Just bought 2006 S60 2.5T AWD, 212K

[kcodyjr]

Stock brakes are pretty good but the difference is more than a few iotas. Drive a P2 R sometime, they have oversize brakes, you will likely change your tune. An R goes faster (drivetrain performance) *and* slower (brake performance).

I can believe it. The R brakes are 320mm, yes? I'd love to have one, but of course most R's get beat to hell. Try finding one for sale that hasn't been either smashed up or modded six ways from Sunday. Besides, the wife doesn't drive stick, and I bought this one to be her daily. Big upgrade from the 1997 Camry.

The 320mm rotors probably aren't going to fit into 16" wheels, and I suspect the R's have a different caliper too? So, I think the question would be, is there enough difference between the 286mm and the 305mm rotor setups to justify the cost of a new set of caliper brackets.

[erikv11]

Great points Kevin, I was overlooking that the R rotors are even larger and yes with larger calipers. So I'm not of much use regarding the 286-305 comparison.

Sort of mIssing our 99 Camry, the maintenance cost was something like $42/year over its lifetime but I agree the S60 is a big upgrade in the driving experience.

[kcodyjr]

I've done it - I sprang for a genuine DiCE unit, with all the accessories. It's expensive, but I don't ever have to doubt whether the damn thing will work with the latest VIDA on a 3 day subscription.

Now to see if any of the s***heap laptops I've got on hand are up to the job, or if I'll need to buy one.

[abscate]

Are you on the Vineyard? We summer on Cuttyhunk , the only Volvo we bring is buried in the engine room of our boat, though.

I'm on Chappaquiddick. To us, the Vineyard is "the mainland."

Indeed. We put into Poge Bay on occasion , since we can winch our keel up and shallow draft.

Good luck with Volvo DICE.... I roll, the dice?

On either Island, you aren’t going to need R brakes. Both the 280 and 305mm work fine.

[kcodyjr]

Indeed. We put into Poge Bay on occasion , since we can winch our keel up and shallow draft.

You'll have to, these days. There's a ban on anchoring. Something about preserving the bottom ecology, and some really delicious bay scallops.

Good luck with Volvo DICE.... I roll, the dice?

Good one.

On either Island, you aren’t going to need R brakes. Both the 280 and 305mm work fine.

This will be our primary off-island excursion car. It'll see hours-long highway drives a few times a month.

Still, I agree, it doesn't need R brakes, and it doesn't need any other conversion. I'm just going to take it apart and measure what's on it - I trust FCP for a lot of things, but I don't trust anybody's computer to tell me what's on the car, not even the stealership's.

[kcodyjr]

Did you check if the AWD works? Get all four wheels in the air, put it in drive, the rears should spin.

I did this. All four wheels turn, but the left rear turned noticeably slower than the right two, and the left front just crept along, until I gave the gas pedal a little zinger - then they spun right up. I'm guessing the traction control was every kind of pissed off it could be: how do you transfer power from the wheels that slip to the wheels that grip, when all four are slipping?

[kcodyjr]

The guy at FCP looked up the VIN and says it has the 286mm fronts, but I don't trust his computer. I'm going to pull one off and measure it just to be certain before I order any parts.

Measurement confirmed, it has 286mm fronts, and it's going to stay that way.

I'm considering skipping the e-brake rebuild ... I should know better than to be cheap.

I'll definitely be rebuilding the e-brakes. Picture attached:

On reflection, though, I think I'll get the rebuild kit from FCP, SKU: KIT-31445338KT. The pads and spacers are OE, but the springs and adjuster/expander are Pro Parts Sweden... yet I've never heard anyone complain about them, and I'd think I would have, if they'd screw up a spring.

[kcodyjr]

... no timing stickers so it needs that too ...

I'll just do a full timing job, including water pump, and cam/crank seals for good measure. It has green coolant in it, is that even correct? I'll just use a kit from FCP with the OE coolant.

Picture attached. That belt looks fairly recent, but there's no visible markings (at least on that section) and the teeth look to be a little chewed. What do you all think? Should I let that ride and just keep an eye on it, or should I declare it bunkum and replace it preemptively?

The kit is already in FedEx's hands, so the question is whether I install it, or put it on the shelf for later.

I just dug up the instructions on removing that outer timing cover, so I'll know tomorrow whether I'm going to bother with replacing any seals. The rear cam seals don't seem to be leaking, and there isn't a mass of oil coming out below the timing cover, so it might not need that attention.

I'm thinking to put a set of Cooper sneakers on it, because although the Goodyears have good tread, I don't trust them that old, and one is a few years newer than the others.

Yeah, the front left had an inconsistency on the outer sidewall. I'd call it a tumor, but it seems to be more inward than outward. Maybe a ripple? Either way, it's topography that should not be present in a tire sidewall.

I read up a little further about the Coopers, and there seems to be complaints about stopping on ice. That could be a problem in these parts. I'd like to hear opinions about all-seasons for this model in general; if I don't hear a convincing argument about another contender, I'll probably pop for Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4's, or Michelin CrossClimate 2's. Still torn between those.

[abscate]

I’ve run Cooper all seasons for decades in Boston weather, but to be fair, when it’s freezing ice road conditions, I call the customer up and cancel. I’ve been really happy with them

Funny waves on tire sidewalls are ok, ones that push in like blisters aren’t.

Those rear top hats look past their “ use by “ date. Not sure even my angle grinder trick would work on those

I’m a TB risk taker so put my advice in perspective, but these belts rarely break, it usually the pump or idler which takes them out. On P2s, MTBF is well over 150k miles

Can you pull the cover and look at the build date on the pump?

[seggs]

Headlights - I’ve used a Ceracote product a few times on my vehicles. It’s about $25 on Amazon. Costs more than others, but it’s the only one that I used which actually provides good results. Just follow the directions closely and don’t rush through the early cleaning steps. Worked really well on my cloudy 09’s.