Thanks for posting up those pics of your tie rods. As you guys are discussing the only way to tell if they are structurally bad is by testing and looking for play. If you see some play by moving the wheel or a suspension part, you want to look at the actual joints to figure out where the motion is o...

... Do you recommend replacing the ball joints at the same time as the tie rods, or only if there's symptoms that the ball joints are bad? ... Only with symptoms, such as front end feels "loose" and/or wanders on grooved pavement at highway speeds, ball joint rubber boot is cracked open, ...

Repeating what was said above and I think may be going unheard. If it was aligned AND there is no play currently, leave it alone and worry about it next time you need an alignment, which hopefully is like 3 years from now. I often have to heat with torch to get them to turn. At pep boys they want th...

... If it was aligned AND there is no play currently, leave it alone and worry about it next time you need an alignment, which hopefully is like 3 years from now ... Absolutely. Tie rods tend to last a long time. In my experience most commonly a torn rubber boot takes them out, before they develop ...

Hey, maybe the inner tie rod can be removed without using the counterhold with the method in this article that uses a locking plier: https://www.volvohowto.com/how-to-replace-inner-and-outer-tie-rod-on-volvo-850-s70-v70-c70/amp/ its better to watch some videos where they do the job on old rusted pa...

That's a good plan. Yes, you can reuse that nut on the end of the outer tie rod.

I'm trying to think of creative ways to check the number on the bolt, apart from using small mirrors, a borescope, or taking off the alternator and power steering pump. So far I've thought about putting some Play-Doh on a popsicle stick and pressing it onto the bolt to make an impression of the num...

Nice post and DIY skills. I don't want to highjack your thread but have 3 comments about genuine Volvo CCM buttons: 1) Your comments about disconnecting the battery are very important . That's fan OFF, key Pos 0, wait 5-10 mins, disconnect battery, perform work, key in Pos II before reconnecting bat...

FMradio, this is outstanding. Great writeup. Bullet points, indented bullet points(!), photos, a video, links, attribution, a bolded important warning, and the use of the Pythagorean Theorem(!!!). Am I looking a gift horse in the mouth if I ask for a photo of the climate control unit with the new bu...

I tried adding this button on my V70 MY06 today and can confirm that the Aux. Light signal works without any software changes (for once!). You simply follow the Volvo Aux. Light kit instructions (VCC-264259-1.pdf) and don't forget to "cold boot" (i.e. battery disconnect). I tried it withou...