Volvo design disasters

[difflock54]

Windscreen wipers on several models that catch against the rear edges of the hood (bonnet) when it is raised or lowered.
Set way to close and one would have expected a modification on subsequent year models immediately.

[marshallh]

Putting the battery in the rear hatch....

And making the rear hatch only electrically unlockable!!


I've crawled back there over the seats and contorted myself twice now. What a joke

[precopster]

Do you mean the hatch on the C30 or the tailgate on a wagon?

[xHeart]

Now in the hands of Geely http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304311204579511523586230160?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702304311204579511523586230160.html.

[northernlights]

> Volvo 850 drink holder above window switches

What do you think goes in the VDD Hall of Fame™?

The Europeans don't seem to think that having a constant supply of snacks on hand is a necessary part of the driving experience. Hmm...I'm almost certain that the circa 2003 Alfa 156 I drove in Italy was missing cupholders, but it did have a 1.6 DOHC/5 speed that sounded like a Formula 1 car and went pretty good so long as you 'Drove it like you stole it'. And this was a rental car.

Clearly they are collectively insane.

I suspect in the Volvo 850 cupholders were an unfortunate addition to satisfy the US market, because we need cupholders more than manual transmissions. I'm willing to blame Ford, even if they didn't yet own Volvo at the time.

[mtd240]

Massively under-engineered ("un-engineered") early AWD system

Cabin air filter wasn't stock for earlier 850s.

Nivomats. Less engineering, more picking out of the wrong parts bin

And their biggest blunder: Changing to a luxury car brand. Long live the 240.

[Jack Rock]

Early V/S70 sticky steering wheel, feels like sweet n sour sauce all over it.
Window switches and dash switches sticky and pealing too.

[joe_pinehill]

I agree with moving to the luxury market, or maybe Volvo thought they could never compete with the Accord and Camry market either.

I think the cup holder wasnt that bad. I have one in my 96 850. Sure when compared to a 2014 car interior the cup hold looks like the retrofit after thought that it is. But compare it to other early 90's cars. Back then cars didnt have cup holders.

[killedmytv]

My neighbors learned some new words when I did the PCV on my 850. The old plastic hoses just shattered and it took WAY too long to get the gasket and two EGR bolts back in.

I wasn't too happy with the plastic top of the heater core that split and blew up, either, although they at least made it super easy to change. Swedes obviously don't tolerate cars without heat in the middle of a Scandinavian winter.

However, the one that still keeps leaving me stranded is probably more Bosch and less Volvo. It'll start every single time when the engine's stone cold and run just beautifully as long as there's fuel in the tank. Shut it off and immediately turn the key back on, and you can restart it as long as the battery's got juice. But if you turn the ignition off for a couple seconds, whatever is supposed to provide voltage to the coolant temperature sensor doesn't do anything and it will crank and crank but never start.

It has spark, the fuel pump relay, coolant temp sensor and both fuel and ignition ECMs have been replaced, and it takes much longer to restart the warmer it is outside. Pulling the battery and computers doesn't change anything and the sensor always reads like it should on a multimeter. I'm about to homerun a couple wires straight from the sensor to the pins on the fuel computer out of desperation.

That yet-unsolved mess makes me overlook the precarious cupholder design. Even that's still far better than what I had in my Hondas and Nissans. The former's was square and angled down in the front so a panic stop would throw your drink at the stereo.

[volvosalvage]

The Peugot Renault engine was a total mess.

240 door lock switches.