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There are several things I would do with this car.
I would take out the distributor and make sure that everything
in it is working correctly; I'd set the point gap to whatever is
correct for that distributor. This car does not have electronic
ignition, it has what's called "kettering ignition" where there
is a thingy in the distributor that bonks open and closed a little
clapper thingy. When the clapper thingy closes it causes
the coil to generate the high voltage that surges through the
rotor, through the cap, through the spark plug wires, and into the
spark plug. Each time this voltage jumps from place to place it
takes a little bit of material from one end and sticks it on the
other side. This is what wears rotors and caps in semi-modern
cars and points, rotors, and caps on older cars.
I've never had a rotor or cap go bad. I've replaced them, just
because, and it has never improved anything. I have had points get
screwed up because the little clapper thingy was no longer clapping
and if your points don't open and close or open and close for a
very tiny period of time, you will get either no or extremely
weak spark. (the amount of spark you get is determined by how long
the points are open). I believe this is called dwell. There are
good descriptions of the ignition process and how to adjust points
and all that. I use to replace points but now I just use sand
paper.
With your car, I would also inspect very carefully the old
spark plugs. Those fuel injection systems are very good and
efficient but have some irritating failure modes. I would inspect
the wires and make sure that none of them are brittle or
shorted; I would also make sure that everything that should be
grounded is properly grounded. Also inspect anything related
to the fuel hoses -- old rubber cracks when it gets old and
fuel + high pressure (for fuel injection) + cracked and weak
fuel hose = giant flaming disaster. If you replace the fuel
hoses, be very careful to use only hose clamps and fuel hose
rated for fuel injection application.
If your car as an automatic transmission, you should budget
replacing the fluid pretty often. Find someone who works on
old jaguars since those used the same sort of transmission.
They will best know how to keep your transmission alive. Also
inspect the radiator and the transmission cooler lines to
make sure there are no breaks or such -- you don't want
transmission fluid in the radiator and even more important you
don't want radiator fluid in the transmission.
Lastly you will want to use a good quality oil in the motor
to insure that the lifters and cam remain healthy. Also you
should check to make sure that the valves are properly adjusted.
If the valves are too tight (a common mistake; people tighten
the valves until they stop clattering) the exhaust valves don't
close long enough to cool off (remember they spend much of their
time in the direct aftermath of the exploding fuel) and can
crack. There are good write-ups on how to adjust the valves.
All this may sound scary and complex. I own a 164 and love it.
In the past 2 months I've checked the oil levels 5 times and I
haven't looked at the spark plugs in 5 months. I think I adjusted
the valves about a year ago (I do it every other time I change the
oil, which is about 2 times every 3 years; I use mobil 1 and change
the filter every 8 months or so). I think I adjusted the points
about 15 months ago; I'd have to check my logs to be sure. My
point is that this car requires some tinkering and adjustment but
not much. My car has been 100% reliable except for the worn out
clutch which I knew was wearing out for months before it finally
started slipping in 4th on hills. There are reasons why I would
buy and drive a different car, but the time I spend keeping my car
correctly tuned is not one of those reasons. The 164 is the best
car volvo ever made; enjoy it.
chris
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