1998 V70 NA road trip checklist

Post by **STLV70** » 01 Dec 2023, 14:19

I want to put roughly 1500 miles on my V70 over Christmas/New Year's holiday. Looking for feedback on the wisdom of that kind of mileage on a car that I believe has been well cared for, but new to me. I bought it with roughly 175K miles on it and have added another 1K.

The following maintenance is newish (me or the previous owner serviced it):
Timing belt and associated tensioners and pulleys, Spark Plugs and wires, PCV system, Fuel pump, Fuel injectors, Tires, Battery, cabin/engine air filters, oil change, windshield wipers

I'm having a local mechanic look at the brakes, suspension, and exhaust next week.
I'm replacing the upper engine torque mount, firewall mount, shift lever button, and headlights before the trip.

In addition to what the mechanic may find, I think my remaining concerns are the heater core, engine and transmission mounts (still learning how to troubleshoot those), and ATF flush? Should I get to any of these right away?

The car drives great. I have a few squeaks in the dash, and I'm not expecting anything major from underneath. I have two CEL codes P0505, which came up when I did the PCV refresh, and P0410. I have the diode for the P0410 code. Just haven't mustered up the courage to cut into electrical wiring yet. I was hoping I could use a quick splice connector.

Regarding P0505, I'm going to get new Idle Control Valve hoses, clean the control valve, and check clamps on hoses. The car jumps to 1500 right on ignition, then smoothly stays around 1100 RPM at idle.

Thanks everyone. I bought the car thinking I'd occasionally use it for hauling stuff around town. Turns out I really love driving it, and am learning everything i can to work on it. I hope to keep it around for a long time, but I've only been a mechanic as long as I've owned this car.

Post by **volvolugnut** » 02 Dec 2023, 07:23

Bump to top.
volvolugnut

Post by **Sveedy** » 02 Dec 2023, 08:16

Go for it. I understand your trepidation, being that the car is new to you, but it's unlikely that you would have any issues within the next 5k miles or more. If you think you can drive it till the next oil change, then you can certainly make this 1500 mile trip.

Post by **STLV70** » 02 Dec 2023, 13:14

Thanks @sveedy.

Should your signature concern me?

“Try to learn life's bad lessons vicariously through others.”

Never mind, I’m going for it!

Post by **abscate** » 02 Dec 2023, 21:33

Distributor cap and rotor. Remove and inspect for oil and moisture

If miles/time unknown, then replace proactively

Post by **volvolugnut** » 03 Dec 2023, 10:06

Most of our road trip fears are never actual.
volvolugnut

Post by **scot850** » 03 Dec 2023, 10:36

I spent a few months renovating a 97 850 base and my brother in CA decided he wanted the car for his daughters' first car. He knew I would be particular in checking stuff, but the car had sat for 8 months before I bought it so this was pretty much it's first long run from Calgary to LA. The only issue we had was a weeping rear main seal due to sitting for so long. A bottle of Blue Devil was added and it has been fine for the last 6 years. We managed close to 700 miles one day. Car ran fine.

Neil.

Post by **STLV70** » 06 Dec 2023, 10:49

Just got the call from the mechanic:

- Brakes are good
- Shocks and Struts need replaced
- A front ball joint needs replaced.
- Exhaust needs minor repair.

He isn't concerned about my trip, and said I could address these issues afterward.

Which brings me to the fact I walk to work, so this car doesn't need to be driven regularly. Am I biting off too much as a beginner doing the struts and shocks on my own...that's kinda been my goal with this car, to learn to work on cars?

I was thinking I may need a mechanic to do the ball joint correctly?

I am also assuming the exhaust will require welding, so will have the mechanic take care of that.

Post by **scot850** » 06 Dec 2023, 16:44

It depends. Ball-joint is part of the lower control arm and cannot be separately replaced as is bonded in. You have to replace the whole lower control arm. There are good and bad quality ones out there and the brands I have used include the OE Volvo and Lemforder. Others may be able to recommend other brands.

On your car it is fairly easy to replace as the control am is only held in by 3 bolts. If you have not has an alignment recently, then swap it and don't worry about an alignment. If you have had an alignment recently, then I do recommend an alignment as it could have been done with play in it taken into account. I would suggest an alignment if there is any doubt.

The hardest part is getting the bolt out at the ball joint end. The bolt can get rusted in place and can be a swine to remove. Soak for a couple of days with PB Blaster or the like to help removal process.

The ball joint is held in by a bolt running though a slot in the side of the ball joint shaft. I strongly recommend replacing the nut and bolt when doing this. Be careful to make sure on re-assembly to make sure you get the bolt through the slot or you will get a nasty surprise.

The bolts on the other end (2 off), I re-use but some say to replace as well. The bolts are angle torqued but are not shear bolts. Check when you remove them which end the head of the bolt is facing in.

When removing the ball joint end of the control arm you may have to widen the slot in the bottom of the hub knuckle to help get it out.

Struts are easy to swap, but the hardest part is if you buy a strut, then you have to be able to remove the top nut and start nut which can be a challenge, and you will need spring compressors. There are 'quick' struts which are fully assembled units. These are generally of poor quality. I know MoVolvos has mentioned a company/brand he has had success with.

If you are replacing the struts, always replace the top rubber spring seats. Sachs/Volvo OE/Lemforder/TRW are usually good choices.

There are probably how-to's and Youtube or written instructions on here somewhere to help you on the process. I'm sure Robert-Diy will have one on the subject you can watch and then see if you want to tackle the job yourself.

Exhaust repairs are common on these cars from the hanger at the rear to the tailpipe rotting off. Usually a decent shop can fix fairly cheaply.

Good Luck!

Neil.

Post by **Krons** » 07 Dec 2023, 15:00

My first foray into auto repair was on my kids 2002 S60. Very easy to work on, did strut and spring assemblies and lower control arms. I would watch some YouTube videos and then decide if you’re up for it.

Many question aftermarket suspension parts, but I have had decent luck with the TRQ brand you can find on eBay.