I have a 1999 xc 70 and the radiator is leaking, but now the weather is cooler i haven't been having to top up the coolant too much, which is good. Anyways my awesome mechanic said it would be $800 to replace and im like... huh???
So i called a couple other places and found i can get the same thing done for half that price. I feel bad though if i were to dodge my volvo mechanic and go elsewhere as he's so good to me with all my questions and doing little bits like replacing lights for free. Anyways i had a look online to see how complicated replacing a radiator could be, and honestly it looks quite simple. And i can get the new volvo radiator for $235. But my question is, the site i was looking at wasn't just to a volvo car, but it boiled down to 2 hoses and 2 bolts (sounds simple enough to me) is that all there is to removing mine? And ofcourse removing the neg from the battery and draining the coolant from radiator before taking off hoses then bolts. ???? please help.

 

The first question I have is, how much mechanical stuff have you done before?
Changing out a radiator is not in itself a difficult job, but there can be a lot of other things to do to achieve the job.
Things like automatic transmission cooler lines, electric fans need to be removed and set aside etc.
The process would generally go something like this on most modern cars:
Drain coolant.
Remove transmission cooler lines and set aside, tie them up or plug the ends so they don't drain the transmission.
*You may have to remove air intake ducting on some modern cars, it depends on model etc*
Unplug and remove radiator fans.
Loosen and remove top and bottom radiator hoses.
Remove any temperature sender wiring from radiator.
Unbolt radiator from car and carefully remove.
Set old radiator next to new, verify it is correct radiator, then transfer any fittings, sensors etc over to new radiator.
Fit new radiator to car and bolt in.
Fit fans, hoses and transmission cooler lines.
Fill cooling system with fresh coolant and bleed cooling system (this is where someone with info specific to your car will have to help).

I'd suggest having a look at either a workshop manual, or just have a good look at your car. If you can see how it all should come apart in your mind, I would say have a crack at it!
The worst that could happen is you get stuck half way through and need to call for help.
Or if you get stuck, post up here and we'll walk you through the rest of it.

Regards, Andrew.

 

well thanks andrew for your response.. but after reading it and me not having any previous mechanical experiance i think im going to leave this one to the experts. i took a look under the hood and it looks more complicated than the video shown online. volvo's are not built like your typical american car, as soon as i popped the hood theres a big plastic part covering the view of the radiator and that threw me off. although i could see where to detach that plastic, i can only imagine what other obstacle lies beneath. i would probably only get a half hour start on it, then the kids would be trying to help!
unfortunately im going to have to go with the cheaper volvo guy and not my regular, which im sad about...
... I'll cross that bridge later.

 

Go back to your regular guy with teh other quote and see if he'll come down on price. He might or might not, but at least you gave him a chance to get the work.
Nothing wrong with admitting the job is too big either, it was a big job to me at one time in my life as well!

Regards, Andrew.

 

My darling if i lived closer to you the job would have been half done by now. But i live over the pond in England. I am sure some one on the site will give you a hand .I thought that was what club sites are all about, friendship. Hope you can get some help. And good luck. oldgit.

 

You know Andrew thats exactly what i wanted to do, give my mechanic a chance, but when i mentioned this to my husband he looked at me like i was stupid and said dont bother... He thought that would be a bad idea..
My car got fixed yesterday for $450 and i do feel bad about it.. now i'll just have to avoid ever going to my usual again.

And oldgit, nice to meet ya, Im from the over the pond too. I moved from Scotland 8yrs ago. And your comment is the attitude i miss the most from my people. Back home everybodys always willing to help in anyway possible or even do the job for free as long as your feeding tea and biscuits and a few beers to go home with! Over here in the big country nothing is for free, its all fend for yourself out here.. until i found this site ofcourse! Its great knowing theres always people on here offering advice.