my volvo 850se journal

[scot850]

That is a good find especially at the age these are now! Good luck on the install.

Neil.

[duke1]

water ingress any ideas peeps?
hi all well i been racking my brains trying to stop water getting in this damn car ,so far i have removed and replaced all the seals on the roofbars and replaced the door seals but still i have water getting in high up,ie headlining and the little plastic coin tray next drivers seat are soaking wet,thankfully ive not yet fitted the replacement headlining because ive been ill and weather has not helped.
are these known for windscreen leaking? i have tried some seek and seal to no avail.
if anyone can help id be grateful,heres a couple of pics of the old girl halfway through a polish then it rained!cheers all.

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[scot850]

There are a few possible spots to check. At least you can eliminate sunroof leaks as you don't look like there is one.

If it is high up and no sunroof, I would have done what you have and checked the roof rail mounts.

Next on the list is the windshield surround. I had issues with one P80 we had and it was a badly fitted replacement windshield. A repair shop resealed it and it fixed the issue.

The only other possibility depending if it is only at the front is the door seals at the top corners and in the area of the door mirrors where with age the doors drop slightly and the seals can flatten leaving a slight gap.

If it were at the rear then the tailgate hinges. Check the seals are still in place.

As for water in the front I would check that the drains are clear in the windshield wiper area under the black cover ( one either end with one by the fuse box), and the 2 drains at the front are clear as well. If the drains get blocked, water can enter through the cold air intake. The 850 is more prone to that as they were not fitted with the plastic tray for a cabin filter. If you don't have one fitted, you can get one from a V/S/C70 and fit it. Although they are a tight fit you can use a dab of sealer when you fit it to give a higher tide line.

Next you can check if the drain from the heater box is not loose or blocked preventing condensation from draining down and out of the car. I think the 850 is the same as the later P80's with a drain near the center of the dash behind the radio area.

I think that about covers it.

Neil.

[duke1]

hi all well at long last it seems to have stopped raining!so i have made a good start on replacing the horrid wet smelly baggy headlining on my old 850se,only badly broken one piece of the brittle plastic trim though several pieces where broken and only held together with the various fastenings and as soon as you undo them bits of plastic fall down!
after a jigsaw puzzle i worked out where the bits came from and have done my best to superglue them back in place. i have ordered some new soundproofing stuff as all the original has come unstuck and hanging.
looks a right mess at the moment but i think it is worth the effort as i intend to keep this car going till i die or it dies,the missus is great and only had a minimal moan at me spending even more on this allready expensive project,a car for life needs work after 30 yrs and 160k miles,pics when im done no point posting the utter mess atm!im on a tea break as i have copd and get tired real quick but can still fix cars just slowly is all!
just add the windscreen was the main culprit of the water ingress and since its been replaced and i left a dehumidifier on overnight for a couple of days it was dry enough to not be too horrid to work on,the dust from the sponge is awful bad and dust and copd do not mix well,mask n95 and full face goggles,i will not die atleast till its finished!

[duke1]

hi all well the car is done!a nice new headlining from a mk1 v70 its a sort of grey colour but fits perfect,i did have to reglue the front portion along the windscreen edge but evo stick and some of the missus clothes pegs and left overnight to proper dry seems to have done the trick nicely,the original was beige colour but as i got the handles and different colour courtesy lights along with lots of useful plastic trim retainers etc fitted to suit.
i spent a couple of hours gluing myself to various broken plastic mounts and finding certain colour plastics do not bond with superglue but bond to the main trim plastic very well,also found out it is not a good idea to use toilet tissue to wipe up spilt superglue as it starts smoking and gets nearly hot enough to ignite!
so if the car survives my birthday trackday tomorrow at goodwood i shall try remember to get pics in daylight! ps anyone here fancy helping me respray her? i can do 99% of the prep but have no compressor or garage,i could pay a little,cheers all.

[duke1]

Default trackday fun with the 850
hi all well yesterday was spent speeding around in the old girl and apart from a new squeek i think from the ns front wheelbearings the car survived undamaged!and even though it is just a 2.5 10valve with 140bhp when new,30 yrs and 160 thousand miles later some of the horses have died but it can still be a car you can drive your granny in or drive to goodwood and tear around having a great time!its very dirty in the pics due to poor signage at the goodwood circuit i ended up driving the wrong way and ended up in a muddy field full of diggers and mud,turning around proved difficult and some wheel spins before finding some grip made it look more like a rally car!
i did take some rather poor pics of my mate steve driving my volvo,love this old car!

[duke1]

hi all i took some pics today of the old girl after much hard work and some expense but now i am happy with the car mechanically and interior all bar one panel have been cleaned and repaired all and have a clean non wet and baggy headlining for the first time in 3.5 years ownership,gone from wet floors due to heater matrix leak and wet headliner due to leaking top of the windscreen to nice clean and dry,the missus vax carpet washer and a steam cleaner removed most of the coolant stain.
i am still in the market for a bonnet and the trim as pictured and would be happy to collect and pay cash for good condition trim.
also due to the trackday showing up a sticking caliper on the n/s/f wheel i rebuilt both the original ate calipers with a new set of pistons and seals and gave a coat of vht paint,brakes are now perfect.
next up is chasing my ex boss to do the paintwork!pics for you,bless the humble volvo base.

[BlackBart]

You got to drive on Goodwood??

[duke1]

You got to drive on Goodwood??

hi yes goodwood motor circuit as my 60th birthday gift from my good lady,,it was great and i really enjoyed it and i also learned more of the cars quirks and handling,she corners far better than i thought she would and only fault was a sticking front caliper hence the rebuild,not a cheap day but worth every penny!cheers

[BlackBart]

Pretty sweet - you were cornering in the shadows of legends!