I'm looking at getting a 1984 diesel GLE with 175,000 miles, but I know little to nothing about the performance (ha!), longevity, or how easy these cars are to maintain, repair, etc. I'd love to hear what anybody has to say about volvo's diesels.

thanks,


SkaBoss

I love my '84 240 diesel ( but then again , nobody's ever accused me of having any sense).
I rescued mine from a junkyard and it runs great after extensive TLC.
Heres the problems: some moron at Volvo came out with a 7500 mile oil change interval on these things, which is about 6000 more than you shoild run on regular oil without extra bypass filters , and on lousy US fuel.
When these things get around 120,000 or so the rings all start gumming up and eventually they loose compression and wont start anymore.
I have found something that will unstick the rings :Ol Schlamm Spulung, by Liqui Moly will clean them up and restore much of the compression ( Mine blew a Qt oil every 30 miles when I got it, Now I can go about 800 on a qt and running better every day)running on synthetic also helps continual cleaning( Yes I sel Amsoil , but the stuff really works)
In Europe where diesel mechanics grow on trees , it's not a problem, but in the US getting one fixed is almost impossible( there are only 3 runnindg diesels in my state , and the dealer can get no parts , and knows nothing about them , and the VW specialty shop is scarred of them and won't touch)
When I bought mine I soon discovered that I had been elected the statewide Volvo diesel expert...by default.

Diesels are best left to us nutcases that just like to tinker with things, but If you just have to have one first make sure you have a nearby liberal minded VW diesel mechanic who will work on it.
And even if you don't work on it , if you ever leave town you need to own all the specialty tools ( about $550.00 worth )and keep them in the trunk in cas you have a simple breakdown on the road, because US mechanics don't have the proper tools , and won't get them to fix the thing properly( the PO of mine basically junked the car after a simple pump belt replacement in a hick town where it didnt get timed properly.

All that said, mine now purrs like a kitten, has 226,000 Mi. gets 36-38 mgp, and starts on glow plugs at 12 deg.f with no block heater without any problems( with Amsoil fuel additive)
Maintnence is not overly difficult but impossible without the proper tools( available from www.baumtools.com and www.etoolcart.com )do you own a torque wrench that goes up to 350 ft lbs?
Also keep in mind that I had years of experience with heavy diesel trucks.

Only buy it if you promise to love, honor, and obey it!! Also if you don't have any aversion to climbing hills in the truck lane while the rest of the world flies past (don't worry, you can catch them again on the downhill!).
Having had an 85 gas and two 82 diesel 240 wagons, the diesels have a lot more personality and seem more reliable (opinion only--no hard data to back it up!). Diesels are a lot less maintenance intensive -- if you keep the oil changed and the air filter and belts replaced regularly, they stay pretty happy. My first diesel had 290+,000 before the heater motor caught fire and destroyed the interior.

I agree with everything you said.

Tools are also available from Snap-On but they go by the name VW and Audi tools in their catalogue. The pump timing tools and cam setting gauge are the same as for the VW 4 banger. Most of the parts can be obtained from your Bosch service shop at a better price than from Volvo. The one Volvo item I recommend is the factory shop manual for the engine.

Here in the US, I was able, with the Volvo Manual and Snap-On tools, to have it running better than any "mechanic" that took my $.

Mine was running fine at 200K miles when the body started to get rusty from NE salted roads.
--
'96 965 at 89K. Had '85 745 Turbo Diesel for 200K.

Unless you are a true blooded die hard diesel man,FORGET ABOUT IT..
Look for something more DYI friendly..Good Luck.
--
ReySC..'86 744 GLE ..'94 944 T

If you're in the US, forget about it. Low sulfur fuels and impossible-to-find parts and expert labor make it a bad choice. Better would be a gas engine, and it'll last longer anyway.

I had one for 250,000 miles, so it's possible to get more miles out of that car. But it has to have the right care to get that far.
--
chris herbst, five volvos.

It's a Volvo modified version of a veedub unit. I think it was based on the 4 pot vee dub and Volvo, in their infinite wisom, decided to inflict an extra pot on us.
Spares would be my main concern. New spares are hideously expensive (figure over £500 UK for a Diesel pump) and used spares are rare and usually knackered anyway.

Regards,

Big Rich.
--
'86 245, B230A. 161k. Old 200s never die, they just live on in other cars.

The Diesel 240 is a VW engine. Old Rudolph Diesel invented a darn good engine, but there are some caveats. First it takes a whopping high compression ratio to work. That means that if the cam drive timing belt goes out, the engine is demolished. Had a friend to whom that happened. Broke the cam into 5 pieces, bent the crank, junked the car.

That's one reason that Volvo Diesels become Volvo 284s (V-8 conversion).

Second, the engine must be strong to handle that, so if you keep the maintenance tip top (and the PO did also) it can last a loooooooong time. That means regular oil/filter changes with good oil like Shell Rotella or ask Paul S. about a synthetic for Diesel.

Third, lousy acceleration, but highway cruising for bloody ever.

Await posts from those with personal experience B4 buying.

Regards,

Bob

:>)

Instead of a V8 conversion, would a VW TDI engine drop in to a Volvo with a dead diesel engine? Nearly as much power as a B21F, much more torque, and 40-50 mpg would sound pretty attractive. http://www.tdiclub.com for more about these engines.

Oils made for diesel engines in the United States carry the API CH-4 rating, indicating better soot handling capability. These usually come in 15W-40 (Mobil Delvac 1300, Shell Rotella T, Chevron Delo 400), or 5W-40 for synthetics (e.g. Mobil Delvac 1, Shell Rotella T Synthetic, Chevron Delo Synthetic). The non-synthetic diesel oils are fairly commonly available, but you may have to look around for the synthetics (Wal Mart has the Shell Rotella T Synthetic; for the others, you may have to call truck stops or places listed under "oil" in the phone book). Oil for diesel engines is a commonly discussed topic on http://www.tdiclub.com (Mobil Delvac 1 is the favorite there).

aren't vdubs front drive?

Yes, recent VWs are front (or all) wheel drive (the air cooled ones were rear wheel drive). However, VW engines have been mounted both transversely and longitudinally in VWs, and have been put in rear wheel drive Volvos (the diesel ones) and VWs (Vanagon diesel had a Rabbit diesel engine in back). So theoretically a TDI conversion may be doable (and given that a V8 fits in a Volvo, the size of the engine should not be a problem). Of course, reality may be more difficult than theory.

Turn the FWD engine through 90 degrees so it's fore and aft and mate it to the brick gearbox. Might require some adaptors machining to for the bell housing but this can be done if you've got the sponduliks. Engine mounts will require some cunning welding, but not too difficult. Nissan diesel conversions are offered by a firm in the UK, so there's another potential source of oil burning motors. I cannae see the point really. I'd have thunk that the fuel saving would be offset by the extra maintenance required.

Regards,

Big Rich.
--
'86 245, B230A. 161k. Old 200s never die, they just live on in other cars.

If you do attempt this, Vw has a great habit of making its engines somewhat interchangeable, as far as application in a lot of its vehicles. If you were to have problems mounting a TDI for a rear-driver, look for motor mounts and cheap ideas from either a Fox or a Quantum. The engines in both of these are long-ways, even though they're front-drivers. I've done a conversion with a Fox from its standard 4 cylinder/4spd to a VW 16 valve/5spd, and maybe the similarities in the mounting of the blocks to the vehicle may carry over to the diesel and help you too. Furthermore, an old Quantum Syncro (all wheel drive) or Audi 5000 might help with ideas for a rear-drive application.

Don't the new generation of diesels (VW included) use that new fangled direct injection/common rail technology? You would have to find a way to adapt this system to the Volvo.