Re: Volvo block heater and replacement cable/cord

[Rattnalle]

Oil pan heaters sell on Ebay/Amazon

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dodge-engine-o ... nF&vxp=mtr

There are also some cheap chinese ones but not sure they come with a thermal switch. 250W ones get really hot and will surely warm up the oil even in very low temps

The original block heaters are 500 W and barely do any good

I checked and the original Volvo heaters for 230V markets at least were made by DEFA. As far as I know any DEFA-kit including cables should fit together with the Volvo-specific units.

I know you like to trash the Volvo block heaters, and maybe it is colder where you live, but just as an FYI for other readers, for the cold and coldest days of the year here in the upper midwest US (about 0 to -15 F) the standard block heater works great. After having it on overnight the car starts easily and is up to operating temp within maybe 5 minutes after starting. That's on my 98 V70. Last year I bought one from Tasca for my 95 but haven't installed it yet.

Trash is a bit harsh, that's not really the intention. And no, it's actually quite a bit warmer here in the south of Sweden although I do go further north from time to time where cold days are much like yours.

That said I myself couldn't really tell a difference in how quickly the car got warm with the OEM block heater on my S80. It got warm quite quickly either way, just as my previous two 850s did. I used the heater mostly because I had a cabin heater plugged in as well so that windows and the interior weren't frozen to begin with.

It's a bit hard to recommend a block heater with that experience. A coolant heater can heat a much larger thermal mass since the heat spreads more efficiently through the engine through the coolant when it starts to move due to convection. But as with everything YMMV.

Willingness to start in regular cold down to perhaps -20 C is in my personal experience more a result of the health of the battery than anything else. I don't use very thick oil either, always a 5W40 synthetic.

[scot850]

I don't see anyone trashing anything, but I think there is a valid point that the 'newer' options now available can be more efficient and thankfully there are now more options that Volvo have stopped selling them for the older vehicles. There may still be some parts of the kit that can still be bought but the cables for sure are not available, and if my source works out I will post a link (after possibly buying a few more first!!). The newer options can also use less power. The Volvo units use 450-500W where the oil pan ones I see from around 80-100W or so. Both will do the job.

For me the issue is how easy is it to fit and what are the downsides (like the oil pan heater needing to be placed carefully to allow jacking the engine to prevent damage and on sedans/coupes/wagons the oil pan sits low so chance of damage) and the coolant type and the work required to fit. So far I have not found an easily installed coolant type here in Canada for my P2/P80 Volvos.
.
In the end it is all about what works in your area and for you.

Have fun and keep warm out there guys!

Neil.

[Rattnalle]

I don't see anyone trashing anything, but I think there is a valid point that the 'newer' options now available can be more efficient and thankfully there are now more options that Volvo have stopped selling them for the older vehicles. There may still be some parts of the kit that can still be bought but the cables for sure are not available, and if my source works out I will post a link (after possibly buying a few more first!!). The newer options can also use less power. The Volvo units use 450-500W where the oil pan ones I see from around 80-100W or so. Both will do the job.

For me the issue is how easy is it to fit and what are the downsides (like the oil pan heater needing to be placed carefully to allow jacking the engine to prevent damage and on sedans/coupes/wagons the oil pan sits low so chance of damage) and the coolant type and the work required to fit. So far I have not found an easily installed coolant type here in Canada for my P2/P80 Volvos.
.
In the end it is all about what works in your area and for you.

Have fun and keep warm out there guys!

Neil.

A bit OT since we're in the P80 section, but this is what a model specific Swedish coolant heater looks like fitted on a P2.

[oragex]

I've read a few reviews on Amazon, this 250W pad seems to get so hot you can't even touch it. Maybe the 500W OEM one could have been faulty?

https://www.amazon.ca/Canadian-Polar-Pa ... +polar+pad

[Rattnalle]

I've read a few reviews on Amazon, this 250W pad seems to get so hot you can't even touch it. Maybe the 500W OEM one could have been faulty?

It's as much about spreading the heat through the engine effectively. But sure, mine could have been faulty. It got warm but I never measured if it was 500 W warm or not

[scot850]

The difficulty of the original is the relatively small contact patch the aluminum block heater has against the engine. Also you use a contact thermal transfer paste between the block heater and block. The 500W is probably needed to get sufficient heat into that small area to spread enough heat to the engine. The oil pan patch you have shown is stuck directly to the oil pan base (typically) and has direct contact over a larger area so probably can work with the lower power consumption and is more or at least equally effective for lower running cost.

I am curious about the Swedish P2 coolant (?) heater. Looks relatively easy to install and you would think it could work on a 99- P80 also with the integrated oil pan oil cooler fitted. Does the heater have a way of circulating the coolant or does it just heat the fluid locally to the heater and use thermal transfer though the coolant to radiate the heat through the engine?

Still looking for a picture of the radiator cover...!

Neil.

[Rattnalle]

I am curious about the Swedish P2 coolant (?) heater. Looks relatively easy to install and you would think it could work on a 99- P80 also with the integrated oil pan oil cooler fitted. Does the heater have a way of circulating the coolant or does it just heat the fluid locally to the heater and use thermal transfer though the coolant to radiate the heat through the engine?

Still looking for a picture of the radiator cover...!

Neil.

Just convection. Since it's so low in the system it works pretty well, to a point, with the hot water making its way up into the top.

It's made by Calix. Model specific but not OE. Unsure if there's actually an 130 V option though.

[skloon]

Does that mount overtop of the oil cooler ? or replace it ? I confess I have the factory one mounted but forgot to plug it in when I swapped the RN into the 850- now that it is winter I don't really want to be jamming my hand up there- although the car started fine at -30 last week

[scot850]

It looks like it just mounts over the oil pan oil cooler. It splices into the coolant hose by the looks of it, and probably uses the original rubber hose cut down. The 110/120V option would be the issue.

Neil.