Project Volvo 740, interior headlining finished! Pg 23.

[Split_Pin]

Gorgeous work there, I'd love to be able to weld like that. Top work, this is really a restoration now I think!

[danthecapriman]

Gorgeous work there, I'd love to be able to weld like that. Top work, this is really a restoration now I think!

Thanks.

It'd look much better if I ground the welds right down. All the panels are flush and butt welded unless it wasn't originally.

I didn't bother grinding down the welds too much as you can't really see any of it unless your under the car or lift the carpets out. Seemed a bit pointless and making more mess to go much further with it.

Even though I'd put old towels and sheets over everything inside the car there was still a film of metal dust and crap over everything! I'll have to give it all a wipe down with a damp cloth I think.

[trigger]

You've done some sterling work on this, all the best with the MOT

[Minimad5]

Do love these old tanks !

Should have kept my 760

If you're ever selling, drop me a PM

 

Edit:

Fantastic work & progress, keep it up

[danthecapriman]

Mini update!

 

MOT isn't until Wednesday next week. I could have taken it elsewhere and got one sooner but I like using people I trust so I'm happy to wait.

 

I got bored today so did a few odds and sods.

The front number plate was cracked, this was an advisory on previous MOT's, so since I've got a pair of new ones and a bit of time to kill I fitted them both.

Both number plates had very rusty screws which predictably snapped off. I couldn't be arsed drilling them out so just used a few self adhesive trim strips to stick the new plates on with.

 

Next was the front bumper. He'd obviously clouted something with it at some point which had pulled the plastic bumper casing up over the trim below the headlight giving the front bumper a wonky appearance.

This was easy to fix by pulling the plastic forwards away from the car and thumping the top surface of the bumper back down to tuck the bumper back behind the headlight trim. Job done.

 

Then because I can't sit still for 5 mins, I decided to investigate why the 'bulb out' warning light on the dash keeps illuminating when the brakes are used.

Clearly linked to the brake lights (all working). I know these cars can be picky about the quality of bulbs used so I've removed both brake light bulbs, cleaned up all the contacts and refitted new quality bulbs of the correct wattage. Problem solved.

 

I then noticed one number plate light was very dim. Removing the bulb lense showed the bulb to be very old and the glass was black. No idea how it was still working! This turned into a right faff as the bulb holders had been pushed back in their housing so just flapped loosely inside the boot lid. This meant I had to remove the boot lid trim and reattach them both in order to put pressure on the bulb to screw it in.

I did both while I was at it so it's got a pair of new bulbs and the holders are clipped back in where they should be.

I've also reattached the boot lid trim properly so the high brake light doesn't bounce off the window when the boot lid is closed.

 

Not the most interesting jobs but they needed doing none the less!

[rml2345]

Thanks guys!

 

One thing this has taught me - what a complete bastard these cars are if you want to take the interior apart. Everything seems to hold everything else in! To take one bit of plastic trim out you've got to undo several other bits either side of it just to free the bit you want.

Most of the trim in this car has gotten very brittle too, it's a job in itself trying not to break any of it.

 

MOT will be booked in tomorrow btw!

It only comes apart one way as well, something you usually find out after breaking some incredibly brittle bit of trim in a colour or shape Volvo only used for a fortnight in October 1987. Door bins are especially prone to exploding into a million shards if you look at them a bit funny.

Good luck with the MOT!

[danthecapriman]

MOT day on Wednesday so I've had a good look over everything I can think of and rechecked the lights. Everything seems to be fine, to me at least.

Only thing I've found is one rear seat belt is fraying on one edge. This has been an advisory for the last few tests if I remember right. I've carefully cut the 'fluffy' bits of frayed material off with sharp scissors which has made it look better. Anyone know how bad a seatbelt needs to be to fail an MOT?

 

Also got the hoover out and gave the interior another go over and wiped the dash and trim down with a damp cloth, mainly to get rid of any remaining traces of the metal dust from welding the floor.

I've removed the plastic floor trays in favour of a set of carpet mats. The trays don't look all that tidy to me and I'm convinced they don't do the floors or carpets any good either. I'll keep them somewhere at home though just in case.

 

I really really really want this to get a ticket. I just want to drive it!

[danthecapriman]

Check it out!!

 

Check the MOT history of a vehicle

Registration number: E931MHW

 

Vehicle makeVOLVO Vehicle model740 Date first used4 May 1988 Fuel typePetrol ColourBlue

 

MOT history of this vehicle

Test date29 March 2017 Expiry date28 March 2018 Test ResultPass Odometer reading91,604 miles MOT test number2400 2599 0166 Advisory notice item(s)

Oil leak ()

Battery tray excessively corroded

Nearside Front Steering pivot point has slight play (2.2.B.1g)

Offside Front Steering pivot point has slight play (2.2.B.1g)

Nearside Rear Tyre sidewall perishing

Parking brake lever has little reserve travel (3.1.6b)

 

 

Get you some of that!!!

The old beast only went and passed!

 

 

I've not got it back yet, I've asked them to change the auto transmission oil and filter while they had it on the ramp, saves me struggling on the drive anyway.

 

I must admit I was worried about this car as it's been sitting so long but it seems pretty good, few things to fix before next time but nothing serious.

Annoyingly, the indicator stopped working on the drivers side rear on the way to the test this morning! How's that for bad luck! That was the only thing it failed on this time though so they swapped the bulb and passed it.

 

I'm over the moon with that tbh, I can't wait to get some miles on it now.

Pics later once I get it home.

[nacho man]

Cracking effort, get some pics up so we can have a perv in all its glory.

[Felly Magic]

New tyre needed, but otherwise I'd call that a good bit of win

[danthecapriman]

Just been thinking, it's very close to the 1st of April so I think I'll leave it at home a few more days before taxing it. Otherwise I'll get screwed from the 1st March and I'm not doing that!

[BorniteIdentity]

Richly deserved is this result - well done!

 

1st is Saturday - so it seems like the right time to get it legal and get out and have a blast.  Enjoy!

[danthecapriman]

Just been down and picked up the Volvo.

The tester seemed impressed with the car. He commented that 'someone' has been busy under it recently! Can't think who that would be...!

 

It's nice to know your hard work and effort was worthwhile.

 

IMG_0431 by Dan Clark, on Flickr

Here it is on collection. Best looking car in the car park, and by far the oldest!

 

IMG_0432 by Dan Clark, on Flickr

Proof!

 

 

I drove it home the long way, though still got to be careful as it's not taxed yet.

It drives beautifully, I got them to fit the auto box oil filter kit I got for it a few months back and of course the horrible old ATF is now replaced. The mechanic said it was very black and needed doing!

It's shifting gear very smoothly now so it has made a difference, but at least for peace of mind I know it's now done.

 

So how does it feel on the road then?

Well, it's lovely. Smooth and quiet, no clunks, bangs or squeaks. In this respect it's much better than my old gold saloon, but then this one has only done half the mileage.

It's nice and bright inside, the clean tan interior helps massively with this. It's nice to drive one of these again and I'd missed the old saloon so it feels good to be back behind the wheel again. Another big plus point here is not having a floppy headlining flapping against your head like the saloon did!

The engine in this one feels stronger and tighter, again - low miles. It goes and stops well for a big old estate car and it feels like it can be driven anywhere and relied on. There's a bit of hesitation and roughness at times but all I'm going to put that down to is the half tank of very old petrol, so I'll top up with new on Saturday and just try to burn it all off as quick as I can.

The rear suspension is a bit soft, but it's got Monroe self levellers at the back so I'll just pump them up a bit later on, no big deal.

The steering wheel is also slightly off centre, this is a pet peeve of mine, but I think that's down to tyre pressures as the nearside front tyre leaks so I put some extra pressure in it for today's test.

It's not a quick car though! The old Granada Skizzer, Breadvan and Junkman recently relieved me of would easily leave this Volvo for dead tbh but that's not the point of a car like this. It's more than adequate and I'm not a speed freak anyway!

Overall I'm dead chuffed! It's better on the road than I'd expected and the ease with which it passed the mot (after much recommissioning!) shows that the basis of a good car was always there and it was worth putting the effort in to bring it back to life.

 

So what next?

Drive it! It needs to be used and get any niggles sorted out, there's bound to be a few come up. It's also in desperate need of a pair of rear tyres so that will also be done at the first opportunity.

There various other bits and bobs it needs but for now I'll just concentrate on getting some miles on the clock.

Longer term, the US lights will be going on but for now they aren't a priority (and they're also buried under all the Capri parts I've brought home).

 

It's nice to think that if I hadn't managed to get this car it's days would probably be numbered now. I'm going to get in touch with the previous owners son and let him know it's now back on the road. He'll be very happy I'm sure!

[Rusty_Rocket]

Well done Dan, you really deserve that pass!

[eddyramrod]

Great stuff!

[danthecapriman]

Thanks!

It's nice to know now that the car is able to be used and isn't just sitting uselessly on the drive needing to be worked on. There is still work to do but that can be done at leisure now.

 

I was reading back through this thread and it's taken me 2 months and 1 day from getting it home to getting it an MOT. Not bad going really.

It's amazing looking back at what the car looked like when I first got it back to what it's looking like now.

 

 

It's worth me mentioning at this point that I'm extremely grateful to Adrian, the previous owners son, who let me have the car. He is a top guy and to let someone he'd never met before come up and have his dads car for nothing was frankly amazing of him! I hope he likes how the car looks now and I really do appreciate what he's done for me. The car really is a beauty, I hope also his late father would like the car. I'm sure they'd love the fact that the car will continue to be used and loved.

[alf892]

Excellent result....turning that around in a couple of months is great going!

 

Nice time of year to just drive for the sake of it too......hopefully it will ease the sale of your granny.

[danthecapriman]

It's the 1st April!

I've just taxed the ovloV, went for 6 months so next time I'll get a full 12 months which will stagger the tax and MOT due dates. It's a pain in the arse having both due at the same time sometimes.

 

Anyway, I'm off to get some petrol and give it a drive.

[danthecapriman]

Well. I'm back.

 

The big blue brick covered 80 miles, mixed roads from motorways down to tiny rural lanes and most things in between and it didn't miss a beat!

It's absolutely lovely to drive, very relaxed and quiet and I'd forgotten just how good the seats in these are. For someone with a fucked back these are about the only car I can drive around and cover any distance without having to constantly readjust myself in the seat or get out with back ache, they really are superb cars in that respect.

It's had about a quarter tank of shitty old petrol in it up til now so I've put another half tank of Esso supreme unleaded in before going anywhere and after covering those miles it's running perfectly now, very smooth, so I'd say either the old crap petrol has either cleared or been diluted enough to stop it affecting the running.

It's still not quick though. It's fast enough, and I'm not a speed freak but it does lack a bit of 'go'. Maybe it's just because I'm used to driving the 2.8 Granada instead? It's ok though really.

There's still nothing rattling or making bad noises so all good there.

The gearbox is brilliant! Much smoother than my old saloon was and very quiet. Kickdown works well too!

Overall it feels very good on the road, it's not tired or worn in any way really. The steering feels really good too, there's a very smooth feel to it and there's a bit of resistance with it still when turning which the old high miles saloon lacked. It's mainly stuff like this that show it's low mileage well. Having had a high mileage one to compare this one to you can really tell the difference and it's nice to know now how a really good one should feel.

 

This first run has revealed a couple of minor issues though, I expected something though after it sitting for two years.

Firstly, the nearside rear brake is squealing! It's rather loud and can be quite irritating so I'll strip both rears down and regrease the pads and sliders which should cure it. Not a big deal really and all the brakes are working perfectly other than that.

 

Second issue, when I was out I hit a rain shower. Switching the wipers on they worked well for a while but then the passenger side one began to slow down before finally getting stuck at its max travel which then allowed the fully functioning drivers side one to hit it which tangled them both together and got them stuck in a cross across the windscreen!

I've had a look after pulling over to detangle them and the drivers wiper is fine, passenger one though has come loose on its spindle so will only move a tiny bit now. The motor and mechanism seems ok. It's not going to be as simple as it should be to fix though as someone else has already been here before, there's an odd nut and washers on there already so it's clearly been a problem before. There's also a receipt in the history file for 'repairs' here a few years ago so I'll have to fix it properly this time!

 

Other than that though it's all fine so far. I've actually been really impressed by it tbh! I really rate these cars very highly but this one just seems that little bit special in a weird way. It feels like it could carry on driving forever and already I'm very confident in it.

I still miss the gold saloon but this is far far better! It's definitely been a worthy replacement and it is without a doubt the better car of the two, plus it's got the added versatility of being the estate version.

 

I'll get it out again soon and keep putting miles on it which should reveal any other niggles but I think it'll be fine.

I also need to fit my new cambelt kit too as I don't know how old the current one is.

[Split_Pin]

Great result on this, a well deserved pass!

[danthecapriman]

Since the forum seems to be back up and running, here's this weekends update.

 

Small jobs, but necessary!

First of which was the crankcase breather system, namely the so called flame trap.

On these red block engines with the Kjet system it's in a real bastard of a place being directly beneath the inlet manifold. Doesn't sound so bad but this is also where all the fuel hoses, breather pipes, injection system wiring, throttle body etc etc all are! This makes access awful!

Luckily for me I've done this before on the old gold saloon so it was a bit easier this time.

Normally on these cars you can tell when the flame trap breather is in need of a bit of tlc as it will often cause the system to over pressurise which then starts oil leaks, in the case of the gold saloon it made the rocker cover gasket and oil filler cap rubber leak oil and when the engine was revved it literally blew the dip stick out of its tube!

 

This car however had none of this, instead however it had a rather messy oil splatter on the side of the engine block and oil drips running away from this area.

I stripped the idle control valve off, and its wires and two pipes to gain a bit of room to work then moved a few other bits and bobs so I could see things easier. Looking down at the flame traps outer case the reason for the oil splatter was the casing had been blown apart! The top section should slide tightly into the bottom piece.

After removing the pipes to/from it all and pulling it out from under the manifold the reason for this became immediately obvious.

 

IMG_0435 by Dan Clark, on Flickr

Here's the top flame trap casing, old brass gauze flame trap breather element and the new plastic equivalent. Notice the old brass part is totally blocked solid with gummed up oil residue. It's supposed to be see through like the new plastic one is. It stops solid/liquid from passing it but allows the oily dirty gas to pass through so it can be forced back through the induction side of the engine and burnt.

 

IMG_0436 by Dan Clark, on Flickr

 

All the parts were cleaned in thinners and degreaser soaked rags, the tubes and oil catch tank were treated the same way. Any crusty mank was scraped out and everything checked to be in useable nik.

 

IMG_0437 by Dan Clark, on Flickr

 

This pic is taken from directly above the inlet manifold showing the top of the bottom half of the flame trap holder. The access really is crap!

Anyway, it was all clipped back together and reassembled as it should be.

It's one of those jobs where, it's not particularly hard to do but is frustrating to do. You can only fit one hand in there and most of the time you can't see bugger all.

Well worth doing on these cars however as it stops them pissing oil out everywhere!

[danthecapriman]

Next up was to repair the dodgy wiper arm.

This was actually easy! The splines have all worn away on the arm so it's now loose and the mechanism spindle just turns uselessly through the arm.

All I did here was remove the previous effort, comprising of a nut and two flat washers wound on tight. This method was never much use as the two washers simply slid across each other allowing the same fault to happen.

In place of this I found a new 13mm nut in my tool box, this had a combined nut/washer type head, and a shake proof 'star' type washer beneath it then wound onto the spindle nice and tight.

It works a treat now! With the plastic cover back in place you can't even tell.

 

Then an unexpected fault.

Putting some bits in the glovebox and closing the lid the glovebox front (the beige dash trim bit) fell off! I think the glue had all dried out and just let go. Easily fixed with some heavy duty double sided trim tape I had laying around. It seems fine so far.

Then the radio.

This was not working as the head unit just displayed 'code' I've gone through all the cars paperwork and eventually found the code. With this entered the radio came to life!

It all works, illumination, electric aerial, seek and presets.

But, it won't play anything! It will lock onto a channel when the seek button is used and the pre sets work but no matter what all you get is a constant electrical ticking sound from the speakers. It's a similar noise to the interference sound you used to get on really old cars when the distributor interfered with the radio.

 

No idea what's up with it but I'll need to look at it again another time. It's not a priority anyway.

 

Then finally I went out for a drive since the weather was nice.

 

IMG_0433 by Dan Clark, on Flickr

 

IMG_0434 by Dan Clark, on Flickr

 

It's done about 200 miles since the MOT now and it's faultless. Nothing else has come up at all, but I'll keep using it as much as possible just to be sure nothing else breaks or becomes a problem after it's lay up.

It's a good looking car though! The blue paint looks lovely in the sunshine.

[Dick Longbridge]

Congrats on the MOT success, and well done with all the recommissioning work you've done. You're clearly the right person to own this car - the fact you know them inside out and are rapidly working through its weak points is a great investment in keeping the old girl spot on long-term.

Enjoy!

[danthecapriman]

Not updated this for a while. Mainly because I've been busy building a garage for my Capri ready for when it comes home and also because there's been nothing to report!

 

Its been absolutely faultless actually. I've literally just been using it as/when and it's done everything asked without fuss or trouble. I'm very very pleased with the car and I'm totally confident in using it for anything now. So much so that I'm going to use it to pick up my Capri's shell in a few weeks time, I'll be towing a trailer with the Capri on the back taking it for its remaining metalwork and paint.

So because of this I decided today to have a quick look at the Volvo's rear suspension.

 

This car has a Monroe air levelling rear suspension set up. Basically it's a pair of dampers with an air line and pressure gauge attached which you can stick a compressor or foot pump onto to pump up or let down the rear end depending on what your carrying weight wise in the car.

As it was, the pressure gauge was showing empty. Most likely from the car sitting idle for nearly two years the pressure just leaked out. This gave the cars arse end a very saggy lowered look. This is no good for towing a trailer with obviously as the extra weight from the trailer being hitched up will just bottom out the suspension.

 

I've pulled up the hatch in the boot floor where the the pressure gauge and valve are and started pumping in air with my battery powered compressor and the cars rear end started to rise! I've pumped it up to mid point in the green section of the gauge and unplugged the compressor.

So far so good and it's holding pressure. Bouncing the suspension a bit and it feels much better, less 'bouncy'.

Its been sitting for about half a day now, the pressure did drop a little bit initially but seems to have settled now and is staying up at a decent height so hopefully there's no air leaks.

The car looks much better now with a decent ride height and no odd looking reverse rake going on.

 

I'll check it again tomorrow, hopefully it'll be ok as I can't find any of these Monroe kits or the separate parts anywhere. I've no idea if they make them anymore so if it's all nackered I'll have to replace all of it with standard shocks and springs. Fingers crossed!

 

It's this type of kit that's fitted if anyone's interested,

IMG_0450 by Dan Clark, on Flickr

[danthecapriman]

Hmmm, well I checked the gauge this morning and it's dropped. It's still in the green part of the gauge but it's definitely loosing air pressure. So there's a leak, albeit a slow one.

For now I've topped it up to the top end of the green part and I'll just keep topping it up as required for now. Longer term it's going to need either fixing, a new replacement Monroe kit or ripping the air system out for standard dampers.

The standard dampers are cheap enough but I'm not sure if I'll need new springs too? Some of these cars have soft springs for use with either self levelling dampers or the (fucking insanely expensive) Nivomat shocks.

I 'think' my springs are just standard ones though, it's just the dampers that aren't standard.

 

It can wait for now anyway, on the plus side the car rides much better with air in the system!

[Sigmund Fraud]

New springs would be a good idea if you replace the self-levelling rear dampers with standard ones. My old 745 had the self-levelling type springs with standard dampers and the ride height was far too low, especially when loaded. Strangely, it didn't seem to affect handling, though.

[danthecapriman]

New springs would be a good idea if you replace the self-levelling rear dampers with standard ones. My old 745 had the self-levelling type springs with standard dampers and the ride height was far too low, especially when loaded. Strangely, it didn't seem to affect handling, though.

I think your right.

I'm sure the self levelling type springs are much softer so the levelling dampers can move the spring as needed depending on the weight on the back end.

I've just had a look at a Volvo parts supplier and new standard springs and gas shocks aren't actually very expensive. It's about £100 for a pair of shocks and £80 for the springs. That's for non OEM but a good aftermarket brand.

 

Someone over on the Volvo OC site says the Monroe kits are now discontinued, explains why I can't find any parts or complete kits available. It's a shame as it's a good little system but there doesn't seem a lot of choice.

[Sigmund Fraud]

I had looked for replacement Monroe units four years ago, and they were already NLA.

 

It would be interesting to take them apart and see if they can be rebuilt, though. They shouldn't be a particularly complicated design, the difficulty would be finding the correct size of seals (which may or may not be standard).

[jonathan_dyane]

Do make sure it's not the schrader valve or pipework leaking!

[danthecapriman]

Do make sure it's not the schrader valve or pipework leaking!

It probably is the unions or the pipes causing the leak. Trouble is finding the leak as it's losing pressure so slowly, I'm not sure rubbing washing up liquid around it all would really show any bubbles as it's so slow.

On the plus side the dampers do seem to work well enough!