Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Here you can start a thread about your 480 days. Only the starter of the thread is allowed to fill his thread, and only one thread per person. Threads are simply a personal diary.

Moderators: jifflemon, coyote1980, Rachel

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Tue May 25, 2021 7:03 pm

This is the car that came with R6 - when I looked at the photos on facebook, one of the first things I spotted was a poor attempt at a GT badge on R6, but the pics showed Vesa wheels and the GT interior so I wasn't surprised when an online check confirmed it as a GT. It planted a seed of doubt over the other one, badged as an S and sure enough it's another wrong badge, its an ES. So, obviously from the same source, did the previous owner de-badge them then change his mind after he'd chucked the badges ? Or maybe some little tyke smashed both rear hatches, but then why not keep the badges? We shall never know. Luckily a recent rummage in my stash revealed a spare GT badge so that is now spoken for, but we will need an ES badge if anyone has one. Least of our worries though.

This one has slightly less rust on the arches which means very little, just at the bottom. It was very dirty, it's been sans mot since 2018. The n/s headlamp needs attention plus cowling - we have spares we can raid for that but probably need to find a pop-up motor. Similar list to R6 with the addition of broken wing mirrors (little tyke ?) broken dash, defunct odo, one duff window regulator but half-leather interior, SRS, both seat belt arms unbroken, washer jets all there, and another full set of Volvo mats. Both cars have tidy looking engine bays, both start and run.

Due to the threat of clamping and crushing as it is untaxed, uninsured, un-mot'd and parked on the pavement, the seller whipped it round to his house this morning as soon as I confirmed we'd have them and put it on his front drive for us, but just for a day or two. So Kimosaaby is off to the rescue again - we will be up at the crack of dawn tomorrow (very hard when one is used to being retired) to collect a hire trailer as soon as they open. We have the dreaded Dartford crossing to negotiate - not usually a problem outside rush hour but we have been stuck there for ages on more than one occasion, and even found it closed and had to go all the way round the M25 the other way. Blackwall tunnel is a nightmare when the crossing is out of action. If we dont get the trailer back in time we will have to pay for another day, after a sleepless night worrying it might be stolen by the morning.

More pics to follow, there weren't many of this one on facebook and none that showed the rear arches, but here's a taster:-

Image

Image

So, this time tomorrow we should have 4 visible 480's here (3 rescues plus Junk the breaker). I say visible, cos Eva is hiding in the carcoon and Snazzy is in the garage. Then Sven will be home from the bodyshop and mot soon so that will be 5, and R6 might turn up as well making it 6. Think I need a chat with the neighbours....
Last edited by dragonflyjewels on Sun May 30, 2021 7:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

jifflemon
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 2464
Joined: Sat Dec 17, 2016 11:03 am

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by jifflemon » Tue May 25, 2021 8:59 pm

There's something about this one that really appeals! Lord only knows why.

2 litre auto could make an excellent daily driver, and the lovely half leather? Looking forward to status updates on this one!

Rob88h
Started learning about 480
Posts: 52
Joined: Tue Apr 20, 2021 7:59 am
Location: Essix

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by Rob88h » Tue May 25, 2021 9:32 pm

Me too. For some reason I think I prefer this one to R6.

I came here to say; take some tape to obscure the reg if trailering through the Dart Charge - wouldn’t want ANPR pinging for both cars. I went down an internet rabbit hole to validate if that can actually happen or not and it was inconclusive... but was just a thought I had.

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Tue May 25, 2021 9:43 pm

Wow, that would be really sneaky, charging for a trailered car ! Thanks for the tip, roll of tape at the ready.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Wed May 26, 2021 7:01 pm

After a long day, R7 has arrived safely and joined R4 and R5. Someone else drove it onto the trailer, but I drove it off at the end of our lane and brought it down to park - apart from some banging and thumping underneath and blowing exhaust (whole thing coming away ?) it drove nicely. We had to jump start it as the battery was flat but that wasn't surprising, the stuck-up headlight was on with the switch turned off.

The wheel arches are encouraging, there is rust at the bottoms but nothing too dramatic. Feeling inside, the inner arches and footplates seem good and solid, but on the back of one outer arch there is a sharp piece of metal sticking out (or in should I say) so I suspect it's had a home-done repair. The plastic protectors have gone and it looks like the stoneguard goes further up than it should. We might need some fabricating, but only at the bottom so hopefully it won't be too expensive. Both doors are good, no rust at all outside and just a tiny bit of surface along the first few inches of the seams inside. There's a lot of greenery growing on it so it might be hiding more small bits of rust but overall it looks like it will clean up nicely.

There is a box of spares in the boot - it looks like the owner was going to give it a service and do some repairs. We know he died so perhaps illness took over. Anyway, the contents of the box will give Jeff clues as to the faults the owner knew about. In the box are a pair of headlamp cowlings so we won't have to raid the stash for one of those.

Overall, I'm very happy with it and pleased we saved it - as Andrew said, it's too good to break and it would have been terrible to leave it to be crushed by the powers that be.

Here are some more pics:

Image

Image
Well a human could work it out but not ANPR !

Image

Image

Image
well, it used to have wing mirrors

Image
a re-wire I think

Image
is it just moss on the top edge of the nosecone ?

Image
that'll look a whole lot better lathered with boot polish to put the colour back and coated with Gliptone conditioner
Last edited by dragonflyjewels on Sun Feb 13, 2022 10:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

jifflemon
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 2464
Joined: Sat Dec 17, 2016 11:03 am

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by jifflemon » Wed May 26, 2021 8:56 pm

You know I love a good mystery! :hopping:

Nothing so far that sounds either terminal or scary; the headlamp mystery is a curious one; wonder if someone has swapped out the headlamp relay for something dubious?

Alan 480
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1489
Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2011 9:03 am
Location: Aberdeen

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by Alan 480 » Thu May 27, 2021 4:59 pm

Rob88h wrote:
Tue May 25, 2021 9:32 pm
take some tape to obscure the reg if trailering through the Dart Charge - wouldn’t want ANPR pinging for both cars. I went down an internet rabbit hole to validate if that can actually happen or not and it was inconclusive... but was just a thought I had.
yes ALWAYS do so.
I knew a guy who got fined for not having it taxed/sorned etc and the car had not been used on public highway for long time, Mk1 Escort for track days etc.

they (ANPR) pings the plate and then it is REALLY difficult to get them (DVLA) to send you the photo that they used, which when looked at by a human can see it is on a trailer! sadly 'the computer says no'

you see the local 'breakers' wagons always tape part/all the number plate for that reason (I assume)
Alan

480 ES 2litre 'Celebration' ? , C30 1.8ES, SS1

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Thu May 27, 2021 7:19 pm

Managed to find time to do some cleaning today. I checked the rear footwells and found them bone dry. I also discovered the original carpet colour ! They are usually pinkish grey in a late car with a leather interior, but underneath the rubber mats were original Volvo mats and underneath them the carpet was blue-grey ! I doubt the rear mats have ever been taken out, the difference in colour under the mat is amazing .

Image

A check through cubbies and pockets came up with a ladies umbrella and a sewing kit amongst other things, so maybe this was the wife's car.

Next job - check the boot properly. Out came the big box of spares, then I found the carpet was firmly stuck to the floor in the middle - I could pull the edges up where the box wasn't but had to resort to slipping a palette knife under the stuck part and carefully seperating it from the floor - not too successful on the jack stcker, I lost a bit of backing there. Just how long had the box been there ?
One item was in a jiffy bag post marked 2013.

Image

I had to ask Al to take the spare wheel out - I couldn't budge the clamp. He struggled, then found the tyre had glued itself to the well, probably never been taken out before ! Lo and behold, the answer to the wrong badges was right there

Image

so it was tykes smashing the rear hatches :angry:

A good clean of the wheel well produced a happy-making lack of rust

Image

Sadly the tool well didn't match up to it courtesy of a plastic bag with collection of very rusty spanners

Image

Guess they were put away dripping wet then... :badmood:

Having cleaned the boot and found the rest remarkably rust-free I turned my attention to the mossy exterior

Image

and that was after I'd scraped the worst of it off !
Next was a wash of the back end with hot water, antibacterial Fairy liquid and a dash of bleach to kill the moss that grew in every conceivable nook and cranny. The left cluster looks just about savable - almost all the top edge is there so judicious use of a strong glue should fix the split. I'll leave that to Jeff, he's got a better chance of getting it out intact

Image

Can't see the right one getting through an mot though - little tykes again perhaps ?

Image

Once the moss was gone, I found a large shallow dent under the boot lock with a blown bit rusting nicely

Image

A clean of the roof along the top edge of the windscreen removed all the moss and revealed no rust.

So, this one is looking good, once cleaned and polished it should come up very smartly.
Last edited by dragonflyjewels on Sat Oct 08, 2022 5:25 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

arthuy
Advanced 480 rookie
Posts: 562
Joined: Wed Apr 20, 2016 8:02 pm

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by arthuy » Sun May 30, 2021 10:02 am

wow I haven't logged in for a few weeks and have missed the action.

Good save, think we need a 480 storage barn fund now :rofl:

Martin63
Knows where Volvo is from
Posts: 164
Joined: Sun Oct 11, 2020 8:57 am
Location: Fareham, Hampshire UK
Contact:

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by Martin63 » Sun May 30, 2021 3:54 pm

arthuy wrote:
Sun May 30, 2021 10:02 am
wow I haven't logged in for a few weeks and have missed the action.

Good save, think we need a 480 storage barn fund now :rofl:
There's a giant new warehouse under construction. It's just off the M1 - close to Jeff's house 😉😁
480 ES - M696 UFC - January 1995
480 GT - M586 TMF - August 1994

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Sun May 30, 2021 7:23 pm

There's a giant new warehouse under construction. It's just off the M1 - close to Jeff's house 😉
Perfect ! If only...... :lol:
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Sun May 30, 2021 8:02 pm

Nice day today so the rescues were sunbathing, R4 and R5 are both quite mouldy smelling inside

Image

My standard practice for our 480 document files is a spine label with the car's name, date of first registration, VIN and radio code for ease of finding said info. Having decided to do the same for the rescues, I needed photos of the plates under the bonnets as I haven't got any of the V5s (R4 with Jeff, R5 awaited from dvla and R7 not yet received from the seller.) So, bonnets up for a quick photo of each plate, and there was the answer to R7's weird lighting problem

Image

Well even I can see that's a bodge ! Maybe he was trying to get one pop up motor to operate both lights, or just powering one light directly from the other. Knowing Jeff, once R7 has landed on his drive it'll be all of 5 minutes before that wiring also lands on the drive :lol:

As a complete aside, we live in a tiny dead-end lane which is crossed by a public footpatch. Due to the daft positioning of the footpath sign, a lot of walkers get lost and walk down the lane, passing this parking area. One such couple spotted the cars today and stopped to chat. Apparently the chap's father has a 480 turbo that has been off the road and standing on grass for about a year, plus his wife's auto that she wrote off a few years ago. Needless to say we pointed him in this direction for any help he might need to get his turbo back in use, or maybe sell it. Perhaps he is already a club member - his son didn't know. Fingers crossed the turbo at least survives.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

jifflemon
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 2464
Joined: Sat Dec 17, 2016 11:03 am

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by jifflemon » Mon May 31, 2021 11:05 am

dragonflyjewels wrote:
Sun May 30, 2021 8:02 pm
Well even I can see that's a bodge ! Maybe he was trying to get one pop up motor to operate both lights, or just powering one light directly from the other. Knowing Jeff, once R7 has landed on his drive it'll be all of 5 minutes before that wiring also lands on the drive :lol:
It'd be ripped out before it had chance to get off the trailer.... :rofl:

yorkievolvo
Knows where Volvo is from
Posts: 127
Joined: Thu Sep 18, 2014 4:34 pm

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by yorkievolvo » Wed Jun 02, 2021 7:18 pm

This afternoon, a young fella in the local car-wash expressed an interest in my 480 and asked if there were any for sale.
Lost track of the situation with the 'rescues'- are there any for sale?

jifflemon
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 2464
Joined: Sat Dec 17, 2016 11:03 am

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by jifflemon » Wed Jun 02, 2021 7:49 pm

All of them!

(whether they're completed or not is a different matter) :rofl:

Alan 480
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1489
Joined: Sun Aug 28, 2011 9:03 am
Location: Aberdeen

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by Alan 480 » Wed Jun 02, 2021 7:56 pm

yorkievolvo wrote:
Wed Jun 02, 2021 7:18 pm
This afternoon, a young fella in the local car-wash expressed an interest in my 480 and asked if there were any for sale.
Lost track of the situation with the 'rescues'- are there any for sale?
guess i'm too far north....
Alan

480 ES 2litre 'Celebration' ? , C30 1.8ES, SS1

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Wed Jun 02, 2021 8:05 pm

I've sent a pm with a few options.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Fri Feb 11, 2022 7:49 pm

DC kindly donated a driver's window regulator when we saw him a few days ago. The sun was shining today and Al had some time for a bit of car work, so the regulator is in and hey presto ! The window finally closes fully which will help no end in keeping the damp out. While he had a battery on the car he tried the other one and found that was duff as well, so now we need another one. At least that window is fully closed.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

richard-smyth
Knows where Volvo is from
Posts: 112
Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2022 7:13 am
Location: York UK

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by richard-smyth » Fri Feb 11, 2022 9:36 pm

Hello, rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto reg L985SHC was first registered in 22 March 1994 and has a great MOT history.
Apart from 2006 were it failed its MOT but passed a week later with no advisories, probably had the exhaust replaced.
Always passed its MOT for ten years, ever year from 2007 to 2017 without any advisories except once or twice with
Offside Front wheel bearing has slight play (2.5.A.3c).
Its last MOT expired 23 May 2018.

From 2007 55,033 miles to 2017 89,824 miles is a total of 34791 miles covered in a decade which is 3,479 miles per year.
Who wouldn't want a black 2 litre ES Auto that always passed its MOT and only covered on average nearly three and half thousand miles a year.
As its a 1994 ES car its got a drivers airbag, info centre and electric windows and mirrors.
Would it also have ABS ? Think it does because its a 2 litre.

Once again magnificent work !
So like the picture of the 3 cars together, just makes me smile.
Cheers, Richard.

User avatar
dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
Posts: 1584
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Norfolk

Re: Rescue car: R7 - black 2 litre ES Auto

Post by dragonflyjewels » Sat Feb 12, 2022 9:45 pm

Weather today was quite bitter so we spent most of the day cleaning and polishing rear clusters. However, a quick rummage through the odds and ends that came free from the scrapyard after my walkabout revealed this

Image

Having seen the plastics removal methods of the owner, I took it off myself to ensure those delicate prongs didn't get broken. Knowing R7 looked like this

Image

I was quite keen to get a replacement

Image

Small win, but satisfying.

In case you're wondering, I did show him everything I'd found. I wanted to keep him happy enough to remove light clusters for me - his initial reaction to me asking for them was that he only sold them in pairs, but as I pointed out, he didnt have any offside ones worth buying. Next argument was that he normally keeps odd ones until he can make up a pair so I had to do a fair bit of feminine persuading.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

Post Reply