Some episodes from the life of my 480

Here you can start a thread about your 480 days. Only the starter of the thread is allowed to fill his thread, and only one thread per person. Threads are simply a personal diary.

Moderators: jifflemon, coyote1980, Rachel

Post Reply
User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Wed Nov 28, 2012 3:59 am

Fitted the new gas strut on the rear window.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sat Dec 15, 2012 7:54 am

The car is more wet in the boot then I thought. Replaced the papers in the spare wheel space because they were soaked. There was a lot of damp inside the car, so much the front screen was damp on the inside. I dried and cleaned it all.

I have purchased a new car cover which will not only keep my paint in better shape I hope but also keep the car dry. However I was unable to put it over the car because of the rain and the car being dirty. The weather is going crazy. Snow, frost, rain, one day you don't know what the next will do.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Wed Dec 19, 2012 8:17 pm

After I went out with car on Monday and had it parked, when I returned the windows were damp again. The replaced paper had become wet again, but certainly not soaked. After some thinking I concluded, this must have been caused by the heat from the exhaust that is under floor. It was really nagging me, I had to go work on this.

Finally day without rain today, so I went to investigate the incoming wetness. I had to drag buckets of water to the parking and poured them over the side. There was no sign of water coming trough the area I had earlier foamed with Polyurethane foam. So I put my attention to the rear light. After repeatedly pouring water from the roof I saw some traces of water that could be coming from the rear lights. It's very hard to see actually.

Shortly after I purchased the car, I had sealed the rear lights with very expensive marina quality silicon that would last for ever. But now, on top of the lights, cracks could be seen and I could easy remove parts of it. So I removed all from the top, dried it and applied other very expensive marina quality silicone. No rain forecast for the next days though, so I'll have to wait for the result of the job.

Next I tried the antenna cable. No luck there. The part coming from the antenna is thin, but the end going to the radio is thin as a hair. I don't know if it is supposed to be that way or if down the wire is a thicker end and this is just a single strand. It was getting dark so I put back the interior trim and went back to the daily issues.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Wed Jan 02, 2013 11:36 am

Apart from work on the wet passenger foot well I've also applied the very expensive everlasting marine quality silicon under the rear light. It seems the very expensive everlasting marine quality silicon I've had applied there a couple of years back is disappeared. What's left was hard and loose.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sat Jan 05, 2013 5:41 pm

Found time to wash the car, but not to wax it. Immediately after washing I checked inside. The boot was dry! Also, no traces of wet in the passenger footwell ... this is weird.

Now that the car was clean, I finally could put it under the new cover. It makes a much better impression then the first one. It's made from much more sturdy material. It fits tightly under the front and rear bumpers. There are two ducts to enable wind out that comes under it.

If the water in the footwell is coming from above, it's now protected. When I visit my brother, I will investigate using his garden hose.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Tue Jan 08, 2013 5:59 pm

Here's a pic of the car undercover:

Image
undercover 480
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Fri Feb 01, 2013 10:02 pm

A lot of work has been done today. I visited my brother and we tried to find out where the water under the carpet might have come from. Well, we found nothing. No clues, no leakage, no water. My brother works as an engineer for a major truck factory and designs heating and ventilation systems. So he is no stranger to the subject and has a serious approach.

The past weeks the wet had mostly dried. Only near the center could we feel some damp, and we suppose that area had not been reached by the papers used to absorb the water. We used the hose to wet the car on all imaginable locations, but water would not come in. We removed parts from the center console to look behind it and look for traces of water, but nothing found.

Meanwhile it had started to rain and it kept raining during the rest of the day. After finishing our research, I drove to Germany and back in the rain, and still no wet inside. My brother had the idea to put a few pieces of wood under the carpet and the damping material to allow any damp out. I'll keep an eye on things down there.

I've been thinking if it might have been coming from the rear, but I have never seen any trace of wet going from the boot to another place then the spare wheel compartment.

While we were removing interior parts, we took the opportunity to fix the heather control lights and also the light in the light switch. So tonight, at least I've seen the light again ;)
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Mon Feb 04, 2013 9:59 am

Just reported the wet issue in Body & Interior. Not happy.

When returning home Saturday night found a plastic bit in the drivers foot well: the bonnet release lever had broken off!
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Tue Feb 05, 2013 9:49 am

A picture from the recent frosty period:

Image

water drops had frozen and sunlight was reflecting and refracted on it making it look like little gemstones.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sat Mar 09, 2013 2:46 pm

A lot has happened. Here's the story:

The door mirror demanded a quick fix. The temporary tape was a good solution but tape will wear out and the longer it stays on the harder it is to get off. Also it is not aesthetically pleasing. I was able to get a door mirror, but from abroad. A Volvo Service reported on my enquiry they had a scrap car with mirror without the cap and the mirror but with the aluminium frame. It was well over an hour away, but I had an appointment in the area anyway so I decided to go there first. The aluminium frame is sort of permanently fixed with the part that goes onto the door. So I came home with the unit of frame, door part and wiring. From the scrap car I also purchased the bonnet release lever which had recently snapped on my car.

Image
metal fatigue

Image
aluminium frame and broken frame

After removing my mirror from the door I began work on taking it apart and re-assembling it with the 'new' part. This is a terrible job. The door mirror is designed not to be disassembled. There are nasty plastic notches everywhere that break off when you try to remove the parts. The mirror from the scrap car was apparently ripped off, and the mirror motors assembly was damaged so much it was of no use. So I had to transfer that first. However due to being exposed to the weather, one screw had rusted and become so tight I couldn't get it of. The head of the screw was in bad shape so no luck with the screwdrivers. I had to saw it off. You can see that end on the image above.

Image
good mirror motors assembly

Image
rear view mirror

The mirror itself is clicked on the motors assembly and to reach the notches the outside cap had to be removed. The cap is fixed with 6 plastic notches, 2 pairs of 2 facing the opposite direction, and two single notches on the far end. After carefully unlocking the pairs the single notches turned out to be broken off.

Image
left broken off single notches, right double notches

Image
black surrounding frame

Worst part of assembling the mirror parts was getting the cap back on. This is the final, irreversible step. It would not go past the black door frame, and the notches were offset from the holes in the frame. Brute force might kill things! After long fiddling and applying detergent finally somehow the notches snapped. I had made a fix to the outside notches with kit and tape so that they hopefully at least would get into the holes.

The job took me an entire afternoon. The cap is not as tight as I would it like it to be. I used black sticky stuff to keep it in position but there is still a gap. Time will tell if I have to go for a full replacement or this will do. Of course I do not turn the mirrors in any more when putting the cover over the car....



As if the episode which the mirror isn't bad enough, I discovered oil marks on the pavement where my car usually parks. First thoughts, someone with a leaky engine parked there. As the marks sustained, and appeared on another location where I parked, I began to think no not my car, this could not be...
Alas, a fresh piece of cardboard revealed it came from my car. Well, to the workshop and lift the car to see what's happening. This turned out to be a leaky drive shaft seal. I had to get it fixed. The mechanic told, they had trouble finding one. The usual suppliers couldn't supply one. The Volvo dealers only understood gibberish from their question. Finally they had one from a transmission service.

Just before bringing the car into the workshop I discovered a window rubber on the right side door being loose and the door rubber also less tight. So I also had that fixed by the mechanic. After washing the car, no watermarks could be found in the right foot well. That's promising. I also had applied silicon to the center panel between the lights, and hey, no new watermarks in the spare wheel bin either! Right now it's raining all day, but the car is clean and put under the cover. But I'm sure it will be exposed to rain sooner or later and it will become clear if the leakages are definitely fixed.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sat Mar 16, 2013 7:19 pm

After a night and a day out in the rain, snow and melting snow without being covered, I inspected the car. Again there was wet in the foot well and in the spare wheel well. Not to much but still. The trace in the foot well was just before the plastic cover of the sill. In the back it dripped from the license plate lights wiring on the spare wheel. How it gets on that wiring I still have no clue. I can't spot it coming from the tailgate window rubber, as GlasgowJim suggested. This definitely is going to be another garden hose session at my bro's.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Wed Mar 27, 2013 6:20 pm

The Dutch RDW (DVLA) is now showing more license information on-line. An important feature is it is now displaying the number of owners a vehicle has had. In my situation it confirmed I am the second owner.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Thu Apr 11, 2013 9:39 am

Last Friday I was able to visit my brother and we worked on the car. First replaced the spark plugs. From my parents home, I drove about one mile to him, so the engine was a little warm but not hot. This time the cables came off thanks to the tip from jamesy12345.

Then the water leakage, we removed the door trim and my brother poured water while I looked inside. After a while I noticed water coming in the from the bottom of the window seals at the small pillar. However this water went through the door and out from the drain. Not nice, but it didn't went onto the floor.
After more sustained water pouring, finally I saw water coming in from under the front quarter window. Exactly where it would hit the floor.

We could not exactly determine where it came in on the outside, but my suspicion is a narrow seam on the slant side of the window. Anyway it was to narrow to apply silicon into. Since I had to put back carpet and trim I decided to apply the last of my new very expensive marina quality silicon at the inside under the rubber where the water had came in.

Image
silicon applied at the front quarter window

With the trim in place it's hard to tell if water is coming in, until it's too late. So I had to think of a solution to that. I taped a plastic bag flat on the sill so that water would drip from there not onto the floor but on papers I have put on the floor.

Image
solution for detecting water coming in and keeping it away from the floor

There wasn't any time left for looking at the rear, so that's for the next visit.

The next day my brother wanted to use my car for transporting his daughters friends to a birthday party that's why I had to put the trim back in place. I also vacuum-cleaned the car so it was tidy.

After all this time for a drive across the border and do some shopping and re-fuelling. I calculated a fuel consumption of 11,5km/l or 32.5mpg, my worst figure ever! With the new spark plugs things look a little better now. But I keep asking myself if I should have the valve clearances checked.


While my brother was having a children's party, I had to drive my parents to a senior party. My dad has a 2001 VW Golf with the 1.6 engine. It's delivering a little less HP about 105 and weighs about 150kg's more. But boy does that make a difference! In 4th and particularly 5th gear not much happens when flooring the pedal. Where the 480 really takes off, the Golf very slowly and restrained accelerates.
On the good side are, it has a cruise control, very good seats and is less noisy then the 480. Also the straight-line stability is rock solid. Steering is more heavy and it's not so eager to corner as the 480.


Finally, yesterday the 480 was shod with four new tires. I had chosen Fulda Eco Control HP because they had good results in the recent test from German magazine AutoBild. Also my previous Fulda Carat Progresso tires never have let me down. Except maybe on wear. The front tires lasted about 25.000km or 16,000 miles, the rear tires about double that. My dad did 70.000km or 44,000 miles with the Continentals on his Golf...


Image
Volvo 480: you have to bear with it...
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sat Apr 13, 2013 6:54 pm

First drive with the new tires today. I am a relaxed driver, but I like to take roundabouts and cloverleafs. It might be partially due to the worn old tires but these corner much better, less understeer, more grip. The same with a firm take off from a standstill.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sun May 05, 2013 7:47 pm

Again excitement. I went to my cousin and while reversing into his driveway I had to go over the side walk. Some revs to make it over the hump, I felt a shock or so. Looking in the mirrors parking and when I looked forward again white smoke came from under the bonnet. My first thought, the clutch. But it functioned so not that. Then the cloud disappeared and from side walk to the car was an oil trail. What's going on ...?! Looking under the bonnet first impressions are the power steering. Meanwhile my cousin had come outside and was a bit worried about the oil on his pavement. I had him sit in the car and turn the wheel and rev the engine while I looked under the car. Wheels turned and not really much more oil was coming down. We decided to move the car onto the road and phone the Wegenwacht (breakdown help).

After not very long a very friendly wegenwachter arrived. He heard my story and went to investigate. These people are very well trained and clever. He checked possible sources of the oil with the lost oil. It wasn't from the power steering nor the engine. He looked under the car and let me start the engine and turn the wheels. Not from there. Maybe the air conditioning? The A/C was tested and OK. Then he had a thought. Did the Volvo 480 have a hydraulic engine bracket? He made a couple of phone calls and it was confirmed. We looked again and he started the engine and worked with the clutch and it was all to obvious, yes, the engine bracket.

In the circumstances the least worse that could happen. I would be able to continue my tour. The wegenwachter did like the 480 and after some chatting left to help other people. I then started thinking if and how I could get a new engine bracket. Phoned my workshop to look it up but non to be found. I tried my luck at the stealers and they had one. Later I checked other Volvo parts sources but none there too. So I'm lucky I can get one in the first place.

After continuing my tour I refueled in Germany and calculated 7,6l/100km. Better then last time.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

the engine bracket

Post by Van » Sun May 19, 2013 10:00 pm

So I had collected the engine bracket from a Volvo dealer and they even gave me a rebate, yes at Volvo they did, without me asking for it. Sometimes miracles exist.

So made an appointment at my workshop to drop in the car, take one of their cars to go to another appointment and then take the repaired 480 home. It didn't work out that way. I thought it wouldn't be a hard job but they wanted me back late afternoon. While walking the dog a phone call: if I was aware this was not an easy job, involves removing the power steering and A/C pump because the bracket was under those. The mechanic wasn't properly informed it was the rear bracket, at the bulkhead, not the one at the front. Good thing he phoned before taking most of the engine bay apart!

A little later the next phone call, they definitely would not get the job done that day and the next day they would not have time. Meanwhile I had another problem with their courtesy car. When opening or closing the doors, the key would twist as if it was made from tin. So bad I didn't want to lock it any more, as the key might break off. It was then decided to change cars and bring the Volvo back in on Thursday when they could work on it.

Thursday morning brought the car in the workshop and returned home. While finishing some household tasks, a phone call came in. "We have a problem." Oh dear, what's it this time? "You have the wrong engine bracket. This one's for front right." The car was lifted, the old bracket removed and the engine supported by a jack.
The mechanic had looked up the rear bracket at general parts suppliers but it would cost more than double the cost of the front bracket.

So the Volvo dealer was phoned. A colleague had done the job and apologies. They were able to order the correct bracket, which was slightly more expensive. It would be delivered at night so I could swap the brackets next day.

Next day I went to the workshop again, got the wrong bracket and another courtesy car with a solid key, and drove to Volvo to swap the brackets. They had been so good to charge no extra costs so I kept my rebate. Then dropped off all at the workshop and finally, in the afternoon the Volvo was ready.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sat May 25, 2013 6:48 pm

Van wrote:With the trim in place it's hard to tell if water is coming in, until it's too late. So I had to think of a solution to that. I taped a plastic bag flat on the sill so that water would drip from there not onto the floor but on papers I have put on the floor.

Image
solution for detecting water coming in and keeping it away from the floor
I had to leave the wet car yesterday out in the rain. I checked at midnight and this morning, and the paper was dry. That's good, seems my repair has worked out good.

I also looked into the spare wheel bin, miraculously even the newspapers in there were dry. And we had some rain. And it's cold. Can't believe it's end of May. I can't remember ever having to wear my down coat in May.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Mon Jun 03, 2013 6:16 pm

Not that I needed it much so far this year but I had the air conditioning serviced. It turned out about 1/3 of the system fluid was left. I went to a Bosch Service station. Was treated friendly and considerate. And even the bill turned out better than expected. And I can spot the difference. Lots of cold coming in now. I like it for hot days, but also because of my dog. With dogs you have to be careful with heat.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sat Jun 08, 2013 9:35 am

Finally some sun and warmer weather. Thursday went south for a family visit. During the trip I felt the A/C began to work less. Until I looked at the outside temperature: it had increased from 18 to 27! Yesterday fueled in Germany for 1,60 euro/liter, the 'lowest' price in months. I just calculated an average of 13 1/3 km/l which should be ok for mostly motorway and city driving, partial with A/C on.

In Germany, prices of fuel go up and down all day. It can happen you drive into town and see e.g. above mentioned 1,60 indicated. Then when returning it may be up or down by as much as 8 or 10 cents. The prices are dictated by the big oil companies. A common policy is, they go up when commuters are likely to fill up, and down during the day to increase traffic. Also apparently on Monday prices are lower. When surrounding petrol stations lower their price, the others will follow within minutes. Holidays and days off by default mean an increase in price. According to the guy from the petrol station I often visit, even the closing rate of the German stock exchange is used as an excuse to change the fuel price. It's a terror and psychological war.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

User avatar
Van
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 833
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:27 am
Location: Ich bin ein Berliner!

Re: Some episodes from the life of my 480

Post by Van » Sat Jun 22, 2013 7:44 am

Van wrote:I had to leave the wet car yesterday out in the rain. I checked at midnight and this morning, and the paper was dry. That's good, seems my repair has worked out good.
Again the car was out in the rain. Time for a final check. My device-for-detecting-incoming-rainwater-through-the-door had stayed dry! Then I moved my fingers over the carpet and shock and awe: a wet spot :(
The location is marked by the keys on the photo. I tucked in some papers to absorb incoming wet before it will get under the carpet and on the floor.

Image

To me it looks like it's coming from behind the plastic trim. My current guess is, it has to come in from the rusty spot on top of the A-pillar. I've watched rainwater dripping in there. Thinking of a way to detect this, I thought that maybe I could inject a little bit of replacement printer cartridge ink into the opening and if the papers would get coloured it would reveal the water is coming from the A-pillar indeed. But I have not yet tried it. I have a guest over and I don't want to bother him to much with the Volvo's peculiarities.
after over 10 years parted with the 1995 Volvo 480 ES 2.0

Post Reply