Volvo XC70 D5 - yet more comfy bargeness
Discussion
At some point the driver's door check 'strap' had been broken - the arm was still there but it flopped around inside the door. This meant the door didn't have it's usual resistance to blowing in the wind when opened:
A quick google showed this to be a common occurrence and the solution is a new assembly from Volvo:
I thought I'd strip the door down instead to see if whatever had happened was repairable. The doorcard comes off in 5mins with plastic rivets and two torx holding it on.
It looked like the check arm had been overloaded at some point and popped the arm out of the roller bushes it runs in (inside the door), allowing the spring and one of the bushes to drop out. Fishing around with a magnet found all the bits of the check assembly in the bottom of the door (spring, bushes etc):
Studying the images of the new parts and a bit of work in the vice with some screwdrivers as leverage got it all back together:
And reassembled in no time:
Et voila! A working drivers door check strap reinstated. The door now opens and closes with the resistance you'd normally expect, staying where you leave it partly open on the detents in the arm. A small but satisfying repair that cost zilch other than a few cups of tea and a bit of head scratching.
Onwards!
A quick google showed this to be a common occurrence and the solution is a new assembly from Volvo:
I thought I'd strip the door down instead to see if whatever had happened was repairable. The doorcard comes off in 5mins with plastic rivets and two torx holding it on.
It looked like the check arm had been overloaded at some point and popped the arm out of the roller bushes it runs in (inside the door), allowing the spring and one of the bushes to drop out. Fishing around with a magnet found all the bits of the check assembly in the bottom of the door (spring, bushes etc):
Studying the images of the new parts and a bit of work in the vice with some screwdrivers as leverage got it all back together:
And reassembled in no time:
Et voila! A working drivers door check strap reinstated. The door now opens and closes with the resistance you'd normally expect, staying where you leave it partly open on the detents in the arm. A small but satisfying repair that cost zilch other than a few cups of tea and a bit of head scratching.
Onwards!
Thanks both, glad the thread is being enjoyed.
The Clarke impact wrench was an old 14.4v NiCad unit, replaced last year with an 18v Li-ion Ryobi which is far superior.
Today I fitted a replacement new front undertray. There wasn't one fitted when I purchased the car, a bit of googling didn't seem particularly clear whether this vintage of XC70 should had one, until I spotted the captive nuts present on the front subframe suggesting it should be there. I got a £40 eBay special that fits perfectly, and found some stainless bolts and penny washers in the garage to attach it with. Gave the bottom of the engine a good degrease/scrub/hose off whilst under there.
Not very exciting, but a satisfying outcome for an hour or so's work.
The Clarke impact wrench was an old 14.4v NiCad unit, replaced last year with an 18v Li-ion Ryobi which is far superior.
Today I fitted a replacement new front undertray. There wasn't one fitted when I purchased the car, a bit of googling didn't seem particularly clear whether this vintage of XC70 should had one, until I spotted the captive nuts present on the front subframe suggesting it should be there. I got a £40 eBay special that fits perfectly, and found some stainless bolts and penny washers in the garage to attach it with. Gave the bottom of the engine a good degrease/scrub/hose off whilst under there.
Not very exciting, but a satisfying outcome for an hour or so's work.
Front engine mount changed today @ 175k miles. Old one was original and no longer holding vacuum. Bit of a boring job as you have to disconnect the other mounts too, so you can lift the engine, but put the car on scissor lift to make life easier.
Meyle appears to be the OEM part as identical in every way except missing Volvo logo.
Has made an improvement to the refinement of the car, particularly round town/at low engine speeds. Have the rear to do next when I get an hour free again.
Meyle appears to be the OEM part as identical in every way except missing Volvo logo.
Has made an improvement to the refinement of the car, particularly round town/at low engine speeds. Have the rear to do next when I get an hour free again.
Noticed a bit of 'feathering' on the outside shoulder of the front left tyre - had 30mins to myself this weekend so checked the tracking.
String, axle stands, tape measure and a steel rule has worked well for me over the years:
Takes 10-15mins to setup and measure to 0.5mm accuracy (across diameter 16"/406mm wheel rim):
You can see top left that the FL wheel is toeing-in about 2mm more than it should. I'll adjust that trackrod next time it's up in the air.
Degree notes are camber values used with inclinometer on my phone and a straight face across the rim vertically.
String, axle stands, tape measure and a steel rule has worked well for me over the years:
Takes 10-15mins to setup and measure to 0.5mm accuracy (across diameter 16"/406mm wheel rim):
You can see top left that the FL wheel is toeing-in about 2mm more than it should. I'll adjust that trackrod next time it's up in the air.
Degree notes are camber values used with inclinometer on my phone and a straight face across the rim vertically.
AJB88 said:
Is it compulsory to take a Swedish car to Ikea? I live about 12 mins from MK Ikea and just got a SAAB! haha.
Excellent thread by the way! take much more pleasure these days reading this kind of thread! not considered fitting some slightly bigger wheels OEM ones of course? might change the looks massively.
Absolutely!Excellent thread by the way! take much more pleasure these days reading this kind of thread! not considered fitting some slightly bigger wheels OEM ones of course? might change the looks massively.
Thanks. If it was my primary car I'd probably look at a few mods, but as the third car in the family that now gets driven mainly by the girlf it is just viewed as a workhorse so maintenance only. Plus the 16" wheels and 65 section tyres add to it's sense of invincibility and make it ride sooooo nicely.
As 180k miles nears and it's the warmer summer months I've got a few bits and pieces to do on the old girl to keep her spick and span.
This weekend was the O/S/F wheel bearing which had started to grumble the past couple of months/few thousand miles.
Pretty straightforward job on the lift, nice to see aluminium uprights on this vintage of Ovlov.
Fuel and air filter -
Fuel filter is a cinch on the P2 - it's below the O/S/R passenger seat, accessed from below with plenty of room around it. It's a filter in plastic housing type, similar to a lot of engine oil filter arrangements.
On the XC70 you don't even have to jack the car up and I had the proper tool from Laser from a previous Volvo, making the job 5mins effort.
Air filter a similar two minute affair. Old one 16k miles old and fairly dirty.
Stay tuned.
Fuel filter is a cinch on the P2 - it's below the O/S/R passenger seat, accessed from below with plenty of room around it. It's a filter in plastic housing type, similar to a lot of engine oil filter arrangements.
On the XC70 you don't even have to jack the car up and I had the proper tool from Laser from a previous Volvo, making the job 5mins effort.
Air filter a similar two minute affair. Old one 16k miles old and fairly dirty.
Stay tuned.
A broken front spring gave me the hurry-up I needed to replace the front suspension:
There's lots of supposed deals on Volvo P2 V70/XC70 suspension kits but when you dig in to it they aren't transferrable between the two and are just V70 suspension kits being palmed off as suitable for both:
https://www.ipdusa.com/techtips/10082/Strut-compar...
Therefore the only real option for XC70 front shocks is the OE Sachs/Boge units as per above link. So an (extensive) shopping list was made and I had spent a few weeks buying the bits from different sources to get VFM.
(Not in the above pic are new droplinks, discs and pads that I had 'on the shelf' and decided to fit whilst the car was apart).
New struts assembled on the bench - the springs are a mission to fit at ~600mm long uncompressed, ~450mm long fitted. Got there in the end with a trusty set of spring compressors that are older than me.
Everything given a coating of Bilthamber on the way in too, to keep them from looking rotten after the first puddle:
Otherside was a mare - a previous owner/mechanic had rounded off one of the caliper carrier bolt heads and no amount of hammering on undersized sockets/blowtorching would shift it so out came the welder at full power to weld a nut on:
Naturally I was exceptionally happy to be alive during that whole mess. Alas, it was worth it:
With a very satisfying pile of bits destined for the scrap yard.
Few more bits that I want to get done this summer whilst weather is nice then it'll be fit for another 100k+ miles. Stay tuned.
There's lots of supposed deals on Volvo P2 V70/XC70 suspension kits but when you dig in to it they aren't transferrable between the two and are just V70 suspension kits being palmed off as suitable for both:
https://www.ipdusa.com/techtips/10082/Strut-compar...
Therefore the only real option for XC70 front shocks is the OE Sachs/Boge units as per above link. So an (extensive) shopping list was made and I had spent a few weeks buying the bits from different sources to get VFM.
(Not in the above pic are new droplinks, discs and pads that I had 'on the shelf' and decided to fit whilst the car was apart).
New struts assembled on the bench - the springs are a mission to fit at ~600mm long uncompressed, ~450mm long fitted. Got there in the end with a trusty set of spring compressors that are older than me.
Everything given a coating of Bilthamber on the way in too, to keep them from looking rotten after the first puddle:
Otherside was a mare - a previous owner/mechanic had rounded off one of the caliper carrier bolt heads and no amount of hammering on undersized sockets/blowtorching would shift it so out came the welder at full power to weld a nut on:
Naturally I was exceptionally happy to be alive during that whole mess. Alas, it was worth it:
With a very satisfying pile of bits destined for the scrap yard.
Few more bits that I want to get done this summer whilst weather is nice then it'll be fit for another 100k+ miles. Stay tuned.
Set the alignment to dead ahead and -0.6/0.7 deg camber. Trusty string method always works well for me:
And drained/replaced the PAS fluid in the reservoir. System volume is 0.9L, with 0.3L in the reservoir, so doing this a number of times with mileage in-between gets it nice and clean again.
For anyone that wants to avoid the Volvo tax on PAS fluid - Halfords own brand CHF is Comma MVCHF, which meets the required Volvo standard.
And drained/replaced the PAS fluid in the reservoir. System volume is 0.9L, with 0.3L in the reservoir, so doing this a number of times with mileage in-between gets it nice and clean again.
For anyone that wants to avoid the Volvo tax on PAS fluid - Halfords own brand CHF is Comma MVCHF, which meets the required Volvo standard.
The Volvo that was bought as a winter runabout continues to get used the most. Summer 2021 saw trips to the SW for camping, it's ability to swallow everything and cruise all day at 85 and still return 45+mpg winning over all other options.
Packed in there is 2x mountain bikes (under blankets on left, chairs, tables, fridge, cooker, tent, clothes, sheets and all the other apparel that girlfs insist on taking camping).
Anyway today was MOT prep. An annoying rattle from the front suspension turned out to be a droplink I hadn't tightened properly when installing the new bits
Fingers crossed for a pass.
Packed in there is 2x mountain bikes (under blankets on left, chairs, tables, fridge, cooker, tent, clothes, sheets and all the other apparel that girlfs insist on taking camping).
Anyway today was MOT prep. An annoying rattle from the front suspension turned out to be a droplink I hadn't tightened properly when installing the new bits
Fingers crossed for a pass.
Davie said:
A very agreeable thread all round.
Looks like a nice example of an XC70 with the right engine and box (an auto wouldn't improve it, they're crap!) and it's being used a Volvos of that era should and being maintained very well too, which is a rarity with Volvos of that era. Great work, keep going.
Thanks Davie, glad you're enjoying.Looks like a nice example of an XC70 with the right engine and box (an auto wouldn't improve it, they're crap!) and it's being used a Volvos of that era should and being maintained very well too, which is a rarity with Volvos of that era. Great work, keep going.
It went straight through the MOT, the only advisories some cracking between the tread blocks of the tyres (Avon ZV7 fitted by the PO to sell the car, only two years old and around 20k miles old - garbage). I've ordered some Michelin CrossClimate+ to go on shortly.
And today I gave the headlights another polish, seems like they need doing ~once a year after the summer months.
Thank you all that's kind of you to say - I shall continue posting my exploits with the car given the feedback.
It's quite good fun hustling, but ultimately the numb steering and body roll set the limits. On the flipside, it's a greater tourer/mile muncher - near silent at motorway speeds with great seats and stereo.
Last week whilst MOT prepping I noticed that the springs which sit on the OB side of the front calipers were 'soft', allowing a small amount of float on the caliper (they're the usual single piston type on sliding pins). I spent a few mins contorting them in to different shapes to see if I could get the caliper 'tigher' on the OB pad but gave in and bought some new ones:
I wasn't expecting anything other than peace of mind, but the transformation to the feel of the brake pedal is gobsmacking - I'm very surprised. I recently bled the brakes/replaced fluid when I did the last caliper and didn't think there was anything wrong with pedal feel per se, but replacing these small bits of bent wire has made the brakes instant, pin sharp and full of feel. I assume the previous springs (original?) were allowing the caliper to float a little and the pads to knock off between braking events.
And I binned the Avon ZV7s and had Michelin CrossClimate+ fitted in their place which gave me an excuse to wash the wheels and tyres...
....the rest of the car can wait for another day. Cheers!
Speed addicted said:
Must admit the more I see these the more they appeal, moving to the sticks has certainly changed what I look for in a car!
Do you find that it can be amusing on the right roads or is wafting more the design brief?
Yes we're in the sticks too (the desolate wilds of north oxfordshire...) so it fits the bill well.Do you find that it can be amusing on the right roads or is wafting more the design brief?
It's quite good fun hustling, but ultimately the numb steering and body roll set the limits. On the flipside, it's a greater tourer/mile muncher - near silent at motorway speeds with great seats and stereo.
Last week whilst MOT prepping I noticed that the springs which sit on the OB side of the front calipers were 'soft', allowing a small amount of float on the caliper (they're the usual single piston type on sliding pins). I spent a few mins contorting them in to different shapes to see if I could get the caliper 'tigher' on the OB pad but gave in and bought some new ones:
I wasn't expecting anything other than peace of mind, but the transformation to the feel of the brake pedal is gobsmacking - I'm very surprised. I recently bled the brakes/replaced fluid when I did the last caliper and didn't think there was anything wrong with pedal feel per se, but replacing these small bits of bent wire has made the brakes instant, pin sharp and full of feel. I assume the previous springs (original?) were allowing the caliper to float a little and the pads to knock off between braking events.
And I binned the Avon ZV7s and had Michelin CrossClimate+ fitted in their place which gave me an excuse to wash the wheels and tyres...
....the rest of the car can wait for another day. Cheers!
Since the MOT last month the XC70 has covered 2k miles courtesy of a couple of round trips to Exeter, a weekend in Lincolnshire and the past week spent in Wales yomping around the west coast of Snowdonia. It appears that all the work on the mechanicals is paying dividends as it continues to have an imperious feeling of reliability and indestructiveness that elevated it from winter/tip run car in the first few months of ownership.
Added rear parking sensors today - something that'd been on the To Do list since buying the car and had the kit on the shelf but got kicked in to gear when I saw Accelerbrate's thread.
Pretty straightforward job - the P2 doesn't have the holes premarked for fitting them in the bumper but Volvo publish a guide online with dimensions. I went a bit off-piste, fitting them where I thought they'd be most effective + slightly quieter on the eyes.
Guide here for ref: https://accessories.volvocars.com/nl-nl/Installati...
Took the opportunity to give the rear valance and boot floor a good scrub and check for any corrosion or signs of any previous accident damage - none.
Got it back together to check the operation of the kit and will finish the tidying of the wiring/install tomorrow - didn't want to miss the Rugby today!
Pretty straightforward job - the P2 doesn't have the holes premarked for fitting them in the bumper but Volvo publish a guide online with dimensions. I went a bit off-piste, fitting them where I thought they'd be most effective + slightly quieter on the eyes.
Guide here for ref: https://accessories.volvocars.com/nl-nl/Installati...
Took the opportunity to give the rear valance and boot floor a good scrub and check for any corrosion or signs of any previous accident damage - none.
Got it back together to check the operation of the kit and will finish the tidying of the wiring/install tomorrow - didn't want to miss the Rugby today!
O/S/R lower light cluster was starting to look scabby and letting down the side - it had started collecting water in the lower (reverse) light and the silver reflector had corroded.
Closer inspection showed it had a hole in the lenses with a red sticker over:
Like everything else in 2021 these appear to have become a commodity, with good condition s/h ones fetching an arm and a leg. I kept an eye out and picked one up earlier in the summer at a price I was happy with:
Fitted, much better.
Closer inspection showed it had a hole in the lenses with a red sticker over:
Like everything else in 2021 these appear to have become a commodity, with good condition s/h ones fetching an arm and a leg. I kept an eye out and picked one up earlier in the summer at a price I was happy with:
Fitted, much better.
Despite being well specced (cruise, climate, power folding mirrors, etc) the Volvo doesn't have heated seats and the girlfriend was complaining of a cold bum on cold mornings. So I fitted a heated seat kit (<£20 off eBay):
Seat out -
Then followed this thread on the Owners Club to strip down the seat and install the heated mats https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=19...
The ramps double up as a great workbench for projects like this:
Lower base cover off:
The kit! Quite comprehensive with 2x mats, wiring, relay and button:
Installation of mats involving laying out on to foam, tucking in to creases and cutting small slots to allow the leather cover to clip back in to the fasteners in the grooves of the foam:
Base was a cinch, seatback a bit more involved but still pretty straightforward:
The mats are sticky on one side so fit securely to the foam + the seat cover sandwiches it in place.
I wanted the switch up on centre console so pulled it apart to get an ignition switched power supply (seats are 7.5A supply) and feed button through:
And voila! The seats are two stage - the button is a toggle to give low power or high. They work very well, heating up in a minute or so.
The car continues to be a delight to work on and maintain - everything comes apart with ease and goes back together as if new. The quality of the materials and fixings/fasteners is outstanding.
I'll install a passenger's side kit at some point in the future, for now this should keep her happy as she drives the car the most.
And somehow we're still racking up ~2k miles/month so it was filthy. Quick wash will do:
Not too shabby for ~185k miles and 16 yrs old.
Seat out -
Then followed this thread on the Owners Club to strip down the seat and install the heated mats https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=19...
The ramps double up as a great workbench for projects like this:
Lower base cover off:
The kit! Quite comprehensive with 2x mats, wiring, relay and button:
Installation of mats involving laying out on to foam, tucking in to creases and cutting small slots to allow the leather cover to clip back in to the fasteners in the grooves of the foam:
Base was a cinch, seatback a bit more involved but still pretty straightforward:
The mats are sticky on one side so fit securely to the foam + the seat cover sandwiches it in place.
I wanted the switch up on centre console so pulled it apart to get an ignition switched power supply (seats are 7.5A supply) and feed button through:
And voila! The seats are two stage - the button is a toggle to give low power or high. They work very well, heating up in a minute or so.
The car continues to be a delight to work on and maintain - everything comes apart with ease and goes back together as if new. The quality of the materials and fixings/fasteners is outstanding.
I'll install a passenger's side kit at some point in the future, for now this should keep her happy as she drives the car the most.
And somehow we're still racking up ~2k miles/month so it was filthy. Quick wash will do:
Not too shabby for ~185k miles and 16 yrs old.
TurboRob said:
And a stripdown/clean/regrease of the indicator stalk mechanism as the Girlf reported she couldn't find high beam. Lovely made assembly that comes out in 2 mins (a few torx screws hold steering column cowling on, then two screws hold this in it's receptacle on the column):
All it needed was a quick wipe of the tracks you can see on the PCB below:
And voila, all is good in Volvo column stalk land. Onwards and upwards.
The indicator stalk that I cleaned-up and fixed last summer returned to being a bit crap for flicking high beam on/off so replaced for a s/h item off a low mileage '06 XC70 from a breaker in Southampton. Literally replaced in the time it took to boil the kettle:All it needed was a quick wipe of the tracks you can see on the PCB below:
And voila, all is good in Volvo column stalk land. Onwards and upwards.
Normal service is resumed.
The girlf returned from a longer journey in the car saying something smelled hot/she occasionally got an absestosy whiff. I thought all the calipers were recent but it turned out the nearside rear was the last original and had become sticky (decent innings at ~185k miles).
In on the ramps for a couple of hours, to change with a refurbed caliper from Brakes Int.
I can get a good brake pedal from the off by minimising fluid loss across the change (clamping flexy) and then allowing gravity to do it's work by leaving the nipple loose on the caliper for 5-10 mins whilst I tighten everything else up. Tapping the caliper gently helps too. These help to minimise bleeding but this time I decided to revive an old Eezibleed kit from wayback when (probably as old as the car) and bleed all four corners/refresh the fluid in all circuits.
With a good seal to the master cylinder and on the top of the bottle, plus hooked up to a spare wheel/tyre at a pressure of your choice, these really are a great, cheap bit of kit.
In on the ramps for a couple of hours, to change with a refurbed caliper from Brakes Int.
I can get a good brake pedal from the off by minimising fluid loss across the change (clamping flexy) and then allowing gravity to do it's work by leaving the nipple loose on the caliper for 5-10 mins whilst I tighten everything else up. Tapping the caliper gently helps too. These help to minimise bleeding but this time I decided to revive an old Eezibleed kit from wayback when (probably as old as the car) and bleed all four corners/refresh the fluid in all circuits.
With a good seal to the master cylinder and on the top of the bottle, plus hooked up to a spare wheel/tyre at a pressure of your choice, these really are a great, cheap bit of kit.
Two Years In
This month is two years since buying a cheap P2 XC70 as a winter runabout/house mover/tip run car. In that time it's become the most popular car in the house for hacking around in and has covered 25k miles, despite all the covid lockdowns and restrictions.
It's popularity and consumption of miles meant I decided to keep on top of maintenance, and refresh worn out parts where required. I've kept a record of these mainly on this thread, but also the costs offline which I thought might be interesting to share.
All these are parts cost only as I do the work myself.
Servicing (parts required/worn out/at end of life)
2 x 'basic' services (oil changes, filters, etc) - it's about £80 a time for the bits, so £160 total.
Aux belt and tensioner, £80
Rear brakes, £90
Front brakes, £80
Rr droplinks, £40
O/S/F wheel bearing, £35
3 x brake calipers, £190
Tyres, £430
Total ~£1100
Servicing (optional bits; could've left if just running as shed)
2 x 'additional' services (oil changes, filters, etc) - it's about £80 a time for the bits, so £160 total.
Front suspension, £340
3 x engine mounts, £140
Front undertray, £45
Upgrades/tarting up, about £100
Total ~£800
Divide the above by the miles it's done in that time, or months owned, and it's cost buttons to run.
Highlights
It's a great car for filling up with crap that needs moving somewhere (see - tip runs, facebook marketplace furniture tat, camping trips, helping mates out with a house move or something random that needs towing, etc). But mainly it's a reliable, comfy mile muncher - in the first month of buying without doing anything other than checking tyre pressures and levels, we drove to Austria and back (2000 miles return) for the annual ski trip. The way back we did in one hit, with the car spending all day sat at 85mph on cruise control, and gave us ~45mpg too.
This time of year it comes in to it's own as it's quick to warm/heat up and shrugs off slippery conditions. Plus it looks better filthy:
Onwards!
This month is two years since buying a cheap P2 XC70 as a winter runabout/house mover/tip run car. In that time it's become the most popular car in the house for hacking around in and has covered 25k miles, despite all the covid lockdowns and restrictions.
It's popularity and consumption of miles meant I decided to keep on top of maintenance, and refresh worn out parts where required. I've kept a record of these mainly on this thread, but also the costs offline which I thought might be interesting to share.
All these are parts cost only as I do the work myself.
Servicing (parts required/worn out/at end of life)
2 x 'basic' services (oil changes, filters, etc) - it's about £80 a time for the bits, so £160 total.
Aux belt and tensioner, £80
Rear brakes, £90
Front brakes, £80
Rr droplinks, £40
O/S/F wheel bearing, £35
3 x brake calipers, £190
Tyres, £430
Total ~£1100
Servicing (optional bits; could've left if just running as shed)
2 x 'additional' services (oil changes, filters, etc) - it's about £80 a time for the bits, so £160 total.
Front suspension, £340
3 x engine mounts, £140
Front undertray, £45
Upgrades/tarting up, about £100
Total ~£800
Divide the above by the miles it's done in that time, or months owned, and it's cost buttons to run.
Highlights
It's a great car for filling up with crap that needs moving somewhere (see - tip runs, facebook marketplace furniture tat, camping trips, helping mates out with a house move or something random that needs towing, etc). But mainly it's a reliable, comfy mile muncher - in the first month of buying without doing anything other than checking tyre pressures and levels, we drove to Austria and back (2000 miles return) for the annual ski trip. The way back we did in one hit, with the car spending all day sat at 85mph on cruise control, and gave us ~45mpg too.
This time of year it comes in to it's own as it's quick to warm/heat up and shrugs off slippery conditions. Plus it looks better filthy:
Onwards!
sam.rog said:
Fantastic thread.
It’s much more interesting reading about maintenance on old sheds than a few pics of a new car.
Thanks! Glad you're enjoying.It’s much more interesting reading about maintenance on old sheds than a few pics of a new car.
This weekend I replaced the rear shocks and springs. The car has it's original Nivomats still on - the self-levelling function still worked well but they'd lost most of the rebound control.
Replacement Nivomats are cost-prohibitive so I've switched to the non-self levelling dampers (and springs). These were the more common suspension arrangement for this era of XC70.
I didn't get too many pics as I was cracking on between rugby matches.
Old nivomat and spring. Note the large aluminium top mount as standard for this era of Ovlov:
The top mounts and upper spring seat (rubber) cleaned-up OK so I reused these. Old vs new laid out below. Boge/Sachs (OE) shock absorbers and KYB springs. The KYB springs are slightly longer than standard - these allow for a bit more carrying capacity without the self levelling nivomat shocks. Plus a small added side effect of raising the rear ride height a small amount - because it's all about the stance, etcs.
The downside of slightly longer springs is the amount of work required to compress them to get the top mount on. It took four spring compressors and lots of fannying around.
And this is where my photos dry up. I'll grab a few of the newly installed parts next time the rear wheels are off. Needless to say the new rear shocks are notably better at their job than the knackered, old ones - body control is much improved. They're also dramatically quieter - I hadn't realised quite how noisy it had got but it's now lovely.
Thanks - I'll go searching for the ceramic headlight coating.
When I had the new set of CrossClimates fitted, KwikFit were offering a free alignment check on their hunter machine. It wore out the last set of tyres evenly and drives nice and straight, but I do my own alignment using the string method (see previous posts on this thread) and it's always good to get a baseline from a decent alignment machine, plus last time I checked/adjusted it was last summer.
Caveats apply for the free alignment - you can't be in the workshop whilst they do it, and they charge £50/axle to adjust after the free check. Perhaps not surprisingly they won't let you have a printout of the free check, but at my local branch they have a live screen in the 'waiting room' and the alignment check is done in a bay adjacent so you can see them doing it:
Ignoring the colours, the takeaways are the FL is toeing-in 1/3rd of a degree and each rear wheel between 1/4 and 1/5th of a degree. I previously set the toe all around to straight ahead last summer after replacing the front suspension:
So I'll recheck using my string method and adjust the FL tie rod a little to reduce the toe in next time it's on the ramps. The rears can stay as they are as I'm happy with that level of toe in.
When I had the new set of CrossClimates fitted, KwikFit were offering a free alignment check on their hunter machine. It wore out the last set of tyres evenly and drives nice and straight, but I do my own alignment using the string method (see previous posts on this thread) and it's always good to get a baseline from a decent alignment machine, plus last time I checked/adjusted it was last summer.
Caveats apply for the free alignment - you can't be in the workshop whilst they do it, and they charge £50/axle to adjust after the free check. Perhaps not surprisingly they won't let you have a printout of the free check, but at my local branch they have a live screen in the 'waiting room' and the alignment check is done in a bay adjacent so you can see them doing it:
Ignoring the colours, the takeaways are the FL is toeing-in 1/3rd of a degree and each rear wheel between 1/4 and 1/5th of a degree. I previously set the toe all around to straight ahead last summer after replacing the front suspension:
TurboRob said:
Set the alignment to dead ahead and -0.6/0.7 deg camber. Trusty string method always works well for me:
I've always reckoned I can get the tracking to within 1mm over the diameter of the wheel (16", 406mm) so about 1/6th of a degree accuracy. So I'll recheck using my string method and adjust the FL tie rod a little to reduce the toe in next time it's on the ramps. The rears can stay as they are as I'm happy with that level of toe in.
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