First Week (and a Half) of Ownership
4/14/23 to 4/26/23
For this section, I'm combining the course of a week and a half into one entry. I figured it would be a bit more convenient to talk about each day that way.
Filling up the tank (4/14/23)
The Volvo made her first road trip down to the University of Rhode Island on 4/14/23. I had to chauffeur a friend of mine down to campus one morning, and I figured it would be a great way to go for a first drive after getting the car back from the shop.
Now that the car was registered, insured, and had plates, I could finally drive it on my own. I still had to get it inspected, but I had a few days before I could do so. I also had to bring it in for service, just to repair a few miscellaneous idiosyncrasies and get a tune up.
It was a beautiful day out for a small road trip. The weather was pushing into the mid 70s, and I drove with all the windows down. It was one of those days. I felt content with the car, and it felt good to finally drive something of my own that I'd been searching for relentlessly for the past several years, and as of recently, the past several months.
As I was driving home, I hit traffic, when all of a sudden, the "Brake Failure" light came on. Uh oh! Fortunately, the brakes hadn't failed, and I would come to learn that it was the brake proportionate valve that would need to be replaced.
Mileage update (4/20/23)
The Volvo at Quinn Hall (4/21/23)
I brought the Volvo in for its tune up and repairs on 4/16/23 to Volare Volvo, a Volvo dealer and specialist near my house. I had met the owner of the shop, and he had agreed to service the 240 if I ever found one. The car was returned on 4/19/23, and was back and better than ever. Now with the repairs done, it was time to schedule an inspection. The inspection was scheduled for following Tuesday at R&S Auto Body in Warwick, RI.
However, I couldn't wait to drive the car, so I continued driving it. I once again had to chauffeur my friend to and from campus, so I racked up a lot of miles on the clock. That Friday (4/21), the university held an open mic in honor of Earth Day, so my band and I played a set. The Volvo of course transported the gear down, taking advantage of its large cargo space.
The 240 awaits inspection (4/25/23)
She passed!
Mileage update (4/26/23)
Finally, inspection day was upon us. I brought the car in, and surprise, we passed! Now I was finally able to drive my car officially without the worry of having to be pulled over for no inspection sticker. I don't think I'll be getting pulled over for a speeding ticket any time soon.
There was a bit of fear heading into the inspection. A few days earlier, my mother noticed my reverse lights weren't functioning, which was strange since one of the repairs done to the car by Volare was a replaced grounding wire for the reverse lights. I brought it back over to the shop prior to the inspection, and as it turned out, they worked all along. The reason why they wouldn't was because I was shifting the car wrong. If I put the car in reverse, and moved the shifter too close to neutral, the lights wouldn't go on. If I shifted firmly into reverse, they would. I guess it's just the quirks of owning an old car.
Bonus Content: Experimenting with Night Photography
