08 3.2 - Stage 0 - Thermostat, tough choices...

dandan · Post by **dandan** » 19 Jun 2018, 18:50

I'm slowly getting this 08 3.2 XC90 AWD to its former glory. At 124k a coolant flush is about to happen and luckily i'm getting this in vida...

I'm still not fully versed in vida but I got my dice out and gave them another roll.

It looks as there is an issue with the coolant temp sensor per vida. I'm not sure about clearing codes with vida but i'll get to that in another post in another time. I just recently changed out my coolant fan due to overheating. It ran great, still runs great but that cursed check engine light was laughing at me all the way to the volvo bank. I simply disconnected the negative terminal on the battery to "reset" the check engine light. It stayed off for a few days and then kicked back on. Now it seems the thermostat needs to be replaced. Exciting! But I was looking for a reason to change after another user suggested I do that for stage 0. I was going to do a flush anyway and this gives me an excuse to do both. They need to be done.

Then this...

I mean... 23 bucks or $104(Genuine). I could get 4 for the price, genuine only last 123500... even if they could only get 50k out of each one that would still be half the price of the genuine. Does anyone know who makes them for volvo? can i get an "oem" for less somewhere hidden in the dept of a dark ally in Sweden?

Could this 23 dollar wonder be the same product? Probably not. But i mean come on... Twenty Three USD.

PROS?
CONS?

Post by **ggleavitt** » 20 Jun 2018, 13:36

Most times with Volvo aftermarket parts, you get what you pay for.

dandan · Post by **dandan** » 20 Jun 2018, 19:53

I went ahead with the genuine, got some fresh coolant from ipd and some bolts... even though the part number references don't match vida:

"11 Six point socket screw 4.00 986216
M6x25"

IPD:
IPD Item Number: 120816
Classification: Repair & maintenance
Quality: Better (OE)
Brand: Genuine Volvo
Units Per Car: 2 <<<<<there are 4 too... not sure if this is the right part

Warranty: One Year Parts Warranty

Cross Reference: 986228, 969156

Post by **ggleavitt** » 21 Jun 2018, 09:41

If VIDA is correct, you need one of these- https://www.ipdusa.com/products/9423/12 ... 6-cylinder and four of these- https://www.ipdusa.com/products/8808/12 ... 0mm-x-25mm

Cheaper on some other OE (dealer reseller) sites. Lisle has the pump for $104, screws for $1.78 each as one example, shipping included total cost $127. Other dealer parts resellers should be close. IPD is great but there are other less costly options in the OE space.

edit- add representative OE reseller prices as of 6/21/18.

dandan · Post by **dandan** » 21 Jun 2018, 20:33

Yup, those were the bolts I needed.

dandan · Post by **dandan** » 26 Jun 2018, 18:47

My thermostat and coolant came in... Should I do a system flush before I remove the old thermostat?

Should I do a flush at all?
by flush I mean drain old fluid and fill with clean distilled water only. Run the engine and then drain and fill with 50/50.

Post by **ggleavitt** » 27 Jun 2018, 07:36

I'll be the first to admit that I don't flush completely, since I'm taking OE out and putting OE back in, I drain out as much as possible then mix the OE coolant up 50/50 with distilled water and dump it in. Bought one of those cool vacuum filler things a year or two back, like to think it makes a difference in fully filling but probably does not.

dandan · Post by **dandan** » 30 Jun 2018, 22:42

I did the deed tonight, I ended up not doing a "flush" but just drained and filled with volvo coolant and distilled water 50/50.
2 gallons of fluid and only about 1.5 gallons went in. I poured the 50/50 mix back into the coolant container, i'll drive around with this for a bit and keep an eye on the levels. I had to unbolt the radiator rock guard (3- 13mm bolts, its a bit tricky lifting and sliding it out/in around the plastic of the bumper) to really get to the radiator drain.

I replaced the thermostat. I think the next time I do the thermostat I'd just take the damn intake manifold off. The frustration of working around it vs the time it takes to pull the intake off(Not long per vida) is just not worth it. If memory serves me correct it has a "reusable" rubber gasket, along with the thermostat. When I took the old thermostat all the metal parts were sitting in it free and a piece in the block I had to pinch out with my fingers!

Which explains the dtc, the new one was just as wormy screwing back in but with patience I got there. I cleared all the codes in vida and restarted the car, rev'd it to 1500rpm shut it down then started and idled for 20+ seconds then cleared them. I shut it down, unplugged the dice unit then started it back up...check engine light ELIMINATED!

I'll drive it for a few days and check for leaks and pray to oden that loki doesn't come and turn on my check engine light again.