[djugurba]

Hi all,
Been reading a lot, and seems like I've got a handle on some of these issues, but would will ask anyway:
I'm looking at a '79 300D for my non-profit org. The owner has generously agreed to donate the car for our conversion to vegetable-oil power. We'll be using it for school and college presentations. Anyway, the car is several states away.. so I'm trying to prevent an unneeded trip and determine how much work the car is going to take.

-The owner had to remove the floor carpet due to water. prior owner blamed the sunroof, and siliconed it shut. also siliconed the windscreens front and back... besides the hood bolt drains, sunroof drains, firewall and seat bolts, what can I look for?

-The battery dies after the car sits for a while, but if he disconnects it, it keeps its charge just fine. Any MB quirks for this? (I speak volvo sorry)

-Only drivers window works properly?

-Besides that it seems in pretty good shape... new tires/brakes/interior ok except the carpet- no major rust- southern car.. (a/c not working)
How much hurt can these problems be? I know with volvos sometimes there are dumb little things that are easy, and dumb little things that cost $2500 to fix...
Thanks for your input! []

 

[Ed Mclass]

79 300 D

There can be a few problems with a car this old. If you have reapired VOLVO's of this vintage then enough said. You don't mention if it is an automatic or standard transmission. If it's an automatic, then you could expect to pay at least $1,800 for transmission repair. Hopefully it is a standard. Next is rust. It seems that the owner didn't care enough to fix the leaks, so I wonder how rusty the fenders, trunk, etc. really are. No matter how soound the engine, the car is unsafe if rust has eaten up the rest of the car. Check it out thoroughly! The air may or may not cost a lot to fix. This was the old a/c system with a complicated system of rubber and flaps. Good luck!