My first, well, only 480 Turbo...

[Dan the 480 Man]

:: All thumbnail images are click-able! ::

Well, it was only a matter of time.

I'd had a soft spot for Volvo's since i was about 13. My parents used to have a yellow Cortina when i was very little, but the first car we ever had was an old Vauxhall Cavalier...V reg, 2.0. I just remembered liking it as i suppose every child does when it's his Dad's car.

We had it quite a few years actually, until my Dad got a decent promotion at work. He asked my Uncle to find him a new car (in the motors business)-and about a week later, we got a call. All i heard my Dad say was 'i'm not really looking for a Volvo'. All i could think of was something the shape of a hearse . But then it pulled up in the drive. A 1990 G reg Metallic Black 440 Turbo (you were expecting 480 wern't you?). But it was from then i got into my Volvo's.

We had it a few years, and i was truley gutted when we had to sell it. Dad had a few personal issues which meant it had to go. We ended up with a mint (but i still hated it) Met. Black 360 GLTi. I was determined to get a 440, so i did. My first 440 GLEi. I loved it, but wanted a newer model. So the following year i bought a 440 '94 2.0i SE. I modified it a fair bit, chavved it up, whatever you want to call it. I was just glad to be in something different from all the other 'baseball caps' in town. And it turned heads too. But by pure coincidence, i spotted a Paris Blue 480 Turbo on my home from college (i just decided to drive home a different way), being driven by a man i knew who sold on traded in cars. I gave him a call, and he was actually selling it. I wasn't looking for a 480 at this point, but my Dad was. It was a 1991 J 480 Turbo. He paid £1000 for it, one Volvo dealer owner from new and only 61k on the clock. And from then i was converted.

I parted company with my 440 after some serious persuasion from some forum members here, and started looking for a 480 Turbo. It had to be a Turbo, purely because i was old enough to insure one, and i wanted a 440 Turbo but couldn't find one! As some people may say on the forum, i wasn't really fussed about colour . I just wanted one in good nick, fairly low mileage and a decent service history...oh, and fairly local.

I was looking through the Ad's in the Volvo Owners Club Magazine, and for 2 issues running (3 months apart) i noticed a 1993 480 Turbo in White. Tax, MOT etc, good history, 78k. £1750 It had to be good at that price i thought. It was only 40 miles away from me, so armed with my Dad and quite a long list of things to check, we headed over. I couldn't deny it, the car was pretty good condition. However, when we got it home we both acknowledged the fact it wasn't good enough for shows as they had said it was, but you expect that kinda thing!

They were a Volvo enthusiast family, but this had been sitting in their garage for a year, and had covered only 600 miles. I came to the conclusion, even though they didn't come and say it out right, that it had had some crash damage. They had replaced the indicators, long range lights, front bumper, rear bumper and rear clusters the year before. Hmmm. And there still is a little dent above the rear lights and a few little paint runs on the rear quater panel. But, on the plus side. It had been done by a Volvo approved dealer. The car also had a new clutch and cambelt that year, had a FSH, nearly all Volvo. It had a replacement engine under warranty from Volvo after 18k, it had a new Speedo binnacle fitted at Volvo at a cost of £670+ 3 years prior. It was very clean, the splitter was intact, the Taurus wheels were coated in new tyres....it boosted smoothly and quickly. It was sold the next day. I haggled him down to £1350 and i was the proud new owner of a 1993 234 White 480 Turbo. Bloody awsome!

Here are the pics from the few days after i got her home. She's changed a bit, but i'll post more about that another time. And others may take the piss out of white, but i wouldn't change her!

[Dan the 480 Man]

So, i had my first 480 Turbo.

The first real things i attended to were general service items. Filters/Oil/Distributor cap etc. But the first thing to break was the exhaust. It wasn't blowing when we tested it, but it started to blow on the way home. It was the only thing we never really checked, but as we looked at the back box, we saw it caked in putty. Awsome!

So, £150 and a 'Can't get shitter than a Kwik Fit Fitter' later, and i had a new exhaust. The car was running fine, but every now and again would misfire under load. It was a problem that reared it's ugly head now and again.

Then one day, when i changed my Plugs, i noticed a big coil coming out of the chamber. Strange i thought, that shouldn't be there. So i called upon my Dad, and he told me it had been helicoiled. Not having a clue what he meant, i asked him to explain. I was pleased, as i t wasn't something i had done, but pissed off because my car was now uin-useable because some numpty cross threaded the head, and then had a bad coil fitted. I phoned up the previous owner and expressed my annoyance that he had not been honest when he told me about the mechanical condition of the car, and that it just added to the fact i was already annoyed at the whole exhaust situation...

Anyway. With those problems out of the way, i set about some little modifications. Thanks to Catgroom (Steve), i picked up a Jacquard interior. My car was an early 'L', so had the Rainbow pin-stripe interior. It was remarkably good condition, but the Jacquard was what i was after! So, we spent a dark damp evening in his drive trying to fit his leather, which is what replaced the Jacquard.

Over the next few days, i prepped the Torx bolts holding my seats in to make them easier to get out...and it worked! Took me about 45 mins to get all the seats out. I got a wire wool extension for the drill, and took all the underseal off the bolts from the underside of the car. Then i slackened the bolts from inside a wee bit, and soaked them with WD40 over 4 or 5 days.

So, here's the car all naked inside:



...and the Jacquard fitted:



And, to compliment the leather on the seats, instead of binning the original door/dash inserts, i had them all re-trimmed in black leatherette. Crap photo, but it looks good in the car (you can see them in the car on the pics above):



I also decided that i wasn't that keen on the silver grill trim. so rather than remove it, i set to work on it and sprayed it gloss black. This was a theme i continued inside the car, but at a later date. I thought it looked good on the car.



Combine those with the addition of some clear front indicator clusters that christmas, and the car was starting to look quite different to when i first purchased it. It was strange that only a few changes could make it feel like a totally different car...

[Dan the 480 Man]

So, the next step was to get it lowered. There seem's to have been alot of talk on springs etc on the forum, some being too hard, some sagging, some just generally being....crap. So, with this in mind, i set out looking for some springs. I was having a look on eBay, and there was a set of 440/460 series lowering springs, -40mm. This was the kind of drop i was after, so i watched the auction. They didn't state they would fit the 480, but a bit of research turned out they would. They were made by KYB-a make i'd never heard of, but another forum member (Cheers Rohan) informed that they made standard springs for Subaru Impreza's etc, so if it was good enough for them...

6 day's passed and the auction finished-i didn't bid because i knew that bidding was probably going to go crazy. It didn't though, and the springs sold for £35! So i emailed the seller and asked if he had anymore. And he did, they were an end of line product so he was just selling them off. Told me i could have a set for £35 delivered! So i got a set.



They looked all nice and shiney under the arch-and i was getting quite excited. Me and my Dad fitted them with help from the forum and from other members via text message (Cheers Groom). And 4 hours-ish later, and they were fitted. The car now had a nice low aggresive stance, and the difference in handling was very noticeable. And, despite the 40mm drop, it wasn't that hard or uncomfortable either! But anything was better than a 4x4 so...



This was my last modification for a little while-now i wanted to save up for a new CD player and speakers etc. But i was more than happy with the car for the time being. It turned heads, people asked what it was-it wasn't a common car, it was different, and thats what i liked. It was different, it was a break from the norm-and it was bloody brilliant!

[Dan the 480 Man]

A minor modification came in the shape of some clear repeaters and blinkers. Wiljen had the moulds made up, and fortunatley i managed to get in the que for some. I don't know if anybody else ever got any, so i don't know if i was lucky or not! I also took Barclays on in the whole 'unfair charges' thing. They stung me a few quid whilst i was studying, so i got the cash back. I got £150 out of them, which was enough to get me a full set of Toyo Proxes T1-S's. Best tyre i've ever had. They don't wear too quick, they're pretty good in all conditions, but with the springs too, they stick to the road like glue-roundabouts can be taken pretty sharpish now!



So, now the car was looking completely white. Some say a little bland, but i like it. The overall feel of the indicators and white-ness is quite subtle. The black breaks the colour up nicely. Anymore white and it would look too ott. This is how the car is planning to stay from now on. I think it would start to become a little too modified if i had done anything else. I like it subtle anyway. That low on standard wheels but decent tyres give it a kinda 'sleeper' appeal.

[Dan the 480 Man]

In-between the tyres and reflectors, i started work on the car audio. People class it 'boy-racer' having a sub/amp etc, uprated speakers blah blah blah, but it's the same old story-always the minority who spoil it, so alot of the time you're labelled. Yes, i do have my stereo up loud, and it does go pretty loud, but pull up at the traffic lights and i find it more embarassing so the volume goes down

I've had un-necessary systems before-the most OTT being in my 440. But i will say, it was an awsome sounding system-very clear, very very punchy, and throughly ott, but i loved it. It was great. But at the same time, music is something i'm quite into, so having something that has the ability to play things loud if you just want to thrash it but retain the quality is great, and i wouldn't be without a decent system from now on!

So, the marker was made. I built the stereo up. I popped into Halfrauds one day and was just pushing the buttons on the speaker stand seeing what they sounded like. The best set by far for me personally were some Infinity Kappa's with crossovers and tweeters, but weighing in at a hefty £110, and still £90+ on the www, it was a no go. But they did have some JBL GTO speakers, that were end of line reductions. They were reduced from £50 to £35, so i got two pairs-one front and one rear set. They had positionable tweeters-not the ideal sort at all for any hardcore stereo installation specialist, but good enough for me.



They went in the car the following day and the sound quality was excellent-very crisp. They were however, only to be for mid/top end. They couldn't really handle much Bass, but this was ok with me because i knew i was leaving the lower frequencies to a sub.

The speakers did fit the original space, but the speaker covers would not go over due to the protruding tweeters. So i had to do something about it-but what? I wanted to keep the car looking standard as much as possible, so making big speaker pod's wasn't an option. Then i had the idea of doubling up the original speaker covers. If i took 2 of each cover and removed the grill from the bottom cover, would it fit over the speaker? So i got some extra grills, glued them together and hey presto!

But the finish was...well, rubbish. You could see it was just 2 grills stuck together. So, i got some filler out, and literally caked the sides with it. After about 7 hours, i managed to sand them down to a nice smooth finish. I then popped them back on the door to see if they fit properly and looked ok, and they did!



So the next step was to sort out a colour...but what? I did toy with the idea of having them white with black grills... So i opted for the gloss black-to match the black interior parts and the grill on the outside. So i set about spraying them. I applied the same process to the rear speakers and hey presto! They look factory, but with a personal mod'd twist But despite being small, i still have them as one of my faveourite mod's to do date (what a loser, i know...).



So, that was the speakers addressed, now for the CD player & Sub/Amp...

[Dan the 480 Man]

The next thing to change was the standard Volvo cassette player. I'd done alot of research into MP3 CD players-i wanted an MP3 unit, but one that also controlled an iPod. This came in the form of an Alpine AiNet CD player. It had a little box of tricks to allow the iPod to be controlled from the CD player, which is very handy!

Because i'm a show off, i wanted the iPod on display, especially as i wanted thieves to be able to see what i had in the car-so quite a few weeks before, i took the storage compartments out of my centre console, and made a little holder to house the iPod. I also trimmed this in black leatherette to match the black theme/doorcards.



With the CD player in, speakers in, i just needed to concentrate on the sub/amp combo. I had had my eye on a package on the internet for a while, so when i had the cash, i invested. I picked up an Infinty Reference Amp with Infinty Reference 12" Sub (300w RMS), all the cable, with box and in-car Bass Controller for a bargain £150.

Well happy with my purchase, i set about building an install. It was never going to be anything incredible because I didn’t have the skill, but simple and space saving it did have to be.

So I made a raised floor, and fibreglassed over the top of the amp, so when carpeted you knew it was there. To keep it short, it stayed like this for about 6 months. I was always a little unhappy with it though, it wasn't at a standard i was happy with, which played on my mind. I did rush it all in a day too, so it had a certain 'bodged' feel ...



It looked tidy, but i had to do it again. So i set out with a new idea. Fill it with more wood! So this time, i made a proper false floor. I cut out the shape of the box on the false floor, so that it would have something to slot into. I then popped the box in to make sure it fit, and laid the amp on the opposite side. I built up layers of MDF to give the top panel something to sit on. This also had a cut out for the sub box, so once the top panel is on, it won't budge. I cut out a hole above the amp also, so you could see it...more for show again i suppose. But it also matched the iPod holder, black carpet housing a white product. But your amp is Silver Dan! No, i took it apart and sprayed it to match the bodycolour of the car. And i prefer it white too! I then ordered some softer and more plush black carpet-nice and thick, and used spray adhesive to stick it to the top panel. I then trimmed off the excess, popped the top panel on, dropped the rear seats back to position and hey presto. One finished, working install. And i was much more happy with this than the previous!



The bass controller i mounted underneath the steering wheel for easy access. I would like to build it into something so it looks like it was always there, but i don't want to start hacking up bits of interior! I also have an additional 2 switches in the panel above the iPod. The one to the right turns the amp on/off-i don't always like having the sub on, and the one to the left is the spare. I hadn't made my mind up on what to use it for yet, but i had a few things written down! Both had a Blue LED in as opposed to the green one-again, i wanted to keep it looking standard but make it noticebaly different from the others. It looks quite cool in the dark! I also added a tiny red LED to the bass controller, so in the dark i'm not struggling to see the marker, i can see where it is from the glow. And at night, it all looks pretty cool! I changed the CD players display to match the dash etc, so it fits in nicely!



In the last pic, you can see two red LED's pointing down from above the iPod. This was an idea i stole from the Focus ST. They have 'Submarine' lighting-a couple of subtle LED's that light up the gearknob/centre console. They look really good in the flesh, but not so suited to a 480. So i took them out, and have put them somewhere safe-i may try it again, but for the time being it looks better without them-i don't want to start looking like a christmas tree/chav mobile The ariel now goes up and down at the flick of a switch too. It's just a standard rocker switch, but to conceal it i've mounted at the base of the gear gaitor inside, so it can't be seen. So to turn the ariel on, just press at the bottom of the gaitor and up it pop's! I thought that the ariel spoilt the look of the 480. As i have my CD player on most of the time, i didn't want the ariel up all the time with it-but i didn't want to lose it altogether, so this was the obvious solution!

How much have i written??

[Dan the 480 Man]

Between just general maintenance and general cleaning, the 480 was running smoothly. There was a few little bits and bob's aesthetically that needed addressing, but i thought these could be done in my spare time inbetween jobs. They wern't anything major, just little bits....you know the sort i mean.

My main objective was to re-build as much of the rear suspension as i could afford. Everything was pretty decent down there, but a good clean out, update and protect was on the cards. I knew a few other members had tackled it with some success, so a fund was opened to save for this. However...

You know the little jobs i was talking about? Well, one of them was a scab on the bottom part on the outside of the drivers rear arch. So, with a few hours spare, i started to poke about. There was a little rust, but none i thought was too bad. The weather turned bad so i had to pack up. Work the next day, so it had a little Duct Tape over it to stop it getting worse. Well, that was a waste of time. My Dad had a free day, so set about to work on it while i was working. At about 11am on a Tuesday morning, i got a call from my Dad at work. I knew something was up. "I'll just warn you Dan, it's not good. I'll keep going until all the rust is cut out".

Got home at 6pm, and Dad showed me the pictures before he had covered the arches... If you're easily disturbed, do not click the thumbnails...



You could actually put your hand up the inside of the body! And the worst thing, the passenger side was the same now that we knew what we were looking for. The first picture, with the two holes shows how big the scab was before 'prodding' (the top one being the only visible sign to the damage underneath).

So, despite being gutted, and i mean gutted, i picked myself off the floor and grabbed the situation by the balls! Without even a second thought, i called my Uncles garage and booked it in for a review. The guy who worked in the bodyshop said it was pretty bad, but he had seen worse. He was pretty free that week, so mine went down the following day, but if a customers car came in, mine went on the back burner. As me and Dad had done all the prep work, he just had to fabricate and weld the arches back to normal. I popped down on the Wednesday PM to see how it was going. Only had my phone but grabbed these pics:




So, diagnosed Tuesday, in Wednesday and Thursday, home Friday morning...and i was like a dog with 2...you know. I can't deny, i did receive family discount-but what i got charged, including the paint was criminal. It didn't make £200, but we did do all the cutting and prep, so thats a good day's work on it's own at garage speed lol.

I could not believe it when i picked it up...30 years of experience certainly paid off:



No shit, i nearly cried when i saw it. My car's my pride & joy, and to see it Monday killed me, but to see it Friday was awsome. An effin' top job. And for peanuts too. So, if anybody see's a similar scab, or blistering paintwork on the sill underneath, proceed with caution-you could get a nasty surprise!

[Dan the 480 Man]

Well, it's been an interesting few weeks to say the least...

Firstly, i have a Degree, and whilst i was working full time in retail, i couldn't persue it properly. As my retail job was driving me insane, i decided to quit so i could follow my career. So i handed in my notice, and as of the 20th June, i've been un-employed. But thats ok, it was my descision, so i take responsibility for the consequences...

What i wasn't expecting (although i was foolish not to) was the 480 giving me a hard time. First thing to go was the passenger window mechanism. I was using the window one day, then i heard a 'twang' (done it in the pouring rain, naturally). So i got it home and checked it. Yep, mech was bust. Luckily, there are a few 480's being broken at the moment, and not all by Renault owners would you believe (;)), so i managed to source a new (to me) mech from Owen. Cheers dude

But before i got the new one, i repaired the old one. I spent an afternoon sorting it, only for it to last a day, and 'twang...', it went again. But before it went twang for the second time, the alternator packed up, within literally minutes of me putting the repaired motor back in. So i went to the local Auto Electricians, and they said that a part of it had gone. So they replaced the part, but i was still £25 out of pocket. And it was on the way back from there the day after when i paid him for the alternator, that the window mech bust for the second time. Bugger. It's sorted now, but honestly...

Then the other day, an old problem reared it's ugly head...no reverse gear! Lights came on, lever went into the correct position, but the car only went forward. Me and my Dad spent a good day making tiny 'mm' adjustments until we eventually nailed it. We realised that the linkage rod was not only moving side to side, but back and forth too, so we eventually got it all working as it should. This cost me nothing fortunately, just alot of patience lol. More a result of the previous owners ham fisted-ness than anything. They didn't look after it...

Then i had some running problems. Mis-fire, boost problem, retarded acceleration. The first thing i done was adjust the clutch, as i was getting judder at 2k. The clutch isn't very old, and this cured that. The misfire was eventually narrowed down to the leads. Despite having a receipt for these leads, and them only being purchased just before me buying the car, they were shit. The King lead fell apart as i took it off. So i got some new leads, and changed the plugs too (they were approaching 6k anyway). Now the car runs a dream-and it does feel more responsive than before too.

All in all, these little job's have stung me just shy of £100. Doesn't sound alot, but when you're jobless, it hurts! And it hurt more as the money had to come from something i'd been saving for too...now's there's only £40 left out of the £140 i'd saved. Gutted!

So, it just goes to show that you can wax, clean and nuture your car as much as you want, bu it still likes to come back and bite you in the ass when you aren't expecting it! I think she's seen Jurassic Park. She's like a Velociraptor, checking the fence for weakness. She's playing up to see if i'll spend the money without having a job...and you know what? I probably will too Either that or she was jealous of me working on the other halfs new Clio. I think thats more like it. Pfft, women! Still love her though...

[Dan the 480 Man]

Well, with the Cumbria 2007 Meet starting tomorrow, i decided to start packing the car up, as i don't think people will appreciate me doing it at 5 a.m! I'm quite surprised at how much i got in: considering the sub takes up nearly half the width, and there's about 6" lost in the depth because of the false floor, i'm pleased with how much i squeezed in:



2 x folding chairs, tent, groundsheet, airbed, foot pump & some emergency cleaning supplies hidden below the false floor And it covered with ease:



I finished touching up the rusty scab that i uncovered the other day. It was right under the ligth cluster-but i don't really want to remove the light as it's brittle, and the whole water issue i can't deal with, not after all the hassle i've had with it coming in the front of the car! So here's a sad picture of me next to the rusty cover-up



Filled the petrol tank up earlier...the gauge was showing 80 miles left in the tank, so i filled her to the top:



Never done that before! Cost me £47...ouch! Hopefully though it will get me there without having to re-fill...hopefully, i said!

Homer is coming too, but he's not camping-he's just there to talk to if the other half nod's off on the journey.



I keep going to rinse & dry the car, but i'm confronted with this everytime i get out side:



So, to compete with Roo, i took some photo's of my beading from yesterdays wash/wax/re-wax instead



So there you have it. Just gotta pack my clothes, charge up the Video camera, have a sleep then i'm off! I aim to be there around 12/1pm as i've had the opportunity to leave earlier than planned. I'm quite excited, but a little nervous. This is the longest journey i've done in Ursula (aka Persil to you common forum folk )-so i'm looking forward to it, but there's always the little nerves to keep you on your toes.

And for your viewing pleasure, here's an arty Momo shot (i had to wait outside 'cos i got locked out the house...so taking photo's of your steering wheel is the obvious thing to do )

[Dan the 480 Man]

Well, it's been a week and a bit since the Cumbria meet-and i'm still on a bit of a high actually. It was sooo good to see so many 480's together. This was only the second time i'd been around so many since Lincs last year. For pictures though, check my Photobucket page:

Cumbria Meet August 17th-19th 2007

Shame the weather was so bad, but it was still a good meet...

Anyway, to the car. I picked up a few spares whilst away from Rohan. New indicator stalk, a pair of long range driving lights and a Bosch coil, as mine had a crappy after-market one. All thsoe parts have been fitted now, but i've noticed the idle has started to go a bit funny, not quite sure why though. It's ok for about a minute, but then it 'hunts'...hmm. But the car's running so it's all good.

Being unemployed limits you somewhat as to what you can/can't do to your car. And as the 480 usually needs money spending on it, it's a bit hard to just fix things. So i've been sorting out things i've been unhappy with.

One of the first things on the list was to sort my heated switch panel. As per my previous post back somewhere, i had modified it and 2 switches to operate the Amp and a miscellaneous switch. Well, the LED's lit up blue and worked fine....mostly. And as the switches had been put in a slot they were not meant for, they didn't quite fit, which meant they would pop out.

So i took the two spare heated seat switch panels i had and cut out the 'blank' hole on the left. I then cut out the heated switch holes to the same size and glued them in place. I then filled and smoothed the whole panel with the intention of finishing it gloss black, to match the speaker covers. So here's a pic of it originally and a pic of the prototype:



But when i fitted it, i looked at it and thought 'this is going to look shite', especially with the Bass Controller just 'screwed' in where it was too....so with that i thought sod it. I'm going to re-fit the original storage slots, i'm going to put my iPod somewhere out of the way and i'm going to make a little panel for some proper switches and the bass controller so it's all neat and tidy. And that will be gloss black

The next thing i wanted to do was tidy up all the wiring behind the centre console and behind the stereo. So i gathered all the wires up that went into the same loom and taped them all. I done this with all the wires behind the stereo-it stops everything getting all tangled up and is so much easier to fit everything back in properly. So i was happy with those. I also made new looms for the wires going to the amp on/off and ariel on/off switch that i will be fitting in the panel. They're all tested and working, so i popped the larger storage bin back in and left all the wiring at the bottom. It looks mighty cramped, but it's all neat-and once the panel is in it'll be covered. But i need the smaller storage bin to make the panel, so it will have to wait until i'm next at the breakers!



The next task was to re-route the iPod cable. The sender unit is behind the glovebox, so out it came. I left the sender unit where it was, but routed the cable differently. I thought it would be good in the armrest, so i routed the cable there and drilled a small hole, fed the wire through and fitted a grommet.

The wire would reach the underside of the armrest lid, so i thought i'd find a little cargo net and fit it there, so the iPod could sit in that, rather than get cluttered up with the bit's i keep in the armrest...



I took the top piece apart and secured a piece of miniature cargo net round the back. I had folded it in half so the iPod sat in it like a little pocket. I made a small slit at the base so the connector could fit the iPod. And with the lid closed, it won't go anywhere because the wire will stop the iPod slipping out under heavy breaking. Looks quite neat i think!



So, thats that updated. I better shoot off to prepare for my interview (it's only a part time job, but it's better than being a doley ). So to finish, here's my fave 480 line-up pic from the meet.



Actually, make it two fave pics...

[Dan the 480 Man]

Along the way, i've made some small changes to the interior/exterior etc, so i'll have to include them here

1) One of the first things was the digital clock. I also changed the alarm LED to a clear blue flashing one. Looks quite neat as a clear LED, and tie's in with the clear lighting around the outside of the car.

2) I also changed the pillar trims. The ones on the car had 'Turbo' written over the Lambda symbol, so i bought some plain 'Turbo' pillar trims from another member.

3) The Momo 'Daytona' and 'Turbo' badge on the tailgate came from Catgroom. The Turbo badge is from the facelifted 400 series models, and the steering wheel came from the Charger, which i managed to purchase before Roo got the car Cheers Steve!

4) The luxurios touch of a reclining ashtray was added, for all those smoking moments that take place in my car...not. Looks nice though. In this shot too, you can see the new switch panel. The switches go left: 1- amp on/off, 2- Ariel up/down & 3- Bass Controller. Both the amp and ariel switch have an LED indicator so you know when they are on. Not hard to tell really, but the LED gives a neat little touch!

5) Sill plates. I believe Laserowl had some of these made up. Murf won a set at a 480 raffle, i bought them off him, he sent them to Roo, who sent them to his Dad to be polished who then sent them to me. Cheers guys. And the end result is pretty cool too.

6) Footwell lights. This was a mod i made soon after purchase of the car, but i had them wired permanent. I disconnected them as they were too much. Now i have them wired to the interior light relay, so they come on and go off with those lights. Hard to see in the day obviously, but they look pretty cool at night, classy almost!

7) The Volvo snowcap. Thats it really. Still got to get it sprayed and fitted. Looks odd there, but will look better when it's finished and fixed!

8 ) A yet to go in modification-the Volvo Ambient Air Temperature Sensor. Basically, this unit slots in the storage bin in the centre console and gives you the temperature inside the car. Do i need it? Not really! I know when it's hot and when it's cold The unit all lights up and works fine, but the LCD screen is cracked So i sent an email to VDO to see if they can get a replacement screen...6 days on & i'm still waiting for a reply. No replacement screen, no gauge

1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8 )

And a view from the rear seat of the car:



There, upto date mini-mods It's been a long boring day...my birthday too with nowt to do. Can't even go for a drive-the council are re-surfacing and have dug up all the road out the front of my drive Least i've had the day off And there's some beer in the fridge

Oh. One further note. I bought some bits off Rohan at the Cumbria meet, which incuded a new coil and fixing bracket. I put them both on and the idle was lumpy for days. I got a call from Catgroom and he passed on some info that Rich Pruen had passed onto him. The little module on the coil bracket with the red & blue wire on it sometimes packs up, or fails or something. He said if it idled ok before, keep the coil but change the bracket with your old one. And i did. And touchwood, the idle has settled and been fine ever since. Worth remembering! Happy idle

:: Edit ::

Just been out and taken some evening shots of the footwell lights, look pretty cool-obviously nicer in the flesh, but you get the idea. If you don't have them, get them!

[Dan the 480 Man]

Well, i never thought that this would be the next update...i don't know whether to or

Basically, i've reached a point in my life. I've been in the same situation for a few years now, and it's holding me back. I need to move on, and there's a few things holding me back. So i'm selling the 480.

I could spend the money on another Volvo, but i wouldn't have a Volvo in as good condition, and if it needed any work doing on it, i wouldn't be able to afford it because my overdraft is still at -£££ every month (left over from student days). So i'm wiping the slate clean. I'm going to sell the car, clear my overdraft and share the g/f's Clio for the time being. Then when i get a proper job, i can start saving for a new car. It will be a Volvo, just not another 400 series. I'm thinking a nice V70 T5, or a later model (X plate on) S40 T4 o something. But thats a long way off. I'm getting myself straight, so thats the most important thing.

A few of my (non-volvo) friends have known for a while and it's generated some interest, including an offer. It's a good offer, but another friend (forum member) has show some interest and had suggested more than what i've been offered-but running 2 480's may be a bit costly!

I'm not going to advertise it here because i know how much of a hard time i and it will be given. Oh, it's white, oh, it's not a late Turbo, we all know what 480's are like/worth etc. For those reasons it will be an outside of the forum sale. However, if there are people out there who are genuinely interested (or have even read this lol), feel free to PM me. But don't think you can just PM me to find out what i want for it so it can be banded about and analysed by the forum I think people would be surprised at what i've been offered-both from here and private... I'd like to see it stay on the forum with a member, but i don't think that will happen!

So there you have it. In 2 weeks it's going to have a new clutch and could be gone in the next 3. It'll be really, really, really sad to see her go-and equally it'll be sad to leave the forum (even though it's gone rather flat of late!). I love my 480, you lot know i do too. Brilliant, individual car with it's quirks, and still a head turner at 14 years old. But there comes a point where descisions have to be made, and as much as i want to let the heart rule the head, i know for the first time with one of my cars, i have to let the head rule the heart...and man, am i not looking forward to being car-less. Or 480-less.

I'll still be about until the car goes, so no-body's that fortunate but times change, and this is a changing time!

And as i like to put pics in my posts, here's a nice one for good measure

[Dan the 480 Man]

Eh up...

Just spent the last half hour reading my thread-bloody hell i run on...and this post is no excuse I've lifted the bulk of the info from a thread i posted in. I suppose it's just general interest if anybody is reading-leaving my cleaning tips for all to see But i miss not being able to update the thread now. I'm not touching the car anymore, just keeping it running and clean (ish) as it's getting ready to be collected. As most will know, i got heavily into my cleaning, and it did pay off, but it was hard work. But for anybody who's looking to take their car cleaning more seriously, then this is a good place to start. For loads of great advice and for the really anal amongst you, visit www.detailingworld.co.uk , it's an OCD sufferer's dream come true

So, to the post...

I used to use just warm soapy water, then white Turtle Wax to polish, but i'd be doing that everyweek. It depends how hardcore you want to go? Soapy water like fairy liquid will also wash the wax off next time you come to wash it too...below is my list of stuff to get the car 'blinding' (unless your's isn't white, then it'll just be mega reflective). Also, i got the gear (except Cahmois, toothbrushes & buckets) from Halfords in the summer when it was on 3 for 2, but shop around...

Items:
2 new buckets
1 microfibre washmitt
2 sets (4 cloths) of microfibre cloths
Claybar
Autoglym body shampoo (green label)
Autoglym Super Resin Polish (Red label)
Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection (gold label)
Toothbrush, maybe two (not kidding).
Soapy water in a spray.

Firstly, I’d get some regular hot soapy water, wash it, then t-cut the whole car-always good for a first wash! Pop the panels off the above the rear windows too, loads of crud builds up there-and if it isn’t cleaned out, it can let water build up and run down the car, bringing loads of shitty deposits with it-which spoils a clean car lol!

Basically, i do this:

1) Fill 2 buckets with hot water. In one i have autoglym Shampoo, the other is just plain water. This means you can wash the car with the shampoo, but rinse the mitt after in the other bucket. This prevent's you depositing the crap on the mitt in the shampoo bucket everytime you dip your hand back in the bucket. So one bucket to wash the car, the other to rinse the mitt in before reapplying the shampoo.

2) Hose down, the get a good squeegee and gently pull the water off the body of the car, starting with the roof and work down.

3) Get a good quality Chamois and dry totally. Areas to pay attention to are: around the hatch-open the glass boot and dry around the inside. Bang the door strips and side indicators. Blow along the bottom of the black window strips to get excess water out, also along the bottom of the rear lights and in the front corners of the sunroof (if applicable). Then leather off (nothing more annoing than waxing and water running into it )

4) Take your clay bar, and working in squares about 6" by 6", use the spray which comes with it, and work the claybar on the paint work. You want to do it for about 2 minutes. Then dry with a cotton rag. Then run the back of your fingers across the bit you've clayed, and a bit you haven't. The difference is unreal! But you'll need to do the whole car. The claybar removes imperfections, like bird shit stains, some tar, general stains on paintwork etc (but most should have come out with the t-cut). It takes fookin' ages (i got the whole car down to about 2 hours for just the clay), but you only need to do it twice a year. The difference in the end is worth it though. Aslo do not use the same claybar on windows and wheels. You on't want to transfer crap from one to the other. I have 3 bars, one for windows, one for body, one for wheels. And if you drop the bar on the floor, it's game over. The dirt will stick to it no matter what you do to get it off and you'll rub it into the paintwork causing scratches.

5) After I’ve done that, I then wax the car, panel by panel. The microfibre cloths are good, because the particles created by buffing are absorbed by the cloth, rather than being left on the bodywork like a dusty film! The cloths come in two colours, you can choose which one is wax on and wax off

6) The Extra Gloss Protection goes on after the wax. But bear in mind, this has to be left on for half an hour. In overcast conditions, 30 minutes is what I’d recommend, but if the sun is out, leave it on about 20 minutes. If you buff it off before it’s dried out, then it doesn’t work as well. Use your second set of microfibre cloths for this process, again, one for on, one for off. When I stick the Gloss Protection on, I usually start it 2 panels behind what I’ve waxed, e.g, I start waxing at the wing and work back-so when I get to the rear quarter panel, I then start applying the Gloss stuff to the wing. Finish waxing the quarter panel, then gloss the door etc etc.

7) Soapy cold water in a spray bottle-squirt all the down inside the door hinges and scrub with the toothbrush. Job def. Worth doing if you have a white car. I’ll stick the before and after pics up at the end of the post…

I’d allow a good day for all that-so set one aside-but the car will look totally different. The windows I always used to t-cut. Not t-cut with wax in, just plain t-cut. The windows come up a treat. Then if you stay on top of them, they’re easy to keep smear free. I use Autoglym (see a theme developing here ) ‘Fastglass’ now. Just spray on the window, wipe in and buff off-they come up a treat. Then finally, a bit of tyre dressing-shiney paint and faded tyres aren’t a good combo. If you don’t want tyre dressing though, a bit of Kiwi Boot polish looks good, as long as you ‘rag it off’ after.

After the rather extensive procedure, you could probably get away without a wax for a good couple of months. But having a white car makes you obsessive-I used to keep my car’s clean anyway, but having a white one makes it worse. Now I shampoo it everyweek, then every second week it gets shampoo'd/waxed, and every fourth week it gets shampoo, wax and gloss protection.

But after you get a good shampoo and wax routine going, I managed to get a wash, dry and wax down to about 2 1/2 hours. And as I’m an early riser, I could be done for about 10.30 on a Sunday morning, which suited the other half fine! The more you do it, the quicker and easier it becomes.

So there you go. But hopefully the paintwork reflects the effort put in.

Oh, and the second toothbrush can be used to gently prise open the rubber gutter along the top of the door by the roof. If the car's been sitting a while, soapy water and a toothbrush gets all the green mouldy shit out-but do this whilst your giving it it's first wash, otherwise you get it everywhere!

After a good 8/9 hour day polishing...


After Claying the bonnet:



Some comparison photos: clay in dull light and sunlight (all same day). You can see how well the rear lights and windows come up too (although the rear light clusters are only 3 years old, so they were quite shiney prior )









The hinges (clickable images)...yeah, i waxed them too I know i'm sad...:


You will notice in some lights on the white 480's that in certain lights, the wings and the bonnet can sometimes look matte-but it's a trick of the light, although these do seem to wear worst if left in the sunny summer sunshine (not something that plagued us too much this year though )

Well worth doing imo-even if you just do it the once, so you can see how good a whitey can look when effort is applied!

Now, off you trot to Halfrauds! (but don't buy the chamois or buckets there-get the buckets from a pound shop and the chamois from the internet-there's a good company on eBay, i'll have a butchers a bit later).

But enjoy it-don't rush it-it really is worth it at the end. All the above is why you should never buy a white car It will turn you ....


So, there you have it-an extensive and time consuming, but well worth it process. Give it a go you lazy buggers!

:: Edit ::

With regards to the Chamois-these are the guy's i purchased from:eBay Store. Great quality and long lasting. Still got mine from a couple of years back

[Dan the 480 Man]

Well, here we are. I was debating whether i should post in the thread or not, but it's an update i guess, and it's closure on the 480. The 480 has gone. The new owner collected it at 11.30 this morning. He's very happy with it-know's he's got a good car.

I'm going to miss it-the styling, the power, the looks etc, but i'm not going to miss the niggles. The lumpy idle...er thats it! The brakes were a bit squeaky, but nowt too bad. God, it really was good... The car sold for £1390. A good price i think. I paid £1350 for the car on 23/09/05. I worked out with repeaters, interior, stereo, springs, arches etc, that i spent about £1k on the car in those 2 and a bit years (can't believe it's that short a time span, felt alot longer!)-a fair bit i think, but for what that £1k bought the car i think thats not too bad.

Will i ever come back to a 480? No, i don't think i will. I've been driving 400 series Volvo's since i was 18-so it's 8 years of 400's, time to move on. Obviously the main priority is getting a Graphics job, but now i'm debt free, and have no car to pay for, my outgoings to come to a measly £40 a month! So give it 6 months of hardcore saving and i should be looking for something new (to me).

I think it's going to be a T5 of somesort. I'll hang on like i did the 480-i'll wait and spend the money and get a good 'un. I know some people thought i had overpaid when i first got the 480, but it turned out to be a good motor in the end. There's a guy on the VOC forum who has a V70 T5, and his has set a standard for my next car. In true Volvo enthusiast style, it has to be an estate, unless a good saloon comes up. I'd even have an 850, but it would have to be an R or a T5-R. The V70 i'd like can be seen here. 17" Comets, 'R' front bumper and factory lowering kit....yes please.

Anyway-to sign off, i'm going to post some pictures. So, a big thankyou to everybody on the forum for all the help and advice over the last few years. It's been really good-the forum has been a good place at times, and i will miss it. I'll still be about, but it won't feel the same without a 480. Met some good people, and everyone has been genuinely friendly and helpful. And as this will get lost in the depths of the forum, i'll just say this: any 'newbies' debating whether to go to meets or not-just do it. You'll never seen a much finer automative sight that travelling on convoy with loads of 480's...just do it

I'm , but also a little ...

















Laters!

[Dan the 480 Man]

I had a PM when i popped online from VBB, so just checked it. He removed the quote from this thread, but quoted it for me so i could use it anyway. Cheers dude

i know we're not supposed to, but what the hell.
good luck with whatever you decide to get dude....and dont loose touch with the 480 world....
not sure how many people knew, but i was that close to being the owner of this car....and yes, i would have paid what Dan asked....it IS worth it.

hope the new owner looks after it as much as you have buddy

rgrds
rob

It's little things like this that seperate this forum from many others-people are polite, but genuinely friendly also, and i think i'll miss just as much of that as i will the car-the 480 community carries a certain additional appeal to owning one of these car's, and people who are a part of this community are very fortunate, as cheesy as that sounds.

Cheers for that too Rob. It is a shame it didn't go to a member, as i know he won't sign up here-he's not an internet user-so it may disappear completely. But on behalf of Ursula, she wanted to thank everybody and all the lovely friendly 480's she met over the last few years. She did take out her revenge on me though-the passenger seatbelt didn't retract before she left, i tripped on it, cracked my head on the body of the car, and the dorr slammed against the side of my head...that was her goodbye

(Oh yeah, my mate has just informed that the car is going to live in a garage-he got it especially so it keeps in good nick-so hopefully it will always sparkle...but he also informed me that it's getting a cold. I mean a Dump Valve. Next week... )

[Dan the 480 Man]

Well, despite no longer owning a 480, it doesn't mean it's all over...

My Dad has a '91 Paris Blue Turbo. He's made a deal with me-if i have moved out (as in, my own house) in the next 18 months, he's going to let me have his 480. He doesn't want it to go to anybody else, i think he wants it in the family. Hopefully he'll keep his end of the bargain, unless something drastic happens before!

He's had it about 6 years now. It's a 1991 J. It was a demonstrator when new, then the Volvo garage owner bought it, so he's the 3rd owner, but i guess only really the 2nd. It had 61k on the clock, and even now os only touching 74k. It's garaged and comes out a few times a month (at the moment, about once a week!). It's got a FSH too. He paid £1000 for it, which was a bargain!

It was pretty dirty when he got it, but Dad being Dad, he's got it pretty clean. Here's a few images from the day he got it:



The car has remained virtually standard, apart from a few minor changes. He changed the orange indicators for clear ones, and also changed the repeaters and rear reflectors for clear ones too. The wheels were replaced with Pictors which were refurbished at a cost of £140. They look pretty good too! The Volvo Radio/Casette was knackered (but still got it), so it was changed for a Sony CD player. The steering wheel is a leather one from a TT. But other than that, thats it. He keeps his cars pretty clean. The engine was filthy when he got it. So over the course of about 3 years, when he had a spare afternoon, he set about cleaning it.

The pictures below are as it stands now:



So, hopefully it'll end up mine . I've got a few changes planned. I may lower it as 480's sit too high for my liking, but it won't be as low as Ursula-more likely a 25 or 30mm drop. I've got a soft open ash-tray (woo hoo!) to go in, and early spec Turbo pillar trims (without the Lambda symbol). I'd quite like to change the wheels to a set of Vega's (already had a member contact me and offer me a set should things work out in the future-cheers [you know who you are ]) or a set of Taurus, and i'm toying with the idea of a different interior-maybe a Jacquard as i'm not that keen on the pinstripe interior. The only thing good about it's current interior though is that it's bloody clean! I'd like a Rich Mod for it too, but it doesn't look like it'll happen. But incase anybody does have one sitting around, it's a Red label ECU

But not to be too hasty, i'll see how things pan out...watch this space