Mechanical Triage

I was driving to work last week and just before I got to my destination, my car started running a bit rough. Nothing too new, she runs rough once in a while but this was different. I was having a heck of a time troubleshooting the behavior. High RPM she's run fine & low barely at all. I didn't have time during the week to look at it so on Saturday, I cleaned out the garage enough to get my car inside. Having no idea where to start but suspecting the carburetors I took off the air cleaners. SU carburetors work a bit differently than most but I could tell right away that something was wrong here. The right piston was higher than the left in the picture below.

SU Carburetors

The left piston was jammed & stuck in the suction chamber (that bell looking part with the little black cap) and there was nothing I could do to get it freed up. I've heard of these carbs freezing up like this but I really didn't expect it to happen to me. Luckily, I've been hoarding Volvo parts and I happen to have another set of these carbs in a box. I pulled the suction chamber assemblies and replaced them and I'm back on the road.

850 Glove Box

The glove box in Jacq's car broke about a month or two after we bought the car. It's repair was on my list now for six months (?) or so. I didn't worry about it because the glove box was closed and it looked OK closed. But while the car was in the shop last week, the wheels needed to be removed and the special lug nut wrench was inside the glove box. We told them to go ahead and hack the latch to get the door open and retrieve the special tool. This would have been a real pickle had she been on a trip and gotten a flat. Anyway - got around to fixing it today.



The pin in the circle had broken off.


Broken pin that I pulled out. This part is just cast and is not very strong.


A couple quick measurements and I came up with a game plan. The latch that was hacked out has the same (close enough) diameter as this pin. I drilled out the location of the broken pin then pressed in a section of the latch wire cut to size. The extra length to the right is not a problem as there is nothing there anyway.


I ordered a replacement latch from PartsGeek.com for about $6.00 that should be here later in the week sometime and the project will be finished.

The more I tear into the car the more I find to fix (go figure). I saw a hornets nest in the headlight bucket and the headlight was aimed a bit weird so I worked on it. All 4 screws broke off...... now I have to drill and extract them without damaging the body nut.


I've installed the new IPD timing cover with neoprene seal - very nice indeed. I'd certainly like to ensure that I eliminate as many oil leaks as possible before making this a daily driver.



Status so far...

* Replaced timing cover
* Started tracing out electrical issues and repairing as I find them. Mostly bad end and but connections.
* I tried to replace the oil sump gasket but I have to either remove the transmission or pull the engine completely out. I lifted it but the oil pump and the frame cross member prevents removal. DOH!
* I pulled out the front seats and started working on electrical under the dash
* While under the car I found that the suspension bushings are completely shot and some are missing... IPD to the rescue....
* When I bought the car it came with dual SU carbs installed. It also came with Stombergs AND with the Weber DGV kit (this kit is valued at nearly $600!). Since dual carbs can be a pain to get and keep tuned, I'll rebuild the Weber and install the kit.