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Weird little non-obvious things to keep your Volvo running well

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matthew1
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Weird little non-obvious things to keep your Volvo running well

Post by matthew1 »

I think my best example of a Weird little non-obvious thing to keep your Volvo running well is simply to not have a thousand keys on your keychain. I'd bet dollars to donuts that weight messes with the ignition cylinder after five or ten years and 10k bumps.

I see people with all kinds of junk on their keychain, like many other keys, Swiss Army knives, bear spray etc. They put it down on a counter and the USGS records a magnitude 1.3 quake.

My mind instantly flips to a scene of that mess pulling down on the ignition year after year, like it's a prop in an Isaac Newton horror movie.

courtesy Grok
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1998 V70, no dash lights on

1997 850 T5 [gone] w/ MSD ignition coil, Hallman manual boost controller, injectors, R bumper, OMP strut brace

2004 V70 R [gone]

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volvolugnut
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Post by volvolugnut »

My weird tip:
Clean the dirt from your wiper blades often to prevent circular scratch marks on your windshield.
volvolugnut
The Fleet:
Volvo: 2001 V70 T5, 1986 244DL, 1983 245DL, 1975 245DL, 1959 PV544, multiple Volvo parts cars.
Mercedes: 2001 E320, 1973 280, 1974 280C, 1989 300E, 1988 300TE, 1979 300TD, parts cars.
2009 Smart Passion
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matthew1
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Post by matthew1 »

ah brilliant VLN
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1998 V70, no dash lights on

1997 850 T5 [gone] w/ MSD ignition coil, Hallman manual boost controller, injectors, R bumper, OMP strut brace

2004 V70 R [gone]

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Vova585
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Post by Vova585 »

Advice applies to me and my 01v70xc, might not work for people with sound mental health.
a) you look at your car and your brain tell you "thats a great looking car and amazing piece of engineering " cha-ching I just justified another 1k into it.
b) you look at odometer and your brain tells you "man, we never beat Irv, but maybe we can make it to 350k?" Cha-ching another 1k out.

In terms of my P3s- Krown undercarriage spray every year, headlight protector clear film(new xenon headlight is close to 1k, do yourself a favor and spend $120 as soon as possible and your lens will not be weathered out with UV and road salt/sand. Maybe you will need to replace the film every 5 years, but it is cheaper than headlight. "Italian tune up" here and there(i am driving in a fashion that grandmas in Buicks flip me at times, I promised to myself no more speeding tickets, or give it to your wife to drive she will do a great job).

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matthew1
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Post by matthew1 »

Vova585 wrote: 12 Aug 2025, 14:01 In terms of my P3s- Krown undercarriage spray every year, headlight protector clear film... "Italian tune up"
All good recommendations Vova.
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1998 V70, no dash lights on

1997 850 T5 [gone] w/ MSD ignition coil, Hallman manual boost controller, injectors, R bumper, OMP strut brace

2004 V70 R [gone]

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Post by abscate »

Hoard all the 417 Nautic Blue P80s that you can.......
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stopper9090

Post by stopper9090 »

thanks for the info.

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Post by packetfire »

What about adding the correct amount of LubeGard or Liquid Moly oil additive a few hundred miles before oil changes, to clean out some of the sludge?
1982 240DL: Drove it 32 years and 1.5 million miles (sold, even still had mint leather!)
2001 v70 2.4T: The most expensive $1500 car I ever bought ("Volvo Turbo" - what an oxymoron!) (sold)
2004 v70: Far less fatally-flawed v70 - It served well (sold)
2010 v50: Smaller, slightly sportier wagon. Its got a spoiler, so I upgraded with sway bars!

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Post by volvolugnut »

Modern Volvos do not like low voltage. They may crank at a reasonable speed, but if voltage is low the electronics may not operate well enough to start and run.
Keep your battery, battery cables, and charging system in good condition.
volvolugnut
The Fleet:
Volvo: 2001 V70 T5, 1986 244DL, 1983 245DL, 1975 245DL, 1959 PV544, multiple Volvo parts cars.
Mercedes: 2001 E320, 1973 280, 1974 280C, 1989 300E, 1988 300TE, 1979 300TD, parts cars.
2009 Smart Passion
Ford: 1977 F350, 1964 F150 (2), 1938 Tudor Sedan
Farmall tractors: 1956 400 Diesel, 1946 A
And others.

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