Shirley Knott

Good work, almost all of my fleet need a tickle with the rust converter stuff now and then. I'd try and get something over the top of it as soon as you can, it really needs a top coat over it for any kind of longevity IME.

That's what all old Volvo's smell like IME. Admittedly my testing has been confined to a sample size of 3, but 100% consistency on that front. RE coolant, Volvo are proper dicks and don't give any insight as to what anti-freeze to use. It's like that scene from Indiana Jones where the guy has to choose the right cup with no clues as to what to do and instant doom for making the wrong choice... I changed the lot on my old 940 turbo and after thorough flush went with Comma Supercoldmaster 2 year blue stuff, it seemed to work well and the car although no longer owned by me is still running well without any issues.

Thanks chap, hopefully everything's ship shape your side too.

A week on since the timing belt change on the Volvo, only 30 miles covered because lockdown but nothing has blown up yet! Buoyed by this success I got stuck in this afternoon and serviced the little C1 and the Golf. C1 up first... Air filter was examined but having only covered about 4000 miles was found to be like new and was put back in, the replacement can go in the parts bin until next year... Oil filter access is nice and easy on these... After this brakes/bushes/boots etc were all inspected with no issues found, hinges greased etc then it was time to move on to the Golf.... This one now has over 150k on the clocks but wears it pretty well. It genuinely feels like it would do the same again without much drama. Oil filter access is even better than the C1, it also allows access for the Pela to drain the oil cooler, actually getting more out than a traditional sump plug drain... Again, Mann oil filters and massively over spec PD oil despite the cars lowly SDI status, because I care... Again, after this brakes/bushes/boots etc were checked, there's a CV boot that wants changing but other than that all good. Air filter and fuel filter were changed last April and have only covered around 5000 miles since then so will be fine until next year. The cars won't be moving much in the coming days/weeks/months but all in all it feels good to know they've had a once over.

As mentioned I did the timing belt on mine a couple of weeks ago and didn't have to remove the crank pulley, I managed to just slip the new belt around it but that's on the 2.4 petrol engine, I'm not sure if the same is possible on the D5? An impact gun will make short work of it if it does have to come off and helped a great deal when I changed the belt on my old 940. RE waterpumps, Volvo OC wisdom suggests the original OE pump is good up to 200k, I checked for leaking/play and left well alone as the cars only done 90k

Have you done the timing belt yet? I'm quite enjoying this topic. Of the three Volvo's I've owned (940 turbo, V70 na pez and S80 D5) I actually think the D5 was the best engine.

3/3- What a time to be alive, not that I can bloody drive them anywhere!

This is like some kind of weird flashback. Six months ago I too bought a Volvo for £350 (V70 though) and immediately had to replace a wheel bearing and fanny about adjusting the handbrake- I think these jobs are just fundamental laws of P2 ownership. Changed the timing belt on it last weekend and didn't find it bad to do although mines a petrol model.

That 406 looks super shiny-literally 0% of the ones I see in the frozen North look that clean these days, impressive. Always fancied one of those! Despite owning dozens of cars I've never actually had a French one, probably the only one I'd consider TBH.

This morning out of sheer boredom I changed the timing belt on the V70. Old belt looks old... No turning back now... Old belt vs new... New serpentine belt ready too... And all done... Unbelievably it all works! I was pretty daunted by this job as it's only the second timing belt I've done and the first on an interference engine with twin cams. Either way, the car runs well with no warning messages. The knowledge that it now boasts a new Gates timing belt kit and serp belt brings me a great deal of comfort and as a result I'll now have the confidence to take it out on longer journeys if/when this whole mess is over.

Tough choice. Having just moved from a really nice 940 turbo to a really rough P2 V70 I actually much prefer the newer Ovlov (Sacrilege, and a deeply unfashionable opinion I know). To me they just feel nicer to be in and drive. Granted 940's have that lovely old car appeal going on, but certain parts are getting scarce and that could get irritating quickly on a daily. I had to convert a MK1 Golf heater control valve and route new Bowden cables so the cabin controls would work on the basis that one's for none aircon RHD models are literally completely unobtainable, it was a right ball ache. Either way they're both lovely cars and I'd likely be up for a couple of tickets whichever one you decide has to go!

Very impressed that you're battling on with all of this despite the weather, although I suppose it's unavoidable for MOT's. I've pretty much called a hiatus on anything that's not 100% essential until things warm up a bit!

That's me settled up.

Not at all Please refer to my belatedly edited post RE 43 and two randoms please (My little boy insists 43 is a lucky number)

Number 43 and two randoms please.