What did you do to your P2 Volvo today?

[P80GLT]

The MOT for the V70 is due next February which would mean anytime from 21st January onwards it could be done. I decided that I would rather loose a few MOT months this year and have an October MOT next year avoiding having to worry in the middle of winter if anything was needing repaired.

A straight pass was issued and tester said it was the best V70 he had seen in years

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[yanga001]

Partners car had significantly more underbody surface rust then last year. Where the rust proofing was thick it was really good. Rust did not progress on the side, more towards the back where her apartment requires her to park on grass. May due a tarp + gravel to help mitigate that. Gonna shift her to a twice a year rust proofing schedule. Changed the power steering pump on her car and it turned clean fluid into dirty fluid somehow. Gonna flush it fully with the return line off her acura rdx with 2L of fluid. Her new lares pump whines but i hope a fluid flush will fix it to remove the air and dirtyness. Her steering control is close to 100% i would say and was a massive improvement over junk yard units. The Lares pump was actually new with different casting and markings from an oem pump. A welcome surprise. If the flush fixes the noise then i will be an extremely happy camper as it was 250 all in versus 758 pretax (OEM pump).

The rust proofing gun was extremely useful as the remote reservoir really lets you get under the car and spray with full power. It shoots out a lot more material a lot faster. The S60 has minimal rust which is a welcome report. The corrosion free formula does seem to work well but i would apply it twice a year depending on conditions. My brothers pilot flies in quebec throughout the winter and had some rust but less than a car that is parked in the grass most of the year .

[yanga001]

DOH, partners power steering pump pulley nut came off and disabled steering on her RDX. Being a 130km away makes this a difficult situation. she has CAA so might have a late drive to refix the nut and flush the system. Will grab some loctite.

[Mike Langlois]

My 2002 V70 X/C just got the front painted, a couple of new wheels, new tires, upgraded front brakes and a new bumper cover; all courtesy of a front wheel that decided to come off as we pulled the car onto the flat bed tow. Then the monster decided to throw a trouble code, so I think it is off to the local Independent Volvo shop. I've got too many projects going; never believe that you will get bored when you retire!

[P80GLT]

The evening before I took the V70 for its MOT I was browsing Youtube when a video about Volvo brake vacuum pumps appeared on my home page that piqued my interest. I watched the video from start to finish and decided it was something I should investigate and out I went to the garage.
I followed the video instructions only to discover that my pump was not working. I removed the plug to the switch and checked for 12v but there was zero volts and further research took me to the 20 amp fuse (number 33) under the steering column which had blown so I fitted a 10 amp fuse and now had 12v at the switch, I plugged the switch back in only to have some smoke appear at the switch so removed the fuse and went for my MOT the next morning.

After the MOT I asked the tester how the brakes were and he said the readings were all very good. I then explained my finding from the night before and he said as the brakes are good then there is nothing to worry about but he also said knowing me I would sort it out.

I called my local Volvo dealership and they wanted £516 for a new pump which is made by Hella and has a Volvo/Hella sticker. After a lot of research and cross referencing numbers a new Hella pump was sourced for £90. New genuine Volvo switch is on its way from Sweden via another dealership so will need to wait on that arriving.

The new Hella pump has arrived today, £426 saved over the Volvo dealer's price.

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I decided to fit the pump to the car and my plan was to wait until the new switch arrived before replacing the fuse. However I got to thinking about the switch and how it works so I connected my Ohms meter to the two terminals and then blocked off the 2 ports where the vacuum hoses go into the switch. I then sucked on the bottom port where the pump would go onto the switch and created a vacuum, the switch clicked on and off numerous times.
I refitted the switch, put in a new 20A fuse, checked there was 12v at the plug and then plugged it in. The pump came to life and put vacuum into the brake servo. Pumping the pedal numerous times the pump cut in and out as it should and without any problems.
Once the new switch arrives from Sweden I’ll fit it and keep the old one as a spare.

[scot850]

Big question is, do you notice any difference??

Neil.

[P80GLT]

@ Neil:
No difference to the brake pedal feeling. I didn't expect it to make any difference as the pump is not in full time use and it will only turn on and draw a vacuum when the engine is not producing enough vacuum to the brake servo.

VVT engines with automatic gearboxes do not produce as much vacuum as non VVT manual cars and this is why the pump is fitted at the factory as a safety feature. 1. The pump will come into play is when the engine is first started from cold, the engine revs higher than normal to heat the catalytic convertor and doesn't create enough vacuum to feed the servo. 2. Descending a steep gradient where the engine revs are low and lots of braking can empty the servo and the pump will turn on to top the vacuum up so that the brakes work as they should.

[vtl]

VVT engines with automatic gearboxes do not produce as much vacuum as non VVT manual cars

VVT and gearbox type are irrelevant. Your engine is turbo, it runs with no vacuum in intake manifold when turbo spools. Early P2 w/ 2.4T engines didn't have brake booster vacuum pump in the first years, but their boosters could be emptied in certain traffic pattern and suddenly leave the driver with reduced brakes, so Volvo fitted a pump.

[P80GLT]

Now that I have the new Hella pump fitted and it works correctly I decided to have a look at the original pump to see if it was salvageable.

3xT10 Torx screws hold the top-cap down, one came out the other two were too rusted and the Torx just turned in the head so a set of Mole-Grips managed to remove the screws, once removed I put them into the vice and I cut a straight slot in the screw-head to allow me to reuse them.

Once the top-cap was off it was apparent water ingress (possibly condensation) was the issue, the entire inners were covered in white powdered alloy oxidation (sorry no pics). I removed the top plate 3xT10 Torx, removed the impeller and barrel. The bottom plate was so crammed with oxidisation between the motor body and plate that the plate would not sit correctly.

With the top compressor parts removed I connected the motor to a battery and the motor spun freely so I knew the compressor section was the problem. I took a Stanley blade and removed as much oxidisation as possible from the alloy motor body paying particular attention to the area between the motor body and compressor bottom plate. The impeller blades were seized in their holder so they were removed and cleaned off and now move freely. I cleaned everything with isopropyl and rebuilt the pump, I'm not sure if there should be any lube in the compressor, it didn't look like anything was originally there from new. I connected it to a battery and it is now working fine. I've ordered a new O-ring to seal the top-cap as the original was badly damaged and came off in bits.

From what I've read the main problem with these pumps is the switch breaks causing the motor to run and seize. If like me your switch is good then it just might be alloy oxidisation inside the compressor causing your issue and following the above could save you the cost of a new pump.

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[yanga001]

Took a look at my PS fluid and noted that it is a dark brown. Will do a flush later and post up the contraption i use to flush out the system fully. Might make steering a little lighter.

Need to replace the hood strut on the S60 and get a few things checked when time permits.