Think I'm selling the car...

Dont give up now. I got a 97 parts car and if I can help let me know. It's in North Carolina though.
 
Jamie when can you work on it?

The car has 131,000 on it (I've put 11,000 on it since I've owned it)

I would get a hell of a lot more than $1500 around here. I sold my wifes 98 Buick Regal LS that was quite beat with 160,000 miles on it for $2800 6 months ago. So I don't think I'll have much of a problem getting $3000 for it.

Thanks for all the advice guys. I just really need to ponder on this one.
 
Get the Mark VIII running smooth then sell it and buy a commuter car.
You're out of love with the car. It'll just continue to piss you off in the future.

A Toyota Tercel will get you about 35 mpg around here and cost the same as the Mark VIII. We're in Florida, there's an infinite number of small, rust free, clean, though high mileage, cheap cars available around here.
 
I would get a hell of a lot more than $1500 around here. I sold my wifes 98 Buick Regal LS that was quite beat with 160,000 miles on it for $2800 6 months ago. So I don't think I'll have much of a problem getting $3000 for it.

Wow, I should be able to get $6k for mine then. Can't see getting $3k for a car that runs like ass.
 
Get the Mark VIII running smooth then sell it and buy a commuter car.
You're out of love with the car. It'll just continue to piss you off in the future.

A Toyota Tercel will get you about 35 mpg around here and cost the same as the Mark VIII. We're in Florida, there's an infinite number of small, rust free, clean, though high mileage, cheap cars available around here.

You're probably right. What kills me is I spend all of this money and it still doesn't run right. I originally was going to swap to a C head setup and it would have included the intake manifold so it would have fixed all the stuff I did. It was going to cost me $2500 including parts and labor to do the whole thing. In hindsight I really wish I would have paid for that to be done instead. Now I'm no better than I was at the start and I've got nothing to show for. That's what pisses me off.

You know what they say, trust your instincts...mine told me to go with C heads. Shame on me for not listening to them again!

I'm looking at a Volvo S70 T5 manual. They push 236hp 240tq to the fly, and with a cpu and exhaust change they put out 310hp & 309tq at the fly. I've found one that is going for a hair under $4000. They guy will finance me so I'm thinking of taking that route. My wife has the same car except the GLT model which has a light pressure turbo as opposed to the high pressure turbo in the t5. She has great luck with her car. She's only had to do a few minor things to it. If I sell the car and part out some of the stuff I have I can evenly swap for the Volvo.
 
derek i hate to tell you but you would see ice in hell before you would get 3 g's for your car around here with the problems you have, no way no how. it runs like ass,your air bag light is flashing, you get dummy lights in it and the roof and trunk need to be repainted, blend door is broken and as far as i know your ac doesnt work unless you got it fixed, you would be lucky if you got 1500 for it in the condition its in right now. there are marks on craigslist right now that are in better condition with less miles for less than 3 g's! listen if you want me to work on it this coming weekend and wreck my chances of seeing that NSRA show in tampa i will do it but the conditions are you drop it off friday night and leave it for me to take my time on, i dont want any help, and i dont want to be bothered and feel like its a rush job. i will work on it friday after work and either have it done that night or saturday but i dont want you leaning over my shoulder while i fix it no offense to you i like to be left alone thats all. if that will work for you than drop it off friday or even thursday if you dont need it friday.
 
These cars went for 38k-40k new! Now they aren't even worth 10 percent of that! If they were easy and trouble free, evryone would have one for the price they are now! They need upkeep and good maintence done on them and that's not even 100 percent of failure! Once you get the bugs worked out of them, they are great cars! Sometimes you just got to know your limits and if it worth the bs! Only you can decide that. Do what is best foryou and your budget.
 
derek i hate to tell you but you would see ice in hell before you would get 3 g's for your car around here with the problems you have, no way no how. it runs like ass,your air bag light is flashing, you get dummy lights in it and the roof and trunk need to be repainted, blend door is broken and as far as i know your ac doesnt work unless you got it fixed, you would be lucky if you got 1500 for it in the condition its in right now. there are marks on craigslist right now that are in better condition with less miles for less than 3 g's! listen if you want me to work on it this coming weekend and wreck my chances of seeing that NSRA show in tampa i will do it but the conditions are you drop it off friday night and leave it for me to take my time on, i dont want any help, and i dont want to be bothered and feel like its a rush job. i will work on it friday after work and either have it done that night or saturday but i dont want you leaning over my shoulder while i fix it no offense to you i like to be left alone thats all. if that will work for you than drop it off friday or even thursday if you dont need it friday.

Jamie you know my situation how am I supposed to drop my car off to you on a Friday night? It's not possible to work that way. My wife doesn't even get home till 6-6:30pm, then my newborn goes to bed at 7pm. She can't lug my family up there to drop the car off after driving an hour from lake wales, then drive an hour to you, then drive an hour home, with a screaming newborn in the car that is pissed because it wants to be sleeping and my other son complaining too. That's just not reality man. (she brings the newborn to work, so he will be in the car the whole 3 hours)

I can have the car up to you early on Sat or Sunday and have my brother come pick me up and I'll hang out with him for the day, but there is no way I can just leave it for the weekend or drop it off on Friday. I have enough trouble as it is with this situation, my wife isn't exactly ecstatic about this car and what she has put into it.

Honestly let me know if I can bring it up in the morning on Sat or Sun and pick it up at night. If that will work cool, if not then I guess I'm going to have to try and tackle it myself and cross my fingers.
 
Now that I saw the list that Jamie has (I originally thought you only had the intake leak) and your commitments, I gotta say I think you ought to sell it and get whatever you can for it, then get the Tercel or whatever. Something newer, cheap, and reliable.

13/14 year old V8 cars take a lot of work and you have say too many responsibilities that are higher (kids, school). It sounds like it's a big project to even take the car an hour out of your way, you don't need to be messing around with a car like this at this stage in your life.

Do not get that Volvo either, they aren't super reliable and you are already talking about chipping it. Look man, you can't commit to any problems that might crop up at this time in your life. Just get a newer, cheaper to operate, reliable ride to get to school and to drive your kids around.

Maybe you can even keep your Mark VIII and fix it up after you get your degree. Like Jamie said good luck getting 1500 for it.

That is my final answer and I'm sticking to it this time!
 
http://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=33110
Maybe this guy will trade you straight up.

1998 Volvo S70, non turbo. Car has an intermittant miss/loss of power. Car will run and drive fine, and usually under load (going up a hill, harder accel) it will lose power, recently to almost a stall, giving it more or less throttle makes no difference, I've downshifted, also no difference. Letting off the pedal also no difference, then it will slowly sputter back to being fine. I've cleaned the original MAF, then replaced it and no difference, I've ran i with the plug off, same thing. I have a pending code for the front 02, but I've never seen a car run like this with a bad 02. You can start the car and rev it in park and it runs smooth. Has anyone had this symptom? Seems to be sensor related since it is intermittant, MAP sensor? I was also thinking TPS but it doesn't fix itself when giving it more or less throttle, and if you pull the plug the CEL comes on immediaely. Fuel filter? Fuel pressure regulator?

Get the Mark VIII running smooth then sell it and buy a commuter car.
You're out of love with the car. It'll just continue to piss you off in the future.

A Toyota Tercel will get you about 35 mpg around here and cost the same as the Mark VIII. We're in Florida, there's an infinite number of small, rust free, clean, though high mileage, cheap cars available around here.
Great advice.
Fix the car, sell it.

All cars are money holes.... that is life.
A Mark VIII is a deeper hole.
 
Where are you again???

....I could drive you home during the day Friday.....

I'm in Valrico just east of Brandon. I may take you up on that, thanks for the offer. I'll let you know by Wednesday.


HAHAHA! That guy had the same problems I have with this car. :eek: Man that sucks. He's got a non-turbo anyway...those are slow as balls! The only S70 I'd ever take would be a GLT or a T5, with my preference leaning towards the T5.
 
Volvo, built by people who hate cars for people who are affraid of cars, gale banks. Seriously , i had my " new" crank sensor fail i checked or replaced every thing i could dream of , then ifound the sensor leaking oil through it ! Replaced it , i love her again .one day ill post what this car means to me.
 
HAHAHA! That guy had the same problems I have with this car. :eek: Man that sucks. He's got a non-turbo anyway...those are slow as balls! The only S70 I'd ever take would be a GLT or a T5, with my preference leaning towards the T5.
That is why I posted it :)

You could get your Volvo and wind up with more problems then you have now.
Get a beater you can count on....hot rods are headaches.
 
derek if rich is gonna come up here saturday then i cant do it saturday, i have parts for him and he has parts for my wifes car and i have been trying to get with him for 2 weeks now, so if he is deffinetly gonna come up here for the southeast street rod nationals i am going. just like you i need to get my wifes car finished and registered so she has a car again. if you can somehow get the car to me friday i can most likely get it done friday night and give it back to you saturay when i get back from the show. i know its tough for you to pull it off, but i also have a schedule to live by too, you want the car fixed when its convienent for you, and i want to fix it when its convienent for me!
 
If you got gas money rip I can drive you anywhere you need to go, plus you will like your mark more once you ride in mine.
 
It sounds like that Mark VIII will sell for about $1000 around here.
And that will be to some person that "just needs a car for a few weeks" or some other sad-sack story they lay on you in an effort to get you to drop the price..

And no one will care that it's a "Mark VIII."
The buyers in that price range rarely are familiar with the car, what makes it so great, or the problems associated with it. Even if yours was in good shape, all of those things you fixed or did special will go right over the buyers head and they won't care.

This is Florida, that means all of the cars from around the country that haven't rusted out somehow make their way down here through migration. It's a buyers a market for "general" cars.
 

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