My Volvo 850 R Saloon
Discussion
Right here goes I have been a registered forum user for a short while now but never got round to posting a topic about the car, I bought it via an advert which was originally placed here in Piston Heads Classified sections ironically I have never started a thread here... it has been copied across from another forum so sorry if some of the user names etc don't tally up, I will post the updates across in stages so it's not a huge great post so here goes with the first one from October 2007....
Well guy's and girls, as some of you know I have been asking questions about the 850 and specifically the T5-R's and the R models. I have been looking for a few months not really with an intention to buy just browsing I guess and I came across one I really liked the look of on Piston Heads, a gun metal grey 854 R with full service history, 3 owners and 87,500 miles on the clock. After various conversations with the seller Jason, a top bloke btw, I arranged a viewing and then after seeing the car I arranged a comprehensive AA inspection. Not being 100 percent on the 850 model I decided that the AA inspection was a good idea for two reasons, a it helped me to identify and budget for additional work and b, it allowed the car to be driven by an engineer as the car has no tax it wasn't possible for me to test drive it.
Well after the inspection and being told that the drive was " a pleasant experience" and " you can definately tell its Volvo's flagship performance car of the day" the AA man with a different opinion of the 850 gave me a run down on the pro's and con's of the car. As you can imagine it being an 11 year old car does require certain items of attention. The usual rear main oil seal and also a very slightly leaky radiator being the main two issues. So I have had the car taken by trailer to a local Volvo main dealer garage where the car is currently having an 80,000 mile service including cambelt. Whilst it is there the, rear main oil seal and pcv block, radiator, brake fluid, air filter, fuel filter, spark plugs, ht leads, king lead, rotor arm, dissy cap, aux drive belt, auto gearbox oil, o/s/f seatbelt, rear exhaust hanger bracket, rear exhaust chrome trim, two new remotes, one additional ignition key, new rear mudflaps, new front o/s inner wheel arch guard, new o/s/f wing moulding, replacement front mudflaps, replacement carpet mats, replacement battery, front wipers and headlight wipers are all being renewed. Then next week I am having a fresh set of PZero's fitted as the mismatching ditch finders aren't my choice in rubber and then whilst the tyres are off the Volan's are being refinished. Then when that is complete it is off to see Russ at the end of the month to have the Rica 304 and itg panel filter and thus the list of endless minor modding begins! I have to say for a car that has sat since its mot in May the car still carries an reasonable shine which I hope after a serious valet session will get back the nice shiney finish I expect from a vehicles paint finish. The engine bay needless to say is pure filth and the interior isn't free from its imperfections, one of which the drivers seat backrest bolster which is displaying signs of wear on the leather that being the most major interior issue and which is being rectified with the replacement of the seat backrest and base covers, which I was pleased to learn, are still available from Volvo albeit they have to order them from Sweden or I would have had them done with the service. I have a few pictures of the car but they are the sellers and as you can see it will definately benefit from a valet!! :Banane44:
For those of you thinking omg it needs alot of work, yes it does and no it doesn't I am a really picky bugger and my previous car which was an Orion took me 9 years to get mint and I intend on embarking along a similar route with the Volvo, however I thought it best to sort all the mechanical issues out first before attempting anything else. Below are a couple of the pictures I currently have of the Volvo and the Orion to show you what level of condition I would like to get the Volvo up to eventually.
As you can see from this picture the colouring from the leather has worn away quite abit and the very edge of the seatbelt is fraying not seriously but I want them both done
and a very disgusting engine bay!!
and the Orion which the Volvo will be replacing once it is sold,
Won't probably get the car back to valet it this weekend as Volvo have quite abit to be getting on with, so will probably spend the whole of next weekend doing the valet by which time the wheels and tyres should also be done so will update on the car status then. :Banane59:
Well guy's and girls, as some of you know I have been asking questions about the 850 and specifically the T5-R's and the R models. I have been looking for a few months not really with an intention to buy just browsing I guess and I came across one I really liked the look of on Piston Heads, a gun metal grey 854 R with full service history, 3 owners and 87,500 miles on the clock. After various conversations with the seller Jason, a top bloke btw, I arranged a viewing and then after seeing the car I arranged a comprehensive AA inspection. Not being 100 percent on the 850 model I decided that the AA inspection was a good idea for two reasons, a it helped me to identify and budget for additional work and b, it allowed the car to be driven by an engineer as the car has no tax it wasn't possible for me to test drive it.
Well after the inspection and being told that the drive was " a pleasant experience" and " you can definately tell its Volvo's flagship performance car of the day" the AA man with a different opinion of the 850 gave me a run down on the pro's and con's of the car. As you can imagine it being an 11 year old car does require certain items of attention. The usual rear main oil seal and also a very slightly leaky radiator being the main two issues. So I have had the car taken by trailer to a local Volvo main dealer garage where the car is currently having an 80,000 mile service including cambelt. Whilst it is there the, rear main oil seal and pcv block, radiator, brake fluid, air filter, fuel filter, spark plugs, ht leads, king lead, rotor arm, dissy cap, aux drive belt, auto gearbox oil, o/s/f seatbelt, rear exhaust hanger bracket, rear exhaust chrome trim, two new remotes, one additional ignition key, new rear mudflaps, new front o/s inner wheel arch guard, new o/s/f wing moulding, replacement front mudflaps, replacement carpet mats, replacement battery, front wipers and headlight wipers are all being renewed. Then next week I am having a fresh set of PZero's fitted as the mismatching ditch finders aren't my choice in rubber and then whilst the tyres are off the Volan's are being refinished. Then when that is complete it is off to see Russ at the end of the month to have the Rica 304 and itg panel filter and thus the list of endless minor modding begins! I have to say for a car that has sat since its mot in May the car still carries an reasonable shine which I hope after a serious valet session will get back the nice shiney finish I expect from a vehicles paint finish. The engine bay needless to say is pure filth and the interior isn't free from its imperfections, one of which the drivers seat backrest bolster which is displaying signs of wear on the leather that being the most major interior issue and which is being rectified with the replacement of the seat backrest and base covers, which I was pleased to learn, are still available from Volvo albeit they have to order them from Sweden or I would have had them done with the service. I have a few pictures of the car but they are the sellers and as you can see it will definately benefit from a valet!! :Banane44:
For those of you thinking omg it needs alot of work, yes it does and no it doesn't I am a really picky bugger and my previous car which was an Orion took me 9 years to get mint and I intend on embarking along a similar route with the Volvo, however I thought it best to sort all the mechanical issues out first before attempting anything else. Below are a couple of the pictures I currently have of the Volvo and the Orion to show you what level of condition I would like to get the Volvo up to eventually.
As you can see from this picture the colouring from the leather has worn away quite abit and the very edge of the seatbelt is fraying not seriously but I want them both done
and a very disgusting engine bay!!
and the Orion which the Volvo will be replacing once it is sold,
Won't probably get the car back to valet it this weekend as Volvo have quite abit to be getting on with, so will probably spend the whole of next weekend doing the valet by which time the wheels and tyres should also be done so will update on the car status then. :Banane59:
Cheers for the comments guys
Yes the Orion still does make it to the shows with her new owner. Part of me wishes I had of kept her but, dare I say it, after 9 years I was getting a little bored of the car and I did consider going full concourse with her but then that ruins the fun of having a car at the end of the day and I was worried I would do more to it and make it a little over kill so ultimately the time was right. Glad you appreciate it though as a lot of time and money went into her and, even if I say so, she still looks very nice indeed
Max M4X WW said:
Hi,
Volvo looks like a nice new toy, But..
Your Orion is one of my favourite Fords ever and I've spent ages looking at it at numerous shows!
Hi Max,Volvo looks like a nice new toy, But..
Your Orion is one of my favourite Fords ever and I've spent ages looking at it at numerous shows!
Yes the Orion still does make it to the shows with her new owner. Part of me wishes I had of kept her but, dare I say it, after 9 years I was getting a little bored of the car and I did consider going full concourse with her but then that ruins the fun of having a car at the end of the day and I was worried I would do more to it and make it a little over kill so ultimately the time was right. Glad you appreciate it though as a lot of time and money went into her and, even if I say so, she still looks very nice indeed
13th November 2007...
Well considering the weather I managed to get a half decent shot at giving the car a good polish, came out really well although will probably give it another few coats of wax in the not to distant future to help protect the paint. I also managed to get all of the various marks out of the headlining, which I forgot to take a picture of, and the drivers footmat which had some staining to it also has cleaned up alot better than I expected. Didn't manage to get round to doing the engine bay today which is just as well being as the lambda light came on late this afternoon! Had this of occured after I had cleaned the bay I probably would have been cursing thinking it was something I had done to it!! But none the less I am still happy with the car and the fact the light has come on hasn't detracted from my overall enthusiasm for it as I still love it!! :Banane59::Banane59:
Any how I did manage, when the sun finally came out, to take a few pictures of it after the clean, let me know what you think.
Just received the refurbed alloys and new tyres back this evening and have to say car looks even better with the new wheels and tyres, I decided to have them lacquered front to back to help with the cleaning of the inside of the wheel whilst they are still on the car, will have to get somemore pictures up for you all to see. I also appear to have lost the rubbing noise I used to have when on full right hand lock from the o/s/f wheel arch guard and the tread on the Pzero's doesn't look as chunky so the Pzero must offer a little bit more clearance than the Federal ditch finder thing that was fitted previously, result! :bananapartyhat: Probably have a full steering geometry check just to safe guard the new tyres being as these are supposed to have a healthy appetite for tyres as it is without that being out of adjustment as well!
Off to Volvo for 8.30 in the morning to find out why the Lambda light is on, hope its nothing too serious! :bricks:
Will keep you posted.
Well considering the weather I managed to get a half decent shot at giving the car a good polish, came out really well although will probably give it another few coats of wax in the not to distant future to help protect the paint. I also managed to get all of the various marks out of the headlining, which I forgot to take a picture of, and the drivers footmat which had some staining to it also has cleaned up alot better than I expected. Didn't manage to get round to doing the engine bay today which is just as well being as the lambda light came on late this afternoon! Had this of occured after I had cleaned the bay I probably would have been cursing thinking it was something I had done to it!! But none the less I am still happy with the car and the fact the light has come on hasn't detracted from my overall enthusiasm for it as I still love it!! :Banane59::Banane59:
Any how I did manage, when the sun finally came out, to take a few pictures of it after the clean, let me know what you think.
Just received the refurbed alloys and new tyres back this evening and have to say car looks even better with the new wheels and tyres, I decided to have them lacquered front to back to help with the cleaning of the inside of the wheel whilst they are still on the car, will have to get somemore pictures up for you all to see. I also appear to have lost the rubbing noise I used to have when on full right hand lock from the o/s/f wheel arch guard and the tread on the Pzero's doesn't look as chunky so the Pzero must offer a little bit more clearance than the Federal ditch finder thing that was fitted previously, result! :bananapartyhat: Probably have a full steering geometry check just to safe guard the new tyres being as these are supposed to have a healthy appetite for tyres as it is without that being out of adjustment as well!
Off to Volvo for 8.30 in the morning to find out why the Lambda light is on, hope its nothing too serious! :bricks:
Will keep you posted.
30th November 2007
Right sorry for the delay in the update, that was due to a fault with the phone line meaning no internet!! Having just had the whole of this week as holiday it has been a busy one for the car, having just got back from Norwich today and Liphook on Wednesday, here is what has occured since the last update,
1, Check engine light, well a fault code was stored which apparently related to a pressure indifference between a vacumn hose that had already been renewed on the service. There was no charge made for the reading and clearing of the fault code and I also got chatting to a chap who was waiting for his V70R AWD, 850 shape not sure which "phase" that is, which also had a check engine light on. Since the light has been cleared touch wood it has not come back on despite now covering near on 1,000 miles since the code was cleared. So fingers crossed on that.
2, Monday afternoon, Tuesday and Wednesday morning I had the car in at RT Mechanic's for the Rica 304 upgrade and couple of other little bits, thermostat, temperature sensor, header tank and rad cap and I now say a BIG thank you to Russ and his team as they quite simply are fantastic!! I shall certainly be going back there for more work in the future and advise anyone who is considering them to go for it! With regard to the Rica 304 upgrade I was absolutely gob smacked when I finally found an appropriate private road to try the cars new found power out. Its ... well.... its just rapid! I can't believe how different the car is since the upgrade, still a pleasure to drive when in heavy traffic and on public roads, but when on the private roads absolutely amazing. Wheel spin occuring even at 60 when in kickdown and even now with the P Zero's fitted so not any old cheap tyre! Thankfully there aren't many private roads around here so the tyres should still last a while!! :speechless-smiley-2
3, Thursday was a rest day then it was up early this morning and off to Inchcape Volvo Norwich to have the drivers seat backrest cover renewed as the leather had discoloured and the alcantara had bubbled up quite a bit around the bolster area being the raised area that always gets brushed when entering and exiting the car. I also had the engine oil and filter renewed, being as the car has now covered 1,000 miles since the service I thought it a good idea to give it a fresh oil change as the car had been sitting for some time prior to me purchasing it and any crud that had collected should now be flushed out. So thats another thing off the list of things to be done and certainly concludes the list of items requiring attention before christmas.
Now that I have the car back, and hopefully one dry day during the weekend, I shall give it a clean up over the weekend and take some up to date pictures of the newly refurbished alloys and the new seat cover.
Once again sorry for the delay
Cheers,
Andy
Right sorry for the delay in the update, that was due to a fault with the phone line meaning no internet!! Having just had the whole of this week as holiday it has been a busy one for the car, having just got back from Norwich today and Liphook on Wednesday, here is what has occured since the last update,
1, Check engine light, well a fault code was stored which apparently related to a pressure indifference between a vacumn hose that had already been renewed on the service. There was no charge made for the reading and clearing of the fault code and I also got chatting to a chap who was waiting for his V70R AWD, 850 shape not sure which "phase" that is, which also had a check engine light on. Since the light has been cleared touch wood it has not come back on despite now covering near on 1,000 miles since the code was cleared. So fingers crossed on that.
2, Monday afternoon, Tuesday and Wednesday morning I had the car in at RT Mechanic's for the Rica 304 upgrade and couple of other little bits, thermostat, temperature sensor, header tank and rad cap and I now say a BIG thank you to Russ and his team as they quite simply are fantastic!! I shall certainly be going back there for more work in the future and advise anyone who is considering them to go for it! With regard to the Rica 304 upgrade I was absolutely gob smacked when I finally found an appropriate private road to try the cars new found power out. Its ... well.... its just rapid! I can't believe how different the car is since the upgrade, still a pleasure to drive when in heavy traffic and on public roads, but when on the private roads absolutely amazing. Wheel spin occuring even at 60 when in kickdown and even now with the P Zero's fitted so not any old cheap tyre! Thankfully there aren't many private roads around here so the tyres should still last a while!! :speechless-smiley-2
3, Thursday was a rest day then it was up early this morning and off to Inchcape Volvo Norwich to have the drivers seat backrest cover renewed as the leather had discoloured and the alcantara had bubbled up quite a bit around the bolster area being the raised area that always gets brushed when entering and exiting the car. I also had the engine oil and filter renewed, being as the car has now covered 1,000 miles since the service I thought it a good idea to give it a fresh oil change as the car had been sitting for some time prior to me purchasing it and any crud that had collected should now be flushed out. So thats another thing off the list of things to be done and certainly concludes the list of items requiring attention before christmas.
Now that I have the car back, and hopefully one dry day during the weekend, I shall give it a clean up over the weekend and take some up to date pictures of the newly refurbished alloys and the new seat cover.
Once again sorry for the delay
Cheers,
Andy
1st December 2007
Right ok as promised due to some sunshine today managed to get the car washed and a few pictures taken to show the recently refurbished alloy wheels and the new drivers seat back rest cover which was fitted yesterday. Also managed to get hold of a front towing eye trim cover and genuine clear side repeaters to replace the chrome trimed ones which had been fitted previously, also sourced a set of genuine Volvo headlight protectors which should be here early part of next week.
Hope you like, comments always welcome.
Cheers Andy
Right ok as promised due to some sunshine today managed to get the car washed and a few pictures taken to show the recently refurbished alloy wheels and the new drivers seat back rest cover which was fitted yesterday. Also managed to get hold of a front towing eye trim cover and genuine clear side repeaters to replace the chrome trimed ones which had been fitted previously, also sourced a set of genuine Volvo headlight protectors which should be here early part of next week.
Hope you like, comments always welcome.
Cheers Andy
Thanks for your kind comments,
Walter didn't realise the seat covers were now discontinued.. looks like I did well to get mine when I did then...although your T-5R interior does look to be in very good condition so doesn't look like it was a bad move.
Evo, yes I think if you have that eye for detail it does help plus I think it makes for a better car in the long run. Will have to keep an eye out for a Golf thread if you do one of your progress.
Walter didn't realise the seat covers were now discontinued.. looks like I did well to get mine when I did then...although your T-5R interior does look to be in very good condition so doesn't look like it was a bad move.
Evo, yes I think if you have that eye for detail it does help plus I think it makes for a better car in the long run. Will have to keep an eye out for a Golf thread if you do one of your progress.
9th December 2007
Right well due to a rather poor weathered weekend, I only got the usual quick exterior clean done. However I did also fit my headlight protectors after I had washed it. When they turned up from Volvo I was surprised they didn't have Volvo written on them anywhere. I know they are manufactured by EGR for Volvo but this is the same setup as the headlight covers I have fitted on the Orion. So I thought I would modify them by retro fitting a Volvo badge on each cover whilst trying to maintain an original look. I did manage to take a couple of shots with the lamps fitted but daylight disappeared so quickly I had to resort to a night shot for the final fitted look.
As I received them after unwrapping them as you can see apart from the black lines there are no other markings,
The headlight cover on my Orion, note the Ford emblem close to the grille
Attempting to mirror this style on the Volvo headlight covers
Fitted,
At this stage I am not sure whether I 100 percent like the covers yet or not, obviously they are a cover and as a result they stick out proud from the lamp. Obviously this is the same for the Orion but because the Volvo is a better built and more modern car the panel gap's and general fit and finish are of a higher quality and this obviously helps to show up how the headlamp covers fit and finish. I shall leave them on for a bit and see how I feel about them when I can have a good look at them in the daylight.
Right well due to a rather poor weathered weekend, I only got the usual quick exterior clean done. However I did also fit my headlight protectors after I had washed it. When they turned up from Volvo I was surprised they didn't have Volvo written on them anywhere. I know they are manufactured by EGR for Volvo but this is the same setup as the headlight covers I have fitted on the Orion. So I thought I would modify them by retro fitting a Volvo badge on each cover whilst trying to maintain an original look. I did manage to take a couple of shots with the lamps fitted but daylight disappeared so quickly I had to resort to a night shot for the final fitted look.
As I received them after unwrapping them as you can see apart from the black lines there are no other markings,
The headlight cover on my Orion, note the Ford emblem close to the grille
Attempting to mirror this style on the Volvo headlight covers
Fitted,
At this stage I am not sure whether I 100 percent like the covers yet or not, obviously they are a cover and as a result they stick out proud from the lamp. Obviously this is the same for the Orion but because the Volvo is a better built and more modern car the panel gap's and general fit and finish are of a higher quality and this obviously helps to show up how the headlamp covers fit and finish. I shall leave them on for a bit and see how I feel about them when I can have a good look at them in the daylight.
27th January 2008
Well this weekends weather was the best I since I have owned the 850 and I had a busy Saturday as a result. Up at the crack of dawn to give the car a good wash and to finally get the flat and polish done that I have wanted to get done since I bought the car. So got the car washed and dryed by 10.00 then it was round to a friends house to get the car pc polished. Spent a good while masking off the areas of textured plastic to prevent any damage from the polisher. Then the car was polished, which I give full credit to my friend Pete for, I was in charge of removing the polish! Once that was done it was a rush to polish and seal the paint before the sunlight faded so as a result I didn't manage to get any finished result pictures until today. I also forgot my digital camera yesterday so didn't really get a chance to get any before pictures.
However this is the car when I first went to look at it. Notice how dull the paintwork is due to loads and I mean loads of micro scratches and swirls!!
Then the car was masked off and paintwork checked to make sure it was fine to polish with the PC polisher.
This picture shows the rear quarter panel and front wing which by this this time had already been done, it was supposed to show the difference in the paint finish compared with the doors but unfortunately my camera phone couldn't really pick up the difference. Although if you look at the o/s/r door you can just make out some of the scratches and swirls I was talking about.
Managed to get the car all done before the daylight faded but didn't get any finished pictures until today which I took with my digital camera rather than the camera phone.
A better picture of the new seat cover
Also at a risk of going with the flow and purely an accident due to the cutting polish on the PC polisher I ended up with black badges which I actually think look better than the original chrome finish. But I have got a full set of new badges if in the long run I prefer the chrome look.
And finally got rid of all that dust and crap in the engine bay although it still needs a proper going over to remove the engine lacquer that tbh was probably applied at the factory.
I am over the moon with how well the car came out after the polishing as I did have my doubts I would ever get a decentish shine from the paintwork and when you look at the picture of it just before I bought it and the picture from today I think you could be forgiven for thinking they were to different cars!!
Anyway thats what I have been up to this weekend.
Cheers for reading and comments are always welcome :thumbs_up:
Well this weekends weather was the best I since I have owned the 850 and I had a busy Saturday as a result. Up at the crack of dawn to give the car a good wash and to finally get the flat and polish done that I have wanted to get done since I bought the car. So got the car washed and dryed by 10.00 then it was round to a friends house to get the car pc polished. Spent a good while masking off the areas of textured plastic to prevent any damage from the polisher. Then the car was polished, which I give full credit to my friend Pete for, I was in charge of removing the polish! Once that was done it was a rush to polish and seal the paint before the sunlight faded so as a result I didn't manage to get any finished result pictures until today. I also forgot my digital camera yesterday so didn't really get a chance to get any before pictures.
However this is the car when I first went to look at it. Notice how dull the paintwork is due to loads and I mean loads of micro scratches and swirls!!
Then the car was masked off and paintwork checked to make sure it was fine to polish with the PC polisher.
This picture shows the rear quarter panel and front wing which by this this time had already been done, it was supposed to show the difference in the paint finish compared with the doors but unfortunately my camera phone couldn't really pick up the difference. Although if you look at the o/s/r door you can just make out some of the scratches and swirls I was talking about.
Managed to get the car all done before the daylight faded but didn't get any finished pictures until today which I took with my digital camera rather than the camera phone.
A better picture of the new seat cover
Also at a risk of going with the flow and purely an accident due to the cutting polish on the PC polisher I ended up with black badges which I actually think look better than the original chrome finish. But I have got a full set of new badges if in the long run I prefer the chrome look.
And finally got rid of all that dust and crap in the engine bay although it still needs a proper going over to remove the engine lacquer that tbh was probably applied at the factory.
I am over the moon with how well the car came out after the polishing as I did have my doubts I would ever get a decentish shine from the paintwork and when you look at the picture of it just before I bought it and the picture from today I think you could be forgiven for thinking they were to different cars!!
Anyway thats what I have been up to this weekend.
Cheers for reading and comments are always welcome :thumbs_up:
Edited by Andysr on Saturday 28th August 20:15
10th February 2008
Yesterday whilst doing an oil change on the car finally managed to get the wheels off and brakes painted. Went for the gold look with the centre of the front and rear discs in black. The first thing a friend said when I got home after they looked at the car was "blimey brand new calipers all round!" lol I wasn't too sure on the colour as I was painting the brakes but with the wheels back on I think it looks perfect. Managed to get a couple of shots today of the brakes and a side profile shot. What do you think?
Comments appreciated. :thumbs_up:
Yesterday whilst doing an oil change on the car finally managed to get the wheels off and brakes painted. Went for the gold look with the centre of the front and rear discs in black. The first thing a friend said when I got home after they looked at the car was "blimey brand new calipers all round!" lol I wasn't too sure on the colour as I was painting the brakes but with the wheels back on I think it looks perfect. Managed to get a couple of shots today of the brakes and a side profile shot. What do you think?
Comments appreciated. :thumbs_up:
6th April 2008
Well time for a mini update seeing as the forum is now back up and running.
Two weekend's ago signaled the end of an era for me as I had my first viewing arranged for the Orion. As it happens it was as good as sold as soon as the dust sheet was removed but due to bad weather the car wasn't test driven until last weekend and sold immediately following the test drive. Just before the new owner took the car away I asked if it be possible to get a couple of shots of the two cars together. Not sure why but these shots are shots I have always wanted to take.
Right well the Orion is gone the Volvo now has the garage so I thought time to really get to work on the old girl.
Made a couple of purchases this week and was hoping to use them this weekend but the lovely English weather stopped play.
Although last weekend I did give her a quick wash and took a few more shots just because the sun came out and I felt like it!
The gold coloured calipers have really grown on me now think they finish off the outside look!
With Marham nearly upon us I thought it would be a good idea to go a get the car filled with a fresh tank of V-power ready for Saturday morning and obviously get the tyre pressures checked. Unfortunatelty the the car seems to have other ideas after developing a rather strange fault which I am unhappy with. When on full acceleration the car appears to be struggling to accelerate as if it has a lack of fuel or something. I have spent most of today checking the obvious but have been unable to come up with a reason as to why the fault has occured. I have the car booked in with RT's on Monday 14th for some other goodies to be fitted and a replacement actuator following on from the previous boosting issue. Looks like it is a fault that Russ will need to diagnose. Also think I want a Ferrita exhaust and performance cat fitted along with the 302mm larger front brake discs so watch this space for those.
Anyway looks like Marham April is out of the question as I don't want to risk damaging the car with this current fault so I can only hope there will be another track day towards the end of the year! :thumbs_up:
Well time for a mini update seeing as the forum is now back up and running.
Two weekend's ago signaled the end of an era for me as I had my first viewing arranged for the Orion. As it happens it was as good as sold as soon as the dust sheet was removed but due to bad weather the car wasn't test driven until last weekend and sold immediately following the test drive. Just before the new owner took the car away I asked if it be possible to get a couple of shots of the two cars together. Not sure why but these shots are shots I have always wanted to take.
Right well the Orion is gone the Volvo now has the garage so I thought time to really get to work on the old girl.
Made a couple of purchases this week and was hoping to use them this weekend but the lovely English weather stopped play.
Although last weekend I did give her a quick wash and took a few more shots just because the sun came out and I felt like it!
The gold coloured calipers have really grown on me now think they finish off the outside look!
With Marham nearly upon us I thought it would be a good idea to go a get the car filled with a fresh tank of V-power ready for Saturday morning and obviously get the tyre pressures checked. Unfortunatelty the the car seems to have other ideas after developing a rather strange fault which I am unhappy with. When on full acceleration the car appears to be struggling to accelerate as if it has a lack of fuel or something. I have spent most of today checking the obvious but have been unable to come up with a reason as to why the fault has occured. I have the car booked in with RT's on Monday 14th for some other goodies to be fitted and a replacement actuator following on from the previous boosting issue. Looks like it is a fault that Russ will need to diagnose. Also think I want a Ferrita exhaust and performance cat fitted along with the 302mm larger front brake discs so watch this space for those.
Anyway looks like Marham April is out of the question as I don't want to risk damaging the car with this current fault so I can only hope there will be another track day towards the end of the year! :thumbs_up:
Stoatman said:
Lovely car , and as you are obviously a man who seeks perfection . Have you a dent on your nearside rear passenger door ? I cant see any , anywhere else. Can you get it pulled out , just for me ?? :-)
You have a keen eye too then... Don't worry the dent has already been removed since that picture was taken 
Thanks for the comments
Stedman said:
I like the work the polishing has done. Those dark badges look very nice 
How much was the seat cover Andy?
Edit-can't believe you went for another set of PZeros though. I found them appauling on my R.
GSD3s however...WOW
Seat cover was something in the region of £300.00 from memory....How much was the seat cover Andy?
Edit-can't believe you went for another set of PZeros though. I found them appauling on my R.
GSD3s however...WOW
Edited by Stedman on Sunday 29th August 02:29
P Zero's seemed to be the best option at the time as they were standard fit for Volvo and the G3D3's, which I had on the Orion, aren't available in the same size as the P Zero's. However since fitting the P Zero's I learn't that alot of people opted for the next size up so keep your eyes peeled for that update
Evo said:
Hi Andy,
Do you have any advice on how you painted your calipers ie did you do them in situe? What paint colour did you use as i'd like to do the Golfs in the same colour.
Cheers,
Jeremy.
I wire brushed the calipers and sanded the centre of the brake discs, I then cleaned the dust off with a rag and alot of brake cleaner then I painted them with hammerite smooth and the finish hasn't blemished at all in the 2 years they have been like that, and they have had the occassional work out in those 2 years too Do you have any advice on how you painted your calipers ie did you do them in situe? What paint colour did you use as i'd like to do the Golfs in the same colour.
Cheers,
Jeremy.
21st August 2008..
Well thought now the forum is back up to strength again it would be a good time to do a mini update...
I had the car down at RT's who sorted the running/boosting issue's out.
Essentially the O2 sensor had failed which came to light after conducting an exhaust emission's test which showed co percentage at 10 percent when the engine was idling, which btw is well above the correct reading. So I had the sensor replaced. The fuel pressure regulator also wasn't quite up to spec when the throttle was initially depressed the fuel pressure dipped slightly more than it should so that was also replaced. The wastegate actuator I had fitted wasn't a brilliant one so I had that replaced and Russ reset the boost pressures to the correct level for the Rica and the car is now better than ever. I also had the Ferrita catback system fitted and am currently waiting on the larger downpipe which Russ is sorting and should hopefully be fitted at some stage within the coming month or two.
The front brakes have been replaced with the 302 mm discs and Ferrodo pads, it was found that the o/s/r and n/s/f brake calipers were shot and had to be replaced after having the calipers replaced and the larger discs fitted a vast improvement in braking performance was noted and for a budget brake upgrade I would definately advise anyone considering it to go ahead and get it done! :thumbs_up:
To say the car is different now is an understatement, it feel's like a completely different car seeing a vast improvement in both performance and fuel consumption as a result of the work done.
I have also just had the fuel injectors cleaned which Russ arranged through a forum user on here. Again even after just having the injectors cleaned the engine feels smooth and a small noticeable improvement has been achieved on the fuel consumption front with the car comfortably making 33-34 mpg on a motorway run with the air con on and dropping to 28-29 when not on the motorway which isn't bad for a Rica'd automatic R, well I didn't think so anyway.
I also had the o/s/f door check strap replaced recently as it started to squeak when opening the door on warm days, no amount of grease stopped it either, and it must have been really stiff as I have noticed a difference in how much easier the door opens. It's no wonder the door frame cracks on the 850 if they get that stiff because apart from the noise I was none the wiser about how stiff the check strap was so the pressure on the frame must have been considerably more than it should be couple that with the use of the door gets and its easy to see why they might crack.
One last few things to mention is that I decided the alloy wheel finish wasn't dark enough so I went a few shades darker and have to say I think the wheel colour works perfectly with the colour of the car. I also decided to go with the flow and managed to source a half decent 2nd hand radiator grille and painted it black to see how it would look, again I love the way the car looks with the dark grille and have already been talking to a local bodyshop about getting my original grille repainted black for a more lasting finish.
Anyway thats enough typing here are a few recent shots of the car sporting the new exhaust, wheel colour and grille finish.
I am currently in discussion with a local stainless steel exhaust specialist about having the Ferrita exhaust trim replaced with a square trim to echo the original trim that was fitted to the car by Volvo in 1996 :thumbs_up:
Well thought now the forum is back up to strength again it would be a good time to do a mini update...
I had the car down at RT's who sorted the running/boosting issue's out.
Essentially the O2 sensor had failed which came to light after conducting an exhaust emission's test which showed co percentage at 10 percent when the engine was idling, which btw is well above the correct reading. So I had the sensor replaced. The fuel pressure regulator also wasn't quite up to spec when the throttle was initially depressed the fuel pressure dipped slightly more than it should so that was also replaced. The wastegate actuator I had fitted wasn't a brilliant one so I had that replaced and Russ reset the boost pressures to the correct level for the Rica and the car is now better than ever. I also had the Ferrita catback system fitted and am currently waiting on the larger downpipe which Russ is sorting and should hopefully be fitted at some stage within the coming month or two.
The front brakes have been replaced with the 302 mm discs and Ferrodo pads, it was found that the o/s/r and n/s/f brake calipers were shot and had to be replaced after having the calipers replaced and the larger discs fitted a vast improvement in braking performance was noted and for a budget brake upgrade I would definately advise anyone considering it to go ahead and get it done! :thumbs_up:
To say the car is different now is an understatement, it feel's like a completely different car seeing a vast improvement in both performance and fuel consumption as a result of the work done.
I have also just had the fuel injectors cleaned which Russ arranged through a forum user on here. Again even after just having the injectors cleaned the engine feels smooth and a small noticeable improvement has been achieved on the fuel consumption front with the car comfortably making 33-34 mpg on a motorway run with the air con on and dropping to 28-29 when not on the motorway which isn't bad for a Rica'd automatic R, well I didn't think so anyway.
I also had the o/s/f door check strap replaced recently as it started to squeak when opening the door on warm days, no amount of grease stopped it either, and it must have been really stiff as I have noticed a difference in how much easier the door opens. It's no wonder the door frame cracks on the 850 if they get that stiff because apart from the noise I was none the wiser about how stiff the check strap was so the pressure on the frame must have been considerably more than it should be couple that with the use of the door gets and its easy to see why they might crack.
One last few things to mention is that I decided the alloy wheel finish wasn't dark enough so I went a few shades darker and have to say I think the wheel colour works perfectly with the colour of the car. I also decided to go with the flow and managed to source a half decent 2nd hand radiator grille and painted it black to see how it would look, again I love the way the car looks with the dark grille and have already been talking to a local bodyshop about getting my original grille repainted black for a more lasting finish.
Anyway thats enough typing here are a few recent shots of the car sporting the new exhaust, wheel colour and grille finish.
I am currently in discussion with a local stainless steel exhaust specialist about having the Ferrita exhaust trim replaced with a square trim to echo the original trim that was fitted to the car by Volvo in 1996 :thumbs_up:
10th December 2008
Right more of a mini update than major update....
Unfortunately due to ill health not much has been occuring with the car. I have had Samco boost and coolant hoses fitted as well as a BSR induction kit. I also had the standard recirc dump valve removed and a Forge blanking plate fitted in its place and all those who have heard it will testify to how loud the wastegate chatter now is
Here are a couple of shots of how the engine bay currently looks
I also decided to remove the black painted standard grille I recently fitted in favour of the original grille as I think ultimately it looks best
Black Grille
Standard Grille
Looking to the future I, fingers crossed, will be up and able to drive mid January and have already got a few plans for the car including a suspension upgrade so watch this space as it will be progressing again in 2009
Right more of a mini update than major update....
Unfortunately due to ill health not much has been occuring with the car. I have had Samco boost and coolant hoses fitted as well as a BSR induction kit. I also had the standard recirc dump valve removed and a Forge blanking plate fitted in its place and all those who have heard it will testify to how loud the wastegate chatter now is
Here are a couple of shots of how the engine bay currently looks
I also decided to remove the black painted standard grille I recently fitted in favour of the original grille as I think ultimately it looks best
Black Grille
Standard Grille
Looking to the future I, fingers crossed, will be up and able to drive mid January and have already got a few plans for the car including a suspension upgrade so watch this space as it will be progressing again in 2009
8th February 2009
Well I am up and about again and have dropped the car off to Russ @ RT's for an engine oil and filter change along with a few other little bits....
A new poly bulkhead bush for the torque mount no pictures of the new bush yet as the car is still at RT's and I am going from shots that Russ has sent to me... but as you can see the old one was certainly past it's best. I had thought that the noise transmitted from the engine through the bulkhead had got quieter recently but thought it was because I had got used to it. Looking forward to hearing what the difference in the noise will be with the poly bush fitted in place
A new square stainless exhaust trim for the Ferrita exhaust, this is something I have always wanted to do as I prefer the look of a square trim for the 850 and after sourcing a suitable trim for the job I entrusted Russ's fitting skills
So what do you think? Will paint the exhaust clamp black so you can't see it and also polish up the end of the exhaust rear box when I get the car back
Well I am up and about again and have dropped the car off to Russ @ RT's for an engine oil and filter change along with a few other little bits....
A new poly bulkhead bush for the torque mount no pictures of the new bush yet as the car is still at RT's and I am going from shots that Russ has sent to me... but as you can see the old one was certainly past it's best. I had thought that the noise transmitted from the engine through the bulkhead had got quieter recently but thought it was because I had got used to it. Looking forward to hearing what the difference in the noise will be with the poly bush fitted in place
A new square stainless exhaust trim for the Ferrita exhaust, this is something I have always wanted to do as I prefer the look of a square trim for the 850 and after sourcing a suitable trim for the job I entrusted Russ's fitting skills
So what do you think? Will paint the exhaust clamp black so you can't see it and also polish up the end of the exhaust rear box when I get the car back
Edited by Andysr on Monday 30th August 20:19
3rd May 2009
Right well here is the update I promised over a month ago! :err:
Anyway those of you who use RT Mechanics will know my car took up root there due to having a small, which turned to a large, list of issues which required attention. But thanks to the patience and percerverance of Russ and his team they have managed to attend to them all even whilst negotiating a major relocation.
The most major issue was a serious lack of power mid range which resulted in a flat power drop/delivery between 2,800 rpm and 3,800 rpm and after much investigation it was as a result of faulty knock sensors that the engine ecu was seriously retarding the ignition due to what it thought was pinking. However after replacement of the knock sensors she now flies again, that coupled to a blown heater blower motor and no operational air conditioning completed the list of major issues that were resolved
Anyway whilst the car was with RT's I also had a few little bits fitted including the poly bush lower torque mounts and firewall mount to complete the upper torque mount poly bushing. I also as previously mentioned had a square stainless steel exhaust tip fitted to the exhaust system. I have also had the fuel pump renewed in favour of a Walbro unit to sort all fueling needs. To complete the list of extra's I had a front lower splitter, as sourced from TC on here, retro fitted to the front of the car. Despite the fact that getting up the driveway is now a major excercise I love the look it has given the front end, but wonder whether the car's time in the garage is limited as I do still plan to lower the car meaning getting up the driveway will probably be a thing of the past! lol
So thanks to Russ and his team for the dedication as I think I would have lost the will to live well before now if I were diagnosing the fault :thumbs_up:
Anyway what use is an update without pictures...
Yesterday whilst having nothing better to do I decided it was time to start a little freshen up under the car, so I jacked her up, cleaned and painted the fuel tank straps and cleaned up the fuel tank and also the rear brake disc stone defectors which before I started cleaning them I had no idea they were white so got a pleasent surprise
The new exhaust tip, which is now supported with poly exhaust mounts
I also replaced the boot lid bagdes with new ones replacing the previous badges which I had de-chromed, so the car now looks like this from behind
The new front splitter, which is already sporting the odd stone chip but I guess that now blends in with the rest of the front end..... lol
I also decided to give the leather seats a well deserved clean and treat...
Poly firewall mount
Lower poly torque mount
Oh and I also decided to heat wrap both main boost hoses to help prevent heat soak a while back which I then painted black to make them blend in with the rest of the engine bay, yes I know one of them is plastic but it looked odd with just the one hose wrapped....
The car now performs very well and the sound of the engine as a result of the poly mounts is phenomenal! I am seriously in love with this car again!
So tomorrow I notice the weather is forecast as sunny so might treat the outside to a polish and wax, I also need to give the carpets a well deserved clean as they are looking grubby then I can crack out the carpet mats in favour of the rubber mats I fitted over the winter period
Sorry for the delay on the update will try and stay more regular in the future, thanks for looking
Right well here is the update I promised over a month ago! :err:
Anyway those of you who use RT Mechanics will know my car took up root there due to having a small, which turned to a large, list of issues which required attention. But thanks to the patience and percerverance of Russ and his team they have managed to attend to them all even whilst negotiating a major relocation.
The most major issue was a serious lack of power mid range which resulted in a flat power drop/delivery between 2,800 rpm and 3,800 rpm and after much investigation it was as a result of faulty knock sensors that the engine ecu was seriously retarding the ignition due to what it thought was pinking. However after replacement of the knock sensors she now flies again
, that coupled to a blown heater blower motor and no operational air conditioning completed the list of major issues that were resolved Anyway whilst the car was with RT's I also had a few little bits fitted including the poly bush lower torque mounts and firewall mount to complete the upper torque mount poly bushing. I also as previously mentioned had a square stainless steel exhaust tip fitted to the exhaust system. I have also had the fuel pump renewed in favour of a Walbro unit to sort all fueling needs. To complete the list of extra's I had a front lower splitter, as sourced from TC on here, retro fitted to the front of the car. Despite the fact that getting up the driveway is now a major excercise I love the look it has given the front end, but wonder whether the car's time in the garage is limited as I do still plan to lower the car meaning getting up the driveway will probably be a thing of the past! lol
So thanks to Russ and his team for the dedication as I think I would have lost the will to live well before now if I were diagnosing the fault :thumbs_up:
Anyway what use is an update without pictures...
Yesterday whilst having nothing better to do I decided it was time to start a little freshen up under the car, so I jacked her up, cleaned and painted the fuel tank straps and cleaned up the fuel tank and also the rear brake disc stone defectors which before I started cleaning them I had no idea they were white so got a pleasent surprise
The new exhaust tip, which is now supported with poly exhaust mounts
I also replaced the boot lid bagdes with new ones replacing the previous badges which I had de-chromed, so the car now looks like this from behind
The new front splitter, which is already sporting the odd stone chip but I guess that now blends in with the rest of the front end..... lol
I also decided to give the leather seats a well deserved clean and treat...
Poly firewall mount
Lower poly torque mount
Oh and I also decided to heat wrap both main boost hoses to help prevent heat soak a while back which I then painted black to make them blend in with the rest of the engine bay, yes I know one of them is plastic but it looked odd with just the one hose wrapped....
The car now performs very well and the sound of the engine as a result of the poly mounts is phenomenal! I am seriously in love with this car again!
So tomorrow I notice the weather is forecast as sunny so might treat the outside to a polish and wax, I also need to give the carpets a well deserved clean as they are looking grubby then I can crack out the carpet mats in favour of the rubber mats I fitted over the winter period
Sorry for the delay on the update will try and stay more regular in the future, thanks for looking
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff