Hello, just bought a '89 740 GL

[ton246]

As title says, I've just bought a 1989 740 GL estate in what is possibly the worst colour ever ( maroon ), and like an oatmeal cloth interior, omg what have I done !! It does have some redeeming features tho, I am only going to be it's second owner, the first being a Wing Commander in the RAF. The mileage is 142,000 but as been serviced every 6,000mls religously, yes there is a full service history to back this up. 90% of those miles have been going up and down to England from Scotland. The bodywork is rust free ( been garaged most of its life ) it as the odd dint / scuff only to be expected for this age & mileage. Comes with a fresh MOT & 4 months tax. As the seven seater conversion in the boot area as well. Does need a few things, good detailing would work wonders on the tired paintwork, boot struts are capput ( currently held up with an old broom handle ), top of the hazard warning switch is missing and.......that's it really. Oh, as just been fitted with a brand new set of winter tyres, and comes with a decent set of summer tyres. Pick it up towards the end of next week, so will post some pics up then. In the meantime if anybody as some boot struts going spare, give me a shout.
Regards
Tony

[stephend]

Excellent, and welcome to the world of 740 ownership. Looking forward to seeing the pics.

Seeing as the previous owner is a Wing Commander, lots of scope for "chocks away!" jokes. E.g. when changing your boot struts, first chock the wheels for safety, and on completion of the task, remember to take the ... before driving.

[ton246]

Originally Posted by stephend

Excellent, and welcome to the world of 740 ownership. Looking forward to seeing the pics.

Seeing as the previous owner is a Wing Commander, lots of scope for "chocks away!" jokes. E.g. when changing your boot struts, first chock the wheels for safety, and on completion of the task, remember to take the ... before driving.

Thought it strange when he said "do you want to go for a fly by" instead of a test drive

[Velorum]

Sounds excellent

I would recommend that you have the servicing done by a mechanic as opposed to a member of the clergy in future though

Hows the head lining and fuel gauge?


.

[ton246]

Originally Posted by Ian Hutchinson

Sounds excellent

I would recommend that you have the servicing done by a mechanic as opposed to a member of the clergy in future though

Hows the head lining and fuel gauge?


.

Clergyman ? ...arrggh, serviced religously !! Headling as seen better days, just starting to sag, I wont look up tho. Fuel gauge is fine. More niggles might rear there ugly head once i've taken possession and driven a few miles, after all its a 23yr old motor albeit well looked after.

[lnparry]

Hi Tony, good choice and welcome to the fold. A good sign that you have some sensible history with the car and know how it was used.

I have owned a 1988, 740 GLE estate for the last 17 years. I can honestly say it has been the most reliable and honest car I have ever owned. Honest because it has bullet prof mechanicals without the confusion of electronic gizmos to disguise faults. If it goes wrong it should be fairly easy to trace why. Currently upgrading to a 940 only because I do not have time to keep too many old cars on the road at the same time (at least that is what the wife says).

Somebody has already mentioned fuel gauge, also watch out for the temperature gauge as the connections to both in the instrument cluster seem to play up with old age. The rubber seal between the top of the water pump and the cylinder head can become brittle with age and start to weep - look for signs of coolant just below the join. Also watch out for antifreeze sodden carpets in the front of the car indicating a leaking heater control valve. A fairly easy fix if you can stand on your head!

With age the ball joints and suspension bushes may give rise to noises and sloppy handling but a fairly easy fix which will transform the car.

Enjoy your 740 motoring,

LeeP

[Volvorama]

Headling and hazard light switch bit from a 940 should fit. Did on my 1989 740 estate. Struts too I expect.

[ton246]

Originally Posted by lnparry

Hi Tony, good choice and welcome to the fold. A good sign that you have some sensible history with the car and know how it was used.

I have owned a 1988, 740 GLE estate for the last 17 years. I can honestly say it has been the most reliable and honest car I have ever owned. Honest because it has bullet prof mechanicals without the confusion of electronic gizmos to disguise faults. If it goes wrong it should be fairly easy to trace why. Currently upgrading to a 940 only because I do not have time to keep too many old cars on the road at the same time (at least that is what the wife says).

Somebody has already mentioned fuel gauge, also watch out for the temperature gauge as the connections to both in the instrument cluster seem to play up with old age. The rubber seal between the top of the water pump and the cylinder head can become brittle with age and start to weep - look for signs of coolant just below the join. Also watch out for antifreeze sodden carpets in the front of the car indicating a leaking heater control valve. A fairly easy fix if you can stand on your head!

With age the ball joints and suspension bushes may give rise to noises and sloppy handling but a fairly easy fix which will transform the car.

Enjoy your 740 motoring,

LeeP

Thanks for the welcome. The fact that it as a fresh mot probably takes the worry away, for now, regarding bushes / ball joints etc. I've not been through the folder full of history yet, so don't know what as been replaced through its life, but it looks like an honest car and it will be mostly used at weekends to ferry the dog around. Thanks for the advise.

[ton246]

Originally Posted by Volvorama

Headling and hazard light switch bit from a 940 should fit. Did on my 1989 740 estate. Struts too I expect.

Yes, that's what I thought, not desperate need to do things at the mo tho, apart from the tailgate struts that is. Thanks.

[Laird Scooby]

Welcome aboard Tony!

Having a 740 GLEa of a similar age (like most people on here - strange that!) i've probably found as many age-related faults as most people have and the common ones are listed already.

Something not mentioned so far is the injector seals - i think the 740GL has the B200E K-Jetronic (mechanical) injection? If so, it would be worth replacing the injector seals to improve the cold starting. Mine need doing and it works out about £20 from Volvo - not found them anywhere else yet!

As for the tailgate struts, why mess around with second hand, tired, not far from being just as bad units from another car? New struts are cheap enough and do the job very well with "cushioning" at each end of their travel so the tailgate doesn't fly up like a spring-assisted Harrier launch-pad or slam shut with a sonic boom.

Something else well worth checking is the strainer in the PCV system. It's a bit fiddly to get at because of it's location but not too bad as it a simple enough push fit item. It is often overlooked by "mechanics" because they don't know that Volvos (certainly red-block, don't know about the newer stuff) tend to breathe a bit heavy. As such, they often build up gum and lacquer aka gunge in the strainer, blocking it completely. Besides making it run rougher than a sackful of monkeys bums, it will cause premature oil seal failure and other general oil leaks and in some cases, burning of oil as it is sucked into the intake straight from the sump. It is cheap enough to renew and will pay for itself in reduced oil consumption. Yes these cars do use oil normally, up to about a litre every 1000 miles or so but with a blocked PCV they drink it. Here's a link to another thread where i moved the PCV valve so you'll get an idea where it was in the first place.

Hopefully your car will be fine on most of these problems and most likely will be but at least you now have an idea what to look for if it does anything strange!