This my first post of many more to come. I am working on this car for a friend and in return I get to drive it while rebuilding my vehicle. I really like this Volvo and am trying to buy it from him (I have a good chance of that). A brief history of what I've done to it and a couple of immediate problems.
I have changed the front struts. Replaced the plunger thing in the v.v.t. pulley because of an oil leak in that area (did not help). Replaced the outer gear of the v.v.t. pulley. Did not mark the position of the exhaust cam, had fun with that one. Replaced the electric module that has the headlight relays because the left low beam light would not work. That fixed it for about 3 days then the same relay blew again and maybe worse, now I have no power to the computer read port. I rewired the left to the right headlight, works fine.
The issues that I need some help with now are 1: Shuddering on normal acceleration in 2nd and 3rd gear mostly. I've replaced both ignition coils, helped a little but still shudders. Changed plug with Bosch Plats. It didn't like that. Put the old NKG' back in, again better but not cured. Will change wires next. Any thoughts on this is appreciated. #2: No power to the plug in port.
Sorry about the length of this (future posts will be to the point).

 

Sounds like you are a serious DIY'er. Your next tool purchase should be a Chinese Clone DiCE / VIDA setup. It will take some application to a) get it going, and b) learn how to use it, but there are great rewards.

That will give you access to thousands of Volvo-specific trouble codes and performance records for this vehicle, as well as the Factory-certified shop manuals for the car.

 

Get rid of the NKG plugs and put Volvo OEM plugs in. I know it sounds trivial but I can't tell you how many posts I've read for this particular model and the need for OEM plugs.

 

Thank you for your response. I went to Volvo today (80 mile round trip) got oem plugs and wires. Now I realize that the shuddering is not ignition but a vibration from about 20 to 50 mph. I guess that I'm looking at something in the drivetrain or suspension. Where can I start on this? At least I now have a pretty good tune-up on it.

 

Oh yeah, my arrow up light has come on a couple times after idling in hot temps for a while and when it is on it is very sluggish from a stop. I don't know if this is related to the vibration or a separate transmission issue. The vibration is all the time and may be getting worse.

 

up arrow means your car went into winter mode or tracs kicked on which tells the transmission to start in 2nd gear. Make sure you don't have a sticky button on the console and try the "shifer row" in case the PNP switch is acting up. As to the vibrations, time to inspect the motor and transmission mounts/torque rods. Try opening the hood and with the engine at idle, do a few short revs while watching the engine for any shifting (ie have helper on the throttle pedal or manually pull the linkage)

 

Thank you mt6127. I had a chance to check under the hood at the motor mount and had a friend rev it a little, didn't see a whole lot of movement. Then had him put it in gear and rev it with his foot on the brake. When it went into gear there seemed to be quite a bit of movement. When powered up there was a lot of movement again. It looked like very easy or loose movement.

 

As for the up arrow issue, it is quite possible that the "w" button by the shifter had been pushed on accident. Does the "w" mode shut off automatically? It didn't stay on long. Just found out that the "s" button is for sport mode. Will try that shortly. Now a new question. Does the c.e.m. control the computer read port. No power there since replacing the c.e.m.?

 

grab yourself the wiring PDF from Volvo Wiring Diagrams. There is a connection between the CEM and the diagnostics port - not a typical CEM fault area (usually its the headlight low beam relays...) but you should be able to test connections and the pins following the diagrams.

I think the winter mode shuts when you reach a set speed (something like 25 mph).

 

There are 4 motor mounts. On my 2001 the bottom 2 were worst. The main mount on the pax side and the trans mount were fine. The most noticable symptom to me was excessive vibration with your foot on the brake with the car in drive. If you get up under the car you can inspect the mounts for cracks in the rubber.

 

I Checked the other mounts and they seemed fine. I ordered the top passenger side mount. Should be here in a couple days. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

I replaced the top motor mount and it made a huge difference in the vibration. There might be a little left so I am going to replace the others once I figure out where they are. Thanks to everyone for your help. Next problem. The center dash (climate control *****) not lit. Checked the fuse. Is it possible for all 3 bulbs to burn out together or is it something more sinister?

 

I have found with headlights and dashlights they tend to all have a similar life span and will go in groups - the only sinister thing could be if you experienced a problem with a voltage regulator/alternator. When my alternator went on my 850, it blew out both headlights. When my left low beam headlight went on my S40, the right went within 2 weeks.