Hey guys,

Just got a 1994 Volvo 940..it's old and has 150k miles, but the owner I got it from had all of the service records and the mechanic check-up before purchase went well.

Here's my questions. I'm completely new to Volvo's and not very experienced with vehicle maintenance in general, but I'm kind of a DIY guy, thus why I want to know all I can about keeping this car going strong (and look nice!)

First off, I'm going to do a check on the brake pads tomorrow (the brakes seem to be a little whiny and the mechanic placed the front ones at 30%). Will this require actually removing the entire tire (and if so, anything to watch out for during this process) or are the pads visible without removing the tires (as I've heard some are)?
I'm taking the car in for an oil change at place close by, partly because they are offering a brake check along with the oil change for a good price. I'd like to compare my own reading of the brake pad thickness with what they give me.
If I do have to replace the front brake pads with a mechanic, what should I expect to pay? Less than $400?

Secondly, the rear plastic black bumper has a scrape/scratch area with some bent out portions. I'd like to just heat this region up and 'melt' it back onto the bumper to remove the holes. Is this easily done? What sort of tool should I use for this (roommate suggested a blowtorch...sounded kind of overkill).

I went a little wild and bought a lot of general vehicle maintenance stuff while shopping today. Plenty of the normal stuff, like jumper cables, extra oil, etc, but also a few weird ones that I'm not sure about. I purchased something called "Slick 50: Automatic Transmission High Mileage Treatment" which claims to 'help elimate shudder, restores atf additives and viscosity, and prevents transmission leaks' Is this useful or did I trick myself into buying something useless? From my check of the transmission dipstick, the fluid looks fine and doesn't smell burned, but there is a little bit of a lag/shudder when the car is changing gears at 40-45 mph...adding this won't hurt, right? The directions say that the engine should be 'warm and running before and during application', something that sounds a little dangerous to me-or is that fine? Can this stuff be added without draining any of the current tranny fluid (is there a danger in mixing or possible too much fluid?)

Finally, I noticed that brake fluid level, while not too low, was not at the full mark. The owners guide recommends Volvo brake fluid, whatever that is, and I purchased "Prestone Synthetic DOT 4 Brake Fluid" (supposedly "good for all DOT 3 and 4 brake systems!"). Any tips about using/when not to use this stuff?

Oh, and as I was turning (turn signal on), the 'Bulb Failure' warning light came on, then flickered off for a second or two. The light never came on the rest of the few miles I drove home. Is this something to be concerned about (electrical wiring issue) or is it rather minor?

I'm sorry about the "newb-ish" questions here, it's just that I'm trying to learn alot of stuff and I hope this is the right place for this. Thanks in advance everyone!

 

Congrats on your new car.

I would return the Slick 50. I wouldn't put any "treatment" in the tranny.

You should not add brake fluid to the reservoir unless there's a leak in the system. The level goes down normally as the brake pads wear.

There is a good FAQ for brake pad replacement on the Brickboard.
http://www.brickboard.com/FAQ/700-90...ePadDiscussion

 

Thank you for that excellent link! All the help I can get I really appreciate!