Well, a friend of mine did just that. His elderly mother was driving it to os Angeles from SF and fell asleep at the wheel with him in the car, they ran off the road and through some cattle fences. Escaped unharmed but the car was totaled. Undercarriage badly racked up and every painted inch scratched bumped and bruised. The insurance totaled it. It only had about 45k on it, she had purchased it new, back in Sweden in '84.

The guy had an emotional attachment to this car, and did "whatever it took" to get it fixed up as new. He let me drive it recently and it is "as new". Keeps it that way too, with towels all over the seats. White is my favorite color for these (it highlights their looks and body trim) and it has a gold cloth interior. Every thing is now mint, mint mint.

I am the only one of his friends who think he did well to fix this car up.

This may be, because I am the only one of them who owns a Volvo also. I wish he put the 1986 up headlights on it though. He didn't, says they get fogged up.

(I say to that, you could replace them.)

Especially this guy. When his parents died through stocks and Real Estate he became an instant millionaire. Imagine that!

He could buy ANY new car he wants for cash today! But insists on driving a junker to work. And saving the Volvo for Special Occasions.

He has a long daily commute. The Volvo would be perfect for it. Instead, he uses a ragged 1983 Chevy Citation he bought new and has 140k on it today.

To see the Volvo today it looks to be as perfect a specimen of an '85 Volvo 240 sedan you will find. Maybe no airbags and ABS, but - to me, I would think each day gone buy makes it seem like a not so bad idea to have spent all those dollars after all...

'91 740 sedan

'01 C70 HPT turbo coupe

and a '91 Mercedes Benz 560SEC coupe

Way off topic:

I noticed you have an MB. Are there any good brickboard like sites out there? I've been looking around and I can't find anything. Also I'm on the prowl for a 300TD (wagon) around 30 yrs old , seen anything?

p.s. $8000.00 is a great price for a reliable solid car that you know and trust. Personally I wouldn't spend more than 1K on a '80s volvo.

patrick try mercedesshop.com

I don't think I would have done it, but I understand the attachment. Besides, I presume he got a check from the insurance company that offset his cost alittle.

Sure, I'd through $8000 worth of motor into a 240 if I really like it.

'86-on headlights throw bad, (usually) dim light and because it's all plastic, they can't handle high wattage bulbs w/o melting. Plus they turn foggy or yellow, and sometimes collect condensation. I don't mind the look, but only with the e-code glass lights that have metal reflectors and H4 bulbs.

Well...

No.

Even though he overspent, in my opinion, he still is being savvy about his cars. I guess mom & dad taught him something about money. Funny, I bet a lot of people see him driving his citation and laugh at the busted-out loser at the wheel. Of course perhaps he's not awash in debt to every credit company in the United States, scratching to pay a $700 lease payment for a new car, etc. In short, his daily driver might be a POS but he certainly has the dollars to buy ANY car he wants. If he actually wanted to show people what his story was all about.

So, at $8500, he might have spent a LOT on an old 240, but as far as cars are concerned, he's barely spent anything at all.

1 - Any money not *needed* (given, the list of necessities is a great deal longer than many people think) is to spend on what you want. My family calls it 'f.o. money.' Maybe you want to buy a big, new and probably ugly house. Maybe you want to see the world. How much money does someone make back on a trip to Tibet? Nobody's bidness.

2. Doesn't sound like he was spending money that was needed.

3. Can he get the 'investment' back? Not likely. Why should he? A friend of mine and his extended family pulled a '30s jalopy out of the barn for a frame-up restoration. It was the first car the grandparent's had owned. The keys were handed to them on their 50th anniversary -- they were floored, of course. Car isn't worth a tenth of what it cost to restore. So what.

4. What Chris Herbst said. $8k is not much for an as-new car, esp. compared to a new car. Not paying interest and depreciation saves a ton of dough. So what if I don't have OnStar. I got a map, and an extra $700-$800 a month to sock away, since I don't pay interest OR comp/collision. Plus, I *like* driving a beater. I hate car-class-conciousness. No one breaks into my car. Those pesky good-looking college girls leave me alone, at least while I am driving. My old pickup that was beat all to hell and missing the grill got me *plenty* of room on the freeway. (My wife's car is a nice-looking 240, so I get the best of both worlds.)

5. I am really jealous of this guy.