Between 485 & 705 SQ/FT Mid-Century Moto Mecca Makeover

[555]

My wife had an XC70. Loved it. It would occasionally refuse to start. She would let it sit for a bit, sometimes 30 minutes and then it would start and run with no issue. I suspected a fuel problem and changed the fuel filter. Everything was fine for a few weeks and then the problem returned. I was on a motorcycle forum and mentioned the problem. Almost immediately a Volvo engineer contacted me and told me the problem was with the fuel relay. He said is was a known problem and Volvo had not addressed it. He told me to replace the relay and buy a spare to keep in the glove box. I did and when it wouldn't start I would pop in the new relay. We very likely would still have it but my oldest son was pushed off the interstate into a concrete traffic barrier. He wasn't hurt and managed to drive the very damaged car home. I honestly believe the very well made Volvo was the only reason he wasn't hurt or killed.

 

[SilverJimmy]

Around here you can pickup a used cop car that has had perfect maintenance for less than $200.00, got in an accident and now it’s being sold off. If you’re is a 4.6 I think it’s the same engine. Guys doing the Crown Vic swap into older Ford trucks snap them up and gut them like a trout and they run like new. Check around for your local charity auctions, they seem to have a few every auction. I had a 2001 SuperCrew like yours, very nice truck. I’d hate to see yours scrapped for just an engine failure.

 

[f121]

Coyote swap?

 

[sakurama]

Scrapyard engine for the truck, you have the skills for an engine swap.

Around here you can pickup a used cop car that has had perfect maintenance for less than $200.00...I’d hate to see yours scrapped for just an engine failure.

Coyote swap?

Yes, my first thought was that I could buy a junk yard engine for a grand. My second thought was I could buy a hot crate engine ($5000) to build a sleeper and my final thought was that I have about a million projects and no time. Don't derail my occasional bouts of sanity.

Also, not to be a grouch, but I hate working on cars.

I'd have to stop doing work that pays me money and I'd be angry for the entire 1-2 months that I'd have a torn apart pickup in my steeply sloping driveway while it rains. I wouldn't have time to build a bike for the 1 Show. After all that I'd still have a second vehicle that gets 12mpg (6-8 when towing!), is 20 years old, has 175k and is worth $4-5k. If it was in great shape and I had a huge garage... I probably still wouldn't.

You gotta pick your battles.

Saying no to projects and clearing out ones that are stalled is my goal for the spring. I've been thinking about getting a car for a long time now and either the van or the pickup was going to go. The choice was made for me.

I'm very fortunate to have been busy with work so, while it's certainly a stretch, I'm very much looking forward to something less than 20 years old.

Gregor

 

[TiFJ]

My wife drives a 2017 V60 T6 with a Polestar tune and while I wouldn't call it the most interesting car in the world, I think it looks and drives great, is big enough for 90% of our life and gets decent, if not great mileage. Maintenance costs are high and owning it past warranty has me a little concerned about costs and reliability but so far after 6 years and 50,000 miles, it has been a great vehicle.

The new V60s are great looking vehicles IMHO and the new plug-in hybrid model has 455hp... been trying to get the math in my head to justify a trade up but haven't been able to get there yet.

 

[stuntman]

Gregor

At my last job the boss man had a similar truck to yours and it started running rough, so he took it in and they told him the motor was done. He sold it to one of the electricians that we worked with and the electrician installed new spark plugs and did a basic tune up, the truck ran great afterwards and he drove that truck for a a long time after that.

Might it be worth getting a second opinion?

Flashing CEL often indicates a misfire, could be as simple as a spark plug or coil pack.

 

[bdbecker]

You gotta pick your battles.

I get it. You might have some luck selling the truck as a project vehicle to someone. Highlight the new tires and other good parts. Might not get back what you put into it, but still might get a little more than scrap price for it.

 

[sakurama]

Gregor

At my last job the boss man had a similar truck to yours and it started running rough, so he took it in and they told him the motor was done. He sold it to one of the electricians that we worked with and the electrician installed new spark plugs and did a basic tune up, the truck ran great afterwards and he drove that truck for a a long time after that.

Might it be worth getting a second opinion?

Flashing CEL often indicates a misfire, could be as simple as a spark plug or coil pack.

It's got zero compression on cylinder 8 and low on the rest on that side. It's failing leak down as well as the spark plug on 8 broke. I wasn't convinced so made them do more tests.

G

 

[stuntman]

Well darn.

 

[racer-john]

Gregor

At my last job the boss man had a similar truck to yours and it started running rough, so he took it in and they told him the motor was done. He sold it to one of the electricians that we worked with and the electrician installed new spark plugs and did a basic tune up, the truck ran great afterwards and he drove that truck for a a long time after that.

Might it be worth getting a second opinion?

Flashing CEL often indicates a misfire, could be as simple as a spark plug or coil pack.

I second that suggestion.

 

[Choirboy]

It's got zero compression on cylinder 8 and low on the rest on that side. It's failing leak down as well as the spark plug on 8 broke. I wasn't convinced so made them do more tests.

G

All on the same side? Head gasket?

 

[todras]

Gotta be someone that can do a low mileage engine for under 5k. They made 1 million of these engines and trucks.

 

[fj_kuz]

First post on GJ, and just wanted to say thanks. A week ago I randomly googled "moto garage" because I was looking for some inspiration for my space, and came across this forum thread. I recognized the "saku-moto" name from ADVRider and the Upshift profile on the Bimmer, but it took me a second to put two and two together. Needless to say, I'm finally caught up and, whew, what a journey! I'm glad to hear you'll be running more trips in the future. I don't think I can make March work, but one of these days I'll be signing up for sure. And yes, I have found LOTS of inspiration, on more things than I imagined (pizza, espresso, tools...). So thanks. Cheers, Frank.

 

[hewey]

Don't derail my occasional bouts of sanity.

Have you considered parting out the truck? So selling the wheels and tyres as a job lot, selling off individual panels etc, and then taking the carcass off to scrap? A little more time involved, but might help recoup some of the cash from it?

 

[todras]

Parting out a car is very big undertaking and very time consuming. I have done it before and it was more hassle than it was worth. Someone would probably give you 3k or more as it sits if it's fairly rust free.

 

[sakurama]

Parting out a car is very big undertaking and very time consuming. I have done it before and it was more hassle than it was worth. Someone would probably give you 3k or more as it sits if it's fairly rust free.

Yes, I've done this with motorcycles and inevitably you sell a few choice bits and are then left with a bunch of parts and a carcass that is a pain to get rid of. I've seen a bunch of these already when I was looking for parts that my truck needed and the parts most people need go fast. I have a friend with the same truck, same year and I might do some trading with him - let him pick over what he needs and take his old parts and then scrap the rest. Or, maybe he takes mine - he's a mechanic.

But this is the conundrum of being a freelancer - sometimes your time is worth a lot and sometimes you have a lot of it without much on the books. Luckily I've been busy now for quite a while which means my time is worth more to me.

I'll keep you guys abreast of what I do.

Gregor

 

[Blackbyrd]

long time reader, thoroughly enjoyed the house build. Dont usually comment, but figured id chime in on the part out thing. Went through it a few years ago. Purchased a late 4thgen Camaro to steal its drivetrain for a resto mod project. Tried for months to sell just the roller do minimize my involvement in a tear down. After about 8 months in I listed it on a forum related to the car, and finally started selling odds and ends. I was very familiar with the platform as Id worked on them for years. I could dismantle one in my sleep. In the end I sold enough parts to profit about $600 over purchase price, and I got to keep and engine ****** and ECM. I could have taken it farther and made more on the car, but after breaking even I Lost interest and wanted my garage space back. All this to say its profitable if you have time and space in my case I have a full time job, so in the evenings I would pull of parts make deals and ship out packages once a week for my sanity.

So between a local sales site, a relevant forum and car buddy network I was able to do well enough on this that I have looked for other similar cars to do it again..... Just havnt found that good deal car yet.

 

[burger]

Gregor,

Thoughts:

11k is ridiculous. For the job and for spending that amount on an old truck.

***** that you just put tires on it.

You could DIY it for a whole lot less. Like a quarter of that.

You don’t like DIY on cars and trucks??!?

??!?

To the suggestions of parting it out. If you don’t want to repair it, I doubt you want to part it out.

The Volvo seems fancy. Why fancy?

What would some clown on the Internet do.. I’m glad you asked!

You’re right that the van and truck pretty much serve the same function. And the van is way cooler than the truck.

A commuter car makes a lot of sense.

I’ve always had a cheap, reliable, and easy to maintain (usually Japanese) car that allows me to spend my time and money on more important things.

My current commuter is an 09 Acura TL that I’ve owned since 2017 and has needed nothing major other than brakes and tires. I did replace the timing belt at 100k as routine maintenance which was the most intensive work I’ve done on the car.

 

[Vertigo Cycles]

Sorry about your truck Gregor...that's a huge bummer.

I had a '98 V70 T5 (Bobo) and have to say that I really loved that car until it started having electrical problems in 2013 and was too unreliable at a time when I needed reliable for the kids.

I have a VERY unsexy opinion...Honda minivans are pretty nice. We've loaded 8 humans, a dog and gear on some all-day trips to the ocean and the Cascades. I've pulled the middle seats and put a dozen full sheets of ply wood in the back (you can't get 5x5 baltic birch in though). I've camped in it a bunch. Heather's new one gets 30mpg on the highway without trying too hard and mine gets 28. My 2013 only has about 80K miles on it but has only needed fluids, tires, brake pads and is on a new set of rotors. We've never towed anything, but Honda makes a nice low-profile 2" hitch for it that I use for the bike rack.

My only complaint is that there's nothing at all cool about it. It's the Bridgeport of vehicles It's ubiquitous, reliable and will do 95% of what you ever need it to do.

 

[burger]

Oh hell yes to minivans! I wish I had one!

 

[burger]

And there is exactly nothing cool about a minivan.

 

[kaymccampbell]

There could be though. Depends on your idea of cool. We're on our 4th one in 40 years. The cool you get with a minivan is the super power to haul a ton of ****, 6 kids, go camping, all in the same day, and only have one vehicle.

 

[isonic]

Plus you could get a motorcycle right into the back of the minivan!

 

[Vertigo Cycles]

Plus you could get a motorcycle right into the back of the minivan!

maybe a minibike

 

[bdbecker]

maybe a minibike

I know for a fact that a Honda CB650 fits in the back of a Mercury Villager if you tip the bars down. Ah, the good ole days...

 

[kyrbz]

Did someone say minivan? All the cool guys are driving Mitsubishi Delica's





https://www.gearpatrol.com/cars/a40616007/mitsubishi-delica/

 

[kekle]

One more thumbs up for the seriously uncool Honda Minivan. My 2007 has 250k and the only major work I have done is oil changes, brakes, and timing belts.
Unstopable.

 

[kaymccampbell]

Did someone say minivan? All the cool guys are driving Mitsubishi Delica's





https://www.gearpatrol.com/cars/a40616007/mitsubishi-delica/

As cool as that little truck is, look before you leap. State DMVs are deregistering and detitling JDM vehicles by the bucket load, just because they can.

 

[jimkinney]

Scrapyard engine for the truck, you have the skills for an engine swap.

Agree since the rest of the truck looks in good shape.

Did this for a transmission years ago, $300 and a new filter and oil and it was still running strong 150k miles later when I sold it.

 

[sakurama]

Sorry about your truck Gregor...that's a huge bummer.

I have a VERY unsexy opinion...Honda minivans are pretty nice.

My only complaint is that there's nothing at all cool about it. It's the Bridgeport of vehicles It's ubiquitous, reliable and will do 95% of what you ever need it to do.

No. Sean, you know me. I'd sooner ride a Honda Gold Wing off road. I can't, won't.

And there is exactly nothing cool about a minivan.

THIS.

There could be though.

No. See above.

Plus you could get a motorcycle right into the back of the minivan!

Right now I'm considering selling the van because I can't fit the KTM 890 in what is a very FULL SIZE van.

One more thumbs up for the seriously uncool Honda Minivan. My 2007 has 250k and the only major work I have done is oil changes, brakes, and timing belts.
Unstopable.

Stop! No! Never!

I appreciate that sentiment. I'm sure you guys are right about all of it. But I'm very much a "suffer for your art" person and minivans, despite how or perhaps because of how practical they are, do not appeal to me on any level and every day that I get behind the wheel I'd hate myself. Just a bit.

I had a Volvo 240 wagon before and loved it but wished I'd had the turbo wagon. Wagons are cool. Not in the US but they should be. Minivans are NOT cool. Okay, those tiny 4x4 ones are but that's it. There's two types of people - minivan people and wagon people. I'm a wagon person. A hot wagon is even sexier.

I don't want to keep the truck. I was going to because it was the least amount of money to spend. It gets worse mileage than the van, struggles to tow the trailer and gets 6-8mpg when towing. It's great for going to the dump and picking up firewood. It has its share of issues that I was not excited to repair (sun roof leaks and it's now taped shut because it's $1-2000 to repair because the roof it bent - that's my fault for standing on it to get that one great shot...)

Yes, I could swap the motor. That would cost me another $2-3000, take about a month, be miserable and it would also not change the mileage or the leaking sunroof and then I'd have $5000 into a truck that I could sell for $5000. Not sure how that makes sense.

I really feel I'm letting you guys down by actually saying no to a project! Everyone has limits.

I want a comfortable car. Something an adult would drive. I was torn between something fun or something practical and I'm leaning towards fun because life is short and I'm on the shorter side of it. Looking forward to driving something is fun and I want to find my small pleasures where I can. I also weighed out the options with Lucas who is very into cars right now and he did not hesitate to tell me to get the sports car. He also did not hesitate when I asked about the van.



So, with that said. Is there anyone here in Boston that wants to go look at a fun car?

Gregor

 

[Gentabout]

There's two types of people - minivan people and wagon people. I'm a wagon person. A hot wagon is even sexier.

A quick wagon (Estate here in the UK) is always cool! Couple of shots of mine playing in the alps a few years ago.

 

[sakurama]

Oh, damn. That is so ****.

G

 

[Jehannum]

A quick wagon (Estate here in the UK) is always cool! Couple of shots of mine playing in the alps a few years ago.

I agree.

Here's my 325HP sensible European wagon (avant in Germany, I guess), a '95 Audi S6 with a 2.2L turbo I5.




It's now 306,000 miles old and still going strong.

 

[tjpavlov]

Wagons are cool. SUVs are lame. Minivans are somewhere in the middle. In a way, the fact that everybody hates minivans so much helps make them a bit cool. That being said, a minivan is probably not the right choice for a newly single dad.

But the more important question is, if you are selling the van and the truck, how are you going to tow the Avion?

 

[Gentabout]

Oh, damn. That is so ****.

G

And it averages about 50mpg (UK) on a run being a diesel but still does 0-60 in 6 seconds

 

[sakurama]

Wagons are cool. SUVs are lame. Minivans are somewhere in the middle. In a way, the fact that everybody hates minivans so much helps make them a bit cool. That being said, a minivan is probably not the right choice for a newly single dad.

But the more important question is, if you are selling the van and the truck, how are you going to tow the Avion?

That's the rub isn't it?

I was thinking of selling the van or the pickup. But now I'll probably keep the van. It can haul bikes and tow the trailer. I was thinking of selling it and maybe getting an older Sprinter to haul bikes but they couldn't tow the trailer. I was also thinking of streamlining my life even more and just getting rid of the trailer. Cut another project out of my life. I don't know that I'm ready to do that and, like the pickup, it's pretty damaged and worth nothing unless I repair it and because I have sunk so much into it (sunk costs are killing me right now) and because it was dad's I will most likely keep it and the van for now.

The other option, which I quite like, is to find an old Ford F-250 crew cab from the 70's or 80's and just use that for towing and dirt bikes. I have trimmed the gear I use on shoots quite a bit and the wagon could haul my photo gear.

That's the thought right now.

Gregor

 

[elvee]

Yeah, wagons are better than minivans. The first kid hauler was an A3 hatch (from a 350Z roadster that my wife was driving and still has). A3 begot a 2012 A4 Avant (last before the Allroads) that we still have with 105000 miles. Lust is an RS6 Avant, but $100K for a family car isn't happening. Minivans are just soul sucking, and who needs that?

On the old crew cabs - the stupid on those has gone all the way to Plaid. late 70's crews are regularly $20K for a pile, and over $50K for done. Chevy's are no better, and the Dodge's just aren't around. And the 80's stuff is kind of malaise vehicles (early emissions, big gas hogs, poor build quality). If you don't want to work on cars then just don't go there. They always need stuff.

I'm trying to embark on a clean up / clean out around here. Too many project bikes that I'm not going to get to or that don't really move me, too much scrap and debris from old projects, and no room to work. Something has to change.

 

[rvieceli]

Gregor I had a 90 240 wagon. It was fun until the oxygen sensor kept self destructing.

I was in dealer waiting the get the car back from an oil change, there was an older guy in there with a 1964 sedan. He was looking at new sedans. Said his car had 460,000 miles on it and nothing was wrong with it, he was just tired of driving it.

Ron

 

[kaymccampbell]

No. Sean, you know me. I'd sooner ride a Honda Gold Wing off road. I can't, won't.

THIS.

No. See above.

Right now I'm considering selling the van because I can't fit the KTM 890 in what is a very FULL SIZE van.

Stop! No! Never!

I appreciate that sentiment. I'm sure you guys are right about all of it. But I'm very much a "suffer for your art" person and minivans, despite how or perhaps because of how practical they are, do not appeal to me on any level and every day that I get behind the wheel I'd hate myself. Just a bit.

I had a Volvo 240 wagon before and loved it but wished I'd had the turbo wagon. Wagons are cool. Not in the US but they should be. Minivans are NOT cool. Okay, those tiny 4x4 ones are but that's it. There's two types of people - minivan people and wagon people. I'm a wagon person. A hot wagon is even sexier.

I don't want to keep the truck. I was going to because it was the least amount of money to spend. It gets worse mileage than the van, struggles to tow the trailer and gets 6-8mpg when towing. It's great for going to the dump and picking up firewood. It has its share of issues that I was not excited to repair (sun roof leaks and it's now taped shut because it's $1-2000 to repair because the roof it bent - that's my fault for standing on it to get that one great shot...)

Yes, I could swap the motor. That would cost me another $2-3000, take about a month, be miserable and it would also not change the mileage or the leaking sunroof and then I'd have $5000 into a truck that I could sell for $5000. Not sure how that makes sense.

I really feel I'm letting you guys down by actually saying no to a project! Everyone has limits.

I want a comfortable car. Something an adult would drive. I was torn between something fun or something practical and I'm leaning towards fun because life is short and I'm on the shorter side of it. Looking forward to driving something is fun and I want to find my small pleasures where I can. I also weighed out the options with Lucas who is very into cars right now and he did not hesitate to tell me to get the sports car. He also did not hesitate when I asked about the van.



So, with that said. Is there anyone here in Boston that wants to go look at a fun car?

Gregor

So much negativity. A couple decades ago, I chopped the roof off a nearly new Town n Country, lowered the seats, installed a nice short windshield, waterproof seat covers and rubber floor mats, and drains. 6 helmets, some niceish paint, and it went in a week. Everyone who saw it thought it was cool, and fun.

 

[sakurama]

I'm trying to embark on a clean up / clean out around here. Too many project bikes that I'm not going to get to or that don't really move me, too much scrap and debris from old projects, and no room to work. Something has to change.

This. I'm trying to get my life more streamlined. Too many projects for sure and the house is the most important one.

So much negativity. A couple decades ago, I chopped the roof off a nearly new Town n Country, lowered the seats, installed a nice short windshield, waterproof seat covers and rubber floor mats, and drains. 6 helmets, some niceish paint, and it went in a week. Everyone who saw it thought it was cool, and fun.

Ha, I know where I stand on the minivan thing. It's obviously a touchy subject. But that being said I'd love to see a photo of a chopped roof mini van.

G