Another idea: I know you said wagon, but since there are a number of requirements, what about a larger sedan like a 2005+ Ford 500/Taurus (badge change on the 500), or Dodge Charger? The 500 has a crazy amount of room and even the front passenger seat folded down. It's based on a Volvo platform, it had great safety, functionality, pretty good fuel economy, optional Haldex AWD and drove pretty well. This might get you into a 10-year newer vehicle. Just saying...
In reply to Snrub :
They rust like Volvos don't, though.
I had a 500 last week that had structural carpet.
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
We bought my step daughter a 2007 500 last year for her first car. $3,000 for a grandma fresh car with fresh tires and brakes with a whopping 73,000 miles on the clock. It's not even a little bit sporty but damned if it doesn't soak up highway miles like it was designed to be a travelling salesmans car.
And has zero rust anywhere.
So modern-ish Volvos, I'm a fan.
I currently own a 242, 760 wagon, 850 GLT, and have or had 3x XC90s, a V70, a S70, a S40, and a S80T6 in the immediate family.
My 850 is a '95 so non-turbo GLT. I dailied it from ~'05 to '15, it was relegated to back-up duty for a couple years, and finally put out to pasture. The odometer was broken but I'd guess it was getting close to 300K miles on it.
They're reliable cars if maintained.
Remember it's an interference engine, do the timing belt, and all wearable items while you're at it, tensioner, idler, water pump. It's not an insurmountable job, but probably not something you want to start your first foray into mechanicing with.
The PCV system gets a lot of attention on the internet, sure it's not as easy as popping a new vent valve into the valve cover of a SBC, but it's not like it's that difficult. Yeah the intake manifold has to come off, it's 1/2 a dozen bolts, a gasket, pull the throttle body off. It's a weekend job taking your time, but it's not as though you're doing this annually, maybe once in 150K miles. There are some tips for making it better if you've got a higher mileage engine with a little blow-by, like remove the flame trap from the vent port in the throttle, and run a larger ID hose from the oil separator to the throttle.
The auto transmissions on the 850s can be an issue, they use a "life time" filter, only way to service it is to split the case on the transmission. I added an inline spin on filter and external trans cooler (I also used it to tow a small trailer) and changed fluid maybe 4 times in the 12 years of my 850 driving, more for my peace of mind, than necessity. The car still has the original transmission and it still worked great when I parked it.
I know you're looking at budget cars, and while I'm a Volvo fan, keep in mind that the newest 850 you can find today is 22 years old. They're robust cars if cared for, but they're not impervious to age and wear.
While my leather seats are in decent shape, only some minor bolster wear, I cared for them with leather cleaner and conditioner. I've seen many examples that look like a half dozen rat terriers were locked inside over night.
While the bodies are galvanized and much more resistant to rust than your average domestic or Asian car, that doesn't mean that cross members, fasteners, and electrical connections won't corrode. A little over 3 years of my time dailying my 850 were in the Columbus, OH area. I worked as a Service Advisor at a large car dealer, and had access to free car washes with under body spray, that I made ample use of. My exhaust hangers, and some suspension fasteners still began to corrode.
My old 850 was finally using oil quicker than I could remember to check it, we bought SWMBO's late grandparent's garage queen '05 Grand Marquis, and put the 850 out to pasture.
In short they're good cars, a lot of the issues are way over hyped on the internet, but realize even the newest 850 is now old enough to buy alcohol and hand guns, so expect a lot of age related wear, and deferred maintenance.
I guess one question we should ask is what are the lifespan goals for the new to you <$3k car? Is the goal to buy a mint as possible 25-30 year old Vo and drive it forever, or get a few years out of it?
I think a reasonable alternative strategy is to buy an average-ish rusting car that's been rust protected, kept in a garage, well maintained, etc. However, it obviously requires some effort to locate the right car. I have a 2016 FiST. When I was looking at different options last year, I noticed some 2014 FiSTs had more rust than I'd expect. I bought one that hadn't been used in the winter and had been well maintained. I have it oil sprayed, wash it at reasonable intervals in the winter, keep dirt out the dog leg areas, store it in garaged, etc. I'm aiming to get a decade out of it and it'll be worth a few grand at that point. I owned a RX-8 previously for a decade (purchased when 3 years old) and a RX-7 Turbo II before that. They required a some of rust repair maintenance over the years, but the strategy generally worked.
You'll need to log in to post.
