Mr Volvo

Sounds awesome, waiting for pics here too. Is it a 2 or 4 seater?

I got a reply from the email I sent the PO today. He said he had owned it since 2000, and drove it only 2 days a week which didnt justify the rego and insurance costs. The owner before him was a mate of his, he was the one who got the 280 conversion done at a place which has since closed called 'Datniss'. He says he had surface rust cut out just after he bought it, but was not certain about chassis rust as he claim he never really got under the car himself :tapemouth . All in all not much you can learn from an email so I guess whats really needed now is for me to do some work and get VIN's and eng mumbers so I can check out the name of the owner. And also get some smart people to have a look at it. Oh, he reckons it did a 15 flat quarter mile. Any opinions?

I should have said earlier that he told me he wants to sell it because his mechanic has offered him a 240 for 10, that he really wants. I rang him again today, as i saw the price had gone down 500 bucks, and he was now offering a RWC. So I told him that I was interested, and asked for the PO's details. He said he will forward me their email address tomorrow morning (when he gets to work). I asked him if he needed to sell it quickly considering he had a deposit put down on another car. And he said that the guy at zshop (has anyone dealt with them? Their website seems to be down) said that he is happy to refund his deposit if need be, meaning that the seller will only sell the car if he can get the price he wants, if he cant he will continue to work on the 260. What kind of ownership checks etc. should i do to make sure all things that need to be legit are? And would this be easy enough to do considering im working from victoria with what i assume would be Transport SA?

Hi everyone I have another one of those I tell everyone the details everyone says whether to buy or not posts.:classic: I test drove a zed today, and was very impressed, unfortunatly I don't have any pics yet, but I will work on that over the weekend. The car was from carsales and can be found here: http://www.carsales.com.au/pls/carsales/!cs_content.private_vehicle?vehicle_id=104156&current_rec=1&total_rec=3&sort_type=&price_max=10000&make_id=37&model_id=457&search_distance=50 The car looks in really good nick almost everywhere. There are some areas of bubbling paint on patches throughout the car, but only on the flat pannels, none in the dogleggs, tip of bonnet etc etc. I had a look at the frame rails and to my un educated eye it looked like they had fibergalss, or some kind of non metal material plastered over them, which got me kinda worried, I have no idea whether its a preventative or cover up measure. As you can guess from the stats on carsales the car 'went' farily well, with no missing or dodgy sounds. The gearbox seemed fine with not a noise as I changed gear, and this time I made sure I went through all the gears. (im sure I only got to third last test drive of a zed) As you can probably tell I really like the sound of the car, and the owner while not very knowledgeable (not for me to critisize!) seemed like a nice enough bloke, very interested in my plans for the car. Funnily enough once again I got to go on the test drive with just me and a mate, no owner, and yes the car was flogged hard. We must look like trustworthy young men. haha. One thing I noticed about the car was the dodgy centre console which you can see in the pics on carsales, would something like that be a really expenisve thing to replace? To me it just seems stupid to fabricate your own. The owner is selling it cos he has found a 240 that he wants, after only having this car for a month, I guess it would be intelligent to contact the previous owner, who lives in SA. So opinions everyone? And if anyone knows a good zed or rust specialist that I could take the car too to get it looked at I would really appreciate any contact details. Thanks again everyone, I hope I'm not wearing out my welcome with these kinds of posts (Im trying to save that until I keep asking why it won't start..) -David

Thanks for the tips guys. On the subject of settling for a 2+2 it really doesnt bother me. I saw a 240 the other day, then I thought about the 2+2's that I have seen and *shock horror* I reckon the 2+2 looks alright. It just really doesnt bother me, and as the only real difference between them is the looks I have no preference. I am happy to be patient and have been so far (decided in June that I wanted one). I just need to keep making an effort, as there is a fine line between being patient and being lazy for me. I have been wary of cars in the 2-3 range just because of the advice I got when I first asked, and that was to buy the best car I could afford. I guess im looking for a bargain in this price range? Thanks again, I know I will spend many computer hours at this site for probably years to come and the help I'm getting now is just so valuable, thanks so much. -David

Hey, I come from a 5 volvo family, we can safely say its something that is bread into you. I wouldn't be too worried. Rusty1 very poignant post. Just remember that by having a father who respects and is knowledgeable of the dangers of cars, your kids are much safer than so many others. I can safely say that both my car nut mates, and not guys who drive 'sick' VL's, just regular people who have been interested in cars for their entire life are the safest drivers I know. And interestingly, female friends who thought that the car only had one gear when it was an automatic are the ones that make me feel unsafe. -David

Well since my well documented last outing I havent even found a zed I wanted to see in person yet, but I thought I might be mssing something. So where do you recomend I look? So far I have used the trading post, and now and then I look at the for sale section of this site and zcar.com. Are there any other good sites out there? Or any of the monthly or weekly car mags I should be looking at? Just to remind anyone incase they have found a zed in their garage that needs a new home, I am looking to spend somwhere around 5-6 grand at the moment (budget increases fortnightly :classic: ) and I guess a 260 2+2 would top my list, just due to the quality of car I can get at that price compared to the 240, or 260 2 seater. Thanks for your time. -David

While I agree with rick on experience of high speed driving being needed for the highways. I must add that the only times I believe I have been in a situation that was scary (not life threatening, just those moments where you go "phew" glad I noticed that!) have been driving in the city, goping slow. I guess it all depends on where you grow up, 'cos I grew up in the country doing 100 regularly, but of course most country driving involves going straight and looking out for animals. Where as city driving requires far more attention to the oncoming traffic and also a greater knowledge of road rules. So maybe we need regional restricitons on liscences unless certain skills can be shown in a test situation.

I agree with zedrally, tassie is great whenever. Just don't forget to take some cold and wet weather gear. :classic:

How about the Grand Prix? Thats all I can think of. Haha and I work in a camping store!

Wow, u must have terrible Volvo drivers in France. All the Volvo drivers here in AUS are fantastic. Especically the P-platers! Even more so the ones that drive green 940's.:classic:

Another problem with policing of speed is that most of the time it isn't the police doing the catching! I must admit I'm a bit of an idealist and as I havent had a run in with any yet I still believe to be decent compassionate human beings. But a camera atached to somone who is getting payed to catch people will probly not be so understanding. I mean if I'm doing 105 on a wide straight stretch of road in the country at 5 o'clock in the afternoon about 5k's from my house and there isn't a car in sight, then I'm sure the police would just tell me to be careful. But recently this situation occured near my house but there was a camera on the side of the road hidden on the crest of a small rise in a camry, not even a police car. Even if I had got a ticket it probably wouldn't have made me re-think my speed anywhere near as much as having a police car pull me over and give me a bit of a lecture about the dangers of speeding (whethere they are false or not). That was some terrible grammar throughout that post, but im sure the general *vibe* is there: A police car pulling someone over will enforce the message that the TAC propose (be that a good message or not) far more effectively than a letter 2 weeks later in the mail. And that lack of effectiveness leads people to believe that the new laws can only be designed for revenue raising, not safety.

Doing 80 in a 60 zone when there are people around probably is dangerous and will increase your risk of an accident. But what about 103 in a 100 zone? I have had 3 friends in serious accidents in the last year (turned 18 1 yr and a bit ago now). And all have been caused by poor skills and poor judgement. A female friend hit a practacly stationary car doing somwhere about 90k's an hour. After a car had flashed its lights at her to warn her of the trouble up ahead. This is the same girl who would sms people on her phone just days after getting her liscence. A driver paying more attention wouldnt run into someone on a large wide road full stop, but especially after someone had warned her of danger. Another mate swerved to avoid a fox (why i ask?) and overcorrected which resulted in him hitting an embankment and rolling his new corolla 4 times. He wasn't speeding at all, just got caught in the gravel. And finally I know a guy that got t-boned by a taxi when he turned right in front of it at an intersection in the melbourne CBD. The point of these stories is that not one person was doing over the speed limit when they had their accident, although all of them were entirely avoidable incidents if they had been paying more attention, had the required skills, or were driving APPROPRIATELY for the conditions. Speed does kill, the difference between hitting a tree at 103 and 100 though is tiny, the difference between reacting quickly at 100 and having a 'narrow escape' and being just too late however is MASSIVE. And paying attention and taking into acount road conditions will always help more than dropping 3 km's. Oh, on the subject of women drivers (were we discussing them or am i just using this to tell another story?) I was going to the beach the other day with this girl driving (I offered!) and she locked up the breaks stopping at an orange light. We skidded for about 15 metres. She couln't see that she had done anything wrong! Now where did all that driver training go? Oh, that's right most people never got any!

zs-ondabrain, that alarm sounds very meaty, can I ask if you have any trouble with false alarms? Because it sounds like a great idea for when i get my car, but I wouldn't want to be that guy in their street that everyone hates cos his alarm goes off for no reason. thanks.

It did it every change into second, foot flat to the floor for 3 different drivers. The owner had also just installed a new clutch. And yeah we thrashed it pretty good, but every corner we had to slow down so we could turn it otherwise there would have been a whole lot of damage done. Im thinking I will offer a small amount probably 500, and as Datto Zed said it would be a pretty good parts car with everyhting being original. But I doubt the owner will accept that. It makes sense that I should buy the best I can afford, the only problem is taking the time to find one and doing all the running around. It was in the area that had all that flood damage in melbourne last night, who knows maybe it got washed away?

Oh so you mean I should read all the posts before mine, prior to posting my own? Hmmm, I don't know, sounds like a lot of effort :stupid:

thats interesting because my fluids lecturer said that they did tests with tanks that they made sit for a year, and it was entirely random. If the tanks aren't sitting still for a while, there could still be vibrations and waves that cause the water to go a certain way. Then he tried to prove it to us by showing that the effect of the corriolas effect wouldn't do anything to the water. But im stupid and forgot what to do so I can't back that up, but I can say my lecturer was a very cool dude because he had long hair. I'm not sure if that helps at all though...

Thanks for all your replies everyone (keep them comming!) but after reading this and trusting my mates I doubt I will be buying the car. I was wondering though, if I did get it for like 500 bucks, could I fix it up to a good quality (daily driver, not necessarily show car, but nice enough looking) with my 4 grand left over? Or would I still end up with a better quality car if I payed $4.5k to start with. I would think that because people always end up selling their cars for less than they spent on them I would be better off buying a better car. But if the owner did just want to get rid of it for that much would I be getting it for cheap enough to overcome that, and end up ahead. But that is very hypothetical and it would involve me offering 500 bucks for his car. I have this fear it would break his heart, I mean the guy wasn't a zed fanatic but if I had worked on a car and wanted 5 times what the buyer was offering I might feel a triffle hurt. (*cough* soft *cough*) Gav, I dont really have any great affection for the 2+2 and after spending 10 minutes in the back seat I know none of my friends will ever be sitting in it. But it seems 260 2 seaters are as rare as hens teeth, and from what I've seen I doubt I could afford a 240 in the kind of condition I could get a 2+2 in. So they seem the most economical entry into the zed car realms, even if it's not as shapely. Well I guess the longer I hold out the more I can save, so with every fortnight my budget grows slightly. (might as well keep at for a decade or so and buy a 350:D ) Oh and if anyone out there sees (or owns)a zed, any really, that they believe is nice, below the five grand mark and is somewhere in victoria please drop me a line. I know I need to see more quality cars to get some first hand knowledge, so any suggestions would be greatly appreiciated. thanks again for all your time. -David

here are the links to the pics: The whole car http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/entire.jpg Places where its been bogged, there is some lifiting of the paint and some good sized cracks http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/bog.jpg http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/bog2.jpg The bonnet rust with a nudge bar (ughh) http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/bonnet - nudge bar.jpg self explanitory http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/door rust.jpg This is the engine he had sprayed and polished http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/good eng.jpg There was some rust coming up through the carpet on the rear passenger footwell. http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/rust on carpet.jpg The underbody with some lovely white undercoat stuff, is this what should be there? http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/underbody.jpg a shot of the area next to the wheel http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/underside.jpg The was a spot of rust on the area above the tail light http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/tail light.jpg rust on the bottom of the door (eeeeek!!) http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/bottom of door rust.jpg interior shot http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/interior.jpg more rust (ughhh!) http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/more rust.jpg A few of shots of the engine bay, anything out of the ordinary? http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/eng bay.jpg http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/eng bay2.jpg http://home.iprimus.com.au/briggs79/eng bay 3.jpg If the pics need to be better qulaity just email me, and ill send a better pic to anyones email address. Thanks again.

Okay After driving and looking a fair bit this is what i can say. The car started alright after only a few goes (owner said he hadnt started it for a couple of months) there was no smoke from the exhaust when it did start. Using the battery from my parents volvo. It idled rough until it was warm when it smoothed out quite a lot. There was a fair bit of rust (most of which i captured on camera) but my mate went under the car with a screwdriver and said it was all pretty firm. We took it for a drive (3 in the car, ouch that backseat is squeezy!) without the owner and while the car ran alright it had really heavy steering. The owner said the tires were flat and that is why, but they weren't that bad, so i doubt pumping up the tires would do that much. it also had a blood curlding grind when shifting into second, so i think the gearbox is in need of some work. Although no other gears seemed that bad. hmmm, to be honest, i doubt we would have gone past 3rd, i dont even know if its a 5 speed, whoops. The interior was as i would expect for a 30 year old car with some major cracks in the dash, but alright everywhere else. The interior fan and brake lights weren't working though. The owner had 3 engines, 1 out of the car was being polished (outside), but he hadn't bored it out or anything, it had done under a hundered grand, while he said the one in the car had done 168k. The owner also had 240 carbs ready to install from another 260 engine. Aswell as a heap of other miscellaneous parts. He was asking $2700 a few months ago, so i guess i could get him quite a bit lower than that. My mate who has wokred on cars said that for my budget, $4500, i could get something better that would require less work, specifically getting it roadworthy (shocks springs etc.) and getting the gearbox fixed. While I dont want to agree with him, and was hoping to learn about the finer details of cars with this purchase I guess he has a very valid point. I will post links to the pics and put them in my own webspace, so stay tuned. There are too many to post in here. I guess my 3 main questions would be: How much would you pay? How much for a new/rebuilt gearbox? (or could I do it myself, if i take the time?) Is the sterring always like this? But please voice any opinion you have on the car, or my budget or whatever. Thanks so much for your time. (oh, i'm 19 and was wondering if anyone can comment on insurance rates or ocmpanies to use in australia, thanks) David

Whoops! I meant monday arvo, not today (sunday) sorry for my stupidity, but i will post a detailed desription and as many good pics as possible tomorrow.

hi all (first post so please be kind) Tomorrow I am going to test drive and have a thorough look at a 260 2+2 that is for sale near me. I am taking along 2 friends that are very cluey when it comes to cars, and they will be doing a lot of the looking. But I was hoping I could post some pics and details of the car tomorrow evening? Would this be possible, because I would really love some comments from zed owners. From what I have seen so far it has some rust, Im not sure how major it is, but the seller reckons he has enough parts for at least 3 cars in his backyard (i get it all if i buy). Thanks in advance, but please tell me if this is a forum 'no-no'. -David