tuner4life

12 hour round trip over the weekend and the car did great. I did throw a CEL for the stupid MAP/Baro sensor code (P0108) early on in the trip, so at the next gas stop I removed it threw it on the ground a couple times and re-installed it and all was well for the next 500 miles or so. This is the best this car has been in my ownership in every way. I'm ecstatic. I think I'm pretty much done working on it for this season, just going to enjoy driving it and focus on prepping for the 5 speed swap this coming winter.

It's been too long since I've updated this.. There isn't a ton of new stuff happening, this car is pretty dialed and I've just been enjoying it. The front coilovers are holding up alright, the threads are rusted as I expected, but I'm not planning on moving them, so I don't care. They ride smoother and nicer than the IPD/Koni combo that used to be the standard for a lowered P80.. The rear coilovers however were crap, the shocks were too bouncy nomatter how they were adjusted, and the springs liked to come loose in their perches when the suspension is as full extension.. So I went back to the IPD springs and some new Shocks in the read and it rides much better all around. In fact, I'm looking forward to taking this car on a 13 hour round trip in the near future and I'm finally confident/comfortable with it. The next thing I did was fix the horrendous headlight situation. I was not in a position to drop the $ on some jewels or ABMs, so I did a lot of research and decided to give some LED drop in headlights a try. I used Fahren bulbs in the low and high beams, and some generic matching kelvin rated fogs. The fogs are meh, but the headlights are actually pretty remarkable. The low beam light is better than I've ever experienced from standard US P80 headlight housings, I am not sure how the cut-off is, but I haven't been flashed yet, so it can't be too bad.. The high beams however are like daylight. They are amazing! So, anyways, if you are looking for a budget way to make your OEM lights better, give them a try. I'm impressed. The only issue that this car still has is a small ATF leak from the pass side axle output shaft seal. I've replaced the seam 3x now and it still leaks, so I'm just gonna let it leak until next winter when I swap in the 5 speed.

Just do what I did and really get the purists panties in a bunch

Thanks guys! I love the C70. It's really just another, less practical P80. But it has way less rattles than a wagon, and worst window regulators.. Pick your battles I guess. They definitely don't get the love they deserve.

I finally got the ride height dialed how I wanted it. This is all the way down on the Maxpeedingrods front coil overs for anyone who cares. I removed the lower adjusting collars, and the spring perch is now tightened down directly against the lower body of the coil-over. This is the stance I've wanted to achieve for a decade and the crazy thing is that it drives way smoother than the R which is on Koni Yellows and IPD springs.. Anyways, it's all aligned now, and the A/C is charged and working. All is good with this car right now.

Here's a little custom project I finished up yesterday. I know many of you will probably call me a masochist, but hear me out lol. So after I installed the aftermarket Kenwood head unit, the Dolby center speaker hasn't worked since. TBH there is no real need for it with the new setup. Since the C70 has no great pillar gauge pod options, I always thought it would be cool to replace the center speaker with a pod. So after a couple years of daydreaming about this, I finally dove in. I ordered a generic dual gauge pod from amazon, and then using a dremel, I flattened out the original mounting plate on the dash.. then a couple evenings of fiberglassing and smoothing/painting, I have a result that I'm happy with. This pod holds glowshift boost and Wideband A/F gauges as well as covers a passage for the radar detector wire to enter the dash. The finish is black hammered spray paint covered by a matte clear coat. it's not perfect, but matches the dash pretty well.

It's been a little while, but not much has changed on this car. It still has the same quirks that I went through in a recent post, but I also drive it almost every day and I still love everything about it. Just figured it deserved a little love as it's been a while.

So this car has survived a couple years off the road, and now has survived a divorce and yet I managed to hang on to it. I have been working on it all winter but just recently finished up all the work and got it back on the road. I forgot how much fun this car is. I can't wait to cruise it around this summer. So the list of things I've done recently include: -Timing belt service -Rebuild whole front suspension -Rebuild whole rear suspension including deltalinks and bushings -Installed coilovers, and then decided to put the IPD springs back in the rear as I didn't like how the coilovers fit back there. No complaints up front though. -Fixed several oil leaks and maintenance things -Pulled dashboard and did all A/C parts, heater core, silicone hoses throughout, fiberglassed the dash tabs, de-stickyed the buttons, etc. -Replaced all brakes, rotors, and calipers. Upgraded to 302mm and painted the calipers -Fixed several electrical gremlins and got the Kenwood stereo working great with the SC901 amp -Added a boost gauge and a wideband A/F gauge. Currently working on a pod for them in place of the dolby center speaker * gasp * -Added IPD intake kit -Custom turbo-back exhaust All of the above adds up to a car that feels amazing to drive and it's better in every way then it used to be. And on top of that, i no longer have to worry about my ex crashing the bumper into parking stops lmao. I'm going to be taking it to a local cars & coffee this weekend so I detailed it up, polished all the aluminum under the hood again and got the paint back to a presentable level. I'm really enjoying thins thing now more than ever!

They are a huge pain even with the tool, but it's doable. There is no way I would have tried without the tool! Build season should be good! Finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel with everything else and things are looking up. This thing will live again soon

Well, this has gone about as well as the rest of 2020.. Between Covid, work situations, and a divorce that God willing will be final soon, this project has kind of been on the back burner. Hoping to have it all back together and better than ever by spring. Here's to build season! 🍻 This was the result of several evenings work. If you know, then you know.. 🤣 What a pain!

Incredible work as always! This car just keeps getting better!

Thank you! I'm using the Maxpeedingrods coilovers. I know they are cheap, but when the cost is less than a pair of Koni shocks, I won't be out too much if they don't last. I did ride in a car that had them and it rode surprisingly well. Firm and planted, but smooth. They also seem to have positive reviews among the P80 Facebook communities as well. I guess time will tell.

I have a massive pile of parts in the shop and have started digging into this car again. Thank God for FCP and their lifetime warranty! I am replacing a number of engine, suspension, and other parts that I had previously replaced and had either gone bad or wore out after years of use. They don't care and they stand behind their warranty, if a part is bad, they replace it. Period. I got the coilovers installed several weeks ago and set the initial stance. The fronts are adjusted all the way down without removing any of the lock rings. I may go a little lower later, but I do want to actually drive this car. I anticipate some settling will happen, so we'll see. Once I was satisfied with the coilover install, I pulled it back in the shop for the rest of the projects. I have so far finished up the tie rods, control arms, etc. Upgraded to 302mm brakes with all new calipers, braided hoses, Zimmerman coated rotors, Akebono pads, etc. I got everything cleaned up nice and painted. Love it or hate it, I think it looks good, and the blue compliments the orange nicely. I also finished up freshening up the engine with new timing belt and components, replaced PCV hoses, all new cam seals, front crank seal, oil pump seal kit, replaced all coolant hoses, intercooler hoses, and vacuum hoses to silicone. I also re-polished the parts that I had done previously and polished the OTE pipe as well while I was waiting for the new parts to arrive. Overall just tried to get it back to a stage zero mechanically and pretty enough to show. Still on the to-do list is: -Dash removal including: mounting tab reinforcement, heater core, A/C evaporator (and all other serviceable components), coolant firewall junction and seals, clean up the previous stereo wiring, and a handful of other little projects. -Drop rear axle and replace the delta links, joints, etc, parking brakes, regular brakes, and brake lines as I have destroyed them trying to loosen. I have Zimmerman rotors, Akebono pads, new calipers, and stainless hoses for the rear as well. Once all of that is done, I will finish up some work on the stereo, and cosmetics, and finally figure out the proper spacer situation so that these wheels fit right. Bonus points, I should probably find an exhaust while I'm doing everything else. This one is starting to get crusty.

Over the weekend, I went to the Gilmore car museum in Michigan for a Volvo gathering. It was brutally hot, but there was a nice turnout, and I got to meet many great people. Even parked next to the one and only Robert Spinner! Also to note, this is probably the cleanest that this car has ever been in my ownership.

Thanks for the refresher on the dash tabs lol. I'll be having to do that on my C70 in the next month or so.

I think I just had a PTSD episode looking at that bare subframe. It takes a ton of work to get that mess apart and cleaned up. Great work!

Holy crap man!!! This is outstanding!!

This thing is so cool! So much work and attention to detail! Great job!

Haven't been driving this much over the last year due to kids being hard to put in the back, and some lingering maintenance issues.. Well, I'm hoping to get it back to 100% by mid summer. There was a camshaft seal leak that has compromised the timing belt. I don't anticipate a problem immediately, but that needs to all be replaced in the near future. The suspension and brakes are also in need of some attention. This sill be a slow project like everything I touch, but I did grab a set of Maxpeedingrods coilovers.. Couldn't argue with the price, and I had a chance to try them out on a different P80 in person and I was very impressed. They seem to be getting good reviews from other P80 owners as well, so I'm going to give them a shot.. The biggest complaint I hear is that they rust kind of fast, but since this car never gets driven in the winter anymore, and I don't mind keeping them lubed, they should be fine. More coming in the near future..

Over the past weekend, I went up to a friend's place who is also into Volvos.. Met up with Dan Maley and let the Saffrons have a little quality time together ;) Nothing much else to note at this point. Winter mode is still in full effect, I pulled my annual stunt of ripping the rear splash shields off in a large puddle again. Salvaged the right side and am in need of another left.. Upcoming summer plans are going to include: -Stereo system -Tweak rear springs (currently on cut R springs and Euro Nivos with drop bolts. It's a litttle bouncy, I want to try Trimmed XC springs and see if it's a little smoother) -More maintenance and chase pesky little issues -Jewels or ABMs if I'm feeling frisky.

The ABS does not engage in a full panic stop situation. Last winter I was able to lock all 4 wheels if I push the pedal hard enough. The only time I get any ABS activity is when I'm on the brakes as well as turning a corner. (Imagine turning at an intersection with a green light.. Not coming to a stop, but just slowing and turning at the same time) Sometimes in that situation, I do feel the ABS pulsing for maybe a second sometimes (definitely not locking any wheels up so not sure why it would run). Not a consistent thing. The speedometer has always worked. I have checked the main plug and it seems to be clean, pins straight, and engaging fully. The 2 wires to the motor look and feel brand new and the plug is intact and fully engaged.. I'll keep checking things. Might just send the module in to rule it out.

My dad did the re-soldier. He is some sort of certified professional when it comes to soldiering and micro soldering, so he definitely knows what he's doing. The unit that he repaired in my C70 about 7 years ago is still working just fine. I do have an unopened module from the junkyard. I might eventually send that in to Midwest ABS. I just have a hard time spending money on a feature that I don't really like anyways lol. I guess at this point it probably would have been cheaper/easier.

Alright! Looks like the forum has finally been fixed (nobody has been able to post anything for the past week) I got the downpipe and both o2 sensors installed and it sounds better, doesn't rattle, and CEL is gone! Feels faster too actually working correctly. This is nice lol. I rebuilt the oil cooler lines and ATF lines. Yes, I did the oil cooler lines a few years ago, but used screw type clamps and they started leaking. I used oetiker clamps this time and all new seals/o-rings. That should hold up much better. I re-attached the tailgate panels - check that off the list I took the brakes all apart and re-lubed all the moving parts. Also adjusted the e-brake and greased the moving parts. I also fixed IPD's terrible front mounting points for their skid plate. They use rubber expanding plugs that fit the front of the subframe. Those promptly failed and even after replacing the expansion plugs several times, they just weren't holding. I decided to just weld lock-nuts to the subframe. Now the skid-plate is firmly attached and won't fall down anymore. Sorry, I didn't get any pictures of this, but it's pretty straight forward. Lastly, my biggest frustration.. I replaced the ABS motor unit with a known good one. The ABS/TCS lights went away for about 10 miles then came back on (See picture below of me thinking I actually had no lights, they came back on not 5 minutes later *eyeroll* ). I guess I just need to find someone who can actually scan this and see what the issue is. -ABS motor unit replaced with known good part -Module has been resoldiered -Every sensor has been replaced with new I'm honestly ready to just remove the lights from the dash.. The brakes work just fine, TCS is a joke in an AWD car, and I am not a fan of ABS anyways.

I haven't updated this much since I've just been driving and enjoying the car. (this section of road is prettymuch closed to traffic due to a bridge repair but I have to use it to get to my house so it's been nice and abandoned lately ) I've been daily driving it all summer and it has been a champ. Just rolled over 262k miles. The 18" wheels are definitely the best looking size for these cars, but due to some road construction on my daily commute, I am going to throw the 17" comets back on for the rest of the season before winter. I pulled it in the shop to catch up on some pesky little things that have been stacking up. I'll post about them as I go, but here's the list: -Install 3" IPD downpipe to replace the old EST piece. -replace o2 sensors -rebuild oil cooler lines and ATF cooler lines -Swap out complete ABS unit (all sensors good, and computer has been rebuilt/replaces multiple times, but still have ABS/TCS light -Re-lube brake calipers and adjust e-brake -Re-work better mounts for IPD skid-plate. Rubber expansion plugs no longer holding well. -Check over suspension and replace any parts if necessary (I think rear outer toe rods from Yother are wearing out). -Re-attach tailgate interior panels -Right front window motor getting weak -etc? The first thing I am working on is the exhaust. I got this done over the weekend. The new downpipe is evidently an early (possibly the first) IPD 3" downpipe for AWD P80s and was built by CJ Yother. I bought it from "Saffron-R" over on Swedespeed over a year ago because my old one was rattling. I only got the front section, so I used a tapered reducer to adapt it to the 2.5" "rest of the exhaust". I haven't started the car yet but I anticipate a deeper sound and slightly better flow. Should be fun. I will be making an ad for the old EST downpipe soon. And installed on the car. I am still waiting for the new 02 sensors to show up. The front one won't come out of the old downpipe, and the rear sensor at some point got tangled up in the prop shaft and the wires got shredded. I guess that would explain why the CEL wouldn't go away. I've got this nice 90 deg o2 spacer on the new pipe in hopes to avoid the CEL due to lack of cat.

I feel the pain with the headlights though. I own over 10 cars and I can get crystal/projector/custom/etc headlights for almost any of them way cheaper than a set of decent Jewels or ABMs for my X70s.