So, relating to the above post, I've spent the last few days with the trusty Volvo in the garage having some TLC.
I replaced the radiator, all went pretty well really, it helped having done the job before. However, having done it before and having previously coated the threads of all bolts in grease I expected them all to come out easily, and was surprised that the left hand main radiator mounting bolt was stiff, as is very common with this job. I persisted, and sure enough "ping" the captive nut broke free. The Right one did that last time, and I welded the nut part back on, so I had to do this again on the left side. It was relatively easy, as the bolt had already come out half way so after sawing off the plastic radiator bracket to get the rad out (rad is scrap anyway) there was plenty of bolt thread to get at to cut the bolt off and remove the nut part on the bench. Access is easier on the left side so it was a fairly quick job to clean up the nut and mounting surfaces, I used an old bolt to hold the nut firmly in place while I put a series of welds around it to hold it securely. This really is a poor bit of design, the "nut" is just a round threaded item that is simply pressed into the sheet metal of the bodywork, and comes loose far too easily. I finally re-assembled it with a new stainless bolt that won't corrode and will come out easily like the right one did.
Apart from that it all went smoothly, this time I took it out and replaced it from underneath, I found that leaving the intercooler attached made life easier, being able to remove the rather inaccessible 10mm attachment bolts once it's off the car. Re-filled it, topped up engine oil and auto box fluid and took it up to temperature to burp it, and all is well with no leaks anywhere. Not really a difficult job all told, the most time was spent in cleaning the mud and filth from the various bits taken off, notably the fan shroud, but it does look nice now it's all back in, clean and tidy.
While it was in the garage I also replaced the front disks and pads, as I'd previously noted that the inner surface of the disks had rusted so that the pads were sweeping far less of an area than they should do, reducing the efficiency of the brakes which aren't great to start with. I got all the parts (rad and brakes) from PFV Online, and this time chose original Volvo pads, which I thought might work better than aftermarket. I did note one big difference to the aftermarket pads in that the Volvo ones are "handed", one pair for the left side and one pair for the right. The pads are also chamfered on one side, I suspect this is trhe reason for the "handing" - this is usually done to reduce squealing. While I was under there I also replaced the steering limit stops (white on my V70 T5) as the old ones were a bit worn. They are Volvo items, but the pop rivets supplied are a joke, nothing like long enough and rather too thin too. I have some long pop rivets, but only in 5mm, and the holes in the arm are 4mm, so I simply drilled them out to 5mm which was quite easy. No wonder these stops often come off, I think mine are now pretty securely riveted on.
So all done, a non-eventful test drive and we're done. I'll just keep an eye on the coolant level in case it burps/bleeds some more though, experience has shown that it needs at least one and maybe two heat cycles to fully self-bleed.
I said previously that I was a bit miffed that the radiator needed replacing *again*, my perception was that it hadn't lasted long, but I checked my records and found that it was in fact exactly 13 years ago that it was last changed, so I suppose I can't complain too much. Which reminded me that was about the last time I changed the cam belt!!! So that's on the list to do again before long.
Cheers all!
