What to check/replace at 250k miles?

Post by **FireFox31** » 25 Oct 2016, 22:28

This afternoon, I found that my 2000 V70's headlight dimming rocker switch was loose because the plastic holding its metal clips had broken. That's the kind of thing that only happens to a 16-year-old car with 250k miles.

What other uncommon problems should my mechanic I be looking for at this age and mileage? What parts should I proactively replace?

At 160k miles, pressure built up and a coolant hose blew off, causing the engine to overheat and warp. I had the engine replaced with a 100k mile used one (thanks Eerie Volvo). Now that engine is coming up on 200k miles. There appears to be oil seeping out around the oil fill cap.

I love my 2000 V70 with 5-speed manual and want to keep rolling to 300k miles and beyond. I take good care of it with dealer service and OEM parts. It's running great right now, and I want to ensure I don't have a sudden problem which wrecks the car. Thanks for your replies and all the posts which have helped me keep the car running for the past 14 years and 200k miles that I've owned it.

Post by **abscate** » 25 Oct 2016, 23:20

At 250k you should have renewed:

The entire cooling group including water pump

Be on the Volvo timing belt schedule ( halfway through your third timing belt)

New PCV system including block cleaning

Valve stem seals if there is any oil usage on overrun

You, the driver, keeping speeds at 65 or under and following distances of 3 seconds

Otherwise enjoying rowing the great M56 transmission and sending Matt stick shift videos!

harryhendo · Post by **harryhendo** » 26 Oct 2016, 06:47

My current "experiment" car is a 2000 S70 with 248K miles, manual transmission. Here's what I replaced:
- timing belt (it had never been done)
- timing belt tensioner and idler pulley
- water pump, thermostat, and resulting coolant flush
- serpentine belt
- the manual transmission oil... wow was it nasty coming out!
- headlights (the old ones were very dim due to cracked reflectors)
- the alternator's brush/regulator pack (only 6mm remaining)
- rear shocks - the old (original) ones, when compressed, stayed there
- went to each ground point, removed the ground wire, sanded off any corrosion on both the cable connector and the mount point, reinstalled and coated with Vaseline.

The previous owner hadn't done much maintenance except the occasional oil change and brake replacement, so I had a lot to do.

Post by **tryingbe** » 26 Oct 2016, 07:07

I bough my S70 at 254k, it needed fuel pump, heatercore, clutch, engine, motor mounts, etc

https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... hp?t=76509

charleskennedy23 · Post by **charleskennedy23** » 26 Oct 2016, 07:44

I'd look at the stage 0 list and work my way through that... That's what I have done on my 98 V70 w/ 130k miles now...

firestarterpro · Post by **firestarterpro** » 26 Oct 2016, 23:27

Dont forget to oil the locks and latches. If your door pops when you open it, tighten the 10mm bolts on the thin elbow that stops the door from swinging all the way open.
Elmers glue on the edges of your headliner if its starting to fall. Be sure to brush off the dirt first.
Heater core is best to do before it leaks. Spark plug wires and coil, etc....
I replaced all of my bulbs, the interior with led to save power if I left the lights on. For the exterior, I only used led for non-flashing lights due to excessive complications.

If you do your suspension, I would try to do the entire thing, front and back at once. (I used a drop in suspension and the cheapest parts on ebay, costed less than $500) Replace the tires last and your tires will last.

I replaced my coolant reservior tank and cap when I did my cooling system, just because I have seen many painstaking stories in which it is the culprit.

Same for the accordion shaped tube going to the throttle body from air filter housing, the old plastic can sometimes crack when changing the air filter.

I washed my seat belt.... 5 times.

The interior fan blower moter and resistor should be done at the same time, as well the cabin air filter.

Of course, redo the ground wires as stated above, I used 6 or 8 gauge wire.

The mass air flow sensor is also often overlooked and can make a hell of a difference. I just got a used one and my car runs alot smoother.

I bled my power steering fluid too, easy to do, made my steering non jerky. Same for the brakes...

Everything else is covered in the stage 0 checklist im pretty sure.

Good luck! I hope you make well through 300k

Post by **E Showell** » 29 Oct 2016, 18:12

Replace the gasket around your oil filler cap every other oil change, if not every change, and you're likely to eliminate that leak.

Covert · Post by **Covert** » 30 Oct 2016, 08:10

Can anyone link me to the satge 0 list please ?
Many thanks

charleskennedy23 · Post by **charleskennedy23** » 31 Oct 2016, 10:25

https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/stage-0.html

Covert · Post by **Covert** » 31 Oct 2016, 11:28

Thanks very much