Neither fails *that* often, but I’ve definitely replaced more late than early
& had an early car actually start on a marginal battery parked next to a late (cables/terminals fine on both same weight oil, next to each other w/plenty of other rwds coming & going in the same shop).
I’d use either, but on a DD & shopping generic used on the cheap, I’d use early if ‘known good’ & OE W.Germany & not chinesium/Bosch Brazil w/slight preference?
I *try* with the limited electrical/other knowledge I have to recombine/properly repair used & not to buy cheap/craptermarket made after the cars went outta stringent quality control high volume (one big buyer/volume discounted priority OEM customer) production in 1998/subject to lemon/10/100 extended/implied warranty laws/ford got the controlling share in 2000 China or Bosch Brazil nazi slave crap new just as a rule, but what do I know?
Since when is TB ‘bought not built’ new chinesium/similar & not recombine (best quality/properly evaluated/‘known good’) used & rewind it with your wire-turner & techtronix navy hoarder/signal corps electrical equipment in your/your buddies/local quality rebuilders garage?
Thought those were the dyed in wool hardcore Volvo owners of the 140/240 ‘boxy, but good’ w/a few amazons & 7/9s here & there?
Wish ya luck OP, whatever you decide?
Have tested used OE for ~head-head w/self serve wrecking yard price…
Idk that it’s the Bosch brand or not so much to answer your question so much as ‘is this made to stringent 10/100 extended/implied lemon/warranty laws for a reputable brand (not some VW Brazil/Mexico yearly model change cheap compact car POS compared to a cheap Honda/Toyota of that era (that will probably last 2-4x as long w/o letting you down if you bought it new/took good care of it (as long as it doesn’t/didn’t get stolen/wrecked
)
) for a hi-volume model car/truck that doesn’t change model/engine all that often, or not?
The Bosch starter in my (& other/various Bosch branded starters in ford trucks) 300-6 ford (they sold that engine 68-present in stationary/durable equipment/the airport tug/gas UPS step vans?) was original/no fuss?
They (Ford) had both PM & brush type Bosch branded starters like the Volvo but I suspect Volvo cheaped out & used some Brazil/somewhat inferior starters starting in 1989 to save $ & ship them to a lower volume brand in like VW did in their Mexico & Brazil made cars & Bosch parts.
That said, I’ve had ~3 quality replacement late PM starters in the Volvo that were replaced @ the dealer w/the Volvo & Bosch W.Germany tag when redblock Volvos were still in production…
Maybe the Halifax built Canada Volvos always/majority got the better quality of the small PM starters?…
…I’ve mostly only seen non-turbo 4-cylinder 200 series that were Halifax built -‘85 model year, IDK about 700s or what starters they sourced/shipped in those years?
Also, I should say, stuff made in Mexico, China & Brazil isn’t necessarily junk always…
…stuff repop’d for low volume not subject to strict regulations in life-threatening or class-action-suit liable to the corporation applications usually something gets ‘lost in translation’ or bean counted to make profit margins work w/shipping costs is all/proceed w/caution /good ouck?
This is an economic/structural business argument, not one to vilify individuals (be they Chinese/Mexican/Brazilian workers or engineers that spec parts @ major ‘reputable’ corporations w/a name to uphold etc.) …
The dollar weakened to the SEK ~1989 & Volvo cars was struggling until ~1994 & they really started to sell 850s in the booming/bubble 1994-1998 USA economy.
In my experience, they started to source or pinch Pennys on fan clutches & starters for the USA market & ~1989-1992 they also really marked up the flag ship fully optioned models (780, 760, 940SE, 244GL, 245SE, 960) to charge appropriately their niche customers w/the $ those years judging by the pile of windows stickers/svc records I’d collected/seen all while they’d been bleeding $ to get the new fwd 850 mid-size modern model into production & slowly phase-out the old model(s) as $/exchange rate & DOT safety/environmental laws dictated (esp. w/USA manufacturers w/deeper pockets/inside track to lobby CARB, DOT, EPA & NTSA for their/their products benefit & keep foreign/smaller competitors out)…
This all said, if you got a good condition (white?…such as one picks the color on used cars…color picks you IMO?) base model 2/7/9 series, consider yourself lucky?
Especially if later model/well seam sealed/rust proofed w/ABS brakes model (modern safety feature I don’t rely on, 3&4 channel late 80s/early 90s ABS numbs the pedal a bit w/accumulator & doesn’t work optimally on gravel/rock crawling /all surfaces/slopes), but over-all I like it/ works well/reliably in a DD/Bosch ABS is *mostly* reliable (seen a couple pumps leak/fail in 1987–1991 Volvos, but it’s rare…if you’re complaining about price/availability of a quality new/reman Bosch W.Germany starter thru the Volvo dealer when the cars were still in production, you should see the bill to replace the ABS pump (eg. in the trunk of your ~<10yo 780)!
).
Or parts cost thru the dealer for a new/reman/updated early LH2.4 ECU (obviously labor cost lower than an ABS pump replacement in the trunk or an early 780 after (hopefully correct?) initial diagnosis) !
Then, factor in inflation-adjustment (in U$D) to those prices & honest dealer/Indy mech that’s willing/able source quality parts @low margins w/old wily mechs that know what they’re doing/even care anymore w/the older cars or any customers left worth bothering with…