1998 v70 xc missing driveshaft

[HUNDLEY]

i bought a 1998 volvo wagon cross country awd i could not figure why the awd was not working until i crawled under it no drive shaft , so where can i find one and what other years will work?

[Ozark Lee]

I moved your post to the proper forum. The answer is "it depends". Volvo had a mid year design change in '98 and it depends on your chassis number. The break point is chassis number 465400. If yours is lower than only a '98 (or perhaps a '97 850 AWD) with the early chassis number will fit. If your chassis number (Normally the last 6 digits of the VIN) is greater than the break point then you can use any late '98, '99, or 2000 shaft.

Most of them were removed due to vibration from bad joints and/or a bad carrier bearing and they aren't terribly user serviceable. Most of us use Colorado Drive Shaft for the rebuilding service since they do a terrific job of balancing them after the repairs. I think their latest price is $410.00 + a $100.00 core charge. You will also need the crescent moon shaped washers and the bolts but they are fairly cheap at the dealership.

If they can't rebuild one for you without a core I have a late model shaft in core condition. PM me if you need it.

...Lee

[jimmy57]

The viscous coupling is very likely to be bad. Unless you REALLY want AWD and are ready to spend the money on the driveshaft plus a $1000 dollar VC don't waste the driveshaft money.

You can do a quick test of the VC. The back wheels will need to be on ground and the vehicle secured so those wheels can't roll. Put a breaker bar on the nut in the rear driveshaft flange and apply a hig force and keep it there. I suggest using your foot on the bar. If the VC is OK your flange will turn slowly.
If it doesn't turn at at 150 ft-lbs or so there is a problem. You may find that when you spply force the flange jumps instead of turning slow but smooth. The viscous gel fluid leaks slowly over time and what remains is basically dirt.
The dried out material binds up between the wavy discs in the VC unit and it will often release when force is high enough and jump a few degrees.

[HUNDLEY]

thanks,my number is higher so that helps ,,,we will be needing all wheel winter is coming to soon.

[tryingbe]

There was a reason why the driveshaft was removed. Most likely the angle gear have gone bad and it was cheaper to remove the shaft than to fix the angle gear.

[cn90]

Leave the car as FWD.

Invest in a separate set of rims and winter tires and you will be fine.

[FlyingVolvo]

I agree with the FWD solution. Took the drive shaft out from my XC and went through several brutal winters up inI didn't even have winter tires, just some good all-season Michelins. The way you drive has the most effect on safety and your car's handling. If you're expecting deep snow and ice, maybe get a good set of chains. My car definitely struggled with heavy snow any more than 10 inches or so, but with chains it gave me a little more wiggle room.

I think trying to fix your AWD is going to be very costly. As others have said, you could get a dedicated set of winter tires and come in well below the cost of some of these repairs.

[BEJinFbk]

Isn't there a bit of conclusion jumping going on here?

I'm not suggesting that the car hasn't got bevel gear or
viscous coupling issues, and that's why the DS is out.
I'm just a big believer in gathering information before
making a decision.

This may simply be a case of the front CV getting cooked by the cat.
Happens to all of them and it's not that tough or expensive to deal with.
Could just be that the PO was strapped for cash and left it out.

IMHO, it's worth checking before writing off an awesome asset like AWD.

[JRL]

and Lee
THIS:
If your chassis number (Normally the last 6 digits of the VIN) is greater than the break point then you can use any late '98, '99, or 2000 shaft.

is very incorrect and you should know this!
1:Early 98
2:Late 98 and 99 is the second
3:and 2000 is another propshaft, the third.

There are 3 not 2, all are different and not interchangeable

[scot850]

I agree with BEjinfbk. Up here near the mountains in Calgary Canada, I love my AWD. Just sold a 98 XC which I am sure to regret. Fortunately, we have 2000 V70R and an 06 XC70.

I would have a thorough check over each part and see what is the problem. Main 2 issues (in my limited knowledge) are the angle gear output shaft failing (easy to check as it moves side to side when really bad and oil will leak from the rear seal), and the bearings failing in the prop-shaft. Prop shafts are coming down in price, and Tasca has them for under $1000 new. Colorado driveshaft are the favorite for rebuilding.

The main difference between a early and late 98 prop-shaft is diameter of the end flanges. Early are 95mm O/D and later are 92mm O/D. 2000 are very different. If you had 97 850 AWD they also fit the early 98 XC or AWD (I fitted one from an 850 AWD to an early 98 XC).

I actually have a fully rebuilt shaft for the early version (re-built by Colorado D/S) still sitting in the box it was returned to me in. I kept it for the 98, but never needed it. Also have a full viscous coupling unit for the same car. Problem is shipping to the US is expensive. JRL often recommends Erie Volvo and perhaps they are worth checking out for prices. On the West Coast, vandsautodismantlers are also a good source of used parts.

Other issues to check when under your car, are:

1) check the bush at the front of the viscous coupling housing, as they fail and knock when you accelerate.
2) Also check the front bearing of the housing as they can also fail. You get a scraping noise when running.

I think all the pieces of the puzzle are there, and you need to look over what you have, and get back to us and we will try to help you further.

Lastly, the guys do make a good point for leaving as is with FWD. If you don't get a lot of snow, a good set of 15" steels and snow tires will get you there most of the time, and you will probably get better mileage also (this is like an advert - I also have a set of 15" Volvo steels)!

Good luck!

Neil.