New V50 - few questions!
 

Just bought a 2010 2.0 Petrol SE Lux in Barents Blue - great car with some nice features. It has a rubber Volvo boot mat, 2 mat sets (carpet and rubber), mud guards front and back, aux socket (no USB), electric seats, heated seats, auto-dimming mirror with compass, auto-folding wing mirrors, full leather interior, leather steering wheel, rear parking sensors, optional extra rear spoiler.

Nicely specced. But no trip computer, no bluetooth, no premium audio system, no rain sensing wipers, no headlamp cleaning system.
Would have liked a sunroof and sat nav and bending lights, but beggars can't be choosers.

Just a few questions if anyone can help:

Wheel nuts - chrome caps missing from most nuts, so I would like a new set of wheel nuts for Zaurak wheels. Do I need to buy a particular type?

No passenger air bag cut off switch - I have a 2010 brochure which suggests it could have been factory-fitted for £25. Spoke to the local dealer and they said it cannot be retro-fitted however. Is this right?

Are there any nice tips or tricks for using the aux socket other than for plugging in an iPod?

How long do the "rain repellant" side windows last for before they need re-treating? And if they need re-treating, what is the best product to use?

What is the small regtangular black panel next to the front 12V charger? Presumably for switches - but which switches would be there if fitted?

A Garmin Nuvi Sat Nav was an optional extra - is there any advantage in getting the proper Volvo one over a different Garmin or Tom Tom, eg hidden wires etc? I understand there's a kit of some description for hiding wires?

Would it have had Zaurak alloys when new? Everything I've seen about the SE Lux suggests it should have had Spartacus alloys.

Many thanks
Paul

I use rainx which you can just pick up at halfords, awesome product .... dont even have to use the wipers when its raining

anker bluetooth receiver £18 on amazon. I have it plugged into aux jack inside arm rest cubby. I have a hidden usb cable out back of cubby hinge into rear 12v cig lighter. When I switch on ignition, cig lighter powers up, which wakes up anker bluetooth. then I switch blutooth on, on my phone... wireless music in my car... pretty seemless and cheap

Brill, many thanks, I’ll try that!

I have my phone on a magnetic mount to the left of the waterfall, and my Aux in is in the pocket behind the waterfall so easily connects to the phone for music without getting in the way. I Dont have a "handsfree" setup yet, and doubt i will to be honest. I decline calls when driving. With the phone being where it is, i use Waze for navigating longer journeys and works a treat. No need for any seperate systems.

"What is the small regtangular black panel next to the front 12V charger? Presumably for switches - but which switches would be there if fitted?"

This is normally the DTSC switch to turn off, however if you dont have the button you disengage vie the stalk.

You mention "But no trip computer," what were you expecting to see? using the stalk on the left with the information button, turning the scroll wheel you can scroll through MPG options, fuel distance etc and the button on the dash at the bottom you cna change the trips (1 and 2 i beleive)

I mounted a cheap samsung tablet which costed about £30 to change how my music etc is played if that helps.

Run an aux cable to the tablet hidden away, I also have a bluetooth one but have to keep turning the power on an off which i too much hassle so that was a no go as it got annoying

I run the usb cable as well for the power.

I have playlists downloaded so can play off line but I switch my phone to tether and I can play everything on the tablet as normal including using Alexa to swap the playlist / music handsfree, including using my google maps navigation ... as well as other apps etc etc

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just to add, this is my bit to what it might look like.

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showt...271945&page=19

I actually mounted it so the tablet just covers the original display screen, but can be easily taken off due to it being held on just using magnetic mounts.

You are in a better position wishing that you had a sunroof, rather than regretting that you have a sunroof.
Notorious for letting in water through the sunroof drains at the base of the windscreen, as the poor design is difficult to access and resolve.
Volvo sat nav isn't supposed to be that great so can't comment, but probably better of with the Garmin.

Wheel nuts, ford items and not great quality, can swell and distort, or be easily distorted by ham fisted tyre fitters. Can't help you with what ones to recommend, but it would be better to upgrade them with a better quality replacement than changing them for the same again.

Rain sensing wipers and headlight wash part of winter pack. While the wipers are handy, they can have their funny moments and not come on when wanted, or come on fast speed when only light drizzle. Headlamp wash can also suffer from faulty washer pumps mounted behind wheel arch liner. Mine stopped working for several years, but in the past couple of months has decided to fix itself and now works again without so much as me even bothering to look at it.

Many thanks for all this :)

I also drive a Rover 420 Tourer (1996 N reg) which has a sun roof and I really like it. I wanted one in the right spec V50 but they seem few and far between, not many people seem to have opted for them.

Seen the wheel nuts I need, as guided by the owner’s manual, and will get some sorted.

As for rain sensing wipers, I’m not fussed about them missing, as I used to have an S Max with this feature, and they used to go off in dry weather when going under bridges or driving through tree shadows!

Sounds like I’m better without the headlight washers too!

I think all in all I’ve got the best options I could have hoped for.

Thanks again.

Good call. I found the section in the manual about the rain repellant glass and it says they don’t need re-treating for the first 3 years but they do after that. As the car is now nearly 10 years old I’ll get it done :)

fyi if you go with another phone/bluetooth device try to get Bluetooth 5.0. It is great compared to earlier for quality and connection