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I am new to Volvo's too since my dad just gave me his old 1985 740 Turbo (77,000 miles), but I have done a lot of work on it myself to get the bugs out of it. It's pretty easy to work on if I can figure it out since I have not done much auto repairs, but I am an electrical engineer so the electrics are easy for me. This board is a huge help; the only manual I have is haynes.
Anyhow, I thought I would mention that I had the brake light problem too when I got the car, and it cost me about $300 to fix it because the tail light plastic housing was actually melted from heat. Both complete tail light assembly's had to be replaced. I noticed that the new ones from Volvo have an aluminum plate over the main brake light socket. This would act like a heat sink so they must have had a problem in the past with the plastic melting. Once the housing melts the spring loaded sockets cause the shape to deform beyond repair unless you actually rewire the sockets by hand - too much trouble for me.
That was actually the most expensive thing to fix yet on mine and I have replaced a bunch of things: radiator, belts, hoses, thermostat, heater valve,heater hoses, distributor, and now I have to change the muffler and harmonic balancer (crankshaft pulley) about $1000 to get it back in tip top shape.
If it were me, the thing I would want to check is the compression and whether the oil had been changed frequently. You may end up having to change the engine wiring harness if the insulation has deteriorated too much (about 300). The FAQs here will tell you most everthing you need to stay on top of, but it takes a while to digest if you are new to the car like me. Take the time to read them though because it will help you a lot.
Cheers
Randy
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