My radiator finally gave up .
I suspect, against some odds, that it may even be the original . I got the car a few years ago from the original owner with 66,000 carefully maintained miles on . And have since hit 125,000 . Original or not I'm sure it's lasted quite a while and, particularly after digging around here, I'm inclined to attempt to replace it with another Volvo rad. . But .. No one seems to know which one to put on it .
I started with the part # from the one in my car ( 1266686 ) which comes up as still available, but, for an astronomical $964.39 ( seriously ? ) . I called the local dealer to see if that was true . His price was a little cheaper ( $918.something ) but he said the listing, oddly, did not show what vehicle that was intended for . OK .
I've tried a few other part numbers that seem to be related and/or possibly interchangeable and everything that registers as a living, breathing part # is in the $900-800 range . What ?
Tasca Volvo in Rhode Island said they had something for $185 but were reluctant to give up a part number which made me reluctant to pay freight and wait for it ( I'm in Michigan ) .
One of my usual, local, and reliable suppliers, Swedish Engineering, is still working on the case . The first part they were looking at came up as not available in the US, no-dice if you want it in Sweden either, apparently .

Blah blah . Sorry to run on . I'm stumped .

Does anybody out there...
A. know of a good working Volvo part number for vehicles from this era ?
B. or, have a recommendation for a strong, non-Volvo replacement ( I have been through the archives here a bit . Just want to get vehicle-specific )?
C. it seems that the "Tropical" radiator option might be available. Any issue running that in a climate where it is more regularly frosty than it is tropical ? Doesn't sound good to me .

Any feedback greatly appreciated . I'm running out of time .
Thanks all ,
Christopher Rewalt