There is a gentlemen on the vvortex (the car lounge) who is letting go of his S60R in the same color combination as a the pic above. I was tempted at one point to negotiate but my love for older VW's is hard to deter. I had an '04 S60 awd (non R) 2.5T when I was out in the Midwest. From the minute I saw that car to the time I let it go of it makes for a pretty good csb...
Saw an ad for it on MN CL ($800). It was priced low because the kid hit a bank and went into a ditch, then blew one of the axles trying to get out. Even worse is when I turned the corner to his home and watched him jump a cement block in the parking lot which busted the antifreeze hose
Felt bad so handed him $600 and towed it back home. I purchased the car mainly as a just-in-case-emergency vehicle for traveling to NYC at the time. Overtime I fixed the axle, pcv, and other tidbits when I had a chance to pull it into the Indy shop where I was working. There was an upcoming interview back here in NYC which would inevitably become a hurdle I had to overcome living in MN. As suspected a 20ft-ft snow storm came a-brewin' deeming all aircrafts/airports worthless and leaving me to drive the Volvo for a 1300 mile road trip.
Dashing through Wisconsin the storm came into full effect to the point where the awd was deemed useless. Crawling at a 20mph pace the back slid in an incline and traded places with the front. The Volvo and I started making our way towards the interstate barrier in reverse with no bearing in sight. Being a master of all things on wheels, nonchalantly I drove through the rear windshield and somehow saved our ass with a handbrake maneuver I learned sometime back. Then there was an angel in a dually who followed close behind for the next 10 miles, making sure everything was OK until I found a truck stop. Had I not left that night for the interview, a date I have been waiting for 15 years of residing in this country regarding my legal status would have gone to chyt, possibly leading to deportation.
Believe it or not those S60's make for great road trips and I reached NY in no time. Can't say the same for my return back to MN. Passing through Indiana I had motor issues in on a part of the interstate which I can only describe as the asphalt equivalent of the Bermuda triangle...
Making way through that confusion which spreads asphalt thru three neighboring states, there was an immediate loss of power which left the Volvo for dead; no drama for effect as cars zoomed by at 90+ mph. Took a minute to sum up an idea on what went wrong-- interference engine and I forgot to do the timing belt at work
After a few phone calls to tow truck companies which fell hours short of any help, I decided to find the nearest gas station. It was 4am deep when I sprinted across the triangle, riddled with the final answer as to why the chicken crossed the road. I jumped over the highway barrier and found myself in neverending darkness of uncut green. I made way with the smartphone in-hand; even had to cross over a stream and got drenched all over with God-knows-what. Then I hit some flat lands and felt better. That is until the simmering light drew out a silhouette outlining a pack of wild things taller than myself.
Great! My life cut down by a dang'ol timing belt
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They turned out to be a pack of Impala's racing through the night... ...it was actually kind of beautiful.
