1987 Volvo 245 GLT review from UK and Ireland

Water pump went at 160000 miles.

Clutch plate replaced at 130000 and 14300 miles. (It does a lot of heavy towing.)

Suspension renovated at 150000 with new shock absorbers, springs and most bushes. (Not surprising when you think of what Irish roads are like. They are getting better!)

Alternator went at 215000 miles.

Exhaust system replaced at 240000 miles.

Fuel pump relay went at 220000 miles.

Apart from that, standard wear-and-tear.

When I bought this car in 1992, it was the first car I had owned since I sold my much-liked 1956 MG Magnette ZA in 1975. The Volvo has lived up to all my hopes and more. It is a comfort-barge, super-reliable, easy to drive and one of the best-looking large cars Volvo has ever made.

Anything that has gone wrong with it is explicable by normal wear-and-tear. If it does go wrong, it gives you plenty of warning; and when I ignored that warning (the alternator working intermittently), it left me at the side of the road. So that was my fault.

The only other time it caused me trouble was when the fuel pump relay went. (That proved to be one of those faults that went away every time I took it to the garage.)

The car is serviced within its specified intervals by a Volvo dealer in Dublin, and on the whole I have found them excellent. Servicing charges, parts etc. tend to be expensive. But it's worth it for the reliability, and for the comeback if anything is done badly. (It never has been.) I tend to adopt preventive maintenance rather than wait for something to go wrong.

The engine is of the 230K 'heron head' variety, which converted to unleaded fuel with only a change of timing. There was some loss of performance; but I'm not worried by that.

It cruises effortlessly, quietly, and its leather seats are very comfortable. My brother-in-law said "it's like driving a sofa".

For such a large car it is easy to park in a

very tight space, thanks to an extraordinarily tight turning circle.

Handling is at its best when the car's quite heavily laden. Then the rather extreme under-steer largely disappears, and it seems stuck to the road.

For such a large engine, the fuel consumption is surprisingly good, provided you have a light right foot and use it on the open road rather than in heavy town traffic. Driving in Dublin produces about 20 mpg. (I use the bus!) On several runs, including a fast drive from Leeds to Cornwall with four children, two adults and loads of luggage, it has returned around 37 mpg. In everyday service it gives around 32 mpg.

In 2002 I had to make a choice between selling it and getting something similar, or doing it up. I chose the latter, sent it to to a classic car restorer for repairs to body damage and tatty paint. Now the dealer tells me it's the cleanest 240 in Ireland!

The only complaints about design are the rear tailgate, which needs regular attention because of rust, and the usual problem with rust under the rear bumper. This last point was dealt with by the restorer, who changed the way the panels connect.

Brilliant car, though not to everyone's taste. (My children call it "the Swedish tank".) But if you want reliability, comfortable and effortless driving, and enough power to carry a full load plus a trailer as heavy as the car, it's great.