I've been driving an '86 240 for fifteen years. For the last couple of years I've been doing all the maintenance on it (thanks to Brickboard)! My wife now wants a newer car, and I've managed to convince her that a 940 would be good. (Since I've learned that for the most part it's the same as a 240, so I know I should be able to maintain it).

I went to look at a 93 940 today. It has about 270,000 km on it (22k km / 14k miles per year isn't surprising), but it looked to be in great shape. About the only thing that didn't appear to work was the air conditioning (a little hard to tell in this cold weather). It ran a little rough at first, but seemed to have good kick when I punched it.

It'll cost me 4,000 Canadian safety-checked and smog tested if I want it. This includes a one-year warranty on the engine and transmission. I have only one major concern. I didn't find out it was a turbo until I got there. I've been warned not to get a 16 valve, so I know I'm OK on that one, but I've also heard recommendations to stay away from turbos, so I'm interested to get feedback on whether I should be concerned about this.

I plan to do a compression check on the engine, but are there any particular recommendations on how I can verify the state of the turbo operation with some simple checks? I've never dealt with a turbo before.

Thanks,

David

In viewing the ministry info. you don't have to buy the info pack the selleris requierd by law to provide you with it,saving you the 20bucks.I see your in a deep freeze of minus 22c,I'm in minus 31 c without the wind chill.
Check the AC using a thermometer stuck into the dash vents.This is the only way to determine if is giving the proper temp setting and wil not tell oyu if the system leaks.To do this in the winter its best to do it in a garage ventalating all the exhaust outside.If your really cocerned and paying for a car that is to AC do it because I was suckered into believing AC was working on my 740 for 20,000 CDN. nearly new and my wife never let me live down being the so called car buff I am. Wish you luck.Dieter

In the desciption you gave it sounds very good.The price is right assuming you live in southern Ontario cosidering you're going to get an e-test.Irreguardless
of where in Canada its an excellent price especially with warranty on engine and trany for a year.Like the previous post said ckeck what ever documentation you can.Starting with the person,dealer previous volvo dealer or Volvo Canada by means of the serial number.For 20 bucks at the Ministry of Transportation they will give you an info pack with history of previous owners,accidents and if there is alien against the car.You should do the latter to save yourself alot of grief.Ckeck the turbo real good,there is grand worth of work if there is a problem.The ac work is usally a grand,get a leak down test to determine.
It,s probably the condensor 300 bucks,ac pipes oem volvo 100 bucks each.Don,t change the evaporator its fine I never did in either my 960 or 740 just my opinion of course.The hall sensor on the distributor could ready to be changed because of the time frame but won,t now until it gives you starting preblems.
Make sure you have a good cap and rotor before driving off the lot, just these 2 items oem volvo $150.I got oem bosch after market for half.Check your lower ball joint $100.ea. and the inner, outer tie rod ends.Check the Carriage housing for the independant rear suspension on my 960 its rusting and starting to flake in layers.I'm told these cost $1000.,I never checked myself.Sorry if I,m ramballing they will let everything pass for Mechanical except for exhaust,getting by with minimum specks to save themselves a ton of money and month or 2 later your foken over.Overall a wise choice a great car.
P.S. just to satisfie yourself on the price value hit all Ontario and British Columbia (vancouver) on www.trader.ca and you,ll be surprised and won't squawk much about the price.

I did plan to get the UVIP from the Ministry. What's your experience with Volvo Canada and/or dealers in giving out comprehensive maintenance records?

How do I "check the turbo real good", past what Chris's advice:

to check it "isn't smoking (exhaust), noisy (grinding/scraping sound under boost), leaking bad (more then just wet on the bottom), and it boosts strongly"?

Re: the cap and rotor - you scared me! The Bosch parts are $40 US total from FCP Groton

And autotrader.ca - that's where I found it!

Thanks for your input.

Hi again.The ministry pack will show you all the previous owners so you start with that to find out service history if you don,t have any last dealer history.I used to work a dealer 20 years ago. Serial number gives you access to what build destination world wide and also parts ordering is easier if you want to be 100% right on. Years ago volvo used to have different this and that on the 240's and made it especially difficult walking in to buy parts.Now thats all said its not like that today the number is there if required.With serial number in hand Volvo Canada can tell you what dealer it was shipped to and who bought it.Now a days they might not tell you the person who bought because of our information privacy act.I was assuming this is a Canadian car because the price quoted for the car was CDN.$ but I'm wondering because of your parts souce being USA. To be honest your price US is almost as good as mine when converted into CDN.$ but I get jobber price here in Canada and don't have all the hassels,ordering,shipping,brokerage and fees etc.If you live in Canada you'll be Quite impressed to find out that "Canadian Tire" has lots of what you need. Sometimes parts are in stock or have access to get em within a few hours or days and not bad prices? but most of all, the parts are brand name Euro,US or Canadian.I'm going to be honest and give you no bull,sorry I don't have a clue how to properly check the turbo.Find out because I do Know from a friend there costly to repair.

Love my 93 940 T and it is the best Volvo I have had, starting since 1967, including a lot of Volvo's, 122 and up. Turbo's are no problem, just do the maintenance. Buying a used one can be more expensive, but once you go through it and "zero time" all the parts, it will go on and on.

Have fun,

dick

Hi David,

I wouldn't be afraid of the turbo IF it has been well maintained. Any service records? If they don't have any, check for the service book in the glovebox. You may also be able to find out where it has been serviced and get records from them. The oil should have been changed at least every 8K km. Maybe a little longer if synthetic oil was used. My '91 B230FT was rebuilt at 260K km due to oil leaks and loud piston slap (shouldn't be a problem in a '93+), other then that, it ran pretty good for the mileage. The turbo is still original and working great @ 291K km. Oil leaks may be an issue at that mileage, I guess the worst would be the headgasket or turbo. Other then that, these cars seem to often incounter their "mid-life crisis" around 250K km (shocks, seals, front end bushings and joints, cooling system, etc) Not a big worry, but might take an investment of time and money (worth it). Some things may have already been done on that car at 270K. If the turbo isn't smoking (exhaust), noisy (grinding/scraping sound under boost), leaking bad (more then just wet on the bottom), and it boosts strongly, then it should be fine. The most important things with turbos are clean oil and "cool downs" after hard driving. The A/C probably doesn't work, common in 700s and 900s (and FWD Volvos too). Probably a leak (would need a dye test to find the leak), or the seal at the back of the compressor ('93s have a different compressor then the earlier ones though, so I'm not sure about that one). Expect A/C problems in any 700 or 900 :( My '91 745T does have working A/C though :) I assume you've checked the 700/900 FAQ here, LOTS of info there. $4000 CDN doesn't sounds fine if it's in good shape and shows that it's been cared for. If it was rough, or just average, I'd try to bargin with any problems I found. Also, check for rust (shouldn't be a problem) and wet carpets > water leaks. Good luck!
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Chris. Halifax N.S. '91 745Ti, 291K km and '91 745 NA, 386K km.

Chris:

Thanks for the feedback. Re: the turbo checks:

noisy (grinding/scraping sound under boost) - I have no experience with turbos. I take it these sounds would be easily noticed while driving?

leaking bad (more then just wet on the bottom) - I only looked briefly at the turbo section. Are you suggesting that there should be no more than a thin film of oil on the bottom of the canister-like unit between the air filter and intake manifold?

and it boosts strongly - are you judging this from the gauge and/or the pull of the engine?

David

N/A cars are easier to maintain: there is just less stuff in the way. On road trips I can average 28mpg if I'm not trying to set a new land speed record and my car has 254K. It has the original turbo and I use regular oil. However I think $3200us/4000cdn is a bit steep for a 940 that old although you are getting a warranty. I think the turbos are great but I am biased towards the extra hp's. If your wife will never notice the difference and you will be doing the repairs then maybe a N/A car would be the way to go.

JS

The turbos in 940s are as solid as you can get for a turbo. Turbos are zoom-zoom, power when you need it. Life, 125 to 250++ miles. More complaints, including from my son, about lower gas mileage, than anything else. Say 22 in a T compared to 26MPG in a na. The stock tranny does not have the lock-up (5th gear kind of). Those that have put in lock-up are a little bothered by the shifts in and out of lock-up. It is a trade off, spunk and a little more in maintenance costs vs. MPGs. Turbos are hard on dino oil therefore synthetic should be used for longer life. Choice is yours.

Check the FAQ.
http://www.brickboard.com/FAQ/700-900/EngineTurbo.htm#Turbo_Expiration
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Tom F. Couple of Volvos Mods, RainX & cup holders.