Volvo PV444 wins 1957 Petit Lemans at Lime Rock!

[blueosprey90]

Musings:

We took the ol' four seater for a drive on Sunday following the Chuck Berry Social Distancing Law ("it's O.K. to drive around in your automobile if you have no particular place to go.")

Took some video that I may upload to YouTube, but it tended to highlight all of the rattles, buzzes and road sounds.

So, last night I spend some time trying to cure the glove box door buzz. Improved but for the most part unsuccessful. It's the push button itself that rattles and buzzes, and that needs to be somewhat loose to function.

Also the Volvo emblem on the steering wheel liked to buzz. I think I managed to fix this.

I have a wind whistle from the vent window, so my new weather stripping around the window may have actually created that problem.

The car had some other rattles and gurgles coming from the rear. I need to empty the trunk. I'll look for some loose coins under the spare tire, as I need to supplement my income.

The car also seems to have a "whole body vibration" at certain speeds. When looking in the rear view mirror, the view of objects behind is of a vibrating image. Sort of a harmonic vibration. This does not seem to be a tire out of balance problem. The prior owner had planned to change the engine mounts, but I don't think the mounts are bad and I did replace the transmission mount. The tires are about 15 years old, and it almost feels as if I can feel every piece of macadam on the highway, so I wonder if the tires have gotten too hard.

My steering wheel repair was somewhat of a failure. The wheel developed two new cracks just from sitting over the winter. But still quite functional, and the voids created by the two chunks that had been missing are still filled and O.K.

The heater fan was not working. I tried to assess the cause of that problem; and just trying to identify the wiring seemed to solve the problem. I'm thinking the fuse was not sitting properly in it's "socket". Of course, it's pretty lame in volume of blowing air compared to a modern fan.

[Derek UK]

Whole body vibration can be due to a rear wheel out of balance. Sounds like new tyres would be a good idea anyway.
Prop shaft? Seized UJ if one piece and the same on a two piece but add, the 2 sections fitted out of phase, or centre bearing rubber mount split/broken.

[arcturus]

Tires should be replaced every five years if car in open due to UV degradation,ten at maximum. Concur phasing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Idk3BVDVHq4

[blueosprey90]

Sometimes you wonder what your car has lived through.

Over the winter, I had occasion to take my driver's side wheels off of the car. The top of the car looks like it lived a normal, but comfortable yet progressively threadbare life. The underside, however, looked like it had lived through a mud slide, or maybe a volcano.

The back side of the wheels, the suspension and the rear axle were covered in a thick layer of dried mud or soot (wheels) and oil soaked grime (suspension & rear axle) the likes of which I had never seen and that was very hard to remove. I mostly had to use a scraper. The car came from the west coast, and my immediate reaction was that the undercarriage was covered in volcanic soot from the Mount St. Helens explosion. Of course, I have no basis for that opinion, but we don't get caked on stuff like that here on the east coast as far as I know.

So perhaps my next step should be to attack the wheels and suspension on the passenger side.

I am aware that I need new tires due simply to age. They are not cracked, but they feel "hard".

I should throw my race car tires on and see if it changes the ride - except that those tires are quite far gone as well. I've flipped the outside to the inside on the wheels, but I have hopes of only one or two more weekends on them. Here's why.

https://youtu.be/nEDB3qV2tT4

[arcturus]

That was a good laugh,very entertaining.Use your tires as plant containers,,now!Good spirited driving though BTW, do you use road tires on that car?

[blueosprey90]

Yes, I run 165-15 Vredestein Sprint Radials. It is not as fast as a stickier Hoosier or Blue Streak race tire. My suspension is lowered, but otherwise entirely stock; and I fear that the components may not be strong enough for the extra grip provided by those tires. My other alternative, I suppose, would be to run Dunlop race tires (bis ply), but those are close to $400 per tire and I can't justify the expense.

[arcturus]

Perhaps your steering geometry needs tweaking.

[blueosprey90]

^^

Do you mean the race car? The only thing that's adjustable on that is toe.

[blueosprey90]

I have a whole "body of work" on YouTube with the MGA race car.

Perhaps starting a new genre with the Volvo. This , however, is only good for a few minutes with the morning coffee.


https://youtu.be/xsO6h-CseU0

[blueosprey90]

While trying to eliminate some of the "vintage resonance" from behind the dash the other night, I noticed that the electric fuel pump kicks on when I turn the key left to "accessories".


The wiring at the fuse box leaves something to be desired, I suppose, and it helps that the prior owner spray painted all the wires black.