1985 Volvo 360 review from UK and Ireland

Water pump leaked and needed changing

Handbrake cable

Fuel pump/filter filled with water

Bracket that supported gear lever broke

Radiator leaked, changed

Steering rack changed (required for MOT)

Steering rack track rod ends

Brake hoses

Nylon gaiter for steering rack.

Must have been a reasonably good car as it was already old (85,000 miles) and survived two years of my driving. Interesting transmission layout: Engine, clutch, propshaft with gearbox/differential at rear, so good balance. Wouldn't handbrake turn well. When the bracket holding the gear change failed, I cut the propshaft tunnel with angle grinder to access and then weld bracket (as last owner you can do these things). Suspect the official method is to remove the engine.

With carb and mechanical fuel pump rather than fuel injection, engine will run on plastic bottle of petrol with washer hose direct to carb. Inadvertently filled with diesel, so got home feeding fuel directly. Kindly note fuel pump puts unwanted diesel directly onto road, so you tend to get sideways on roundabouts at 30mph.

Brake performance and play increased imperceptibly with age compared with newer model.

The hatchback is a lot more convenient than saloon.

Judged within its period (1980's) it was a reasonably OK car. Today, 85/115bhp from a 2.0-litre engine is a joke. The 175x13 tyres made a wet road seem like driving on snow. Got airborne nicely. No street cred, so didn't attract joy riders or the plods.

Driving a relatively low performance car hard increases maintenance costs. No overheating problems (except when water pump failed). Had intermittent engine problem, finally traced to water in fuel pump. Front brake pads easy to change, rears more difficult, but they never wore out. No welding problems for MOT. Only time it went to a service station was for MOT. All servicing was straightforward with Haynes Manual.