Keep it or kill it dilemma.

[nobananas]

Hi all not been on for a while but now find myself with a bit of a dilemma. I'm thinking of calling it a day with the missus' T5. After washing it at the weekend I've realised that the rust nibbling away at the rear arches hasn't miraculously gone away and is going to need attention soon, as are the rear delta arm bushes and I'm seeing blisters etc on every other panel. Trouble is the old girl has never really 'felt right' never handled great despite throwing money at the suspension (rear bushes aside) and has never felt smooth at speed (I can't even run my Volans on it as it just makes things vibrate more !) and the leather interior has always looked tired and cracked. The engine and turbo are brilliant however and uses no oil at all since their rebuild a couple of years ago.So should I keep it and throw money at getting the paintwork sorted etc or should I buy another one (850 or V70) in better nick and throw my engine etc in it (maybe find one with a stuffed lump there seems to be a few about !)...what would you do ?

[callyuk]

personally id go with option 2 as you may well end up spending more money trying to get the one you have atm up to scratch than getting a rolling shell and swapping the engines over.

[Alan M]

Go for a newer item or an R in need of a new lump. A man of your calibre should have no trouble swapping engines over.

[Mrsmopp]

You have battled this car for as long as I can remembver - maybe now is the time to move on to something else and hang onto your engine?

[t5lover]

i am or was having the same problem with mine at the moment my t5 is good old girl just lately its got worse 1 tappet going and wont shutup and the clutch is on its way and now just to top it of the cat has just gone thanks to a lovely road hump and plus the other day a silly man in a pug 405 dicided it was funny to ram into me and leaving a nice dent so there u go lol bad times so my missis said bout time u found a new one so i have found a new t5 getting her the weekend and mine is going to be a doner for the new one, anyway i would go with what mrsmopp says mate,,,

[t5 pete]

Thats the only problem with these cars as they can be a money pit if things are not kept on top off.

[nobananas]

Cheers guys you have sort of confirmed what I was already thinking. I'm not usually one for walking away from my motors (I've still got my first car in a barn for gods sake !) but I'm just not enjoying this one anymore. It's still got eleven months ticket on it so that gives me plenty of time to start scouring the 'bay for a nice body to put the old girls heart in to !. Anyone see's anything that might fit the bill please give us a shout.

[martybelfastt5]

im kinda in the same boat,,,only i advertised mine,,then couldnt bare the thought of some1 else owning it,,so ive went down the throw money at it route,,its took me almost 18 months to gather everything i want for it,,volans r front lip r rear lip 302 calipers r lowering springs paintwork ,,700 mechanics bill recently 4 clutch kit bushes turbo pipes crank seal ect ect at the minute struggling to find the spare cash to put new brake discs n pads and tyres all round but it will be finished soon when it is i know i wont stop smiling,,,also hearing a lot of the word rust used latley on here im not liking it,,hope you resolve this issue nobananas,, i know where your are at present matey,,,

[Tomcat]

Cheers guys you have sort of confirmed what I was already thinking. I'm not usually one for walking away from my motors (I've still got my first car in a barn for gods sake !) but I'm just not enjoying this one anymore. It's still got eleven months ticket on it so that gives me plenty of time to start scouring the 'bay for a nice body to put the old girls heart in to !. Anyone see's anything that might fit the bill please give us a shout.

Is it estate or saloon?, there was a decent saloon shell being advetised on Ebay recently, it was supposed to be brand new.

[AndysR]

Sounds like there might be an underlying fault and if the car hasn't ever felt right maybe now is a good time to quit with it? I have to conves I didn't think these car's suffered with corrosion? Is it minor corrosion?

[AlanG]

Rusting Volvos? Whatever next? They are old now but even so. Mine is rust free at 13 years old. Have these cars been repaired due to accident damage?

[nobananas]

well I know mine has had a fair bit of paint on it at some time and the rear quarters have been done at some point so there is a chance that mine had some light panel damage at some time. The rust is by no means rot, it's blistered down at the bottom under the clear stone guard where the arches meet the sills and at the rears where the arch's meet the bumper but I know that by the time I've ground it all out, grit blasted it (or welded in a new section depending on how bad it is ) then sent it to my body bloke to have the rear quarters done (there is the odd run it it already) which will mean blowing the whole side of the car in (both sides) I will probably be pushing the 600-800 quid mark which is already probably more than the cars worth. If I had the time and facilities I'd paint it myself but I haven't so I can't ! I would prefer an estate as I don't think a saloon is that practical.