Ok so I looked at a early 80's 244 GL tonight. It is pretty clean, has a towbar and most of all is only $750.

 

It reminds me of when a mate and I had one of these on loan for a few months.

 

I am curious about this thing and considering buying it and wondered if anyone knows anything about them....

 

Potential Issues??

 

Price and availability of parts??

 

Any thing terminal with them in design etc??

 

What stud pattern are they>??

 

It has a towbar, how much realistically can I tow with it being the 4 cylinder version??

 

I know I know a few questions but I am madly googling right now trying to find info. Hopefully someone here can help ;)

*Points at Teddy and Jason*

 

*wispers* unclean

http://www.volvoclub.org.uk/index.shtml

 

http://volvovic.org.au/joomla/

 

my mate had an Ovlov and the gearbox was backwards. 1st was down 2nd up etc.

Edited February 4, 201016 yr by blzbub666

YES Teddy is your man, knows everything about Volvo's!!!

 

;)

Teddy must be an odd fellow ;)

Ok so I looked at a early 80's 244 GL tonight. It is pretty clean, has a towbar and most of all is only $750.

 

It reminds me of when a mate and I had one of these on loan for a few months.

 

I am curious about this thing and considering buying it and wondered if anyone knows anything about them....

 

Potential Issues??

 

Price and availability of parts??

 

Any thing terminal with them in design etc??

 

What stud pattern are they>??

 

It has a towbar, how much realistically can I tow with it being the 4 cylinder version??

 

I know I know a few questions but I am madly googling right now trying to find info. Hopefully someone here can help ;)

 

And I now own that Teddy's volvo, and two others :D

 

The electrics are the only thing that let them down. If the one you're looking at has everything working, it should be fine. Generally speaking any 240 still on the road these days has already had all the relays replaced, as they are ALL stuffed.

 

Parts: Easy and cheap

Stud pattern: 5x108 +18, same as Torana, pre-HQ holden, and a few other euros. I have 14" dragways on mine, looks ridiculous :D

Towing: I drove Teddy's from Brisbane to Cairns in one hit, dragging an 800kg car trailer loaded with 2 sets of rims + tyres, 4 seats, and two Hilux gearbox/transfer cases (bloody heavy) without a problem. The back of the wagon was also loaded up to the roof.... No problems other than the front cam seal leaked a bit of oil when attempting to maintain 110kph up hills. Only seems to do it under extreme load though, I've done 10thou since then and it hasn't leaked again.

 

I've towed an AE92 on a trailer with it... It didn't like it much, but it did do it. :dance:

 

The redblock engine in these things is the european equivalent to the K motor. Ruthlessly reliable. Your 244 should be carby, which is good as far as avoiding EFI drama, but check the GIGANTIC SU carby for fuel and vacuum leaks.

 

Manual or auto? Clutches often slip in the manuals, but easy and cheap to replace.

 

The autos have an electric solenoid which activates the overdrive, and they commonly fail. 90% of the time its the relay in the dash causing the problem. If there's a little 'arrow' warning light on the dash that won't go away, thats your problem.

 

They're not a bad old bus. Solid, comfortable, and reliable if correctly maintained.

You'll also become part of what is officially the weirdest (but most supportive) fan base in the world :P

 

Volvo for life :D

And I can tell you my V50 is very nice to drive, but nowhere near as indestructible as these oldies.....

Thanks Mr Shady!!

 

I must admit it was nice and solid to drive :P I was thinking of it as a tow vehicle to tow around small Corollas etc and daily duties. This one was EFI, and I did notice a very noisy Fuel Pump.

 

It was an auto.

 

Well I'll go have another look at it tomorrow and another drive :D

 

I just feel very much in unknown territory having never played with these things before. The last one we 'borrowed' we just drove and that was it ;)

Thanks Mr Shady!!

 

I must admit it was nice and solid to drive :P I was thinking of it as a tow vehicle to tow around small Corollas etc and daily duties. This one was EFI, and I did notice a very noisy Fuel Pump.

 

It was an auto.

 

Well I'll go have another look at it tomorrow and another drive :D

 

I just feel very much in unknown territory having never played with these things before. The last one we 'borrowed' we just drove and that was it ;)

 

Noisy fuel pumps are also common, although most of the time its the fuel pump relay causing grief. You can test the fuel relay by jumping terminals 3 and 4 (I think) on the fuse panel and see if the pump is still noisy when its receiving direct current.

 

My second '85 240GLE had that problem, turns out the pump WAS stuffed... $100 for a new one on Evilbay.

 

Also check:

 

Engine and gearbox mounts (they're supposed to be ridiculously soft, but not broken)

Balljoints and tierods

Tailshaft uni joints

Exhaust manifold gaskets

Front suspension bushes

 

None of those are a massive problem to fix, but worth noting (and pointing out to the seller as bartering ammo :D )

i miss my volvo.

 

it did good jumps.

 

that is all ;)

Oh when you see it tomorrow take pics! ;)

my mate had an old 240 as well, when he bought it for 500 bucks (albeit in very clean condition) I thought he was nuts, but it relentlessy did the trip from melbourne to deniliquin for wakeboard trips every weekend over summer for a number of years~!

i miss my volvo.

 

it did good jumps.

 

that is all :D

 

Until you broke ALL the driveline mounts, the exhaust manifold, and BOTH rear bilsteins ;)

Stud pattern: 5x108 +18, same as Torana, pre-HQ holden, and a few other euros.

Also same as Ferrari

 

 

These sold on US ebay a few days ago for $177USD

 

The 6cyl diesels are VW engines and quite stout aside from a marginal factory oil pump(designed for a 4cyl, used on 4,5, and 6cyl), even worse if it's a turbo, upgrades are available.