Click for the Finish Product

Much of the trim is missing, as is frequently the case. We stock new and used trim

Rubber rear wheel arch protection strip has shrunk, as rubber parts will do, it can be removed and reinstalled.

This rear hit was never properly repaired-rust has ensued-nothing debilitating. New trim will take the curse off of this.

Passenger side rear quarter deformed from a hard rear hit. This will not be repaired. Problems this serious would best be handled by replacing the car. The problem does not have any impact on this car's utility.

Foggy head lights mean poor night visibility. New lenses will fix this.

Lower side trim is glued on-glue loosens up and can be replaced once this trim is heated to regain its memory of 'flatness'.

Dirty, yes. Very solid, you bet

The splash pan is missing, as a result, the entire engine bay is covered with dust from dirt roads. Also in the picture, misaligned alternator and leaking engine seal.

This is the only evidence of any floor rust and there are no holes through. This is only loosened undercoating. From this point, rust penetration of the floors is usually a couple years away. The car is still serviceable, although the end of life (usually holes in the floors) is more or less predictable.

Rusty front brake backing plates are typical-regrettably these are no longer available (wish they were). We've seen cars with completely rust-obliterated plates, no harm done.

This corrosion at the wheel bead, where the tire meets the bead, is the sealing surface. This corrosion prevents a proper seal and causes the tire to leak air (or go flat). This is much more likely to occur when a new tire is installed on a corroded or rusty rim-the old tire having mated to the surface of irregularities of the corroded surface over time.

This is how good a wheel should look (and how it looks after our reconditioning process)

Interior "gutted". Carpets and seats can not be thoroughly cleaned otherwise. If there has been a water intrusion problem, as is typically the case with the 240's, now is the time to peel back the carpets to find out if the floors have problems. This car is O.K.

Rear seat back-the only seat piece not needing repair or replacement.

Seats: Rear seat bottom is beyond repair, it will be replaced. The front seats can be saved by reconditioning.

PCV Flame trap box, associated hoses, and air filter

The throttle body after servicing.

Plastic parts have broken or have fallen off. We have a good inventory of replacements.

Missing speaker cover, will get replaced

Trim has been replaced. The door pull clip has been replaced. The door was serviced while the panel was off.

Winter drive requires winter tires

Center console, beyond repair

A serviceable salvaged replacement part

Another reason to not use rebuilt alternators. This part was put together with parts from 2 different alternators and does not align with the pulleys, which causes (and has caused) premature accessory belt wear. The solution is to install the correct alternator.

The alternator adjustor was not attached.

Door panels are removed to lube the window riser mechanisms. Lack of lubrication causes expensive repairs (like regulators and motor failure).

On this door, the regulator hardware had loosened to the point of falling apart.

This "shin buster" protrudes from the rear bumper and is guaranteed to hurt someone you like. It should never be left in place when not in use for the obvious reason: it can do bodily harm. If it is left in for long, it will rust in place, and as this one did, need to have the whole assembly removed to get the tongue out.

Parts of the trailer hitch that have been 'welded' together by rust

Bumper off for proper repair.

This bumper bar (grey metal) has not been a functional bumper for some time. The attachment hardware no longer holds the bracket (the rusty part) to the bumper.

Replacement/salvaged bumper bar. Not perfect, but definitely an improvement.

Never seize at the aluminum/steel interface where the aluminum bumper attaches to the steel support. It is to try to help slow down some of the corrosion which ultimately makes the bumpers useless.

Old bumper, no bolts left.

3/05/09: This trailer hitch ball was left installed for years and became rusted in place. This presents 2 problems: It is a hazard to anyone walking near the car, and if the car is hit from the rear the force gets transferred to the chassis rather than being absorbed by the bumper shocks. So the effectiveness of the ingenious Volvo bumper system is circumvented and the protection of others is negated by failure to remove the bumper tongue when not in use.

Here is the old ball and tongue sandblasted and Neverseized (to prevent subsequent rusting in place) and fitted with a correct hardened retaining bolt with nylock nut.

New bumpers fit properly

Original seat: buttons pulled through the leather

This is a re-bent and sandblasted seat button.

This is how seat buttons look agter 1000s of contacts with derrieres.

This seat button has been painted the seat color and will complement the original leather seats.

Replacing the front brake flex lines typically winds the threads off the steel lines. We can recreate a new bubble flare.

Painting and replacing the buttons

Replacement rear seat bottom

Used reconditioned front seat.

Emergency brake shoes: nobody home.

Wheels after initial cleaning.

Completely clean wheel with appropriate Michelin 195x70x14

To prevent the door pockets from shattering in the first week-a piece of 1/2 round is glued inside the lip.

Door bottom molding as found and in process of repair.

Door bottom molding 'renewed'

Engine before cleaning-and set up to flush the transmission

Engine after cleaning and detailing-there was an engine under the dirt.

This is what dirty transmission fluid looks like-the tube is clear plastic and the fluid color should be clear red-ish

New fluid (or good transmission fluid) looks like this

Reconditioned passenger side seat

Used, good as possible, driver's side seat

Fender-before and after polishing

Trim with broken clips replaced

Trim cleaned and reconditioned

Trim is removed from the car-it hides much dirt and usually has broken clips which allow the trim to move forward or back and get jammed into doors or fall off.

Strip caulk on the trim holes keeps moisture and dirt from leaking into the body and accelerating rust and tightens up the original clips

This car's drive shaft u-joints are original, over 200K miles. Replaced U-Joints never seem to work as well as the originals.

Volvo has provided a way to re-lube the original joints by removing this set screw, installing a zirque fitting, lubing the joint and reversing the process. Good for another 100K miles.

Interior reconditioned, not perfect but good serviceable, utilizing some used seat parts, reconditioning the usable original seats; intensively cleaning and replacing the floor mats.

Engine after cleaning and A/C replacement

Done, and ready for many more miles

3/10/09: Inconsistent heat, anti-freeze on the driver side floor? Could be a bad temperature control (Ranco) valve. The Volvo replacement unit is reason to sell your car; but now the original, all metal unit is available. This is a no-modification-required, direct replacement unit.