1984 Volvo 240

Sedan

2.3L

Automatic

YV1AX8843E1953139

Clear

Gasoline

Bought this vintage Volvo from a mechanic in 2012. Had a number of mechanical issues from the start but we did a bunch of work and got her to a state where she was road worthy. She was a daily driver until about three months ago. Cosmetically this car is in fantastic shape. On the interior the leather has one small crack on the drivers seat, and some wear but all the seats are still very comfy and over-all look decent. The dash and interior cloth are in good shape. The lower interior plastic storage compartments on the front doors are both intact, but both are cracked. All the gauges, warning lights, solenoids, and electrical bits work. The dome light works but does not come on with the front doors, only the back doors actuate the switch (or manually turning it to the "on" position). The headlights, blinkers, brake lights, hazards etc all work fine. All the electric windows and switches work, but the rear windows are not in a race to close. Like everything else, those window motors are 30 years old and tired, the switch contacts could be cleaned again too. The power locks still work well by key and manually but they should be greased. New tires bought at the end of December, they probably have less than 200 miles on them... On the exterior there are only a couple of spots. The driver-side rear fender just behind the wheel has the only "real" rust, about the size of a couple nickels next to each other. We just found this recently. The sunroof (manual) works well, but at some point it did not and has some scratches on the paint where it was scraping along in and out. Other than that, aesthetically she is a slough of compliments just waiting to be garnered. The issues are mechanical. The New: plugs, wires, distributor cap, rotor, timing belt, exhaust system, radiator, overdrive solenoid, and we recently replaced the starter (for no apparent reason). Engine: she has water in the oil. Based on the progressively deteriorating behavior leading to this most recent discovery, we believe that is a component issue such as a busted water pump that has led to the current situation, as it had been mysteriously using water while it sat for the past few months. The bottom bolt on the timing belt cover is a bit rusty, this is located very close to the water pump so I thought it worth mentioning. The Lambda-sond warning light is on (fuel injection) and has been since we got her. We have not pulled the injectors to pop test, and the valves tap at high rpm. We do have new Injectors in case they are bad but have not done any of this top end engine work. The Front Brakes are going bad again. The brake lines have all been cleaned and/or replaced. The brake line junction has been removed and cleaned but the warning light is still always lit, might be a bad sensor? We have new vented rotors, calipers and pads for the front to swap on, but have not done so because... The front McPherson Struts are tired. The Rear Shocks aren't great either. We have the heavy duty versions of both (sold at rockauto.com) but again, have not done the work. The Rack-n-Pinion is also garbage. In the end, she is a beautiful vintage Volvo, and it makes us very sad to see her go, but we have other projects looming. She needs a good home with someone to love her, and spend more time with her than we can... and not be melted down in china.