Questions: Coolant leaking, Dash board light & RemoteKey

Nanoimprint · Post by **Nanoimprint** » 25 Mar 2007, 18:25

Hey all, I started driving my Volvo 850 GLT, which was built in Sweden in 1995 and had about 129K mileage, 8 months ago. It works not bad as an old car, but there are few little problems:

1. Coolant leaking: I found this problem about few months ago that there are smell liquid on the ground where I parked my car. From the pictures shown, sometimes I can find the leaking coolant spilled out from the crack on the side wall of the black stuff (what's the name?) connected with the coolant tank by tubes. However, sometimes I didn't find the leaking.
My question is that should I just seal the crack with something like parafilm or I should check the inside?

2. Dash board light: It usually can not turn on. Ocationally, when I started the car, it turned on but off soon after few minutes. I checked the fuse and battery that are fine. So I think it should be the problem of bulb, the location of which is not sure...I don't have the repair manual...

3. Remote keyless: It never works since I got the car (not the battery problem)...wondering if I can re-program it by myself...
Thanks a lot.

CarVolvo · Post by **CarVolvo** » 25 Mar 2007, 18:32

1. thats typically where they break on the plastic.. i suggest you shop around and look for a replacement. I actually got my nissens brand from a local specialty shop for radiators and came with a 2 year warranty for 175 CAN$. Behr is another good replacement.

2. The bulbs are located in the speedometer cluster.. there are a few good posted fixes here.. do a search and you will be able to tell.
Chances are that if all your light bulbs are not working on your speedometer cluster or other areas then your rheostat (dimmer) might be on the blink.. no pun intended .. ok intended.

3. yes you can reprogram them if its working. I found that my remotes did not work and purchased a few more which brought everythign back to working order. Do a search on the site .. these are common probs..

welcome to volvo and happy repairs!

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 25 Mar 2007, 18:37

You can program the key FOB yourself on a '95 but if it doesn't take, then it's probably bad (check the repair date base for the how-to).

Your dash board lights seem to have a short...if the bulb works sometimes and not others, I wouldn't suspect the bulb. Could you inadvertently be sliding the dimming wheel on the dash? Check it anyway. Not sure what to tell you to do in regards to fault tracing the short.

In regards to your coolant leak....did someone do a flush or disconnect the hose to the top of the radiator in the last few months? I had this same leak about a year ago...the hoses form fit and after years of being in the same location, any change to the way they are slid on can cause the leak. I readjusted, tightened up an no more leak....I was lucky that I didn't have a cracked plastic inlet...which do commonly break, so check it too. If it's broken, you could try an epoxy, but usually the end result is a replacement of the radiator because of this. Another thing to check is the thermostat housing. Is there any coolant there? If so, another common issue is the overflow hose (small one from the tank to the thermostat housing). If it is bad, the liquid can travel down the larger hose to the radiator making it appear that your radiator is leaking. In my case, I had both issues- the bad small hose and the larger hose not put back on exactly like before.

Good luck!

Nanoimprint · Post by **Nanoimprint** » 25 Mar 2007, 18:47

Thx, both of you.
This forum is really helpful for the new drivers on volvo like me. I am checking according to your suggestions and might come back again if any other questions.
Have a good night.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 25 Mar 2007, 18:50

My gut tells me that you have a crack in the radiator but ,since you also identified the upper radiator hose as a leak source, I would start by replacing the upper radiator hose and its clamps. It is relatively inexpensive and easy to replace. If the leak continues then I would replace the radiator which is not inexpensive and it can be difficult to replace.

Which dash lights are you talking about? There are a bunch of them. The main instrument panel is illuminated by 4 bulbs that are socketed into the back of the instrument panel. There is also a lamp for the clock/temp display. Once you remove the dashboard cap and the instrument panel they are easy to replace. That process actually looks ands sounds more daunting than it really is.

This procedure goes further than you need to go, unless you odometer doesn't work, but you do need to go through the instrument panel removal procedure to get to the lamps.

https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/odometer_fix.php

Assuming everything works on your keyless entry system it is easy to program.

The procedure from MIJ is:

Key should be turned from off position to position II 5 times within 10 seconds on an 850 and then push any button. You should see the red light in the center of the dash light up or blink (or something). Car doors should all be closed...not locked. At least this is my understanding of the process. After you push a button on the first one, you have about 5 seconds to push a button on the second one and then a third remote. You have to "reprogram" all at the same time. If you don't then the original one (that worked before you started the programming sequence) won't work anymore. Actually, this is because you're programming the car to the remotes. You can do up to 3 remotes for our cars.

...Lee

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 25 Mar 2007, 19:17

Lee, thanks for including the procedure...I had forgotten exactly where I had posted that.

Volgrrr · Post by **Volgrrr** » 28 Mar 2007, 00:07

Hi there Ozark Lee,

When I bought my wagon it came with one ordinary key only.

I have never pursued finding out whether the vehicle has remote control locking, I just use the central locking (even though remote would be handy sometimes).

There is a triangle shaped thing on the dashboard with a LED in it which doesn't appear to do anything as far as I can see.

However, a bright red light starts flashing on the radio facia when you leave the vehicle.

I suppose this is supposed to indicate something or other - but I'm not sure what.

Any ideas?

CarVolvo · Post by **CarVolvo** » 28 Mar 2007, 07:09

the flashing light on the radio just warns intruders that its protected if they steal it.

The triangular thing is the newer version of the security system. The older system as a rectangular verysion with a flashing light. If you download the manual that MIJ posted you will find how to program it.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 28 Mar 2007, 07:29

G'Day Volgrr,

The radio led flashes to drive home the point that it is "anti-theft", they all do it but it isn't related to the remote locking or the alarm system.

I was in the process of describing how to find out if you have the remote receiver when it dawned on me that you have a right hand drive car. On my left hand drive car the remote receiver is located directly to the right of the glove box. For US spec cars the receiver is made by Alps Electronics and it measures, give or take, 3 inches by 5 inches. I would guess that your receiver would be located directly to the left of the glove box just below the A pillar.

Another clue would be to take a look under the hood and see if you have a horn mounted on the firewall. That horn is the alarm horn, if you have such a horn then you almost certainly have the remote locking and alarm functions.

On non US spec cars there were a bunch of variations on the alarm system and each had its own unique remote control so locating the receiver and getting the numbers off of it will be critical if you decide to buy a remote control.

...Lee

...Lee

Nanoimprint · Post by **Nanoimprint** » 30 Mar 2007, 11:56

Thanks, Mr. Lee. Very useful info,especially the procedure with pictures, to try.
The problem of the dash board light is that the whole panel always is dark all the time, can not read speed, mileage..at night, however the warning lights on the right bottom corner are working well, and the LCD to show time is fine too.

Ozark Lee wrote:My gut tells me that you have a crack in the radiator but ,since you also identified the upper radiator hose as a leak source, I would start by replacing the upper radiator hose and its clamps. It is relatively inexpensive and easy to replace. If the leak continues then I would replace the radiator which is not inexpensive and it can be difficult to replace.

Which dash lights are you talking about? There are a bunch of them. The main instrument panel is illuminated by 4 bulbs that are socketed into the back of the instrument panel. There is also a lamp for the clock/temp display. Once you remove the dashboard cap and the instrument panel they are easy to replace. That process actually looks ands sounds more daunting than it really is.

This procedure goes further than you need to go, unless you odometer doesn't work, but you do need to go through the instrument panel removal procedure to get to the lamps.

https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/odometer_fix.php