KdL Automotive Volvo onderhoud voor youngtimers en klassiekers Middelbeers Brabant

New tax system for classic cars in the Netherlands: 25% tax rate for classic cars or day ticket system

Today was the big exciting day for classic car fans in The Netherlands: the Secretary of Finance Mr. Frans Weekers was expected (after a small delay since last Wednesday) to announce the new tax plans for oldtimers. The very first idea (as announced in November 2012) was to ban the tax-free status of cars older than 25 years, but a lot of clubs complained about it: owners of classic cars that don’t use their oldtimer as daily transport would pay a lot of money for a car they’re not using much. The government didn’t like the abuse of the old tax system for classic cars since a lot of owners imported an old diesel car of 25 years old and uses these cars as daily drivers. For more information about this tax avoidance: Bad news for classic car fans in the Netherlands and Dutch government announces new classic car regulations next Wednesday.

It appeared Weekers wants to introduce a 25% tax rate for classic cars: a classic car should pay 25% of the regular road taxes. As an alternative plan Weekers wants to introduce a day ticket system: an oldtimer is only permitted to drive on public road for 60 days per year and must sign up for the day the owner wants to drive his oldtimer. For both regulations Weekers wants to increase the age limit to 30 years for petrol cars and 40 years for classic cars running on LPG or diesel. Lobbyists like the Fehac, ANWB, KNAC and Rai/Bovag don’t agree with Weekers’ plans, and wanted to increase the age limit of the tax-free status to 30 years (and 40 years for cars running on LPG and diesel). Weekers said the ideas of the lobbyists will cost too much money, and will send a letter to the government with seven proposals (and it seems the day ticket system or 25% tax rate will be the best options).

Volvo Duett classic cars P210 PV 445 110 210 oldtimer tax wegenbelasting belastingen nederland mrb vrijstelling

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read More…

Dutch government announces new classic car regulations next Wednesday

As mentioned earlier on the blog of Volvotips (Bad news for classic car fans in The Netherlands) the Dutch government were planning to ban the exemption for the road taxes for classic cars. The government didn’t like the idea a lot of classic car owners were using an oldtimer as daily driver to avoid paying road taxes: cars that were 25 years old became tax-free, resulting in a big import of cars from the early and mid 80s that were running on diesel. The government said the idea of withdrawing the tax-free status of the classic cars was created to protect the environment. But it’s an open secret the government didn’t like the idea a lot of classic cars (running on LPG or diesel) are being used to avoid the (very high) road taxes in the Netherlands: with an oldie running on LPG or diesel you’ll save about EUR 1.000,– to EUR 1.200,– per year on taxes and you’ll save a big amount of money on fuel.

Volvo Amazon 131 oldtimer oldie 1969

The old oldtimer-regulations were created to protect the industrial heritage and original Dutch cars (not imported cars) had already paid 25 years of road taxes. That’s why 25-year-old (or older) cars didn’t have to pay these road taxes and became tax-free. But (probably causes by EU-regulations) imported cars of 25 years and older were also tax-free, resulting in a massive import of classic cars that were tax-free immediately. Because cars of the eighties were a lot better (comfort, rust protection and service intervals) the Dutch government decided a couple of years ago cars of 1987 and newer where going to face a 30-year age limit and also had to pay a fuel surcharge when running on diesel or LPG. Needless to say a lot of cars made in 1985 and 1986 were imported to The Netherlands to avoid these extra regulations, and it’s very cheap to buy a Mercedes 190D running on diesel and paying not any tax at all.

Read More…

Will E15 gasoline with ethanol work in a Volvo?

The last two weeks I’ve tested a new fuel that’s available at the Dutch market: BlueOne95. BlueOne95 is a E15 fuel which contains 15% liquid ethanol, which is different than the regular ethanol as used in E10 gasoline. The 15% ethanol in E15 biofuel blend is a so-called “liquid ethanol” (or “wet ethanol”) because it hasn’t been dried like the ethanol that is being used in E10 (E10 contains 10% dried ethanol and contains less water than E15).

Volvo V70 2001 grey gray metallic

E15 should have the following advantages:

  • it should be more environmentally friendly than E10 and regular gasoline (which has about 5% biofuel) and has lower CO2-emissions.
  • Better engine performance. The liquid ethanol of E15 should also deliver more energy than E10 and regular Euro95 (European standard) or RON91 fuel.
  • It’s cheaper. Not only because the price is lower (taxes and excise duties for biofuel are a bit lower than the taxes and duty of regular fuel) but the fuel consumption of the car running on E15 should be better than E10 or regular gasoline. BlueOne95 claims the E15 fuel should be 3% more economical than regular gasoline.

BlueOne95 and all other E15 suppliers say all gasoline cars from 2001 and above can use E15 fuel. Since my Volvo V70 is made in 2001 it’s time to test E15 in a Volvo V70!

Read More…

The transformation of my Volvo 240 sedan – part II

About a month ago I posted a blogpost about the restoration of my Volvo 240 DL. After several weekends of welding, repairing and restoring the car was finished. I also repainted some areas of the 240 sedan with the right color paint and the result is pretty good! I’m very happy with the result, although some very small details can be a bit better, but that’s a small job that can be done later. But it isn’t a new car of course, but it looks very good in my opinion.

In this video you’ll see a walkaround with the finished result:


Things that are being fixed and replaced on my 1986 Volvo 240 sedan:

  • partially new sills and doorsteps
  • new inner rear wheel arches
  • partially new outer wheel arches
  • new inner splash plate parts at the rear section (passenger side, not the spare wheel container side: that was still rustless)
  • 2 small holes on the floor panels are fixed
  • repainted the rear wheel arches
  • repainted the sills and doorsteps
  • repainted the sill trims and also new trim clips
  • resprayed the floor panels and inner wheel arches with undercoating
  • filled all inner holes of doors and sills with ML Tectyl
  • new headlight reflectors and taillights

The car already had a new MOT (here it’s called APK, a yearly safety inspection which is mandatory for using the car) and an overhaul. So it’s almost as good as new!

Some pictures of the result (before I cleaned and waxed the car), click on the image for a larger version (will open in a new window/tab):

 Volvo 240 244 rear wheel arch repaired restored welded replaced repainted  Volvo 240 removed rust rustless sill holes repaired welded  Volvo 240 new rear wheel arches rust welding repainted
 Volvo 240 new inner door doorstep sill after welding respray  Volvo 240 fixed weld inner sill doorstep repainted  Volvo 240 sedan after restoring welding fixing repaint
 Volvo 240 after welding paintjob restoration  Volvo 240 after restore from rust welding respray with new taillights  Volvo 240 after restoration welding repainting respray with new rear lamps

 

 

New redesigned bushings for the idler arm of Volvo Amazon, P1800, 140 and 164

A very common problem of the Volvo Amazon, 140/164 and P1800 is the bushing of the idler arm will wear out very quickly. Fortunately there is now a very good solution available for it: a bearing-mounted bushing with grease nipple. If your car uses the bushing with Volvo part number 671444 this new solution will be much better than the replacement parts that are now sold: the reproduction bushing (671444) are in most cases very bad and already worn when they aren’t installed yet (the rubber that’s being used in these reproductions is very bad). And when the bushing is installed it won’t last very long (in most cases it’s completely worn out within one year). So Kevin de Leuw designed a new bushing that will last forever and handles much better!

Idler arm bushing with grease nipple Volvo part 671444
Drawing of the new designed bushing that replaces Volvo part 671444 (click on the image for a larger version) 

This is the bushing you’ve got to have for your classic Volvo!

It uses the old technology (like the old Amazon models had until 1965) of grease lubrication which is very reliable. The system has been computer-designed with Cad 3D and has been tested for some while and the results are excellent!

The new bushing will fit on the following cars:

  • Volvo Amazon and Amazon Combi of 1966 and newer
  • Volvo 1800 series of 1966 and later
  • Volvo 140-series (142, 144 and 145)
  • Volvo 164

Kevin de Leuw offers the redesigned bushings for € 65,– (or $ 72,–) excluding VAT and shipping costs. For installation you’ll need Loctite that will help to secure shafts and bearings into their housings. Kevin also offers a 50ml bottle of imitation-Loctite for € 7,50 (or $ 9,–). An installation guide is included.

Volvo idler arm with new type bushing assembled replaces 671444
The new type bushing installed on a idler arm of a Volvo 164 (click on the image for a very large version) 

Please note: although the new type bushing is tested very well and designed with great care Kevin de Leuw isn’t responsible for any damage due bad installation.

Since Kevin doesn’t have a site and doesn’t want to receive spam, just mail me at info@volvotips.com and I will forward your e-mail directly to Kevin.

The transformation of my Volvo 240 sedan – part 1

My good old ’86 Volvo 240 sedan has some rust on the wheel arches and sills. Since rust never will disappear by itself I decided to fix these bad spots. But I can’t weld myself, so Kevin the mechanic decided to weld the 240. So we started this partial restoration about one and a half week ago and after 1,5 weekends the Volvo 240 is almost another car, thanks to Kevin!

Check the video below to see the rust and other bad areas of my Volvo 240.

Since I can’t weld I grinded and put pully and filler on the areas that didn’t need welding and I fixed the headlight reflectors and taillights. I also resprayed the sill mouldings since they were painted white by the previous owner. Now they’re in the original black color which looks a lot better!

Stay tuned for part 2 (which will be the final part) of the transformation of the Volvo 240!

Read More…

Bad news for classic car fans in The Netherlands

After the Dutch elections on September 12 this year, a new government has been presented today and they also presented their new plans for the next 4 years. Unfortunately there is very bad news for the Dutch classic car and oldtimer-fans: the exemption for the road taxes for classic cars has been banned by the new government! In The Netherlands owners of cars has to pay a monthly fee for using roads . The road taxes in Holland are one of the highest in Europe: the average petrol car pays about EUR 40,– per month and a diesel (and LPG) car about EUR 100,–. Fuel prices in The Netherlands are also higher than most European countries: at the moment about EUR 1,85 for 1 litre Euro95 and EUR 1,55 for a litre of diesel and EUR 0,85 for LPG. Most classic cars can run excellent on LPG which is a lot cheaper than petrol fuel and if the car is 25 years or older the owner of a classic car will save a lot of money per year.

But the new government bans the tax-free oldtimer by withdrawing the tax-free cars, meaning these cars will have to pay the full road tax each month (or per quarter of a year, or yearly: just what the owner want). The new government (with righ-wing VVD and left-wing PvdA) declared the oldtimers will have to pay taxes per 2014 and they made this change due environmental considerations.  It is most likely a lot of oldtimers will disappear the next years.

Volvo 240 DL 1986 after washing
Youngtimers like the Volvo 240 will gradually disappear from the streets

I have to admit: there are a lot of classic car owners who are abusing the system by driving a rusty Mercedes-diesel which smells terribly, but owners of a nice P1800 or PV 544 (or a nice Ferrari or any other nice classic car) which drive their oldtimer only a few days per year are paying the price of these new regulations. I think the FEHAC (classic car organisation in The Netherlands) will start a lobby, but in the best scenario I think a special ticket system will be introduced to drive a classic car a few days per year.

Volvo goodies I bought at the Volvobeurs event

Last weekend the yearly classic Volvo event called “Volvo klassieker beurs” was held in Nieuwegein (the Netherlands). It’s a very nice event to meet new people and see old friends who shares the same hobby. This year the Classic Volvo Club (in Dutch: Volvo Klassieker Vereniging) moved to a new location since the old location, Veemarkthallen, has been closed and last year’s location (Gorinchem) wasn’t available. I have to be honest: the location this year wasn’t great. Normally all classic Volvo cars were parked by model / type on a reserved parking lot, but this year the cars had to be parked on a public parking which wasn’t next to the expo where the event took place. Not the best option, but fortunately the organisation managed to get many Volvo cars on the parking. The restaurant of the expo was very bad (bad food, high prices) and the expo hall was very small, resulting in a very crowded area (while the expo hall on the first floor was almost empty). But you’ll never know how good (or bad) an expo is unless you’ll try it. Better luck next year!

Since my Volvo 240 DL is for sale and the 740 & V70 has a lot of options and accessories I didn’t really have a wishlist of items I was looking for. But I thought it would be a great idea to find every brochure and catalog of the cars that I have owned (I also collect model cars of the Volvo cars I had). So I bought a couple of brochures: a brochure of the 1990 740, a modelyear 1987 240 (just like my 240) and a 850 Estate 1993 brochure. I also bought a new yearbook of Volvo, a Volvo S40 model car and a Volvo C30 STCC cap. And I also bought something for my girlfriend: a Volvo 740 miniature in a pink package (she loves pink and drives a 740).

Volvo brochures goodies Volvo 740 760 miniature Matchbox star car
The Volvo goodies I bought, and the Volvo 740 miniature model car

I also took some pictures of some nice Volvo classic cars and shot a lot of videos of several Volvo cars. Check the pictures here and the videos can be found at the Volvotips Youtube-channel.

Flushing the automatic gearbox with Powerflush – the review

A month ago I posted my 2001 Volvo V70 would receive a Powerflush treatment to replace and flush the automatic transmission fluid. Since I drove about 1.000km (625 miles) since the Powerflush treatment I decided to write a review about Powerflush and share my experiences. Well: here it is!

The Volvo-dealer changed the ATF of my V70 a couple of years ago, at a mileage of 223.000km (the car had at the moment of the powerflush 295.000km so the ATF is 72.000km old). The dealer used the drain & fill method (old oil is removed, filled with new one and that’s done a couple of times until the right amount of litres is changed). Since my car had troubles in shifting up at 70km/h to the fifth gear (it took very long) and wasn’t shifting really smooth anymore I decided it was time to change the ATF of my V70. It’s a part of standard maintenance in my opinion and a broken gearbox makes a car impossible to sell (but I didn’t want to sell it at all and prevent any damage on the gearbox).

Powerflush machine materials ATF flush

Click below on more to read the full article.

Read More…

My Volvo 240 DL 2.0 is on the road again!

After being stored in a barn for more than 3 years I decided to get my good old ’86 Volvo 240 DL on the road again. I sold my Volvo 740 GL and thought it was time to get the 240 sedan road-legal and decide if I will keep it or sell it.

I bought a new battery and installed it into the car. Unfortunately the fuel tank was as good as empty so I needed to put some gas in it. After that the car started immediately! Not bad after being dead for three years! The B200K engine did make a pretty strange noise for a couple of minutes (due the oil that didn’t reach everything well inside the engine) but the noise was gone after a few minutes.

I drove it to the gas station just next to the ranch where the 240 was stored, filled the tank and went to a local Volvo-subdealer where the car was being checked for a new MOT (in Dutch: the APK, an approval to make the car road-legal for one year) and the timing belt also needed to be replaced.

There were some small things that needed to be fixed: some lights, a rubber of the ball joint, some small holes in the exhaust (according to the garage it only needed some exhaust paste) and a radiator hose was completely withered in 3 years and also needed replacement.

After that I serviced the car myself (with some help of Kevin the mechanic) and replaced a lot of things:

  • new oil (Mobil 1 15w40 Super1000)
  • original oil filter
  • air filter
  • Bosch WR7DC+ spark plugs
  • adjusted the valves and replaced the valve cover gasket (also original Volvo)
  • new battery (that was changed when I picked up the car)
  • some small things like screws, nuts and moulding clips
  • and of course: I washed the car and cleaned the interior (but the interior needs some extra cleaning).

Volvo 240 DL 1986 after washing
After 3 years being stored in a barn the Volvo 240 DL is road-legal again! 

Unfortunately the car has some rust at the wheel arches and the rear right sill, so I’ll try to sell it since I can’t weld. And since I’m not a big fan of manual transmissions (this car has a M47 manual gearbox) and the car doesn’t have power steering I don’t know if I’m going to drive it regularly. Although I have to say: it’s really fun to drive! If I can’t sell it in a short term the wheelarches and sill will be fixed, but the car will become a lot more expensive if I’m going to sell it.