Volvo 480 Club Europe

Hi have every intention of making the May meet if possible. I do not get the car up to N/Yorks till beginning of April hopefully, although everything appears to work ok it has done very little miles in the last few years. So intention is to change cam belt and water pump and all fluids, full service and new plugs and such. Fingers crossed that it runs ok and if so will do a few short journeys and then a longer run, if every thing runs ok will definitely meet up and convoy to Derbyshire, so here's hoping!

Norm57 wrote: ↑

Sun Mar 17, 2019 10:52 pm

Hi have every intention of making the May meet if possible. I do not get the car up to N/Yorks till beginning of April hopefully, although everything appears to work ok it has done very little miles in the last few years. So intention is to change cam belt and water pump and all fluids, full service and new plugs and such. Fingers crossed that it runs ok and if so will do a few short journeys and then a longer run, if every thing runs ok will definitely meet up and convoy to Derbyshire, so here's hoping!

Fingers cross for you Norm - I am sure with a little gentle waking up the car will be great. Your planned approach is exactly what I did with my GT when I got her: the drive home from Cheshire revealed that she really was half-asleep still, but with a little gentle work she was soon fully awake again! Now, I'd take her anywhere and trust her completely.

If you need a hand with anything let me know - we are only a few miles apart.

Looking forward to our own "mini-convoy from the North" to join the meet in May

Best wishes

David

Thanks looking forward to it if all goes well. I know all too well how a 480 can bite your bum when you least expect it!

arthuy wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 16, 2019 11:35 am

I have doors and bumper in grey if you cant get anything in red.

That is very good of you - I will have a good look at the serviceability and potential of the door and bumper in the next while, and make a decision, once I understand how good / bad they are.

Cheers!

Martin

Am going to strip down & rebuild the instrument panel at the weekend, re-seating all connections & treating with contact cleaner. There is the usual intermittent Speedo issue &the odometer seems to have given up the ghost about 3 years ago - a trip to Brinkie may be in the offing for the instrument cluster..

David has suggested the door strap might be the root of the door drop issue so I'll whip the door card off too & see what lurks inside

Martin Mc wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 11:58 am

David has suggested the door strap might be the root of the door drop issue so I'll whip the door card off too & see what lurks inside

I just slackened the bottom bolts that hold the hinge to the door and inserted a section of ally shim (from beer tin)

as the nuts are captive within the door it saves taking the panel off

Alan 480 wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 12:39 pm

Martin Mc wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 11:58 am

David has suggested the door strap might be the root of the door drop issue so I'll whip the door card off too & see what lurks inside

I just slackened the bottom bolts that hold the hinge to the door and inserted a section of ally shim (from beer tin)

as the nuts are captive within the door it saves taking the panel off

Hmm, I wish I had the confidence that it would be as simple a fix as that. As it stands I think it will be a bit more complicated, as the drop is quite significant - I'd have to drink a lot of beer in order to create a suitably thick shim, and we all know where beer drinking ends up, don't we

Thanks for the advice / insight though!

I've had a trawl through a number of threads seeking any that deal with the door drop issue (and ideally one with pics) but haven't come up with much yet (I seem to remember there have been a few, but I just can't think of appropriate keywords to search - doh!). Does anyone have any pointers?

All the best!

Martin

Would be more inclined to look at worn hinge pins.

Open the door and get some one to lift and lower to see which one is worn.

Cracked weld? Not as bad as it sounds if you are this unlucky.

Martin Mc wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 3:44 pm

Hmm, I wish I had the confidence that it would be as simple a fix as that. As it stands I think it will be a bit more complicated, as the drop is quite significant - I'd have to drink a lot of beer in order to create a suitably thick shim, and we all know where beer drinking ends up, don't we

Thanks for the advice / insight though!

I've had a trawl through a number of threads seeking any that deal with the door drop issue (and ideally one with pics) but haven't come up with much yet (I seem to remember there have been a few, but I just can't think of appropriate keywords to search - doh!). Does anyone have any pointers?

All the best!

Martin

you'll maybe be surprised just how much difference one beer tin can make
remember the doors are four feet long and hinges are only a foot apart, so a four to one ratio, if you need to drink lots of beer then the issue will not present itself cos you can't safely open the door

Hello all,

I've printed out the instructions from this useful 'How to' guide viewtopic.php?f=24&t=18040 and will have a good look at the door situation over the weekend & let you know how I get on

M

arthuy wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 6:01 pm

Would be more inclined to look at worn hinge pins.

Open the door and get some one to lift and lower to see which one is worn.

I think this is a good shout - when I lift the door, there is play in the hinge pins that just isn't there on the other side. In fact there is about 2-3mm play in both the bottom and top hing pin, whilst the door stay set up appears sound. Next question is, how do I replace the hinge pins with a good set? Has anyone done this & could offer any advice?

Martin

You could try replacing the hinge with a used one.

Maybe a local engineering workshop could make you a new pin.

You could try and shim/sleeve the pin. If you got an alloy pop rivet thee right size or a silver from a drinks can that might work.

Martin Mc wrote: ↑

Thu Mar 21, 2019 9:01 pm

arthuy wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 6:01 pm

Would be more inclined to look at worn hinge pins.

Open the door and get some one to lift and lower to see which one is worn.

I think this is a good shout - when I lift the door, there is play in the hinge pins that just isn't there on the other side. In fact there is about 2-3mm play in both the bottom and top hing pin, whilst the door stay set up appears sound. Next question is, how do I replace the hinge pins with a good set? Has anyone done this & could offer any advice?

Martin

i cant remember if they can be turned around? so put top hinge on bottom etc or just rotate the pin(s) through 180 degrees?

Hmm, this is the view inside the driver's door:


Looking at the lower portion of the picture, it looks to me like there has been some welding at some point in the past. Bearing in mind there is damage to the wing, it seems possible that the door may have swung forward violently, potentially causing the door stay to fail & leading to the dropped door I have now.

I've tried adding an aluminium 'shim' under the bottom hinge, having loosened off all of the bolts holding the door to the hinge. Whilst this did reduce the play in the door, it didn't really make a difference to the drop. Not sure what to try next...? Any ideas?

Hmmm...as you say, it looks like there has been some welding there. a bit hard to see but the check-strap itself looks OK.

If a strong wind takes the door it tends to rip the door check-strap out and you get that damage in the front wing that you have got. OK, so that explains that dent and the welding which will have been the subsequent repair. But, if the welding was done properly and the check-strap refitted at the correct angle, it doesn't in itself explain the dropped door.

If things happened as we are surmising, then either the actual door frame and/or the front inner edge of the door the hinges are fitted to may have been twisted slightly out of shape - that would in turn give you a dropped door. All I can suggest next is a careful comparison between those elements on the two doors.

David

arthuy wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 6:01 pm

Would be more inclined to look at worn hinge pins.

Open the door and get some one to lift and lower to see which one is worn.

Pin part number is 3416207 and can be ordered through your Volvo dealer. I just ordered some.

jamescarruthers wrote: ↑

Mon Mar 25, 2019 12:16 pm

arthuy wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 6:01 pm

Would be more inclined to look at worn hinge pins.

Open the door and get some one to lift and lower to see which one is worn.

Pin part number is 3416207 and can be ordered through your Volvo dealer. I just ordered some.

in that case I'd be a real Aberdonian and rotate the pins through 180 degrees
then the door would not drop, only be 'liftable'

jamescarruthers wrote: ↑

Mon Mar 25, 2019 12:16 pm

arthuy wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 6:01 pm

Would be more inclined to look at worn hinge pins.

Open the door and get some one to lift and lower to see which one is worn.

Pin part number is 3416207 and can be ordered through your Volvo dealer. I just ordered some.

They're a couple of pounds each

jamescarruthers wrote: ↑

Mon Mar 25, 2019 12:16 pm

arthuy wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 19, 2019 6:01 pm

Would be more inclined to look at worn hinge pins.

Open the door and get some one to lift and lower to see which one is worn.

Pin part number is 3416207 and can be ordered through your Volvo dealer. I just ordered some.

Brilliant James & many thanks Alan - Since I'll have to take out the existing pins anyway I will have a play around with turning them upside down before replacing them with new items from Volvo.

Now, what is the process for taking the pins out - I presume I'll need a drift / punch and a handy assistant to hold the door up..?

Many thanks

Martin