'94 M reg Volvo 440 in Blurple #PeakChod

[Twin-Cam]

I don't know what it is, but there's something so deeply satisfying about a well laid out instrument cluster.

[Cord Fourteener]

36 minutes ago, Twin-Cam said:

I don't know what it is, but there's something so deeply satisfying about a well laid out instrument cluster.

I agree, some dashes are just lovely like this dash. It's a pleasure to drive at night. Turns out the heating and fan controls are not back lit, maybe it's faulty. But I still love it!

[Cord Fourteener]

I am getting the hang of heel-toeing in work boots, it's good* excercise for the right ankle.

Might be the tyres but it's good at wheel spins, but doesn't seem to understeer noticeably.

[Cord Fourteener]

Right, it's car archaeology time!

[Cord Fourteener]

Boot: dirty and damp. Mould under boot carpet, board covering share wheel slimy and close to rot. Items in boot: extra carpet that doesn't fit this boot. Random cut tarp. Vet card and inco pad. Random papers. Front seat cover, rear seat cover for dogs, engine undertray. Random bag. Cupboard door supporting board over spare wheel. Full size spare I think, no tools.

[Cord Fourteener]

Rear seats: dirty, dog hair, random confectionery detritus. Items found: cut carpet, foot carpets. New keepers slip from v5, previous owner. Quit smoking thing. Sock, dog poo bag, hippy healing flier, random litter.

[Cord Fourteener]

Front seating and foot well areas: dirty, dog hair, cut carpets, foot well carpets, dog hair, MOT invoice, general dirt. Also one previous MOT and a Haynes.

[Cord Fourteener]

Also: random baby. Oh wait, that's mine.

[Cord Fourteener]

N/s door bin: random tat including parking thing and soppy girlfriend card.

[Cord Fourteener]

Glove box: bank and leccy correspondence. Random tat, sticky goo, doggy bags.

[Cord Fourteener]

Console storage: more small items of random stuff, and dog hair. Nothing noteworthy.

[Cord Fourteener]

Dash: Not too shabby really, dog hair and dust mainly. Two little vent smelly things: ineffective. Car smells like dirty fusty living room of dog owner and someone who likes aging furniture.

[Cord Fourteener]

Drivers door bin: Pens, spare bulb, detritus, broken unidentified interior plastic.

[Cord Fourteener]

Finished!

[Cord Fourteener]

Stickers. I really want to remove them apart from Arthur Daley and the bike sticker, but I think I won't today as I've run out of time. Not a big priority really. 

[Cord Fourteener]

It's a lovely motor, in all.

[Zelandeth]

At least you've got a mostly cloth interior.

Getting dog hair off Volvo velour is an absolute bugger of a job!  Valeted quite a few of these on their way through the garage I worked at.  They always seemed a decent amount of car for the money to me.

[Cord Fourteener]

When Quentin Wilson said, in Top Gear's segment called 'Ten Cars Not To Be Seen Dead In', that no car deserves to be this dull, I think he had never driven it. I'm in the 1.6 base model and it's absolutely amazing. It has a quick steering rack, it corners terrifically, it's precise, sharp, there's little body roll, it feels light - at just over 1000kg kerb weight it is light for it's size. It smooths out our awful Denbighshire roads brilliantly. The base 1.6i engine on the  B roads is gutsy and loves revving. I'd love to drive the turbo but I don't think there's much need unless you are on a track.

I believe Lotus helped with suspension and handling, it shows.

I'm really in love with this little car.

My daily had been a BMW e46, highly praised for ride and handling etc and my 924, also highly praised in those departments; a high bar to measure up to.

Like my old Carisma (from the same factory, incidentally) I feel this car has been massively under-rated. I'm loving owning this 'dull' Volvo 440 that I should 'never be seen dead in'.

Screw journos who just read one press report and slam cars without actually experiencing them.

 

[Cord Fourteener]

Does anyone know what coolant I should use? I'm just baffled now, and my local motor factors is closed down. It says use Volvo type C, which means nothing to me. Euro car parts suggests every type and colour. @Six-cylinder I wonder if you remember?

[Sir Snipes]

I like everything about this car. Except maybe the wheel trims.

[Six-cylinder]

All but one of the Volvo 400 series cars I had were very young, never needed any water and if they had the workshop would have taken care of that.

The one I have owned was a 1990 480ES in 2010 and that had blue in it. Not sure even then if that was correct as it did not have any real problems with its water works.

[Shirley Knott]

On 3/19/2020 at 12:17 PM, Tim_E said:

Dash: Not too shabby really, dog hair and dust mainly. Two little vent smelly things: ineffective. Car smells like dirty fusty living room of dog owner and someone who likes aging furniture

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.

 

[Cord Fourteener]

Thanks, lots of re-assurance. I'm not even sure what the difference is between red and blue.

I even read somewhere to use green, but I've no idea if it was some back on the internet just saying that. 

As eurocarparts offer a blue then maybe I'll just go with that.

It turns out a new thermostat is in the region of a fiver so at that part is less of a head ache so far.

Nice 480 @Six-cylinder

I think one of my dream shite would be a 940 turbo @Shirley Knott but I don't have the drive space or the money yet, but I live in hope.

That aside I love this little 440!

Also, I had a peek inside the timing belt cover by undoing the top two bolts and a clip and the belt looks fairly new and in good condition so I don't think there's a rush to change that.

[paulplom]

Might be worth joining this forum. https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=13

They always seemed a helpful bunch when I was licking volvos.

[bub2006]

I do quite like these. I've owned a J reg 440 auto with the 1.7 injection engine in GLE trim so had such luxury as electric windows, mirrors and sunroof. Your speedo binnacle is much better than mine was though,the black paint had peeled off leaving g the glow of green all over at night time! The 1.7 was a thirsty old girl for its size though and the auto box didn't help. I'd still have another! Mine didn't have fibre optics either I dont think. 

[Cord Fourteener]

12 hours ago, paulplom said:

Might be worth joining this forum. https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=13

They always seemed a helpful bunch when I was licking volvos.

I've just looked at the very first page, the one at the end of this link and I'm totally amazed how many of the posts related to 400 series!

Edit: just realised the link is to the 400 section!

Edited April 6, 2020 by Tim_E

[danthecapriman]

I’ve been reading this thread but so far not commented - so I shall!

Great car m8! Old Volvo’s are for life’s winners.

You don’t see many of these 400’s around anymore, there’s only one left near me that I know of, a J reg 1.7 in red which is rotten and well worn but seems to keep going and going year on year. If you can keep on top of the rust around the rear arches and sills they’re fine.

I used to work on lots of these in the early 00’s when I was a mechanic. Back then we used to use either blue or green glycol based antifreeze. Never had any issues and at that time I owned a late 340 with the same 1.7 engine (just mounted the other way round for rear drive) and I remember putting blue antifreeze in that too. The only other thing with these I seem to remember was the rear brakes seizing up. I’m sure it was rear callipers, or part of the handbrake mechanism seizing from lack of use??? I can’t quite remember now! I think it was common on auto’s where people just left them in P instead of using the handbrake but we did loads of these where they’d failed the MOT on poor handbrake effort.

Anyway, keep up the updates!

 

[Cord Fourteener]

2 hours ago, danthecapriman said:

I’ve been reading this thread but so far not commented - so I shall!

Great car m8! Old Volvo’s are for life’s winners.

You don’t see many of these 400’s around anymore, there’s only one left near me that I know of, a J reg 1.7 in red which is rotten and well worn but seems to keep going and going year on year. If you can keep on top of the rust around the rear arches and sills they’re fine.

I used to work on lots of these in the early 00’s when I was a mechanic. Back then we used to use either blue or green glycol based antifreeze. Never had any issues and at that time I owned a late 340 with the same 1.7 engine (just mounted the other way round for rear drive) and I remember putting blue antifreeze in that too. The only other thing with these I seem to remember was the rear brakes seizing up. I’m sure it was rear callipers, or part of the handbrake mechanism seizing from lack of use??? I can’t quite remember now! I think it was common on auto’s where people just left them in P instead of using the handbrake but we did loads of these where they’d failed the MOT on poor handbrake effort.

Anyway, keep up the updates!

 

Thanks, useful info.

I've ordered blue along with the £5 thermostat. I'm still chuffed it was that cheap. I can get an air filter from eurocarparts, either that or their website was confused for a while.

They seem quite unfussy about oil too, it's that correct? Anyhow I have got a filter but no oil yet due to cironavirus making the type I chose not available to my area, but I'll find something I'm sure.

Yes there's rust on the rear arches and rear door bottoms but I've some Dremel wire brush bits coming in the post and a pot of rust converter in my shed so I'll get on that when I can. 

All I'll need to do after that is touch up with blurple paint and oil the faded grey bumpers and he'll look reasonable for a while!

[Cord Fourteener]

On 3/14/2020 at 3:18 PM, Tim_E said:

Not out of the question at all! It's so I can keep my gardening business and my musician business going while my E46 estate gets fixed.

This comment didn't age well... 

[danthecapriman]

We used to just use a decent 10w40 in them I think. Often Castrol Magnatec. I used to use the same sort of stuff in my 340.