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ANSWER Very first task to start with on new to me Volvo 200 1990

posted by  RFORT on  Sat Aug 3 21:29 CST 2013
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last visit: Sat Aug 3 23:32 CST 2013
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Don't know if anyone else mentioned this, but I'd say learn about the "Flame Trap," which is the positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) system on this car, first. Failure to keep this thing clean will cause oil seals on the engine to start leaking, then the car will start running low on oil (which your son may not notice, unless he's an OCD car nut like me) and then the engine will start running hot and the result will be out-of-round pistons, which will make a clacking sound like a diesel engine until the engine warms up. This was the first lesson I learned about Volvo 240s. This condition, called "piston-slap" will not, I've been told, by itself wreck the engine, but it is annoying.

Get a copy of the Bentley book on 240 Volvo maintenance (not Bentley the car, Bentley the publisher) because this book is THE book for 240 maintenance. IPD has it. Who is IPD? Below is a list of places I get parts for my '88 240, which I've had since 2001.

http://www.ipdusa.com - pricey, but very knowledgeable, and will give tech advice over the phone

http://www.eeuroparts.com/ - a good place to get OEM and aftermarket Volvo parts

http://www.fcpgroton.com/ - another place to get OEM and aftermarket Volvo parts

http://www.revolvstore.com/ - a Volvo junkyard and repair shop in Tucson, AZ. I visited there a couple of times a few years ago, and they told me that they could (and did) restore 240 Volvos to factory specs. They sell hard to find items, as well as the usual stuff.

One thing I've learned about the Volvo 240 is that it is very intelligently designed, and it is designed (for the most part) to be easy to maintain. Most of the repairs and maintenance items are thing that an owner can do by him/herself. After working on these cars for a while you (or he) will begin to get a feel for the sort of "Volvo logic" that went into them. For me, working on 240 Volvos has been a good and an empowering experience. I'm not a mechanic by trade.

Good luck and congratulations. I've been driving my '88 240 since 2001, and it runs strong and very dependably.

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