Volvo 340 GL blue 58000 miles for sale

[retrodave]

Hey guys!

This is a sad day for me, but it has to be done. Here I have for sale my trusty Volvo 340 1.4 GL, with B144E engine, from 1983 (and I will be brutally honest about it!). It's currently in Cardiff, Wales, UK & can be collected from here. I bought this car from the Volvo forums from Essex about four years ago, at the time with just 36000 miles on the clock! It was in pretty good condition, the carb was leaking air a little, and it needed a new speedo cable (which I fitted).

In the time I've owned it I've loved driving it and it's never really let me down. I've had three breakdowns, the first was because I failed to secure an alternator cable properly and the battery discharged! The second was because the HT transformer terminal and HT cable plug were badly corroded, and she stopped sparking late one wet and windy night! I've fitted new HT cables but really a new HT transformer (or at least a better electrical connection between transformer and lead!) is needed - since that time I've had no problems. The third breakdown was (ahem) because I ran out of petrol whilst towing... oops. But on the whole, she's been very reliable.

The car had one owner before me, who must have kept it garaged, and there were only a couple of patches of rust on the passenger doors which had been treated and touched up when I bought it. I have a full service history from that time, and although I haven't really kept one myself I'd be happy to provide one verbally! Since owning the car, I've had a new fuel pump (old one wasn't faulty it turned out - this was before I found the carb to be leaking air), a new exhaust, new plugleads, new rear light assembly, and new plugs / oil filter / front brake pads and a new nearside caliper fitted. I also had a towbar made and fitted which has served me well (although the trailer electrics connector's cover got broken by an over-zealous friend and could do with repairing).

The car has plenty of dings and marks unfortunately. The front skirt underneath the bumper was bent when I bought it, but now has a nice towball shaped dent in it where I drove slowly into the rear of a friend's van by accident! This needs knocking out and touching up. There's a big scrape along the nearside passenger doors (and some marks by the rear bumper) gained in a carpark, and the rear bumper is held on by cord on the nearside rear as its plastic grip was damaged during the scrape. The offside rear numberplate light cover was broken also - I have some of this still but a new one is needed. The bumper also has a small piece missing just beneath the offside rear lights (it was there when I bought it). The rusty patch on the nearside passenger door got a lot worse and has fallen through, and various little patches exist along both passenger doors as you can see from the photographs. There's also a little scraping to the roof a few inches square where my antenna cable has been rubbing against it. I bought primer and had some touch-up mixed but have never used it - these will come with the car so that someone who has the time can tackle the patches properly!

The car in general is in pretty good condition aside from all this, but sadly with the usual rust issues. Twice before MOT time I've had welding done on both sills, although during the last inspection nothing was needed and I've tried very hard to keep on top of any corrosion. I've spent recent months driving the car down very bumpy lanes (carefully!!) but the offside front suspension cup was badly corroded and dropped, so I bought a new one and had it welded to the suspension strut. At that time the mechanic noted that the front engine mount bar's mounting was corroded on the same side, so chances are a new one of those will be necessary, either from a scrapper or made to order (I know a good guy locally who could do the job). The steering generally may well need attention from corrosion also, although it seems solid enough to me at the moment.

The issue with the carburettor has always been there - I've had it removed and cleaned, but didn't go for the reconditioning kit, instead buying a secondhand (and *very* clean!) carb and gasket material with the intention to fit it later (I can include this too for a reasonable deal, but will need to collect it from Ceredigion where it's stored at the moment). Cleaning it made no difference, and there's definitely air leaking in as the engine only idles well with the mixture screw bolted fully in! There are no timing chain or gasket issues anywhere else now, the head gasket seemed a tad leaky when I first bought the car but a healthy dose of sealant into the cooling has resolved that and I've not had to take any further action on it since. The problem really is just the carb. I never had time to fit the new one, but feel sure it'll make a big difference once done. And there's a weld on the lower-right radiator pipe fitting, when I first got the car the rubber pipes had virtually welded themselves onto it, and unfortunately the fitting didn't take kindly to me wobbling it and split underneath. The weld was done by a qualified pro and has been solid ever since.

The starter motor could probably use a good clean - it occasionally sticks on for a second whilst starting and makes an unpleasant whining noise, but it always returns to normal quickly and the car starts well. I usually have to start it twice, as the leaky carb causes the fuel to disappear back down the pipe and the engine tends to cut out after a couple of seconds of idling, but after re-starting I don't get any problems at all. Again, due to the leaky carb, idling is a little rough, and idle speed fluctuates a little, but not a great deal. Also, the engine can run a bit hot if left idling and standing for ten minutes or so, possibly the water pump is worn, but I found opening the windows and turning the heaters on fully tends to hold the temperature steady! The engine has been running a bit hot since I first owned the car, and it wasn't long before I removed the thermostat from the cooling system! It worked in keeping the temperature around average, and I've not had it rise too much since then. Under normal conditions the temp gauge never really clears Cold. The radiator cooling fan probably also needs a clean, it whines unpleasantly when operating, but isn't very difficult to remove and clean or replace.

The front windscreen washers have been a bit weak lately, the pump runs but the jets probably need unblocking. The bezel around the offside passenger door's interior handle got knocked off this year and broken into four pieces - I can provide them with the car. It recently had two new tyres (both rear), though it could do with a new front nearside tyre very soon. The clutch is about 65% through I reckon - still feels good but not much action until just over halfway up its travel. Oh, and it *really* does need a good car wash!!!

Well, I did say brutally honest!! I believe they're all the faults and failings on the car - I'll add more notes if there's anything I've left out (I can't imagine that being the case, lol!). The engine still has less than 58000 miles on the clock, and does run nicely and consistently, and I don't feel concerned doing 150 mile journeys in this car. It's a lovely vehicle, complete with original parcel shelf (amazingly!) and almost all original fittings, I've loved owning it and driving it dearly and really don't want to part with it.

I'm selling because my partner really doesn't like old vehicles (I can't imagine why!) and insists that I get something more modern! Also, as the MOT is due this month (12 Dec 2012) and work is likely needed on the corrosion at the front of the vehicle, being a poor student I can't afford to get it done. :-( My plan all along was to buy this car and keep it in good condition, treating the bodywork regularly and keeping the engine in good order, but sadly recent years have seen times get harder and harder and I just haven't been able to afford to give it the attention it needs. I'm hopeful someone who'll love the car just as much as I have will be able to take it in and clean it up - there's so much that's good on it, and the engine is still very young, I really don't want to see it go to the scrap man. I've found it hard to source good used parts locally for my 340 and if nothing else perhaps someone could use the parts on mine to keep their vehicle going... preserve it, strip it, drift it... anything instead of see it go to waste! If I had a garage or plot I could keep it on and believed I'd ever be rich enough to have it done up properly I'd never get rid of this car! But I don't, and so she has to go...

MOT runs until the 12th of this month... :-( Tax until 25/12/12. Until next week it's on my insurance so you could drive it away if you wanted to. Doesn't come with a stereo but does come with a *lot* of vintage vibes and that classic 340 fragrance, lol! :-)

My partner doesn't believe anyone will want this vehicle at all because it's a 340 - I feel sure someone will because I found it so difficult to buy (I paid £600 for it!! :O ) I'd love to be proved right! Obviously I'm accepting offers :-) But would like to start at about £300, as I'd be prepared to pay that for just one or two of the parts on it!!

Check out the photos, I've tried to take everything I can (including some appaling pics of the underside!) to give you a better idea of its condition. I'll be happy to answer any queries or talk in person.

Anyway cheers guys! Looking forward hopefully to finding a new home for my much-loved Volvo...