Morning all....I was wondering, about where should the needle on my temp gauge hang? I ask this question because with lowering overall outside temps (I live on Long Island) I'm noticing it hangs about maybe 1/3rd of the way up the gauge on the highway. If I go onto back roads, etc it'll get near the middle, but almost rest assured if it's 55 or less out it goes back to 1/3rd of the way once back on highway. Do I need to replace thermostat or?

 

Bad thermostat.

 

That's what I thought, thanks...doing that and the heater core this weekend. At least the heater core in this car seems very, very easy. Got that wonderful maple syrup smell upon first turn-on of heat.

 

 

Thanks again!

 

Thanks for posting this video!

It was ridiculously easy to change the t-stat. My 2000 V70XC has the plastic cover on top so I had to remove two screws from it and unsnap the front so I could flip it aside for direct access to the rear bolt in the t-stat housing. They were both in so tight that I thought they would round out the heads trying to remove them so I 'tapped' them a few times by placing a tie rod end tool on the bolt head and hit the butt end with a 22 oz. hammer. They came right out after that!

I didn't remove the top hose first as he does in the video because it felt fine and swung aside without issue. It took longer to drive to the parts store and get the new stat than the entire remove/install process. They were out of stock on the rubber seal that fits around the stat so I just reused the old one. I buttoned it back up, reattached the plastic cover over the head, filled the coolant reservoir and fired it up. No leaks. Maybe 30 minutes total, including getting the tools out and putting on the gloves!

The heat is back!

Thanks again.

 

Good to hear you knocked it out quick. If people knew how easy these cars are to work on, they would buy them more often and take them to the shop less.

Be careful tapping on those t-stat housings. They are soft aluminum and do crack easily. Then you'll have a mess on your hands.

 

Not sure I'd call this car easy to work on...but then again my background is on 60s and earlier cars.

Taking out a starter on an '00 V70 does not require removing cooling fans, or the intake, though all the tutorials say it's required. You may have to be double-jointed, but as a first-timer to Volvo wrenching, it took about an hour to figure out with some penetrating oil and a cheater bar, no book.

But there is a LOT of wiring in these cars.

So, not too terrible to work on as a parts changer, but pretty bad as an auto tech.

 

I'll have to chime in here since I first asked this and say both problems were done rather quickly. Thanks for the videos, I brought my tablet outside and played/paused them as I went along...granted on my 00' S70 the T-stat setup was slightly different, it all worked out the same. The heater core took about 30 minutes start to finish...mine wasn't even leaking really, I just was starting to get the maple syrup smell but all fixed now! Thanks again!

Oh and yes, everything I've done on this car so far, very easy to work on.