A Cult Car

This is a blog on refurbishing a Volvo 240 Wagon-- a cult car that is legendary for its durability. The 5 speeds manual transmission in particular gets great fuel economy, 32.5 mpg is attainable at speeds of 60 mph. Both the sedan and the wagon have plenty of rear leg and head room, even for tall people. Additionally, a tall person can sleep in the back--it is 77" long if the rear seat bottom is removed.

Thick sheet metal make it durable--so is the motor. Volvo took a V8 truck engine cut in half, to make this 4 cylinder engine. It has bearings and rods are designed for much heavy loads and this makes the engine nearly impossible to kill. People can get literally a million miles between rebuilds with regular oil changes and normal preventative maintenance.

The 5 speeds cars are fun to drive. Their durability means it is a smart economic choice to put money into them--they will last indefinitely if maintained. Parts are cheap. They are easy and simple to work on. Police just don't ever pull them over. It is because they like to stay at legal freeway speeds and purr along at 60 mph--so police expect them to be driven slowly. Finally, they are safe--built around a full roll cage. These are the reasons why there are so many are still on the road today.

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Parking Brake and Clutch

I reported that my parking brake broke.  That is easy and cheap to fix.  However, with no parking brake I noticed my clutch was jumping.  It will not park on a hill.  It will jump forward 5-6", pause and then do it again.  So that is another set of parts I need to buy and I will probably hire out the work.  In a way I'm glad, because I would rather not worry about my clutch if I am towing.  I will probably wait on replacing it until I put on new tires.  I want a smaller diameter tire, that is lighter and peppier for driving around town and for towing.  So Sea Dog is parked at the moment and I'm driving Bruiser, my big Silverado.  I have been enjoying the new tires on Bruiser. I would like to take a longer trip to see how much my fuel economy has improved.  I'm sure I will gain at least 1 mpg on the highway and the same around town if I drive slow.
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