Greetings from a new uk Volvo 850 owner

[ArmyDad]

How much, may I ask, did you spend on the 1996 850? I'm looking at one here myself.

[MadeInJapan]

You do realize he's in the U.K. Prices are probably going to be quite a bit different over there, but still would be interesting to know.

[Ozark Lee]

I know that the question was not directed at me but I think Solutech's answer would be in Euros or Pounds.

I bought a '96 a few months ago in Chicago for $550.00 with the doc fees off of eBay, I rented a trailer from Uhaul for $125.00 and then spent another $200.00 or so in gasoline to drag it home. 134 k miles on the clock and it had a loose battery cable - the control arms are shot but otherwise it is a dang decent car for my son - control arms are on the way.

My first 850 I also bought off of eBay and it was $1,300 in Indianapolis. The flight to pick it up from Kansas City was around $70.00. The cab ride to the stealership was closer to $80.00.

The '94 had all of the Volvo 850 issues, the odometer had quit, the glove box latch had broken, the sunroof shade was drooping, the rear suspension was clacking.

That was the best $1,300 I ever spent in my life.

Driving the car back from Indianapolis to my cabin at the Lake of the Ozarks, and its twisty roads, was the most fun I have had since I had my Porsche 914 in high school. My Porsche had a few warts as well but it had a soul - that is exactly how I feel about the 850's. As a side note, the heater works a lot better on the 850 than it did on the 914 so the soul is warmer.

I am a decent shade tree mechanic. These cars will eat you alive if you take them to the dealership for repairs. They are also quite intuitive to repair and if you have decent mechanical abilities they are not hard to fix or maintain.

I have seen the other posts that suggest Hondas or Toyotas and other cars that have no soul. If pure reliability without minor issues along the way is your objective that is where you should go.

...Lee

[Solutech]

I paid

[calbrit01]

Hi SoluTech & Co,

I am actually from Chester, England been in California for some 7 years now, first time I owned a Volvo was over here, great car can't wait to drive the UK models though. As far a pricing is concerned, ( and it can be a complicated subject ) , I trade on both sides of the Atlantic, and I find its pretty much pound (Sterling) for dollar - I.e. if you pay a pound for something in the UK, you will pay a dollar for the same thing in the US ( well California anyway ! ) - except umbrellas its a luxury item here - Sorry don't mean to rub it in with the crappy weather the UK is having at the moment, lol.
I would be interested to find out how you get on with the tranny selector bulbs, thats one of my outstanding jobs. What I do for bulbs though is, anytime I go down the scrap (wrecking US) yard I grab as many bulbs as are left on the car and just shove them in my pocket, your bound to get a few good ones. Good luck, and welcome to the forum - its saved me a wad of cash since I had to start working on my own car again, compliments of California Divorce Law ,

Cheers

SAL

[Solutech]

Lol certainly a small world , Im in Birkenhead just down the A41 from Chester

As for the tranny bulb it's a dead easy job . The hard bit is figuring out how to get the centre console up lol .

Theres a couple of bolts under the little flap in the arm rest to come out, Then you need to remove the coinholder where the odbII is on 96 models to reveal another screw and unscrew the one to the right of it . Remove the coinholder assembly and cig lighter disconnecting the cables . Then iirc theres two final bolts under that lot and disconnect the 2 big loom connectors then remove the insert from under the handbrake Then you pull it all back to the rear of the car . lift up and remove .

With that out of the way the bulb holder is sat in a white plastic doodad at the side of the lever . You pull it from the bottom . replace and put it all back again .

I reckon on it taking me 20 minutes tops to do . Maybe less as Ive had the console out once already to remove the dud to take it to the dealers lol .

Im doing it friday or saturday at the inlaws as I can whip my bro in laws handy little bendy torx driver lol .

[Solutech]

Well all done I have my nice stick light working . Dead easy job like I said before .

Open armrest and Pull up the flap . Remove the two 8mm bolts .

Hook your finger behind the handbrake cover and pull towards the front of the console .

Now remove the ODBII cover/cointray . Remove the 2 screws you will need a torx kit to remove these screws easily . You may find a flat head will suffice but torx drivers are your best bet .

Lift the entire cointray assembly up and slide the ODBII connector from the side of the tray . Next remove the leads from the cig lighter . With the leads out of the way pull the whole assembly toward you and it will disengage from the console .

Now remove both the large connectors and unscrew the final 2 torx screws from the console . Make sure you move the ODBII and cig lighter cables out of the way before you move to the next step .



Shift box to L . Take hold of the console at the rear and pull it up and towards the rear screen making sure it doesnt foul the cables and it will come up and away from the stick and handbrake .

You should now be able to see the white plastic shroud at the side of the box . Its probably reversed on us models. Grab the bulb holder and pull it down , It may need a wiggle to free it as its a bit too tall to come out vertically .



Pull the bulb from the holder using the black body not the bulb itself .

Insert the replacement and reverse the removal instructions .

When you slide the centre console back into place make sure the carpet doesnt ruck up the sides of the console and you dont put the console down over the seat adjusters . When its back in fully the lug should be in tightly at the front in the middle of the bar and the console should look snug with the floor .

Thats it all done . No drama and no blood spilt .

[calbrit01]

NICE ONE !, great write up excellent photos - now i can just mindlessly do that job, cheers mate!

Simon

[Solutech]

Hope it helps you . Easy job once you can figure out how to shift the console . Thought the pics would help . I always find it easier if you can see something before you try it blind .

[Ozark Lee]

Where did your rear window switches go? Do the European versions not have them on the console?



...Lee