XC70 Suspension Refresh/Upgrade

[CaptainSlow337]

I'm drawing a blank when searching via google. My 07 XC70 is on 145k and I've nothing to suggest the suspension has been refreshed at any point. Are there any kits out there that I can buy that will give me the bits I need to carry this out?

It does wallow in the corners as expected, but more than my previous one, so I had been toying with fitting S60/V70 AWD springs to lower it slightly, but I'll be dammed if I can find anything, which made me consider a full overhall with OEM.

Help!

[jgjones095]

don't buy regular v70 front shocks, they are a different length.

xc70 require specific ones...
search my threads to find the issue i had 6 months ago with ECP and saches front shocks.
caused me to have lots of positive camber!


xc on the right normal on the left

what about suspension bushes?what do they look like?

[Sojournermike]

This is an apposite question. I’ve been wondering if/when it would be worth doing mine. 126k now and I don’t think anything has been renewed. Various advisories on oil mist at 2016 MOT and ‘slight oil leak’ at 2017 MOT, plus comments on rear bush slightly deteriorated. Garage is adamant they don’t need changing, so no need before it does fail and MOT. However it’s a bit floaty, so I wonder if it’s worth working through it bit by bit.

It can add up to do wishbones, 4C shocks, ball joints, top bearing and mount, springs and roll bar bushes etc!

All thoughts welcome.

Also, could someone confirm if the P2 XC70 (2006 se lux D5) rear 4C shock is the same as that on a V70?

Mike

[jgjones095]

Mike as per my post the xc and v/s shocks are different heights.
Trust me v/s shocks will not fit unless you want 4 to 5 degrees of positive camber on the front.

Although I had no oil mist I had a snapped spring around 125k so changed the spring top mounts. My OE shocks were both saggin and the dampers not returning correctly.
Due to the knackered shocks my top mounts took the brunt for the last 25k. I finally changed them last year... only to discover the parts supplier messed up with the shock order.

[TiredGeek]

I too had a broken spring, but mine was rear and it chewed through the cable for the 4C shocker completely screwing it up.

Long and short of it was I decided to replace all the springs, shockers and spring seats. Springs and seats came from Volvo, shockers from Monroe (who supply Volvo).
Even though the shocks came to just under a grand for all four, the final bill with fitting was around £2100 if I remember right. And to be honest I didn't notice any difference in the ride following the refresh....

Oh, and you'd better believe jgjones, those shockers are categorically different to V70 / S60. Unless you want to get into slamming your XC of course but then you'd need to start looking at the R models... http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showth...light=lowering

[Sojournermike]

Originally Posted by TiredGeek

I too had a broken spring, but mine was rear and it chewed through the cable for the 4C shocker completely screwing it up.

Long and short of it was I decided to replace all the springs, shockers and spring seats. Springs and seats came from Volvo, shockers from Monroe (who supply Volvo).
Even though the shocks came to just under a grand for all four, the final bill with fitting was around £2100 if I remember right. And to be honest I didn't notice any difference in the ride following the refresh....

Oh, and you'd better believe jgjones, those shockers are categorically different to V70 / S60. Unless you want to get into slamming your XC of course but then you'd need to start looking at the R models... http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showth...light=lowering

Thanks, that’s helpful. Means I can confidently leave shocks in place until I’m told they need changing. Have to admit, I think bushes would be first priority in any case, but it’s still fine to drive so no great rush at this stage.

Hadn’t thought of lowering it - seems a slightly counter intuitive idea to lower a raised v70. Back to standard height, or really slam it?

[boggymarsh]

Having had a whole load of issue when using non-genuine parts, if as and when you replace your springs and shocks save your time and money and just buy the real thing from Volvo. Forget aftermarket parts!

[TiredGeek]

Originally Posted by boggymarsh

Having had a whole load of issue when using non-genuine parts, if as and when you replace your springs and shocks save your time and money and just buy the real thing from Volvo. Forget aftermarket parts!

You are safe with the shockers.
Monroe supply Volvo with them and when I bought mine I compared them to a brand new Volvo supplied unit (friendly parts guy at my local franchise) and they were 100% identical down to the number on the bar code which when we scanned them pulled up the same description on the dealers computer, but at roughly 1/4 of the price from Monroe

[The Landshark]

Originally Posted by TiredGeek

You are safe with the shockers.
Monroe supply Volvo with them and when I bought mine I compared them to a brand new Volvo supplied unit (friendly parts guy at my local franchise) and they were 100% identical down to the number on the bar code which when we scanned them pulled up the same description on the dealers computer, but at roughly 1/4 of the price from Monroe

I changed the front of mine recently with volvo oe shocks and springs,
The ones that came off were sachs and the replacements were also sachs.
However there's a myriad of different shocks and springs for the same model depending on equipment levels etc.
I had to give the dealer the build plate numbers so he could tell what had been fitted originally.
Just have a look at the part numbers in vida and that'll give you an idea of what is out there in terms of different variables in damping levels and spring rates.
Most aftermarket crowds list one shock, volvo list well over ten.
I went with the original spec shocks and it has really sharpened up the handling.

[TiredGeek]

Originally Posted by The Landshark

I changed the front of mine recently with volvo oe shocks and springs,
The ones that came off were sachs and the replacements were also sachs.
However there's a myriad of different shocks and springs for the same model depending on equipment levels etc.
I had to give the dealer the build plate numbers so he could tell what had been fitted originally.
Just have a look at the part numbers in vida and that'll give you an idea of what is out there in terms of different variables in damping levels and spring rates.
Most aftermarket crowds list one shock, volvo list well over ten.
I went with the original spec shocks and it has really sharpened up the handling.

We're talking slightly different beasts here. These shocks are for the 4C system which are electronic and only supplied by Monroe
Always good to get a second opinion though and asking the Volvo parts guy to search from your cars VIN is worth it just for confirmation....