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You will find that the interior materials on the 700s are not as good as the 240s, you may for instance need to replace the headliner. Plastic trim may be broken or cracked, these can be replaced along with seat cushions if you have a good junkyard source.
If possible check the following:
Engine - check compression of each cylinder if possible, they should read 150-180 lbs and be within 10-15% of eachother. A cylinder with very low compression usually means bad or burnt valves or pistons, both requiring at least a head removal. Adjacent bad cylinders can mean a bad head gasket requiring head removal. Check the oil for cleaniness. Check exhaust for smoke upon start up, normal running, heavy use or acceleration, and backing off.
Turbo - For someone used to a normal Volvo, the turbo can hide alot. The engine will seem to be very strong but can have problems. When cold (the only time to get near a turbo) pull the lower hose (from the air cleaner) at the turbo and check the compressor impeller for free spinning, clearance, and by trying to push from side to side for wobble. Take a look at this lower hose for oil within the hose - means leaking or worn oil seals in the turbo and deteriorates the hoses. Carefully check all the rubber hoses from the air cleaner to the turbo, from the turbo to the intercooler, and from the intercooler to the throttle plate for holes or weak spots. Holes and leaks in these hoses can have a profound effect on engine performance and these hoses are only available from a Volvo dealer at considerable cost. A hole between the turbo and the intake manifold will result in an engine that runs rich under boost and appears to be blown. (Don't want to give you any price lowering ideas). A hole between the air cleaner and the turbo will produce a lean running engine with perhaps interior damage.
Chassis - check for straight tracking, steering and braking. The 700 has a vastly superior ride compared to the 240s so don't be fooled because the ride is better than you are used to. Check for odd noises, thumps, and etc from the suspension which could indicate bad bushings. Check the shocks. If the autotranny shifts hard take a look at the mount that lies within the crossover member at the rear of the tranny. It is a relatively easy and cheap fix if you do it yourself but a bad one can produce clunky shifts and chassis noise.
Guages - the voltage should be out of the red at about 11-12 o'clock, the temp is normally about 12 o'clock at normal operating temp. The boost guage should go to 1-2 o'clock at stock full boost.
Normal Functions - The Volvo has a fuel shut off at 12.5-13 lbsof boost, or about 3 o'clock and an rpm limiter at about 5700-6000rpm so don't be fooler by these. If you do get boost shut off it means the turbo wastegate is not operating or has been messed with - both mean a previous owner didn't know sh_t and could have resulted in engine damage.
Check the FAQ sections for more details.
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