulled up at MOT; these are as manufactured, but if I was being picky I'd probably change them out.
- The diff whines a little, indicating some wear on the crown wheel and pinion. It's certainly not going to fail any time soon.
- The dash dimmer doesn't work due to being switched over to LEDs.
- The driver's heated seat doesn't work - I think some internal circuitry needs repairing.
- It originally had aircon, but the previous owner removed the under-bonnet section when the condenser started leaking. I have a aircon pump, and the original wiring is in place, so it shouldn't be too hard to reinstate.

The car will also come with a considerable amount of spares I've accumulated during my period of ownership:
- A full spare engine in parts; the crank may be a write off unfortunately as there's a bit of rust on it.
- Spare back axle (known to be good).
- Trailing arms.
- An additional spare head
- A battered 3" downpipe I was going to repair and fit.
- Various relays and electrical items.
- A set of 15inch steel wheels with decent tyres.
- A couple of spare exhaust manifolds, including one with what I think is a T3 flange welded on.
- Other bits and pieces I can't remember off the top of my head!


The car starts and idles with a lovely burble, which is not too loud at all. The turning circle on these things is epically tight, and the visibility is excellent, so manoeuvring in and out of spaces is easier than most hatchbacks. The ride is a little harsh on bad roads but absolutely fine on better quality ones.
Despite the size the car is not all that heavy, so with the MBC it has a good turn of speed off the lights - the LSD helps with that too! She'll cruise at 70 doing just over 2.5k rpm, so fairly sedate and the exhaust is quiet and doesn’t drone.
She corners very flat- she'll never out handle an MX5, but can keep up surprisingly well! With the LSD, the rear is one deliberate prod of the accelerator away from stepping out; easy to avoid but easy to obtain, easy to control and highly entertaining! Prodding the accelerator also gives a lovely sound, one of my favourite 4 pot noises with some burbles on overrun.

I honestly wish I didn't have to sell it, it's an awesome car.