Hello C-B!!!
Lord--what a question!!! Being fearless, I will tread where others
hesitate, and give you some hard numbers:

Under $500--parts car.
$500 to $1,000--runs, but needs damn near everything.
$1,000 to $2,000--sound operation; may look careworn OR rather sexy.
$2,000 to $3,000--Better be pristine condition, with the receipts
to prove it, AND should have an R-Sport instrument
cluster (IF you buy it and live with it awhile,
you'll learn what this means; by then, you'll
be ONE OF US!!! ONE OF US!!! ONE OF US!!!
That's from a light-hearted Tod Browning film.)

But remember--we are discussing a 30-YEAR-OLD mechanical device
here. The price is not the real issue. Are you buying from a friend
or stranger??? Are you mechanically inclined--a tinkerer--a wrenchhead???
Does it bother you if graying Yuppie neighbors with SUV'S mutter about"that
tacky Swedish heap in his driveway"??? Buy an SUV instead--then you
can be ONE OF THEM!!! ONE OF THEM!!! ONE OF THEM!!!
Is this to be your primary transportation, or a hobby/fun/restoration
fling??? If it's to be your primary ride--DON'T BUY IT!!! Do you
have any grasp of what that 'E' on the model number means??? It stands
for an antique system of German 'Einspritzen' fuel-injection termed 'D-Jetronic".
Even if you can afford to hire-out service chores, you'll find it
near impossible to locate a shop/technician who is competent with
this layout. All the experts are dead or in Rehab. You'll have to put in
the time/study/frustration to become an expert on it YOURSELF!!!
For comparison, imagine finding a tech/and/or parts to tend a 1985
Atari computer.
By now, you're asking, "What gives HIM the gall to take-up so much
of Cyber-Space with his jejune rantings??? Well . . . for one thing,
I bought a new 1.75 of Tanqueray today (The Brits may have wanked-away
their Empire, but they can still excrete that Life-Sustaining Gin.)
On the other hand (HA-HA), I've lived with three 164's over the last
25 years. WHY did I tolerate these museums-on-wheels??? Well, after
you gain a certain body-of-knowledge, there IS satisfaction in
knowing that you could perform a roadside repair on almost any area
of the thing--that's one advantage of 'antique' technology. And--
you don't see one of them driving toward you every two minutes in
the opposing lane.
Finally, even though I'm an OLD guy, I do enjoy the exchange/banter/
levity we share here, but I must . . . wait, where's my CIGAR . . .
WINONA STOLE IT!!! . . .but I must say . . . 122's are for arthritic
Hippies still listening to Jethro Tull 8-Tracks--with Birkenstocks.
Can the Old Cigar-Chomper still stir it up, or what???

Gary in Arizona

Engineering flaws? Well, the usual upright red block issues:
- timing gears can wipe out but won't destroy your engine, so it's more of a nuisance, and they'll usually give plenty of warning before leaving you stranded. Just the fibre wheel is about $66 from IPD or possibly cheaper elsewhere, and changing it is about as much work as a timing belt on a slanted red block.
- keep the oil changed frequently. Cam lubrication has never been a strong point of these blocks. With proper (clean) oil it'll be fine, neglect it at your peril.

The BW35 automatic gearbox doesn't seem to hold up very well, then again it'll probably do 150-200K, so that seems about on par with a lot of domestic gearboxes. The M400/M410 OD can get some bearing wear and get noisy, but fixing that is relatively cheap&easy. Due to the large, heavy clutch clutch cables on manuals are shorter lived than their 140 or 240 counterparts.

Comfort is as good as or better than a 140, noise level is down due to this big engine being better balanced and not needing to work quite as hard. I'm not a big fan of the gearing, you really want the OD, maybe even put in the lower geared automatic rear end to reduce highway RPM (at the expense of low end acceleration).

The main problem is that these engines are _heavy_ (450 lbs or so for a longblock, plus another 100 lbs worth of gearbox and another 50-100 lbs of ancilaries), so handling tends to be noticably understeered (until it snaps and goes oversteer). For throwing around on twisty country roads I feel much more secure in my 145 than in my 164. I don't think you'll have much problems if you drive it like a gentleman, but if you to do late night proficiency runs, get something else.

Oh, and mileage approaches that of an SUV.

All in all, not a bad highway cruiser, looks great, not so great to drive fast. And yes, walrus3 and I have different opinions on its handling. Then again, his has IPD bars if I remember correctly, and does handle better than mine.

Bram

Unlike Pete, I'm pretty happy with my 164, and I don't think it handles
like a pregnant hippo (although I haven't driven any hippos, pregnant
or otherwise).

I think the 164 is a good highway cruiser. Like Pete, I would definitely
beware of the automatic tranny, and with a standard or overdrive, expect
it to get noisy at 100K or so. (The noise does not seem to affect operation.)

BTW I have been driving my 164 since 1971. It was 2 years old when I got
it and now has 280,000 miles on it. Timing gears wipe out unless you get
the metal ones, but that will happen on any B16, B18, B20 or B30.

You'll probably also have to replace some suspension components, as on
any car. (ball joints, rubber bushings, etc.)

My first engine was removed at 204,000 because of suspected lower end
problems. Turned out it was a timing gear failure. It also needed a new
cam and lifters at that time but the lower end was literally like new, original
crank size and bearing clearances. Likewise the worst cylinder had 0.005"
wear on it so probably a new set of rings, cam and timing gear would have
put it in good shape. Since I had bought a good B30E engine I elected
to just put the other engine in.

Price depends on where you are, condition of the car, especially the interior
and presence or absence of rust.
--
George Downs, The "original" Walrus3, Bartlesville, Oklahoma

A 164 is a bad engineering flaw. It's a nice loking car that Volvo never developed properly. The engine is to heavy and it makes the car handle like a pregnant hippo. The rear cylinders overheat because of poor cooling. The Automatic version is prone to eating gear boxes, the non ovedrive cars are undergeared. Personally the only version I'd consider is a fuel injection overdrive car.

It's an old man who smokes cigars kind of a car.

Regards


Pete