V50 General : Thermostat replacement

[PeteTheSwede]

Hello Thassos.

Sorry for the delay to update the progress.

First of all thank you for the offer to get the extension. But it turned out I didn't need it start all.

So, here goes.
I finally managed to get rid of the thermostat and replaced it today after my 4th attempt. A bit embarrassing but hee hoo, replaced it is with a mahle 90c and so far so good 👍

The solution to get rid of that 3rd screw was to attack it from underneath the engine bay as you can clearly see the bolt from there.
Access is limited but if you remove the oilstick housing, a 13 mm bolt from from the engine, and an 8 mm from the intake manifold and just pull the housing away.

Once away, the access is big enough to get your hand in there to attach an 8 mm spanner round the bolt to be able to loosen it. I had also purchased one of those Flexi extensions from eBay which made it so much easier to get the bolt out properly. All 3 bolts where replaced with original Volvo flange screws as one bolt was really knackered.
The price was £1.45 per screw.

It took all in all about 2 hours but should take maybe less than that now when I know how to sort it all out.

Thank you again for your input in to this, much appreciated. 🙂👍

[PeteTheSwede]

Hello Thassos.

Sorry for the delay to update the progress.

First of all thank you for the offer to get the extension. But it turned out I didn't need it at all.

So, here goes.
I finally managed to get rid of the thermostat and replaced it today after my 4th attempt. A bit embarrassing but hee hoo, replaced it is with a mahle 90c and so far so good 👍

The solution to get rid of that 3rd screw was to attack it from underneath the engine bay as you can clearly see the bolt from there.
Access is limited but if you remove the oilstick housing, a 13 mm bolt from from the engine, and an 8 mm from the intake manifold and just pull the housing away.

Once away, the access is big enough to get your hand in there to attach an 8 mm spanner round the bolt to be able to loosen it. I had also purchased one of those Flexi extensions from eBay which made it so much easier to get the bolt out properly. All 3 bolts where replaced with original Volvo flange screws as one bolt was really knackered.
The price was £1.45 per screw.

It took all in all about 2 hours but should take maybe less than that now when I know how to sort it all out.

Thank you again for your input in to this, much appreciated. 🙂👍

[Thassos]

hi pete,

Well done .. its certainly is a pig to get at, good idea with approach from below, have you noticed a quicker warm up from cold?, not that the dash temp gauge gives away too much in the way of precise info, i originally used a bluetooth obd2 and torque to see the actual coolant temp, did you end up replacing or just topping up the coolant?

[PeteTheSwede]

Thank you Thassos :-)

Yes I did notice a difference already after what felt 10 mins while I was picking up tools and checking for any leakage. While the engine was running.the temp had risen above the first white mark at that point.

I had collected the coolant in a basin and as it was quite good condition I put it all back except the very last. Lowered the car and topped up with water. Drive the car for about 6 miles and the temp went straight to the middle after about 3 miles. 🙂👍

Previous the temp never reached the middle at all.

So that is now a closed chapter.

[PeteTheSwede]

Hiya Thassos..

Hope all is well.
I thought I'd give an update after using the car for a month or so since I replaced the thermostat.
As you know, I never changed the oil after the replacement and just drove around toping up oil as it disappeared. The temp goes up to working temp in about 10 minutes compared to never before the change.

So at Christmas I went up to Tain in the Highlands, and back down a week later. Did about 800 miles driving in total while away and had to top up 1-1.5 Liter of oil until it was between the marks.
The last time I checked the oil level was roughly a week ago and checked it again today, and to my surprise, the oil level hasn't changed much at all which is absolute fantastic 🙂👍.
So a fully warm engine does really take less oil as you mentioned earlier in the thred. Currently my new thermostat opens at 92C and everything is working great with a quitter engine too with less clatter.
Next up is a full oil change with a current milage of roughly 78k

Over and out.

[Thassos]

Hi pete,

thanks for posting an update, very interesting, and also that your oil consumption has dropped, i think perhaps in winter weather with a dud thermostat the excessive oil consumption is another clue that things are not as they should be, anyway great result to have managed to get the hidden bolt out 😀

[ratfink_v70_2000]

Hi, sorry to ressurect an old thread but this is the only one I've seen anywhere regarding this engine. Mine is on the way out and after a good 45 minute drive to work with a mix of fast 60mph roads and jams less than 20mph my temp is 68 degrees with the needle sitting two marks left of centre. Is this job really as awkward as it looks? I had a quick look the other day and could just about see the two water hoses but not much else. Fuel economy is shocking as well now it's doing this, down to 28 mpg. Need to get it sorted before winter proper.

[Thassos]

post a pic of your engine bay, the area your looking for is a large hose coming out of the front, lefthand side of the engine..out of interest what engine is yours?

[ratfink_v70_2000]

Car is a 2007 1.8 petrol. I could see the two pipes which attach to the thermostat housing but little else. I would have done it myself a couple of years ago but health issues prevent me contorting etc so have opted for indie garage to do booked in for next Thursday.

[big yinn]

Did the thermostat on my 2lt petrol a couple of weeks ago.
Its not difficult, but some of the inlet manifold bolts are a right pain to get at!
I wanted to remove the inlet manifold, as it gave me the opportunity to clean out the throttle flap, the oil separator and PCV valve whilst they were accessible.
With the manifold off the thermostat change is very easy to do indeed. Took about 5 minutes to do. The whole job took me about 5 hours, mainly because of the manifold bolts!