Thursday, August 7, 2014
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Journy to Stage 0.5
Since I am only a month late getting this post started I will just go ahead and combine a couple of weekends work into this post. Since I still need to change the oil I can't say that I am completely at stage 0.
The first work day was dedicated to getting the timing belt, water pump & thermostat replaced. After working on Lael's 242 we started on my car. This was later than it should have been. I cross threaded two of his lug bolts. We had to tap the hub and fix the lug nuts. Since we were doing the water pump we started by draining the radiator. When we were getting everything apart Miah noticed that the serpentine belt was about to go. It took a trip to two different AutoZones to get the belt. I didn't have my keys with me so Miah got the points. It took a while, but we finally got everything buttoned up. In the middle of this we had to replace the upper spring seat on the front passenger strut. Needless to say it was not a simple task to get the spring compressed to get everything back together. Once we got the strut back in the car the handling improved greatly. By the time everything was done it was dark outside. This is the when we realized that the dash lights didn't work. We messed with the dimmer switch and noticed that one of the pink lines that is what carries power for all of the dash lights was broken. We tried to get it temporarily connected, but still no dash. I had to drive the car home by flashlight. I was following Miah back to Megan's so we could all get dinner. He took the most circuitous way home while I am trying to follow using a flashlight to see my dash.
The second work weekend was over the Valentine's Day weekend. This was the most in depth work we have done to date. We planned on replacing the PCV, fuel injectors, spark plugs, spark plug wires, distributor cap, rotor, intercooler piping, throttle body & intake manifold. While we had everything apart we replaced vacuum line with silicone line. More about the throttle body and intake manifold later. We started by pulling the airbox, downpipe, intake manifold & throttle body. From here we pulled all of the parts of the PCV and replaced it with a kit from IPD. This should help stop some of the oil that sprays on the top of the engine. While Lael and I were working on this Miah took care of getting the spark plugs changed out. He also replaced my center caps with new IPD ones and put my good ones on his car. We found that the starter was not
Since we had everything apart I decided to upgrade my throttle body to a larger one from a N/A car. Instead of porting my existing intake manifold I replaced it with one from a N/A also. It took a lot of time, but I pulled both from Pick-N-Pull, cleaned them up & painted them. I added a spacer from Snabb when we put the manifold back on. This keeps the heat soak of the block from heating up the intake manifold. In the process of taking everything apart and putting it back together we lost one of the bolts that holds the manifold on. We seemed to have other bolts extra, but not the one we needed. We decided to pack it in for the night and come back to it Monday morning. Since my car was a no go Miah let me take his home Sunday night. I dropped him off and went to Walgreens to get some cold medicine. I was driving up Woodlawn when I hit a pot hole. This bent the rim and destroyed the tire. I got the tire changed out just in time for Miah to show up to help.
Monday morning we went to Gorges to see about getting the bolt we needed. They said they didn't have any in stock, but I would be surprised that the service area didn't have a stash of them. We got a bolt from Tractor Supply that worked to get me home. We proceeded to get all of the flexible intercooler lines replaces with silicon ones from FCP Groton. We didn't get the fuel injectors replaced since they didn't get delivered to my apartment until Monday. We got everything buttoned up and after a few minutes of rough idle it started to idle pretty well. At this point we tried to troubleshoot the dash lights. All we succeeded to do was blow fuses. We soldered the broken wire back together, but that didn't fix the issue either. So it was a no go driving home Monday night. I was not feeling well anyway, so it really wouldn't have mattered if we had gotten it working.
While I was down I fixed the odometer that was broken. I replaced the gear and reset everything to 000000. I figured since we didn't know the mileage I might as well keep track of everything from the time I got the car.
I drove home Tuesday morning after a drug induced sleep. I stopped at Pick-N-Pull and got the missing bolt that I needed. I then headed home and proceeded to lie on the couch feeling horrible.
Since I got home I have replaced the fuel injectors with the ones I had cleaned. In tightening down the fuel rail I snapped the head off of a bolt. I need to pull the broken bolt out, but it is not a priority until I figure out my dash light issue.
The first work day was dedicated to getting the timing belt, water pump & thermostat replaced. After working on Lael's 242 we started on my car. This was later than it should have been. I cross threaded two of his lug bolts. We had to tap the hub and fix the lug nuts. Since we were doing the water pump we started by draining the radiator. When we were getting everything apart Miah noticed that the serpentine belt was about to go. It took a trip to two different AutoZones to get the belt. I didn't have my keys with me so Miah got the points. It took a while, but we finally got everything buttoned up. In the middle of this we had to replace the upper spring seat on the front passenger strut. Needless to say it was not a simple task to get the spring compressed to get everything back together. Once we got the strut back in the car the handling improved greatly. By the time everything was done it was dark outside. This is the when we realized that the dash lights didn't work. We messed with the dimmer switch and noticed that one of the pink lines that is what carries power for all of the dash lights was broken. We tried to get it temporarily connected, but still no dash. I had to drive the car home by flashlight. I was following Miah back to Megan's so we could all get dinner. He took the most circuitous way home while I am trying to follow using a flashlight to see my dash.
The second work weekend was over the Valentine's Day weekend. This was the most in depth work we have done to date. We planned on replacing the PCV, fuel injectors, spark plugs, spark plug wires, distributor cap, rotor, intercooler piping, throttle body & intake manifold. While we had everything apart we replaced vacuum line with silicone line. More about the throttle body and intake manifold later. We started by pulling the airbox, downpipe, intake manifold & throttle body. From here we pulled all of the parts of the PCV and replaced it with a kit from IPD. This should help stop some of the oil that sprays on the top of the engine. While Lael and I were working on this Miah took care of getting the spark plugs changed out. He also replaced my center caps with new IPD ones and put my good ones on his car. We found that the starter was not
Since we had everything apart I decided to upgrade my throttle body to a larger one from a N/A car. Instead of porting my existing intake manifold I replaced it with one from a N/A also. It took a lot of time, but I pulled both from Pick-N-Pull, cleaned them up & painted them. I added a spacer from Snabb when we put the manifold back on. This keeps the heat soak of the block from heating up the intake manifold. In the process of taking everything apart and putting it back together we lost one of the bolts that holds the manifold on. We seemed to have other bolts extra, but not the one we needed. We decided to pack it in for the night and come back to it Monday morning. Since my car was a no go Miah let me take his home Sunday night. I dropped him off and went to Walgreens to get some cold medicine. I was driving up Woodlawn when I hit a pot hole. This bent the rim and destroyed the tire. I got the tire changed out just in time for Miah to show up to help.
Monday morning we went to Gorges to see about getting the bolt we needed. They said they didn't have any in stock, but I would be surprised that the service area didn't have a stash of them. We got a bolt from Tractor Supply that worked to get me home. We proceeded to get all of the flexible intercooler lines replaces with silicon ones from FCP Groton. We didn't get the fuel injectors replaced since they didn't get delivered to my apartment until Monday. We got everything buttoned up and after a few minutes of rough idle it started to idle pretty well. At this point we tried to troubleshoot the dash lights. All we succeeded to do was blow fuses. We soldered the broken wire back together, but that didn't fix the issue either. So it was a no go driving home Monday night. I was not feeling well anyway, so it really wouldn't have mattered if we had gotten it working.
While I was down I fixed the odometer that was broken. I replaced the gear and reset everything to 000000. I figured since we didn't know the mileage I might as well keep track of everything from the time I got the car.
I drove home Tuesday morning after a drug induced sleep. I stopped at Pick-N-Pull and got the missing bolt that I needed. I then headed home and proceeded to lie on the couch feeling horrible.
Since I got home I have replaced the fuel injectors with the ones I had cleaned. In tightening down the fuel rail I snapped the head off of a bolt. I need to pull the broken bolt out, but it is not a priority until I figure out my dash light issue.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
New 850 T5R
A white 1997 850 T5R came up for sale in Wichita right before Christmas. The young lady selling it was asking $1500 for the car. The mileage on the car was unknown, but she estimated it to be around 200k. The body was in rough shape. The front spoiler was broken and the hood has a large number of rock chips that had started to rust. The trunk had been hit by a falling tree and the rear wing was missing. Other than the drivers seat side bolster the seats were in great condition. It was still rolling on the original Volans. I told her it wasn't worth $1500 and I would give her $500 and probably part it out.
She didn't like my offer so she ended up trading it in to Don Hatten. When I found this out I called them up and asked them what they wanted for the car. They tried to tell me that it had to go to auction. I pressed some more and they said they would get back to me. Two days latter they hadn't called me back so I called again. They said they had to get $600 out of the car and I told them they had a deal. Since it was in Wichita and I was in KC I had my mom go pickup the car for me.
This is the start of the odyssey of bring the car I think I will call Stormtrooper back to life. I know that Lucky at IPD already has a 850 called Stormtrooper but by god I can have one too.
She didn't like my offer so she ended up trading it in to Don Hatten. When I found this out I called them up and asked them what they wanted for the car. They tried to tell me that it had to go to auction. I pressed some more and they said they would get back to me. Two days latter they hadn't called me back so I called again. They said they had to get $600 out of the car and I told them they had a deal. Since it was in Wichita and I was in KC I had my mom go pickup the car for me.
This is the start of the odyssey of bring the car I think I will call Stormtrooper back to life. I know that Lucky at IPD already has a 850 called Stormtrooper but by god I can have one too.
Sway Bar Bushings Follow-Up
Volvo was right when they said you had to replace the entire bar. Ended up just putting the original bar back in.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Sway Bar Bushings
While changing from my winter tires to summer tires I noticed that my sway bar bushings looked a little long in the tooth.
Alas, Volvo thinks that you need to replace the entire sway bar at this point. I disagree with this thought. I ordered some 20mm polyurethane bushings from Energy Suspensions. Miah and I will be installing them tomorrow. Hopefully all goes well and I will have a better ride.
Alas, Volvo thinks that you need to replace the entire sway bar at this point. I disagree with this thought. I ordered some 20mm polyurethane bushings from Energy Suspensions. Miah and I will be installing them tomorrow. Hopefully all goes well and I will have a better ride.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Antenna Down Switch
While doing some research I came across a link to installing an antenna down switch. I remembered that I had one in the closet. I got it out and got it installed tonight. I had to make the wiring myself as I didn't have a harness. Everything went together well and I can now lower my antenna without turning the radio off.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Painted Door Handles
The trim on the car had become a weather gray. I decided that I would get everything painted I could without major disassembly.
Once I had the handle off I took a scotch pad to it. I then used SEM Plastic/Leather Prep to clean everything and a few coats of SEM Plastic Adhesion Promoter to help the paint stick. I then used SEM Bumper Coater in Charcoal Metallic to finish off the parts.
I am happy with how everything turned out. Now all I have to paint is the bumpers. I don't think they will be done anytime soon.
Once I had the handle off I took a scotch pad to it. I then used SEM Plastic/Leather Prep to clean everything and a few coats of SEM Plastic Adhesion Promoter to help the paint stick. I then used SEM Bumper Coater in Charcoal Metallic to finish off the parts.
I am happy with how everything turned out. Now all I have to paint is the bumpers. I don't think they will be done anytime soon.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Visit from Miah
Miah made the trip up to Kansas City on Friday for the Volvo Club of Kansas City photo shoot with Connie at the Airline History Museum.
There was a good turnout and a broad range of Volvos in attendance. Afterward we had dinner at Winslow's. Then we set out on our own to take some more pictures of the cars. We found a old loading dock that we were trying to get pictures of the R, but we were standing two feet onto private property and we were asked to leave. We were not getting the shot we wanted so we moved on.
We found a nice pull off spot on a road with the Broadway bridge in the background. After much trial and error we were finally able to get this shot.
Satisfied with that shot we moved on to the Power and Light District. We drove up to the top of the parking garage just north of KC Live. We had a lighting issue with our first spot we picked so we drove around the barriers and made it to the roof level. We were getting things dialed in for a good shot when the security guard came on by to check us out. Instead of making us leave he hung around and talked while we experimented with different lighting levels. When we got this shot we decided it was a good time to change locations.
We drove around by Liberty Memorial, but the gates were closed. We headed down Main Street towards the Plaza. We hit a sobriety checkpoint on the way there. The officers that talked to each of us were a little confused when we each talked about wheat we were doing. We both referenced each other as "the other Volvo". Once through there we made our way to the Plaza. It was still busy and there were no really good shots so we headed back home.
On Saturday we ran around a bit before starting work on the cars. We picked up a Black Magic Bullet to work on getting the rims clean on both car. The head came off the shaft before we were done. While Miah was breaking the Bullet I started working on cleaning up the leather on his seats. In the time he did all of his rims I barely got one seat done. In order to make it easier to clean the back seat we pulled the bottom and side bolsters out of the car. By the time we were done with the leather it looked like a different car. Now all we need to do is get the suede inserts cleaned. When this was done we decided to pack it in for the night. Next time we get together it will include more Volvo fun.
We found a nice pull off spot on a road with the Broadway bridge in the background. After much trial and error we were finally able to get this shot.
Satisfied with that shot we moved on to the Power and Light District. We drove up to the top of the parking garage just north of KC Live. We had a lighting issue with our first spot we picked so we drove around the barriers and made it to the roof level. We were getting things dialed in for a good shot when the security guard came on by to check us out. Instead of making us leave he hung around and talked while we experimented with different lighting levels. When we got this shot we decided it was a good time to change locations.
We drove around by Liberty Memorial, but the gates were closed. We headed down Main Street towards the Plaza. We hit a sobriety checkpoint on the way there. The officers that talked to each of us were a little confused when we each talked about wheat we were doing. We both referenced each other as "the other Volvo". Once through there we made our way to the Plaza. It was still busy and there were no really good shots so we headed back home.On Saturday we ran around a bit before starting work on the cars. We picked up a Black Magic Bullet to work on getting the rims clean on both car. The head came off the shaft before we were done. While Miah was breaking the Bullet I started working on cleaning up the leather on his seats. In the time he did all of his rims I barely got one seat done. In order to make it easier to clean the back seat we pulled the bottom and side bolsters out of the car. By the time we were done with the leather it looked like a different car. Now all we need to do is get the suede inserts cleaned. When this was done we decided to pack it in for the night. Next time we get together it will include more Volvo fun.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Second Step of Paint Rescue
She has now been through 2 claybar sessions and several passes with Zaino Z-PC Fusion Dual Action Paint Cleaner Swirl Remover. The finish now looks a thousand times better than when I got the car. Unfortunately since it has taken off some paint to smooth the surface out the trim pieces now have a red hue to them. Once a couple of layers of polish have been applied using the buffer I will take care of dying the trim back to black. I will then finish the last layers of polish by hand.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Drip Molding Repair
When I got the car it had the standard issue with the tape pealing off of the drip molding. I have taken my time to get these cleaned and prepped to get a new coat of Forever Black and blackout tape. I did the majority of the work with a razor blade. I was able to remove the tape, but it left a lot of glue on the rail. I first tried using a piece of steel wool to clean the glue off. While this worked fine it took too long and was a very messy process. I found a can of Goo Gone Extreme at Wal-Mart and I thought I would give it a try. I sat down on the floor last night and spent about three hours cleaning up the rails. It was not a messy process and I could watch TV while I was doing it. The rails came very clean and ready for the tape. I did a test area of the Forever Black and I think it will work just fine. I will be starting on the rubber tonight with hopefully a plan to start taping next Tuesday.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Fuel Pump Relay Woes
My fuel pump relay went out last week, but the process to figure it out took most of the weekend. On my way home on Thursday the car kept on dying. It was typically when I was coasting, so I tried to keep the RPMs up and got it home. On Friday I was able to get to work with only a few issues. When I went to leave the car would not run for more than a minute at a time. I popped the hod and made sure everything was connected and no vacuum elbows were blown. I finally gave up and asked Tim for a ride home. He decided that we should at least try and figure out what was wrong.
We went to Harbor Freight and picked up a cheap fuel pressure gauge. I hooked it up to the port on the end of the fuel rail and started the car up. After a quick run to Home Depot for some Teflon tape after spilling some fuel we got everything hooked up. I got 40 psi at the rail and then it would just drop to nothing until the engine died, then it would jump back up to 40 again. We decided to put the gauge at the pump to see if we could figure out what was going on. After a quick from the store for some fuel line and host clamps we were ready to test. Now at this point we should have realized that the pump was shutting off when the pressure dropped, but we couldn't see the forest for the trees. We fumbled around some more and finally had to call it a night when it got too dark.
I hit it again on Saturday morning. I had to buy a jack, more stands & a creeper so I could try and figure out what was wrong. I went to pick up some more fuel line so that I could get the gauge in an easier place to read since I was alone now. The guy at the counter thought it might be a vacuum issue. I messed around some more and then decided to replace the fuel pressure regulator. I was lucky in that there was one in the area. I got it replaced, but in the process of pulling the fuel rail I lost a couple of the injector seals. I was lucky that the parts department at Superior Volvo was still open. I picked up some new seals at $5.oo a piece. FCP Groton has MSRP listed as $2.31 and sells them for $1.49 a piece. I am getting tired of being bent over by Superior. I hope that I don't have to buy many more parts from them.
I got everything back together and it still didn't work. I was getting more desperate and was actually considering having it towed to Vern's for him to fix. I tried bypassing the fuel filter. This time I noticed that the fuel pump was shutting off. I didn't have the service manuals with me as I didn't bring my laptop with me. I finally headed home and hit the computer to try and find a solution. I found a troubleshooting step that talked about checking the fuel pump relay. I made a posting on Matthew's Volvo Site about what I had done and what I thought was the possible fix. Ozark Lee posted that I was probably right about the issue and an easy way to test it. I used a paper clip to make a jumper and the car started right up and kept on running. Lee was gracious enough to offer to meet me Sunday night and give me a working relay. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Lee for helping me out. I was afraid I was going to have to either buy one at who knows how much of a markup or pay for outrageous shipping to get the part quickly.
I now have a car that runs once again. I can now focus my time back on the paint and making this car shine.
We went to Harbor Freight and picked up a cheap fuel pressure gauge. I hooked it up to the port on the end of the fuel rail and started the car up. After a quick run to Home Depot for some Teflon tape after spilling some fuel we got everything hooked up. I got 40 psi at the rail and then it would just drop to nothing until the engine died, then it would jump back up to 40 again. We decided to put the gauge at the pump to see if we could figure out what was going on. After a quick from the store for some fuel line and host clamps we were ready to test. Now at this point we should have realized that the pump was shutting off when the pressure dropped, but we couldn't see the forest for the trees. We fumbled around some more and finally had to call it a night when it got too dark.
I hit it again on Saturday morning. I had to buy a jack, more stands & a creeper so I could try and figure out what was wrong. I went to pick up some more fuel line so that I could get the gauge in an easier place to read since I was alone now. The guy at the counter thought it might be a vacuum issue. I messed around some more and then decided to replace the fuel pressure regulator. I was lucky in that there was one in the area. I got it replaced, but in the process of pulling the fuel rail I lost a couple of the injector seals. I was lucky that the parts department at Superior Volvo was still open. I picked up some new seals at $5.oo a piece. FCP Groton has MSRP listed as $2.31 and sells them for $1.49 a piece. I am getting tired of being bent over by Superior. I hope that I don't have to buy many more parts from them.
I got everything back together and it still didn't work. I was getting more desperate and was actually considering having it towed to Vern's for him to fix. I tried bypassing the fuel filter. This time I noticed that the fuel pump was shutting off. I didn't have the service manuals with me as I didn't bring my laptop with me. I finally headed home and hit the computer to try and find a solution. I found a troubleshooting step that talked about checking the fuel pump relay. I made a posting on Matthew's Volvo Site about what I had done and what I thought was the possible fix. Ozark Lee posted that I was probably right about the issue and an easy way to test it. I used a paper clip to make a jumper and the car started right up and kept on running. Lee was gracious enough to offer to meet me Sunday night and give me a working relay. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Lee for helping me out. I was afraid I was going to have to either buy one at who knows how much of a markup or pay for outrageous shipping to get the part quickly.
I now have a car that runs once again. I can now focus my time back on the paint and making this car shine.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Stage Zero Tune-Up - Follow Up
Miah and I got together over the weekend and put in a lot of time on the car. We were able to get the distributor, rotor, spark plugs & wires replaced on Sunday. We also replaced the soft vacuum hoses with new silicone hoses. On Monday we did a complete flush of the transmission fluid. It was really very simple.
While doing this work we found that I need to replace the existing brake lines. While I am at it I will probably go ahead and replace the rear pads and rotors.
While doing this work we found that I need to replace the existing brake lines. While I am at it I will probably go ahead and replace the rear pads and rotors.
Paint Finish Work Started
I did a complete wash and clay bar of the car tonight. I spent two hours working on the car. Things felt good when I finished, but a fresh wash would tell the truth. After a second wash I started to dry it and found that I didn't do as good of a job as I thought. It is going to need another pass with the clay bar. I dropped one of the bars that I bought, so I only have one left and have to be careful with it. I want to remove the spoiler to get to the paint underneath. I have to be careful and plan it out as I don't want to leave the holes in the trunk lid open for any length of time.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Lighting Done
Now that I have spent about $60 on light bulbs, I think I have all of the interior lights working. It has not been an easy process to get them all found and changed out. Now that I know what bulbs I need and how to replace them, I can order them cheaper than buying locally.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Stage Zero Tune-Up
The case of Mobile ATF 3309 arrived today. I think the people at my apartment office think I am a little weird getting a case of oil shipped to me. My new IPD plug wires also came in today. I am waiting on my new vacuum tubes to arrive which should be on Thursday. I bought the new Denso spark plugs locally as they were cheaper than getting them from IPD. The new distributer cap and rotor got here last week. FCP Grodon gets orders out quickly. I filled up today and added a bottle of Red Line SI-1 to give the fuel injectors a cleaning. I hope to get everything installed and flushed this weekend. I will keep you updated on my progress.
Exterior Work Started
I have started on the exterior styling work that needs to be done. I replaced the headlight wiper blades more for looks than functionality. At this point they don't work and are not high on my list of fixes. She has had two baths now and it is about time to take some TLC to the paint. The first order of business will be to try and pop out some of the door dings and hail dings on the roof. I am going to try one of the DIY dent removers on them. I will only be out $20 or so if it does not work. After that the car is going to have a date with the clay bar. I need to find a good place to work on her. I don't have a garage and it needs to be out of the sun when I do it.
Engine Cleanup - Part 1
I spent some time on Sunday cleaning up the engine bay. In being careful to not spray the electronics I was not able to get a totally clean engine. I think some of the areas are going to take some work by hand to get it clean.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Wish List
Here is my wish list of upgrades that I want to make. They are not in any particular order.
Eurosport Tuning: Reverse Intercooler Piping Kit
GlowShift: Universal Triple Radio Gauge Panel
Cherry Turbos: Strut Brace
iPd: Anti-Sway BarsMore Lighting Issues
The problem with not test driving a car at night you don't know what bulbs are burnt out. When I took the car out last night to verify the turbo was now working correctly I noticed that the HVAC controls were not visible. I took the controls out and found that all three bulbs were burned out. Luckily these are standard sized bulbs. I then went to AutoZone and they had two packages, but someone had helped themselves to one of the bulbs. I then tried WalMart, but they didn't have the correct bulbs. I ended up at Advanced Auto Parts to get another set of bulbs. At this point I think I have all of the lights working.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Turbo is Fixed
I fixed the blown elbow, but I was still having idle problems and no turbo boost. I could hear the turbo trying to spin, but it wasn't making any boost. I was chasing the issue as electrical as the MAF sensor kept throwing error codes. I pulled the ECU apart to make sure it was not an issue in there with a broken wire. I got out the volt meter and found that using a different ground point everything tested fine. I got in the car and started it up. I was still having idle problems. I revved the engine and I could hear very loud air movement. I found that the intercooler pipe going into the throttle body was disconnected. Once I got it back on it was like I had a new car.
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