In 2008 I bought a 1988 740 wagon. I live in the desert and travel washboard dirt roads to get to the pavement. Not my first Volvo. Back in 1969 I returned from Viet-Nam to spend 8 months in Germany and had a 122. Getting back on subject, the car is well maintained and runs and drives as expected. In 2011 a clunk developed from the right front, The previous owner had the strut inserts replaced and the tech hadn't sufficiently tightened the large insert retaining nut, the nut backed off and the strut was going up and down within the tube.

I took it apart, not an easy task when nothing is holding the strut assembly together and was able to nicely start and thread the retaining nut. Well, last month the left side started to clunk and I knew I should have checked it back in 2011 but was too lazy .. and to make matters worse, knowing what the noise was I was lax in getting it apart to fix it and the tube is now junk.. totally my fault for being lazy and having back-up cars. But I love the Volvo.

I located a 1986 780 turbo. The question is, will the strut tube be the same? Can I put my sealed bearing hub on the older regular bearing spindle? I don't have ABS and don't think the 780 does either. I have Girling calipers. If the 780 has ATE, will the knuckle bolt pattern be the same to use my Girling? Thanks for your time .. Frank (in Arizona)

 

They should be the same, the 780 is a 760 mechanically. Still, there are variations. And that 780 cannot be a turbo, the turbo was not available in '86, not that it matters. Can't you find a regular 740 strut? Parts for 780s are generally hard to come by...

 

Evening,

Thanks for the response. Well, it's definitely a turbo and production date was 9/85 if I remember correctly. I glanced at the deck lid and could swear I saw 780 as I remember thinking "780?". It's (don't cringe) at a friends scrap yard having been turned in as metal scrap. I marked it "do not crush" so I'll go back on Monday and confirm. I remember it had a factory equalizer just above where my ashtray is. Other than a locking differential, is there anything else I should check for on the car? I'll pull the wheels and inspect the struts, aluminum rims were the same basic design as mine but had a hub cap twice the diameter.

 

I am not doubting the 780, I am questioning the TURBO, the 780s came with a PRV SIX cylinder in '86' and '87, then added the B230FT as that 6 is not so great and the Red Block is more powerful especially with the Turbo+ the 780 had...

Again, no matter for your purposes... The front struts should work, the rear, not, as the 780 has the IRS suspension with Nivomats. Also, things like struts should be replaced in pairs...

 

a 780 is a Bertone built 2-door. it also had a independent rear suspension, that was only found on the later 760s (and all 960s). if the lights are in good condition, they are unobtanium and becoming increasingly rare as they only ever made 1700 or something 780's.

 

I'm wrong. Why I thought it said 780 is beyond me. The car is an '86 760 (production 9/85). B230f Turbo engine with a fresh head. The block is red. Mileage on the clock is 232k.

I brought everything needed to remove the strut but came to a stop when I removed the grease cap and saw that it has the early castle nut and tapered bearings. My '88 740 has the later ball bearing hub. Are the spindles the same? Will my mechanical interference axle nut thread on, torque down, and properly lock? and lastly, the 760 has Bendix calipers and my 740 has Girling. If I can use the early spindle design will my 740 caliper stancheons (brackets) mount to the 760 strut assembly? Neither has an ABS.

Or.. should I drive the 240 miles round trip to Vegas and get the 740 struts? ($27.50 complete with springs at the pic-a-part) .. you know what .. I'm going to make the drive up to Vegas .. .. on an added note, the 760 had the Volvo graphic equalizer and a neat set of 3 way rear shelf speakers with adjustable crossovers. So, all was not lost. I never jacked up the rear to see if it had a locking differential but if it was available that year, I bet it does as the car seems to have every option. .. Thanks for everyone's time.

 

me, I would have bought some new shocks, odds are old used shocks are shot already.

re: the stereo, you probably should pull the amp thats under the dashboard on the far left side near the firewall. black rectangular brick, has a DIN connector (get that din cable too, other end is plugged into the stereo), and a rectangular connector or two that has power and speakers. pretty good chance that 760 has a different/better amp than your 740, assuming you have one at all.

note the later 760s, along with the 960s (and the one-year 940SE) have *completely* different dashboard wiring harnesses than a 740/940. the fuse panel is moved, the relays are moved, etc.

 

Mr. Pierce, thank you for the response. New inserts wasn't an option as the damaged tube is the reason for replacement.

The 740 has been off the road since October but with the Arizona summer coming up I need it back in service as I converted the a/c system to R134a back in 2010, ... properly, .. with all new rubber, components removed and flushed, re-oiled with medium weight PAG100, new drier and a variable orifice tube. The variable orifice tube works great.

But I'm on a budget, fixed income, other automotive projects, etc. so the SS check doesn't go far. Property is paid for but it still doesn't go far. I drive the car like an old man (because I am), as long the insert is in decent shape it'll be fine for me. I don't need new, I don't want stiff. It just has to work.

On the spindle. They are different and not interchangeable. So, the early 740/760 strut tube that had tapered roller bearing hubs is different from the later models that use the sealed (not really, easily repacked) ball bearings.

I'll go back tomorrow and get the sound system and get the rear end up in the air and check the differential. I don't need/want it but if it's a locking unit I can sell it and I certainly need the $$. Should I put the effort into removing the head? Any resale value? It looks like 1000 miles fresh. Intercooler? Ducting? ... oh, The fuse panel is in the same spot as my '88 740 (I grabbed the lamp sensor). .. Frank

 

shucks, take the hubs and brakes to go with the new spindles!



a clean prepped head is worth maybe $100, or at least, thats what I paid for one that a list member had and didn't need, it was all machined and cleaned up and ready to bolt in.