Hi all!

Well, I did it. Though I've been planning to get one, it came unexpectedly. Around a month ago, I inquired about a grill update for my 190E. I saw a picture of a 190E with a C-Class grill and knew that was what I've been looking for, and that was exactly what I wanted to do to my car. I received some directions at where to look (thanks), and after a few weeks of research, I found a distributor who carried the grill conversion kit. Needless to say, it was quite expensive, about $300 for the mask and Advantgardeoptic grill, slightly cheaper for the plain C-Class grill. In any case, both were a lot cheaper than an entire hood/grill conversion (E-Class). But I knew that's what I wanted to do and was determined to go ahead and do it. Of course, my friends advised against it saying it's a waste of money and there is hardly any difference in look; they suggested I use the money for rims. In addition, they also said that bodywork would be quite pricey. Yes, that was a concern of mine, but I told myself that it couldn't be more than $300 the most. Oh, how wrong I was! When I started my second phase of research, I called a few bodyshops, even dropped by a couple to get quotes. The first quoted me around $1000 plus! I thought he was BSing me! So I went to another one, the guy quoted me about the same! Another quoted me in excess of $1000! Anyhow, I was so disappointed after getting these quotes. I still wanted to do the conversion but knew I could not afford the bodywork, and even if I could, I knew it wouldn't be worth it. Man, I wanted my car to be different-have never seen a 190E with a C-Class grill update. The picture I saw is a car owned by a German in . . . well, Germany.

I still wanted to do something to my car and had some money begging to be spent (actually, not really). So, with my friends' you-can't-go wrong advice on rims, I decided to get some for my car ) I started with recycler.com in hopes of finding some nice ones for cheap. But while searching for rims, I kind of wandered off. I ended up looking at other things that I've been wanting to get and hoping that I might find it for a nice price. Okay, so what did I get?

A 1983 Volvo 245!

It's going to be my secondary car, a beater; in addition, it will also be my project/fun/mess-around/errand car. Yes, it's a wagon, silver (my favorite car color), GL, auto, and runs well! All for $375! Can you believe that? I didn't expect one so soon! It's not exactly in perfect condition; it needs all four shocks, new rear muffler (taken care of already), OD not engaging, and some little stuff like a taillight bulb replacement. I know it's not going to win any beauty contest, but I just love how the 245s look! Anyone who loves Volvos will know what I mean. The 240s have a look that grows on you; the description "ugly" soon becomes "beautiful," I dunno! Yes, I'm a huge (in-the-closet) Volvo fan. Anyhow, enough of me ranting. Any other Volvo nuts here? I remember seeing some mention of Volvos before. )

I meant smiley faces!