Faults:

Window regulators, where they fix to the glass, have a tendency to rust and part company.

The brake master cylinders wear out as normal wear and tear, and I suspect will happen more often when you don't go to the trouble of bleeding the brakes routinely.

Not surprisingly the leather seats crack and wear as they get older. The seats are very comfortable and have a good range of adjustments, including lumbar support.

Engine and drive-line are pretty much bullet proof. The fibre timing gear tends to have a limited life and will produce a rattle as they wear (sounds like a terminal death rattle), but not a big deal to fix. Best solution for this is to locate a set of steel gears, which was a genuine part as fitted to some later fuel injected cars, I think.

The M400 and M410 gearboxes are great, if not a little heavy (over-engineered) and deliberate to use. I upgraded the M400 4 speed original to the M410 overdrive box and this makes the car a superb highway car. The car also has a limited slip differential, which contributes to excellent handling and traction, if not sometimes exciting over-steer. The spider shafts are prone to cracking in LSDs.

The car is fitted with a Volvo trible SU manifold and carburettors, which I have become quite adept at tuning and balancing over the years. The manifold I think originated from Volvo Penta marine (?) and is an improvement from the standard twin Strombergs.

I also upgraded the standard front discs from solid to ventilated with ATE calipers from a later 164, and these never let you down.

General Comments:

These cars are under rated, and unfortunately you don't see many on the road any more. Heaps of fun to drive, and with a little tweak will handle beautifully. I have replaced bushes, rubbers and ball joints, plus upgraded the front sway bar and put a bar on the rear (not standard fit item). Koni shocks are worth the money. With the 4 wheel disks and coil suspension, mated to a sound design and construction, you have something worth working with.

While Volvos are considered by most to be rather uncool, you can have a lot of fun in a 164 at a very reasonable cost.

Faults:

The leather on the seats have bad quality and is ripped in the seams.

The camshaft broke (probably due to improper mounting, not Volvo's fault, the cam was changed in the 80s).

The rotors in the back were also bad and had to be changed.

The windshield washer motor also stopped working and had to be changed.

General Comments:

The seats are very comfortable.

But it rattles and makes noises, and it is a little bit bouncy on roads that are in bad condition.

I love the whole drive train. Engine, gearbox and rear axle. Powerful and comfortable. Maybe the clutch is a little bit heavy.

Volvo tried to compete with Mercedes /8-series with this one. Even if the Mercedes 250-280 was more expensive, it was more comfortable and had better quality than the Volvo.

It is a very cool car that looks good, but it wasn't worth its price when it was new. These days, it may be sometimes.

Faults:

Air conditioning compression froze shut - had to bypass the pulley system with another belt.

All electrical wires are fragile, and insulation comes off easily after 31.

Have just finished spending hours cleaning all light bulb contacts, and replacing all light bulbs.

Rebuilt transmission.

Front suspension is a overworked due to the additional weight of the 6 cylinder engine.

Overall a bit sluggish, but once it gets going, is is very comfortable.

Have rebuilt all seats, to be expected after 31 years.

Great visibility.

People like the styling of the front end, too bad the real end looks as ordinary as a Swiss Brick.

Door handles are weak, had to rebuilt each door, with new handles and regrease everything to work smooth.