Hi all! a friend recommended I get a 200 degree thermostat for my 95 850 (NA) to help it give me better heat this winter. Just did a Heater core and I no longer smell coolant. It heats ok, but not the flame thrower heat I was used to with my old 240. Where could I buy a 200 degree thermostat? Thanks! Dave

 

I would not recommend doing that, only about 10° difference, not worth changing it back and forth.

Which climate control system do you have? I usually use auto but you can turn it to floor and crank the temp **** all the way up and you should blow youself away. I usually don't like it to warm, puts me to sleep.

 

I'm with him /\ Not worth the trouble.

Any chance you have the ECC automatic climate control and you get the two blinking lights (Recirculation and AC off) when you first start it up ??

 

No, not that heater control, just the regular one. I have no idea how old the thermo is thats in there, thought maybe a new thermo (whatever temp range it has) would help me get a little more heat. It seems to put out heat pretty soon after starting, just not blazing hot. Kinda over extended on purchasing volvo parts lately, need to build up a few more bucks into the "car repair" envelope...Plus I need to fix this heated seat! Dave

 

Does the car heat up quickly? Does the temp neddle point to 3 O'clock?

 

yeah, dont remember if it gets as far as 3 oclock, maybe more like 4 oclock, I'll check on my drive home. Seems like it warms up quickly, within a couple of miles (at 50 mph or so). dave

 

Sounds like you need a new thermostat if it doesn't get to 3 o'clock:

here's the 92 degree C (about 198 F)
1993-1997 Volvo 850 92 Degree Thermostat with O-Ring

or 87 degree C (189 F) pretty sure this is OEM
1993-1997 Volvo 850 87 Degree Thermostat (Wahler)

 

Well I checked last night and this morning, looks like the guage goes to about 3:30. definately not straight horizontal, maybe 10 degrees below 3:00. It was about 50 degrees out this morning. dave

 

Doesn't matter what the outside temp is, the neddle should get to 3 O'clock. A lot of people don't realize it but the 3 O'clock position indicates that the motor is at normal operating temp. It may be at 3 O'clock when the temp hits 175 and stay there through 220. So, anything below 3 O'clock may be as low as 160 degrees. Considered a cold motor. It should get to at least 182, where most stats start to open. Replace it asap. It will also help with your gas mileage, you're likely running rich all the time.

 

rspi- well I can handle a 13 dollar part, maybe that will be my weekend project. does my temp guage indicate that coolant below normal operating temp is not reaching my heater core? I have looked at the plugs recently, they look nice and bright, not dark as I would suspect with a rich mixture.

 

Make sure you have a good torx bit to change the thermostat. Many have used a cheap bit only to strip the head on the torx bolt and then it is a real pain to get it out. When I had mine out I replaced the torx bolts with hex bolts. You might want to do the temp sensor while you are in there too. I don't think it costs much and you will have it out to do the thermostat.

 

Jim- Sounds like good advice. Sometimes I feel like they use a few too many Torx bolts on these Swedish meatballs. Like the door hinge bolts! Dont remember if the housing has torx on it or if its been changed to hex. It will have hex bolts on there soon! As for the temp sensor- yeah I should change that too, seems like these cheap, quick repairs the dollars always creep up and up. Thats what I get with a 16 yr old 200k car...

 

Thermostat replacement instruction on a 1995 Volvo 850 T-5

My t-stat instructions.

 

When a I fixed my oddometer gear I took all the needles off inside the instrument cluster and didn't get some of them back on in perfect position. I know my speed is actually 5 mph more than what is says. Not good when somebody else drives the car.

I thouht my temp gauge was off also because it seems to sit right around 3:30 or 4:00 istead of right at 3:00 for normal temp. Well this morning I got stuck in some very heavy traffic and sat idling for quite some time. I noticed that my guage went up to a little over 3:00, not much but a little. Then when I started moving again it dropped down to below 4:00.

Couple things:

Does it sound like I need to replace the thermostat? Pretty sure I have one that is brand new that I bought for one of the other cars and never put it in.

And: Could somebody take a picture of the instrument cluster wihen the car is not running? I will take my cluster back out and try and get the needles set in the right place.

Thanks, Jim

 

Just one thing to add, i would put some anti sieze compound on the treads for the housing. Mine was a pain to get off. Make sure the Torx socket seats level in the head or you will tears the bolt head up. I found that a wouble extension 3/8 works great.

 

You got it Jim !!

Just in case mine are off, anybody else have theirs in a different spot ??

 

Someone else suggested this and it makes sense. These can be a bear to get out. If you don't want to take a chance stripping the torx head just replace it with a same length hex head bolt. I like the quirky torx but in this application it's just too risky if you strip the head.

 

The t-stat gasket keeps it sealed.

@ Jim: As for the temp, it's probably best if you hook up a OBD-II reader and read the car with the temp at what you think is normal. If it reads under 180 you know it's low and the stat needs to be replaced.

 

Agree w/rspi; you can ck w/OBD2 reader but sounds to me like its time for a new therm. The whole point of it is it's supposed to keep the coolant temperature relatively constant (once engine has got up to operating temp) regardless of outside ambient temps. Mine stay at 3 o'clock, within a couple of degrees, year round.

 

Thanks for the picture and the advice. I know my temp gauge, gas gauge and speedometer are off and my turbo gauge is not working at all after I put it back in. It's such a paid to take the cluster out though and every time you do it there is a chance of breaking more of the plastic.

I will do the thermostat this weekend I think though. Like I said pretty sure I got a brand new one laying around somewhere. I don't think I've ever changed it on this car either.