A new to me 850

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 07 Sep 2006, 19:42

Let me start by saying that this is by far the most comprehensive site I have found on Volvo repairs. Last week I flew to Tom Woods Volvo in Indianapolis to pick up my "eBay" '94 850. I've had several Volvos before including a '72 142 Grand Luxe, a '96 740 GL and a '99 740 GLT. All had sticks as does the new 850!

With the exception of the 142, I wound up trading out with very few miles and the most comprehensive thing I had to deal with was a cam on the 142 and brakes, a timing belt, and clutches. You have never seen mad until you saw me install the clutch disk backwards on one of the 740's.

Within about 5 miles from the dealership it was obvious that the car had a few warts which is how I found this site. It seemed that every malady I googled matthewsvolvosite.com came up.

The first thing I noticed is that the odometer didn't work. I have since ordered new gears from odometergears.com but they have not yet arrived. When I stopped at Terre Haute for a snack I decided to review the owners manual so I could figure out the various buttons and switches. The glove box wouldn't open!

The next surprise was when I carried out a Coke from the Terre Haute Steak and Shake and found no cupholders in the entire car.

The A/C had been on full blast when I picked it up but when I tried to turn it back to a lower blower setting it quit blowing altogether. For the rest of my trip to the cabin at the Lake of the Ozarks I decided to let the AC go full blast and open the sunroof to siphon off the excessive cold air.

The parking brake does not work at all.

Since the new to me car showed 171 k on the odometer (which did not work) and the last timing belt change was at 143 k I was very gentle on the trip to the cabin fearing that the timing belt may go at any moment. Fortunately this is the second generation timing belt which I understand is a little more forgiving.

Last Monday I set out to adjust the parking brakes but after about six revolutions on the adjuster the sound was the distinctive "metal to metal" so I pulled one of the rear rotors. The parking brake shoes had no lining whatsoever, just rusted metal. How one wears the lining off of the parking brake is a mystery to me but I was unable to locate any aftermarket shoes on the internet. The local Volvo dealer had to special order them and they came in today. While I was there I picked up the glove box latch set and the hoop (they officially call it a brace).

I have attempted to document the repairs I have made so far and in the next post I will try to show the glove box latch repair with some pictures I took along the way.

Thank all of you for your helpful advice, I will try to contribute as well,

...Lee

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 07 Sep 2006, 20:28

Welcome to the boards! Every problem you mentioned I have heard of before and all are DIY issues. I'm sure you'll find the how-to's as well as other good advise here!

MO-T5 · Post by **MO-T5** » 08 Sep 2006, 07:42

You would be amazed at what people do to parking brakes. I sold my wifes Mazda 929 with 192k on it to a young lady still in high school. After about a week she brought it back to me and told me it was acting sluggish and smelled funny after she drove it for awhile. Yep you guessed it, the parking brake was on. I had adjusted it so it engaged as soon as you yanked on it, this one was on the transmission hump and I didn't like it sticking up too far. So I readjusted it, replaced the rear pads and shoes, and send her on her way.