New (to me) 850
 

I just bought a '96 850 sedan w/144 K on it. I am new to Volvos.

The PO didnt know why you would change a T-belt and the only documentation that he had on it was in '02 @ 50K (it is probably due one now, maybe). The engine #, is it on the white sticker on the T.belt cover? I assume that it is marked as Ser. Number.

It needs a left cv axle as it clicks when turning. Is that any harder to do than most other FWD cars?

The AT trans filters....are they a filter or just a screen? Do they need to be changed? Is the AT cooler sufficient? I didnt.notice, but is it in the radiator?

It has a short in the dome light circuit....I assume.that will be a bear to sort out.

850's timing belts are due at 70K miles or 7 years so given its new to you and you don't have records, I'd change it along with the idler, tensioner and serpentine belt. Its not a hard job as there is no VVT.

Serial number is on the timing belt cover as well as the engine block on the firewall side of the #1 cylinder

CV joints are just like any other car. You can buy rebuilt axles for a fair price online and there should be vids on YouTube for the how to.

For the transmission, you can refresh your fluid one of two ways - you can do 2-3 drain/fills (each drain gets about 60% of the fluid or you can buy a flush kit, which is essentially some hoses and buckets that tap into the cooler lines. Just make sure to use the correct fluid type spec'd in your owner's manual.

For the dome light circuit, start with the wiring diagram to see what's on the circuit then try to isolate end components.

two good resources: Volvotips.com and volvowiringdiagrams.com

I wouldn't risk driving it until all the timing belt components are changed.

It is now parked until the T-belt comes from Rockauto... which end of the motor is #1? Bell-housing or pulley end?

Pulley.