My first Ovlov
Discussion
So the time came to get something a little more sensible. Due to moving house I now commute ~ 30 miles instead of a half mile walk (I know, I'm an idiot)
Neither the Monaro or the GTV were suitable for this task. After borrowing my step Dad's C1 for a couple of months whilst they were in Spain, the GTV stepped up to the job and it was clear that something else was going to be needed...
Part of the house move included the acquisition of an Old English Sheepdog, so naturally this instantly means an estate car is justified
There's a PH thread for every occasion, and this time was no different, OP was asking for a reliable, economical and comfortable commuter on the cheap, and the suggestions of Euro III D5 Ovlovs came thick and fast.
Research was done and the hunt was on. I'd set a budget of £2,000, but given the likely shedness and 'bullet proof' nature of the old wagons I was hoping to spend less than that. Not many nearby, first one at an independent dealer had a service light on and wayward feeling steering. Apparently they get lots of these models through and they all do that sir...
Second one was at an even more independent 'dealer'. Think mobile number and 'OK, I'll meet you at the lockup in 15 minutes'. This was in silver (not ideal) and was just £999. We arrived at the lockup, phoned back, 'I'll be over in 10 minutes'. 10 minutes later, phoned back to explain we had another to go and view and not to bother.
Third one seemed good in the pics, black (not first choice, but ho hum) and low mileage ( for these cars... 128,000 ). Not a great deal of history on it, was apparently originally from Germany (with an invoice, but was RHD?) and in KM, which was then 'adjusted' back, seemed to have MOT printouts that had been corrected going back a few years, so looked legitimate, but was lacking heated seats (I quite quickly became picky on spec despite initially not caring!) and had some quite bad key scratches across the bonnet and sides and a dent/scuff on the rear corner.
So things weren't looking great, those were the nearest options available (within 60 miles of home) at the time, and the poor Alfa was still being bounced around over horrendously surfaced B roads.
Some ebay searching turned up what looked like a very tidy example, 123,000 miles, full service history with the last service at 120,000, 3 owners from new (original dealer, apparently the dealer manager
and then the same owner since 2009) and call me a fool but it looked great on the 18" Nebula wheels, in dark blue (ideal) with light part leather interior (ideal) and no black plastic trim on the outside. It was unfortunately with an independent up in York and there wasn't time before it ended to view...
So long story short, basically I'd started out looking for a comfy workhorse for under £2k and ended up buying the prettiest one unseen from eBay for £350 over budget... What could possibly go wrong?
Met the chap at a services in Grantham off the A1, it was of course dark so not ideal, pootled around a bit and all seemed in order (as much as you can tell in that situation) and to be honest it seemed to be in excellent condition and even had half a tank of diesel which made a change. He said he'd noticed on the drive down that the tracking needed doing so £50 was knocked off to get that sorted out, we shall see if it's anything more serious shortly!
It also turns out it has the Four-C fancy suspension. This may prove to be a ticking time bomb as certainly OEM replacement dampers are eye watering, although rumour has it there are less crippling replacements available. Apparently one does not simply replace them with stock dampers...
So the deal was done, and what should have been a simple waft home became a 2 hour schlep thanks to a road closure and ludicrous diversion. Either way, the car performed faultlessly, the better half seemed impressed with it after a perusal on the drive, and all seemed well, except the fuel needle dropping a bit quicker than expected...
As this has been a bit wordy, here are some pics (from the eBay ad)
All was going well until the first time taking the OH out in it a few days later. Heading down the M1 the fuel light comes on as expected, and about 2 miles later ENGINE SERVICE REQUIRED IMMEDIATELY and a limp mode limiting us to 2,000 rpm. Oh joy!
We pull off at the next services and fill up. No warning lights, car seems fine, but the confidence is shaken... Returning towards the M1, we're notified by a friendly BMW driver that the front left is a bit low. Shame on me for not spotting this, very un PH
So back to the services for some air and new tyres are being fitted on Saturday (went for PS4s, add tyre snob alongside the idiot label from earlier
)
Some Googling quickly turns up this as being a common fault caused by the fuel filter, so my suspicions on the quality of that service 3,000 miles ago are raised. Cue new air/oil/fuel filter from ECP and 8 litres of Castrol's finest 0w30. Very glad there was 20% off...
So the service was done last night, and Ovlov is hopefully now fighting fit. Looks like the cambelt was changed at 78,000 miles too, so that was a comfort, although by all accounts it's one of the simplest swaps around, the whole job allocated 54 minutes in the Volvo Service Manual.
I have an ebay watch list with just under £400 of suspension parts that I may work through over the summer months, although the MOT history makes it look like there's been some bits and bobs replaced over the last few years, so I may wait until November and see what's what.
Replacing bushes seems like a bit of a chore by all accounts, so I may just opt to replace the lower wishbones, drop links, tie rods, track rods etc. with new items as the parts aren't expensive really. Food for thought anyway.
To my surprise, the 5 pot actually sounds quite nice over 2,500, and pulls nicely from about 2,000 to the redline at 4,500 rpm. Of course I have already researched and decided on the remap I'd like, which would be ~190bhp and ~310lb ft
Economy wise I've not used up the 70 litre tank yet, the onboard estimate seems optimistic with an average of 51.7MPG, we're on course for nearly 800 miles from a tank apparently I'm aiming for 700, although that'll mean venturing into reserve territory again, will be interesting to see if the warning messages pop back up 
Will keep an eye on things over the next month and see if anything scary develops. I've already grown fond of the old beast and everything seems very easy to work on. Oh, and the stereo is really rather good
Neither the Monaro or the GTV were suitable for this task. After borrowing my step Dad's C1 for a couple of months whilst they were in Spain, the GTV stepped up to the job and it was clear that something else was going to be needed...
Part of the house move included the acquisition of an Old English Sheepdog, so naturally this instantly means an estate car is justified
There's a PH thread for every occasion, and this time was no different, OP was asking for a reliable, economical and comfortable commuter on the cheap, and the suggestions of Euro III D5 Ovlovs came thick and fast.
Research was done and the hunt was on. I'd set a budget of £2,000, but given the likely shedness and 'bullet proof' nature of the old wagons I was hoping to spend less than that. Not many nearby, first one at an independent dealer had a service light on and wayward feeling steering. Apparently they get lots of these models through and they all do that sir...
Second one was at an even more independent 'dealer'. Think mobile number and 'OK, I'll meet you at the lockup in 15 minutes'. This was in silver (not ideal) and was just £999. We arrived at the lockup, phoned back, 'I'll be over in 10 minutes'. 10 minutes later, phoned back to explain we had another to go and view and not to bother.
Third one seemed good in the pics, black (not first choice, but ho hum) and low mileage ( for these cars... 128,000
). Not a great deal of history on it, was apparently originally from Germany (with an invoice, but was RHD?) and in KM, which was then 'adjusted' back, seemed to have MOT printouts that had been corrected going back a few years, so looked legitimate, but was lacking heated seats (I quite quickly became picky on spec despite initially not caring!) and had some quite bad key scratches across the bonnet and sides and a dent/scuff on the rear corner.So things weren't looking great, those were the nearest options available (within 60 miles of home) at the time, and the poor Alfa was still being bounced around over horrendously surfaced B roads.
Some ebay searching turned up what looked like a very tidy example, 123,000 miles, full service history with the last service at 120,000, 3 owners from new (original dealer, apparently the dealer manager
and then the same owner since 2009) and call me a fool but it looked great on the 18" Nebula wheels, in dark blue (ideal) with light part leather interior (ideal) and no black plastic trim on the outside. It was unfortunately with an independent up in York and there wasn't time before it ended to view...So long story short, basically I'd started out looking for a comfy workhorse for under £2k and ended up buying the prettiest one unseen from eBay for £350 over budget... What could possibly go wrong?
Met the chap at a services in Grantham off the A1, it was of course dark so not ideal, pootled around a bit and all seemed in order (as much as you can tell in that situation) and to be honest it seemed to be in excellent condition and even had half a tank of diesel which made a change. He said he'd noticed on the drive down that the tracking needed doing so £50 was knocked off to get that sorted out, we shall see if it's anything more serious shortly!
It also turns out it has the Four-C fancy suspension. This may prove to be a ticking time bomb as certainly OEM replacement dampers are eye watering, although rumour has it there are less crippling replacements available. Apparently one does not simply replace them with stock dampers...
So the deal was done, and what should have been a simple waft home became a 2 hour schlep thanks to a road closure and ludicrous diversion. Either way, the car performed faultlessly, the better half seemed impressed with it after a perusal on the drive, and all seemed well, except the fuel needle dropping a bit quicker than expected...
As this has been a bit wordy, here are some pics (from the eBay ad)
All was going well until the first time taking the OH out in it a few days later. Heading down the M1 the fuel light comes on as expected, and about 2 miles later ENGINE SERVICE REQUIRED IMMEDIATELY and a limp mode limiting us to 2,000 rpm. Oh joy!
We pull off at the next services and fill up. No warning lights, car seems fine, but the confidence is shaken... Returning towards the M1, we're notified by a friendly BMW driver that the front left is a bit low. Shame on me for not spotting this, very un PH
So back to the services for some air and new tyres are being fitted on Saturday (went for PS4s, add tyre snob alongside the idiot label from earlier
)Some Googling quickly turns up this as being a common fault caused by the fuel filter, so my suspicions on the quality of that service 3,000 miles ago are raised. Cue new air/oil/fuel filter from ECP and 8 litres of Castrol's finest 0w30. Very glad there was 20% off...
So the service was done last night, and Ovlov is hopefully now fighting fit. Looks like the cambelt was changed at 78,000 miles too, so that was a comfort, although by all accounts it's one of the simplest swaps around, the whole job allocated 54 minutes in the Volvo Service Manual.
I have an ebay watch list with just under £400 of suspension parts that I may work through over the summer months, although the MOT history makes it look like there's been some bits and bobs replaced over the last few years, so I may wait until November and see what's what.
Replacing bushes seems like a bit of a chore by all accounts, so I may just opt to replace the lower wishbones, drop links, tie rods, track rods etc. with new items as the parts aren't expensive really. Food for thought anyway.
To my surprise, the 5 pot actually sounds quite nice over 2,500, and pulls nicely from about 2,000 to the redline at 4,500 rpm. Of course I have already researched and decided on the remap I'd like, which would be ~190bhp and ~310lb ft
Economy wise I've not used up the 70 litre tank yet, the onboard estimate seems optimistic with an average of 51.7MPG, we're on course for nearly 800 miles from a tank apparently
I'm aiming for 700, although that'll mean venturing into reserve territory again, will be interesting to see if the warning messages pop back up Will keep an eye on things over the next month and see if anything scary develops. I've already grown fond of the old beast and everything seems very easy to work on. Oh, and the stereo is really rather good
Thanks for the replies
My watch list is all Meyle parts, so good to hear they're well regarded!
I was aware the intercoolers are a bit of a risk even when standard, so I'll look into that first before going down the remap route.
Thursday evening was the first chance to take the hound out, young Eleanor certainly liked the extra space, and particularly enjoyed watching the rear wiper in action, clearly as pleased as I was that it worked given their reputation.
Saturday saw my first tip run, oh the joy of a huge flat load area as this lot just slid in without a second thought
It was also nice not to have to saw wardrobe doors into thirds prior to putting them in the car
Saturday also saw another schlep up the M1 with the good lady, and another ENGINE SERVICE URGENT message, although this time, with a dead engine to accompany it
No warning lights at all upon a coasting induced restart, so assumed it was nothing catastrophic, but once resting on the hard shoulder, there was no rousing the old girl. We'd just dropped below 1/4 tank, so my previous forum readings after the last incident made me think fuel pump... It was very wet, windy, and the M1, so I wasn't going to do any self diagnostics.
Friendly AA man got to us within 45 minutes, decided it was the fuel pump and got us back home. Thanks to the bank holiday, I have a Bosch replacement arriving today (didn't fancy going the refurbed route as it's a keeper, so stung to the tune of £200!).
Get a Volvo they said, bullet proof they said...
Will investigate tonight, hopefully it'll just be a dodgy connection or some such and I'll be able to return the pump unopened to ECP, but I'm assuming the worst...
Finally, apologies for the 'selfie' camera, the forward facing camera on my phone has decided to die, so poorly angled shots are all you're getting until I post that off for repair too!
My watch list is all Meyle parts, so good to hear they're well regarded!
I was aware the intercoolers are a bit of a risk even when standard, so I'll look into that first before going down the remap route.
Thursday evening was the first chance to take the hound out, young Eleanor certainly liked the extra space, and particularly enjoyed watching the rear wiper in action, clearly as pleased as I was that it worked given their reputation.
Saturday saw my first tip run, oh the joy of a huge flat load area as this lot just slid in without a second thought
It was also nice not to have to saw wardrobe doors into thirds prior to putting them in the car Saturday also saw another schlep up the M1 with the good lady, and another ENGINE SERVICE URGENT message, although this time, with a dead engine to accompany it
No warning lights at all upon a coasting induced restart, so assumed it was nothing catastrophic, but once resting on the hard shoulder, there was no rousing the old girl. We'd just dropped below 1/4 tank, so my previous forum readings after the last incident made me think fuel pump... It was very wet, windy, and the M1, so I wasn't going to do any self diagnostics.
Friendly AA man got to us within 45 minutes, decided it was the fuel pump and got us back home. Thanks to the bank holiday, I have a Bosch replacement arriving today (didn't fancy going the refurbed route as it's a keeper, so stung to the tune of £200!).
Get a Volvo they said, bullet proof they said...
Will investigate tonight, hopefully it'll just be a dodgy connection or some such and I'll be able to return the pump unopened to ECP, but I'm assuming the worst...
Finally, apologies for the 'selfie' camera, the forward facing camera on my phone has decided to die, so poorly angled shots are all you're getting until I post that off for repair too!
Well you need a special tool to loosen the preposterously tight lock ring holding the fuel pump in place, so that's arrived today and round 2 of the fuel pump saga shall take place when time allows.
In the mean time, popped a jerry can's worth of fuel in there, hooked the battery up to a supply to keep it topped up, primed the pump over and over and the Ovlov came back to life long enough to get to the nearest fuel station and brim the tank. Car runs fine once again, so presumably one of the pickups for the pump has had it (there's two as it's a 'saddle' shaped tank) or some such treachery.
Went to the garage for a bit of a health check on a ramp and a 4 wheel alignment. Alas the track rod ends are properly seized on, so no alignment yet as they'll apparently need cutting off Other than that, all looks pretty tidy underneath, although there's a bend in the rear ARB somehow...
I'm going to have a look at the track rod ends and see if several applications of WD40 over a week or so can help loosen them...
Have a flat tyre again despite them being replaced, so I'm suspecting it's the wheel that's the issue, it's clearly square from all the kerbing
In the mean time, popped a jerry can's worth of fuel in there, hooked the battery up to a supply to keep it topped up, primed the pump over and over and the Ovlov came back to life long enough to get to the nearest fuel station and brim the tank. Car runs fine once again, so presumably one of the pickups for the pump has had it (there's two as it's a 'saddle' shaped tank) or some such treachery.
Went to the garage for a bit of a health check on a ramp and a 4 wheel alignment. Alas the track rod ends are properly seized on, so no alignment yet as they'll apparently need cutting off
Other than that, all looks pretty tidy underneath, although there's a bend in the rear ARB somehow...I'm going to have a look at the track rod ends and see if several applications of WD40 over a week or so can help loosen them...
Have a flat tyre again despite them being replaced, so I'm suspecting it's the wheel that's the issue, it's clearly square from all the kerbing
Krikkit said:
Sounds like you've had a bit of hard luck, looks good on those wheels though!
Not so much hard luck as comeuppance for buying unseen over ebay based on it being the prettiest? Easier to spend the money when you actually like the car though, I can't help but feel if I'd bought a sheddy one on 16s with plastic body trim and cloth seats I'd have been less chirpy about fixing things!
It would be nice if it doesn't turn into Trigger's broom though...
Well the other tyre was flat yesterday, so it seems both the front wheels aren't holding the air in.
Will get them all refurbed, naturally this will be more expensive than usual as they're split rims
Now listening to every single clonk and expecting to see suspension parts on the road behind me, at least the engines are good, right?
Perhaps it's like Alfa GTVs, the argument being that every GTV is a £5,000 GTV, it's just a case of whether you pay it up front to purchase a really good one, or you get a cheap one for £2,500 and have to spend £2,500 to fix it...
I do really like the engine note though. Bit like the GTV in that respect
I think a remap would really make this thing just about perfect, but would want to replace (upgrade?) the intercooler before doing that, and they don't seem cheap to buy...
Will get them all refurbed, naturally this will be more expensive than usual as they're split rims
Now listening to every single clonk and expecting to see suspension parts on the road behind me, at least the engines are good, right?
Perhaps it's like Alfa GTVs, the argument being that every GTV is a £5,000 GTV, it's just a case of whether you pay it up front to purchase a really good one, or you get a cheap one for £2,500 and have to spend £2,500 to fix it...
I do really like the engine note though. Bit like the GTV in that respect
I think a remap would really make this thing just about perfect, but would want to replace (upgrade?) the intercooler before doing that, and they don't seem cheap to buy...
kapiteinlangzaam said:
Fellow 916 owner here (and ex V70 D5 of the same vintage).
Stick with it, they are worth it.
If you remap, you will blow the interboiler sooner rather than later - they all go pop eventually.
Stick to good stuff on the suspension, crappy lower arms can lunch themselves in <1000miles!
You should also do an EGR clean (Google and Volvo forums for help) the results will disgust and delight you in equal measure.
700 mile tanks are easy - 1000miles is not unheard of.
I *think* from memory they are a saddle tank with two pumps and one of them being defective can cause the problems you have (might be mixing that up with my XC90 though!).... good luck sorting it anyhoo.
If you want an iPOD solution, look at GROM.
Thanks for the encouragement, I've been looking into the intercooler just for future reference, and it looks like 'Coolpartsuk' on ebay are part of Advanced Radiators and supply a Nissen branded IC that numerous people on the D5 forums have used without issue. They're only £58.50 now so much better than the horror prices of the past!Stick with it, they are worth it.
If you remap, you will blow the interboiler sooner rather than later - they all go pop eventually.
Stick to good stuff on the suspension, crappy lower arms can lunch themselves in <1000miles!
You should also do an EGR clean (Google and Volvo forums for help) the results will disgust and delight you in equal measure.
700 mile tanks are easy - 1000miles is not unheard of.
I *think* from memory they are a saddle tank with two pumps and one of them being defective can cause the problems you have (might be mixing that up with my XC90 though!).... good luck sorting it anyhoo.
If you want an iPOD solution, look at GROM.
I shall hold off on the remap until the IC is replaced definitely, and at this rate there'll be enough other bits to keep me busy!
I'll be sticking the meyle suspension parts which have a good reputation it seems, so hopefully no worries there when the time comes. I shall look into the EGR clean, I've seen enough about them on BMWs to already have an image in mind!
I think it is a saddle tank too, but there's only one pump with 2 pickups, a short and a long one.
I've had a look at the GROM and it's also on my watch list. There's another brand that's ~ £40 cheaper but the GROM has a good reputation so will probably just go that route when the time comes.
This will all have to be further down the line though once everything is fixed!
Going to fill the tank up later on and see what sort of MPG I'm getting, I think it was around 45mpg last time but with putting in an extra gallon and replacing fuel filter etc. wasn't that accurate. Need to keep the tank topped up at the moment until I replace the pump
Onboard thinks 50mpg, so I'm expecting about 45
confused_buyer said:
If you remove it make 101% sure you attach something to the end of the feed from the otherside to pull the new feed through as otherwise you'll never get it back again.
Could you elaborate on this a little or shall I just give it a Google? Sounds like it's probably for the best that I couldn't get the lock ring off 
confused_buyer said:
You have to remove the locking ring both sides. One is the pump and connectors the other is a level sensor but they are all connected by a feed pipe which goes across the tank.
Disconnect the pipe from the sensor and then attached a bit of wire, string whatever to the end of it and pull it through the pump side. Leave the wire in place and then, when you put the new pump in, you've got something to pull the feed back to the other side.
Have managed to find a thread with some decent pictures which helped,thanks for the heads up on this!Disconnect the pipe from the sensor and then attached a bit of wire, string whatever to the end of it and pull it through the pump side. Leave the wire in place and then, when you put the new pump in, you've got something to pull the feed back to the other side.
The locking ring on the LHS (UK passenger side) is under the rear seat base, so access is easy. From what I've seen online it appears the RHS locking ring (this being the actual pump it seems?) requires removal of the seat back to gain access, is this right?
Just want to make sure I know what's what before I start taking things apart
In case anyone finds this thread through Google, the useful post with pictures is here:
http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showpost.php?p=41448...
There was also another post elsewhere that described it as below (thread here: http://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums/viewtopic....
Yours has two parts to the system....fuel gauge or level sensor and the fuel pump. Remember that although you're facing towards the rear of the car, left is still left (steering wheel side for USA cars and right is still right- the passenger side for USA cars...would be opposite if you're in the U.K).
Preparation:
1. Remove the back seat
2. Remove the insulation and fold back the carpet in the cargo area
3. You'll see the left side level sensor cover....remove it
4. Disconnect the wire connector
5. Loosen the level sensor ring with a special tool (you can rig something up here once you see it...looks like the inside of a 32point socket, but very large).
6. Disconnect the 2 connectors for the level sensor
7. Loosen the tube system by pushing the release button down
8. Remove the level sensor
9. Now that the level sensor is out of the way, attach a string or wire to the attachments on the left side fuel gauge sensor (make sure it's long enough because you'll be using it later to fish out the gauge sensor).
Now for the fuel pump itself:
10. Locate and remove the hatch for the fuel pump (right side, facing the back of the car) and loosen the seal for the pump and loosing the fuel pipe.
11. Loosen fuel pump lock ring (you can rig something up here once you see it...looks like the inside of a 32point socket, but very large).
12. Lift up the fuel pump half way to release the plastic tube.
13. Turn the fuel pump (still half way out) as if you're turning a clock's hand from 12:00 to 2:00.
14. Hold the float against the pump housing and lift it up and out of the opening.
15. Pull the tube and housing out using the attached wire.
16. Once out of the car, remove the fuel pump with wire and tube system.
17. Release 6 clamps noting the clamp positions
18. Loosen fixings and push level sensor up.
Installation is in reverse (when tightening fuel pump lock ring, NOTE markings on fuel tank and cover....you don't want to have a leak).
confused_buyer said:
SturdyHSV said:
Have managed to find a thread with some decent pictures which helped,thanks for the heads up on this!
The locking ring on the LHS (UK passenger side) is under the rear seat base, so access is easy. From what I've seen online it appears the RHS locking ring (this being the actual pump it seems?) requires removal of the seat back to gain access, is this right?
Just want to make sure I know what's what before I start taking things apart
Sounds right to me. IIRC you might also need to remove the seat buckle in which case disconnect the battery otherwise you'll need the SRS error message reset on VIDA.The locking ring on the LHS (UK passenger side) is under the rear seat base, so access is easy. From what I've seen online it appears the RHS locking ring (this being the actual pump it seems?) requires removal of the seat back to gain access, is this right?
Just want to make sure I know what's what before I start taking things apart
It is very east to end up with a load of diesel everywhere as the pump and level are a tight fit and when replacing needs a firm push to get back in and get the locking ring on so a 2nd pair of hands is helpful.
It's a delicate balancing act of running the car long enough to get as much fuel out of the tank as possible, but not having it fail 20 miles from home! Although it sounds like vigorously rocking it side to side can splash enough fuel across to get it going again
The alternative being to pump the fuel out into a container and refill it again afterwards of course, but that seems far too sensible!
Little update, although no pictures unfortunately.
Replaced the pump, it was all a lot more obvious once you actually have the bits in front of you
Car runs fine again, although slightly frustratingly the pump itself was indeed fine, and it was just a bit of pipe coming off the siphon that had snapped clean off flush with the siphon, so nothing to really fix it back on with...
The decision was made to just fix it properly, but I do now at least have a spare pump (assuming the tubing can be removed easily) so I suppose that's not so bad... Although given they're generally assumed to last at least 120,000 miles, it's likely to be a while before I need it...
The interior doesn't smell of diesel either, we managed to keep things pretty clean despite the passenger side of the tank being basically full!
The tyres have held some air in for a while now, but a refurb is still needed really as the wheels are an absolute mess. Hopefully it'll just run for a while now, I've yet to actually get through a full tank of fuel...
Replaced the pump, it was all a lot more obvious once you actually have the bits in front of you
Car runs fine again, although slightly frustratingly the pump itself was indeed fine, and it was just a bit of pipe coming off the siphon that had snapped clean off flush with the siphon, so nothing to really fix it back on with...
The decision was made to just fix it properly, but I do now at least have a spare pump (assuming the tubing can be removed easily) so I suppose that's not so bad... Although given they're generally assumed to last at least 120,000 miles, it's likely to be a while before I need it...
The interior doesn't smell of diesel either, we managed to keep things pretty clean despite the passenger side of the tank being basically full!
The tyres have held some air in for a while now, but a refurb is still needed really as the wheels are an absolute mess. Hopefully it'll just run for a while now, I've yet to actually get through a full tank of fuel...
So, when replacing the pump, didn't bother replacing the o-ring seals for the lock rings. They looked in good condition, what could possibly go wrong?
Brimmed the tank yesterday, ready to finally actually get through a full tank and see what sort of economy I'm getting.
Big puddle of diesel under the car after work
So yes, you do need to replace them. Balls!
Brimmed the tank yesterday, ready to finally actually get through a full tank and see what sort of economy I'm getting.
Big puddle of diesel under the car after work
So yes, you do need to replace them. Balls!
The ovlov soldiers on. House DIY is taking precedent over car DIY, so I'm still yet to clean up the o-rings, opting instead to only put in 35 litres at a time ensuring it stays below the dripping point.
My ability to reverse park it without fearing the tow bar is improving, I'm still over cautious though as I really don't want to put the tow bar through someone's bumper. I don't really want to install one of those mirrors on the rear window either, I'm a PHer, I should be able to park perfectly in one move using nothing more than the force
Random picture as I noticed it looking reasonably handsome the other night as I'd parked it with the wheels turned slightly.
My ability to reverse park it without fearing the tow bar is improving, I'm still over cautious though as I really don't want to put the tow bar through someone's bumper. I don't really want to install one of those mirrors on the rear window either, I'm a PHer, I should be able to park perfectly in one move using nothing more than the force
Random picture as I noticed it looking reasonably handsome the other night as I'd parked it with the wheels turned slightly.
Yogioes said:
How about including a picture of Eleanor? My username will tell you why I am interested.
As much as she enjoys the extra space, there's still the odd (unsuccessful) attempt to join mummy and daddy up front...
Ovlov successfully performed its duties ferrying the three of us from Northampton to Penzance and back in comfort without exploding, doggers was pleased to have her bed in the back for extra comfort. She also made plenty of friends on the Scillonian and on the Isles of Scilly. She didn't discover the sea, but did enjoy sand.
Poor Ovlov had another couple of tip runs to spice up its weekend, some slightly damp contents meant it didn't smell too pleasant on the drive but that's cleared fortunately! Homing in on 130,000 miles now, still haven't sorted the o-ring, so 35 litre fill ups still
So it's been a while, time for an update.
Continuing the Ovlov's hard knock life, the tight B-road commute to work ended in a pothole large enough to be seen from space consuming the near side front wheel.
Fully split it at the barrel, so half the wheel is still inside the tyre, the front face and some of the barrel still connected to the hub. Needless to say, that didn't sound or feel very nice.
Silver lining? The boot contained a large blanket, socket set and set of gardening gloves, so changing it was a relative breeze. Volvo even include a huge white plastic bag to store the removed wheel in so you don't get your interior dirty, genius!
So eventually a replacement wheel was sourced for £130 (took a while to find a decent one that wasn't also £200+) and in the meantime the old Clio stepped up to commute duties.
Unfortunately, the impact didn't help the tracking at all. The wheel was 45* off centre when going straight ahead, and the whole car felt very 'nervous', which I attributed to its wide boy toe out stance.
The Clio is on winter tyres so the Ovlov sat unused until it seemed prudent to get it sorted ready for an MOT and tax renewal. Time to give the old girl some love, new Meyle heavy duty lower wishbones, new Meyle heavy duty inner / outer track rod ends (the old ones were so corroded a garage quoted me £200 to cut them off and 're-thread' the rack... Fail to see why they wouldn't just replace the inner ends... alas I declined) and new front and rear Meyle heavy duty drop links.
The drop links were helpfully lost by Royal Mail, remaining new parts went on, and all seemed OK.
60 seconds down the road from the workshop where we'd fitted everything, nasty vibration that I'd attributed to the new wheel not being well balanced got appreciably worse and with an almighty graunching sound, the near side driveshaft inner CV gave up.
With no drive, one of the guys who'd helped came and towed me back with his 460ci 60s Ford pickup. That was an interesting sight
New driveshaft ordered, delivered and installed, over to the MOT place.
Massive fail.
The near side (seeing a theme here?) shock absorber was apparently leaking badly (both fronts have been 'lightly misted' for years on the old MOTs, presumably that pot hole was enough to kill it off) although maybe this was just all the penetrating fluid and CV grease everywhere
The near side (there it is again!) rear suspension arm was fractured / split, an end we'd stupidly just ignored assuming all the damage was at the broken wheel end, and thus it was this that was causing the preposterously wayward handling...
Rear tyres apparently shot to bits and the rubber on the replacement wheel was also too low (this surprised me as it looked / felt fine, but it's not an issue as the original Pilot Sport 4 from the broken wheel is going back on here)
Now as it's the 4C suspension, those shocks are expensive, turns out buying a pair is barely much more expensive than buying just the one, so Ovlov is getting 2 new Monroe shock absorbers, the front and rear Meyle drop links finally arrived, and new rear suspension arms...
We'll be bolting these bits on hopefully tomorrow, with a ginger drive over to a tyre place for some rears and another shot at an MOT.
Whilst it was in bits we also took out the fuel pump O-ring and cleaned it all up, so hopefully I can brim the tank again without it leaking.
Currently I hate the blasted thing with the fire of a thousand suns, but I'm too deep down the rabbit hole now, I've got to get some life out of all these shiny new parts!!!
In other news, doggers had a haircut and now thinks she is right posh
Continuing the Ovlov's hard knock life, the tight B-road commute to work ended in a pothole large enough to be seen from space consuming the near side front wheel.
Fully split it at the barrel, so half the wheel is still inside the tyre, the front face and some of the barrel still connected to the hub. Needless to say, that didn't sound or feel very nice.
Silver lining? The boot contained a large blanket, socket set and set of gardening gloves, so changing it was a relative breeze. Volvo even include a huge white plastic bag to store the removed wheel in so you don't get your interior dirty, genius!
So eventually a replacement wheel was sourced for £130 (took a while to find a decent one that wasn't also £200+) and in the meantime the old Clio stepped up to commute duties.
Unfortunately, the impact didn't help the tracking at all. The wheel was 45* off centre when going straight ahead, and the whole car felt very 'nervous', which I attributed to its wide boy toe out stance.
The Clio is on winter tyres so the Ovlov sat unused until it seemed prudent to get it sorted ready for an MOT and tax renewal. Time to give the old girl some love, new Meyle heavy duty lower wishbones, new Meyle heavy duty inner / outer track rod ends (the old ones were so corroded a garage quoted me £200 to cut them off and 're-thread' the rack... Fail to see why they wouldn't just replace the inner ends... alas I declined) and new front and rear Meyle heavy duty drop links.
The drop links were helpfully lost by Royal Mail, remaining new parts went on, and all seemed OK.
60 seconds down the road from the workshop where we'd fitted everything, nasty vibration that I'd attributed to the new wheel not being well balanced got appreciably worse and with an almighty graunching sound, the near side driveshaft inner CV gave up.
With no drive, one of the guys who'd helped came and towed me back with his 460ci 60s Ford pickup. That was an interesting sight
New driveshaft ordered, delivered and installed, over to the MOT place.
Massive fail.
The near side (seeing a theme here?) shock absorber was apparently leaking badly (both fronts have been 'lightly misted' for years on the old MOTs, presumably that pot hole was enough to kill it off) although maybe this was just all the penetrating fluid and CV grease everywhere
The near side (there it is again!) rear suspension arm was fractured / split, an end we'd stupidly just ignored assuming all the damage was at the broken wheel end, and thus it was this that was causing the preposterously wayward handling...
Rear tyres apparently shot to bits and the rubber on the replacement wheel was also too low (this surprised me as it looked / felt fine, but it's not an issue as the original Pilot Sport 4 from the broken wheel is going back on here)
Now as it's the 4C suspension, those shocks are expensive, turns out buying a pair is barely much more expensive than buying just the one, so Ovlov is getting 2 new Monroe shock absorbers, the front and rear Meyle drop links finally arrived, and new rear suspension arms...
We'll be bolting these bits on hopefully tomorrow, with a ginger drive over to a tyre place for some rears and another shot at an MOT.
Whilst it was in bits we also took out the fuel pump O-ring and cleaned it all up, so hopefully I can brim the tank again without it leaking.
Currently I hate the blasted thing with the fire of a thousand suns, but I'm too deep down the rabbit hole now, I've got to get some life out of all these shiny new parts!!!
In other news, doggers had a haircut and now thinks she is right posh
Edited by SturdyHSV on Friday 10th March 15:46
Yes the dog guard in mine is the net that comes out of the seat, the pup is too large to get around it so it does the job. Also has the benefit that you can also use it when the rear seats are folded flat, in case you feel like really spoiling her for space
I still have my old fuel pump in the shed. It works fine, just that pickup has split in an annoying place that I can't see how you'd repair nicely, was a frustrating thing to pay £200 for a replacement
The re-test is likely to be this coming Saturday, as everything was successfully swapped over last Saturday. Looking at the rust marks, the rear arm I believe had already split, and I imagine the pothole was then enough to shear it completely.
Removing the wheel presented this. A definite 'oooh, bugger' moment
Closer inspection... Yep, that's a confirmed kill.
I got all 3 sections as they came as a bundle for £35, was pleased that it was only the simplest part that needed replacing, the rest looks solid.
'New' bit fitted with new drop links too. This side was surprisingly easy to remove, the other side required an angle grinder
Getting the front shocks off was fairly simple, main worries were using a piece of string tied to the old connector for the electric control to feed it up through the engine bay, and the fact the drop link bolts were so thoroughly corroded on that, once again, we just cut the bottom bolt to get it off the anti-roll bar and left the top one connected to the old strut. Very glad I bought replacement droplinks now.
Putting the spring on the new shock:
Yes, I bought them online, not from Ovlov, they were only £325 for the pair (a pair isn't much more than a single one) so that was a result!
Everything bolted back together, quick half mile test drive with some steering, power, hard braking, lock to lock etc. and all seems much better. Next up is to order a set of rears and get it booked in to have those fitted, the 'old' PS4 fitted back to the front left and have it aligned and tested all next Saturday. Then I can finally tax the thing and send the Clio off to the scrappy.
Once on the road again it's being treated to a damn good clean and a headlight polish, should have it looking very presentable.
Oh, and my commute route won't involve that back road any more
I still have my old fuel pump in the shed. It works fine, just that pickup has split in an annoying place that I can't see how you'd repair nicely, was a frustrating thing to pay £200 for a replacement
The re-test is likely to be this coming Saturday, as everything was successfully swapped over last Saturday. Looking at the rust marks, the rear arm I believe had already split, and I imagine the pothole was then enough to shear it completely.
Removing the wheel presented this. A definite 'oooh, bugger' moment
Closer inspection... Yep, that's a confirmed kill.
I got all 3 sections as they came as a bundle for £35, was pleased that it was only the simplest part that needed replacing, the rest looks solid.
'New' bit fitted with new drop links too. This side was surprisingly easy to remove, the other side required an angle grinder
Getting the front shocks off was fairly simple, main worries were using a piece of string tied to the old connector for the electric control to feed it up through the engine bay, and the fact the drop link bolts were so thoroughly corroded on that, once again, we just cut the bottom bolt to get it off the anti-roll bar and left the top one connected to the old strut. Very glad I bought replacement droplinks now.
Putting the spring on the new shock:
Yes, I bought them online, not from Ovlov, they were only £325 for the pair (a pair isn't much more than a single one) so that was a result!
Everything bolted back together, quick half mile test drive with some steering, power, hard braking, lock to lock etc. and all seems much better. Next up is to order a set of rears and get it booked in to have those fitted, the 'old' PS4 fitted back to the front left and have it aligned and tested all next Saturday. Then I can finally tax the thing and send the Clio off to the scrappy.
Once on the road again it's being treated to a damn good clean and a headlight polish, should have it looking very presentable.
Oh, and my commute route won't involve that back road any more
smn159 said:
Your ownership experience sounds exactly like mine!
Bought unseen from eBay - check
Changed wishbones - check
Coasted to a halt with just under 1/4 of a tank left - check!
Haven't done my fuel pump yet but it's on the list
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Ah yes, it appears I commented in that thread when it popped up, gave you the list of ebay links for suspension components Bought unseen from eBay - check
Changed wishbones - check
Coasted to a halt with just under 1/4 of a tank left - check!
Haven't done my fuel pump yet but it's on the list
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
We both managed to buy the good one too, facelift with the Euro 3 D5 and a manual
Yours looks very tidy, my rack doesn't have the pulsing issue, one that I test drove did so hopefully I'm in good shape there. Also no alarm complaints yet, and radio reception doesn't seem that bad, although it's been a while since I've driven it anywhere at this point!Hopefully the 4C suspension will be a positive now that the fronts have been done, I bet it would put some buyers off as they're rumoured to be so expensive to replace. After all the fear, getting a new front pair for £325 was a relief!
. I'd have welded that and re-enforced it with a cut of square bar.Ovlov is officially MOT'd and taxed, tracking done, back in the game!
Only downside being the 6 month old PS4 from the wheel that went through the pothole was snookered. It appears they've both worn quite badly from the ridiculous tracking anyway, so once the wallet is repadded it'll be another pair of PS4s and it'll be in full health!
Garage cleared the airbag service warning too, nice place.
Apparently the driver's side strut wasn't bolted up very tightly, which is odd as we rattle gunned the hell out of both bolts, but as it was near the end of the day it's possible the gun's battery was a little low perhaps. Should've checked by hand I suppose, lesson learned and fortunately no catastrophes!
Car drives better than it probably ever has since I've owned it, which makes sense given how much suspension has been replaced
It's getting treated to a commute and a clean tomorrow, will see how it holds together, looking forward to the comfort / quiet / decent stereo after a fair few months in the Clio
Only downside being the 6 month old PS4 from the wheel that went through the pothole was snookered. It appears they've both worn quite badly from the ridiculous tracking anyway, so once the wallet is repadded it'll be another pair of PS4s and it'll be in full health!
Garage cleared the airbag service warning too, nice place.
Apparently the driver's side strut wasn't bolted up very tightly, which is odd as we rattle gunned the hell out of both bolts, but as it was near the end of the day it's possible the gun's battery was a little low perhaps. Should've checked by hand I suppose, lesson learned and fortunately no catastrophes!
Car drives better than it probably ever has since I've owned it, which makes sense given how much suspension has been replaced
It's getting treated to a commute and a clean tomorrow, will see how it holds together, looking forward to the comfort / quiet / decent stereo after a fair few months in the Clio
Well Ovlov has had a clean and the headlights polished up reasonably well given my crappy drill.
This meant it was straight back to work of course!
Next was taking down a fence ruined by Doris and transporting it to the tip. Interior will need a good hoovering now, but it's good to have the old girl back
This meant it was straight back to work of course!
Next was taking down a fence ruined by Doris and transporting it to the tip. Interior will need a good hoovering now, but it's good to have the old girl back
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