Hi everybody! Just got a blue 1998 S70 three days ago with about 187k miles. It's my fourth car in a year 1st one was sold, 2nd and 3rd were junk (Im on a super low budget so I cant afford to go buy a great car) I got this car for free and so far shes running smooth, no problems except dirty or bad speed sensor (it works sometimes) I'm pretty sure a hoarder lived in it before i got it, and its a MESS... like ew. I am a car lover, so she will be taken care of, Im thinking exterior detail soon?

These are pictures of when I got her, more will be up soon !

 

Hi Cali Girl and Welcome to the forum.

Looks like you got a deal. Pretty straight body. You can look in the 850 section and read the NEW 850 OWNER link to learn how to care for her. The #1 thing is to make sure it has a timing belt within it's service change. That'll kill you if it breaks. My daughter has one like it. One of Volvo's best cars ever made.

 

Thanks! I will certainly look at that, and I got a Carfax service history and the only record showing it got changed was in 2000 so it shall be added to my list of things to do! First thing is to do the timing on my Bug and sell her though haha

 

Hi Croco!
And an update, I just picked "Hanna" up from Lawrence Volvo and the diagnosis is not so great.

"Car is not safe to drive in current condition"
Left lower ball joint coming apart
R F Wheel speed sensor wiring sheared off (cause of ABS light on)
radiator hoses leaking
Possible water pump leak
Sever oil leaks (possibly rear main seal)
PCV system clogged
A/C condenser & Accumulator damaged
Timing belt over-due
Serpentine belt cracking
Lower and Upper motor mounts collapsed
Front Suspension clunking
Both F outer CV boots torn open with no grease present

I will be ordering the Lower ball joint, CV boots, Radiator hoses, and a Water Pump tomorrow from RockAuto.com and I will be paying a visit to my buddies at Napa Auto Parts either tomorrow or Wednesday for a few other things.

 

Hey Cali: That's about normal for these cars when they are ababnoned. Take care of the timing belt, PCV (cause of many oil leaks), coolant leak, and suspension and you may be fine for a while. A lot of us purchase stuff from www.IPDusa.com and www.FCPEuro.com. They sell pretty good parts that last a while. Be a little careful with the suspension stuff. It's best to go OEM.

I hope you have some DIY help with taking care of that stuff. Otherwise it will get expensive real fast.

 

well at least u avoided the car payments, and the prev owner avoided the needed repair costs.

Rubber compounds, howsoever good have well defined life..be they on a Mercedes or on a Ford Pinto. If the radtr is intact and only hoses are leaking and never blew..the car design deserves some appreciation.

won't change the cv boots now...that dry CV joint/s is/are gone...at this mileage.
Check the total cost [labor + part]of changing boots, vs changing entire axles[more parts cost but labor maybe less].

I m sure ure not thinking of detailing any more...neither u should..seems the car may need clear coat. For its age macco or so maynot be injustice.

 

And...
While changing radtr hoses, [and T Belt], may wanto flush the engine+ htr core, new coolant...and thermostat[low temp],
and no need for 50/50 mix in CA, I am using 60 water/40 coolant ratio in MD, hoping it won't get to -10 F. You maybe fine with 65/35..but don't drive to N. Canada in Winter...or else !.
[Pure water conducts heat better than Ethylene/ propylene Glycol coolants.]

Use of thicker oil [regular high mileage], in hot CA maybe a good treatment/remedy for the engine seal leaks, if they re not 'pouring' !

...some one here may ve had success with engine stop leaks and can suggest.

Looking at the list u re handed...seems u may ve to cook at home rather than eating out, at least for a few months, but it may turn out 'healthful' for you and the new Volvo !

Good luck !!

 

Thanks guys, the service adviser said the ball joint needs to be changed NOW. So that will be first, then timing belt, and so on. And labor is free as I have full access to a huge shop and I do my own work. I just need to worry about the cost of parts.
@RSPI Thanks for the recommendations! Ill check out those sites asap!
@Swedllander The report says radiator and hoses leaking, but i'm going to test that myself within the week because I have NEVER seen anything leak from this car, and i'm used to looking for my Bug's various crazy leaks of all sorts. And wow thanks, I didn't think to look into the joint itself looks like they run about $41 to $91 on Rockauto. I'm going to look on All Data tomorrow to see whats involved in changing those.

I'd love any more recommendations!
Thank you guys!

 

You can find repair info DIY in the 850 and S70 sections here. Also, when you post to those forums here the experienced guys are glad to help.

Another good site to find help on is www.MatthewsVolvoSite.com. They have pretty fast response there and a LOT of repeat post. They have a good repair database with lots of pictures so it's easy to follow along.

Don't forget that the S70 is a newer version of the 850 so the DIY fixes are almost the same from bumper to bumper.

 

Got to appreciate the Mathew's site....

Ball Joint/Control Arm Survey

Control arm brand advice

“I just replaced both A-arms with the $38 ones from FCP. Considering it only takes less than 30 minutes per arm to change, I don’t care if they only last 1-2 years.
Also, I’d like to hear from the group that has bought the cheaper version that their a-arms are still going strong after 2-5 years? You always hear about the failures but rarely do people comment when nothing goes bad.”
Ball joint/control arm survey

 

Sold my VW Beetle on Sunday so I can now order my CV half shafts and a timing belt kit! I already bought a lower control arm from IPD for $45
My Dad is going to get some work done on his car also, he has a 1999 V70 and he needs a timing belt pretty bad never changed 150k + miles

Btw has anyone here done seafoam? I'm super hesitant so i'd like to hear from you guys.

 

some people say "if you buy a used car, you're buying someone else's problems" - I hope that's not your story
Good Luck

 

My Dad is going to get some work done on his car also, he has a 1999 V70 and he needs a timing belt pretty bad never changed 150k + miles
...........

Have u heard 'If t ain't broke...don't fix it' !..LOL!!
I wonder if the proverb means.'Wait till its broke' !
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Btw has anyone here done seafoam? I'm super hesitant so i'd like to hear from you guys.[/quote]..

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Have used it since about 10 yrs.
Started the use on a lawnmower, which rarely burns the mixture properly, so gets more carbon deposits than its share.So was impressed with the 'suet' coming outa exhaust. Then it was $4.99 a can,now some charge almost $7.00 or even $8.
Recently used on an Audi, both in Oil and Fuel.
For fuel its ok to use the strength suggested, but in oil use less amount particularly if ure oil is already below 10w/40 grade.But Audi uses 20w/50 so I used the suggested dose.
Now I wouldnot drive the car too much[like max 100 miles], and then change oil...considering the SF as a flush.
Lot of people swear by it...so its not that dangerous or explosive,..yes its flammable...
But so is 250F oil in the frying pan !!

 

I have never used seafoam. Some people use it every 50,000 miles. If you do decide to use it in the oil, change it within 100 miles like Swed says.

I have heard very few stories about people having probems after using it. Probably the straw that broke the camel's back. I was on the fence about it but decided not to because my car is running so well. I was considering it because my intake is so dirty.

 

I believe it was the case with this one or the previous owner probably wouldn't have donated it, but I can handle what problems this one has especially since the car was free Parts cost me a total of $328 for lower control arm, 2 CV half shafts, timing belt kit, and a water pump.

@Swed and rspi

Thanks for the advice on SeaFoam! I think I want to see a friend do it first though lol My dad might try it for his transmission.

 

SF In transmission...?

Thats where I will be careful unless :

Its an old transmission, not sensitive to oil viscosity and temp limits.
Don't know if reg Seamfoam is recmndd for Tr or a specific version.

For shifting issues, a very good Trans mech told me Lucas works better..not for flush but as an additive. Have used it on old Audis w/o a bad outcome, but with minimal benefit, maybe the temp sensor in mine, is the culprit delaying the shift, and Lucas or even a prayer to almighty maynot help !


[The newer Trs are so refined, with 5 speed/steps and for effcy reasons, that a simple use of 'different grade' [Dexron III instead of V], causes problems.
I suspect the detergents / additives here do a goodjob cleaning the orifices, so donot recmnd an oil change....yet the clutch pacs wear, whether normal or ineffective cooling, brings the final breakdown.
[Some additives, quite expensive claim temp reduction as much as 30F, don't know how to trust and verify



HEAT kills, friction just starts it...

 

He has his original 1999 transmission, and I saw on sea foams website that they have a specific transmission additive which I think may help him. We don't know what the issue is with his... it shutters from R to D and occasionally stalls :/

My car delays shifting until 3 rmps sometimes 4... is that normal???

 

Have used Seafoam fuel treatment to very good effect in various Hondas, Fords, and Jeeps. With both carbs and EFI. Run it through everything I own every spring.

Used the Seafoam trans treatment in a 2001 Ford F150 that I also got for free. Repaired a Chevy for a landscaping company that went bankrupt before they could pay me, so they gave me the F150. 170000 miles and some employees hooked a 16' TA trailer to it and tried to haul 10 pallets of sod. Its a 4.2L V6 with AT. Needless to say, they stuck it, and it wouldn't pull. Flushed with new ATF, and then drove it about 80 miles, flushed again, drove it about 250 miles and it was hanging shifts so put in the Seafoam, have put 40000 miles on it since then with no problems.

I see you figured out that labor is smaller block to replace axels than to just replace boots.

New to Volvo, but not to auto maint.

Do the safety stuff first. (brakes, suspension, lights)
Then the reliability stuff. (leaks, overdue maint.)
Then the cosmetic.

Max

 

HELP! Please!
https://volvoforums.com/forum/volvo-...y-smoke-60991/

 

ive put seafoam in my car, no problem. Wasnt what i was expecting because the gas around here is high in cleaning additives, my intake ports look like new.