I just made a great junkyard trip. Got a keyless entry receiver and dash light for it - I hope the key chain xmitter thing is the only other part I need. I also installed the "info" switch and the display in the instrument cluster for MPG, temp, miles 'til empty - I love gadgets, and I love this brick shaped wagon.

 

just installed coilovers on my 850R and its amazing. wished l had done that long ago. have the dampening settings to high stiff and its great. l can adjust the height, dampening settings and spring preload. l have my bilstein TC laying around. might install them on my next 850 or sell it to someone else. havent decided yet. am never going back to stock ride and height.

 

On the trim rails, do you have a before/after or some sort of comparison shot?

I'm glad to read that they remove somewhat easily. The rubberized coating on my 97 has come off nearly the entire rail. I was wondering how difficult they would be to remove, as I was thinking of having them powdercoated.

The suspension upgrades people speak of sound interesting. My car handles pretty well, and I have limited funds with other areas that are more needing of said funds at this time. I'll dig deeper on suspension when it is needed.

Motor mounts - how do I determine if my OEM mounts are good or bad? The Volvo mounts appear a lot easier to install than the ones on my 95 Thunderbird SC were, so that's a positive.

 

Also, a comparison taillight photo would be interesting if you have before and after.

Thanks!

 

For suspension - there are tons of threads about Koni/Bilstein/Sachs struts and Eibach/H&R/iPd springs... just search here and at swedespeed.com. I JUST ordered the Koni Sports with H&R springs, as I want to adjust my ride quality and a decent drop (1.3" all around). Ill still be running 16" wheels.

For motor mounts - you can visually examine them for rust, or feel for vibration when engine starts or idles. If you have 100k+ miles, they likely need to be at least checked if not replaced. I just replaced ALL of mine, most are easily accessible and straightforward to replace, except the rear one if you have a turbo model; the turbo is directly on top of the nut you need to remove, and I was not able to loosen mine. I rounded it off and was forced to remove the turbo to get at it. Turned a 2 hour job into a 2 week job. All in all a good learning experience, but someone at Volvo should be reamed for just sticking the turbo on top of that nut.