240 General: New (to me) 1980 Volvo 244

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

See how you get on with the GRP Alan and let me know if i need to go hunting for the air cushion etc.

Like you, i often try and find alternative solutions (sometimes a way of life with the Rover due to parts being NLA) and preferably at lower cost.

Hmmm, i can see you'll be patting Bob later and he'll squeak!

Many thanks Dave.

I think we have similar philosophies for running our cars - and maybe in life generally.

Dan is keen on looking at a house near Harwich (fantastic place, 6 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms and a pool) once the pandemic is over - if we do we'll stop off in Thetford and maybe meet up at a cafe for a cuppa to thank you.

Alan

[Laird Scooby]

Sounds like a great plan Alan, i'll look forward to that!

[Othen]

Even if I say so myself, I'm pretty happy with the way my GRP repair to the plastic bit that fits in the centre of the driver's seat adjustable lumbar support came out. I put 3 layers of mat on the front side first thing this morn:



... and when it was strong enough to support itself another layer on the back so the two gel coats joined up;



... and have left it to bake in the (hot) sun all afternoon. It is really strong already (more so than the original I would venture). I'll leave it to cure in the garage overnight and then give it a coat of Poundland's very cheapest black aerosol paint (I know no one will ever see it...) in the morn.

I may look around for a piece of foam to face the front with. All I need to put it back together is some 1 mm^2 SWR (cost less than 50p/meter delivered) - maybe in the post tomorrow.

:-)

[Laird Scooby]

Excellent work Alan! Fingers crossed that does the job!

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Excellent work Alan! Fingers crossed that does the job!

It isn't pretty Dave, but it should last another 40 years!

Alan

[john.wigley]

Originally Posted by Othen

It isn't pretty Dave, but it should last another 40 years!

Alan

Not only that, Alan, but you have the additional satisfaction of having saved money by contriving a viable solution through your own efforts. I call that a win - win situation! It does make me wonder, however, what little problem the R.B. will throw at you next to further test your ingenuity!

Regards, John.

[Othen]

Originally Posted by john.wigley

Not only that, Alan, but you have the additional satisfaction of having saved money by contriving a viable solution through your own efforts. I call that a win - win situation! It does make me wonder, however, what little problem the R.B. will throw at you next to further test your ingenuity!

Regards, John.

Exactly John, the money isn't even all that important, it is the 'survival in the jungle' thing - seeing if I can rely on my own resources to keep the Royal Barge on the road.

I'm certain you are right about the RB giving me little issues to solve from time to time. To an extent that is because the RB is 40 years old - and another part is that I do go looking for things to fix (one of the reasons I bought the car in the first place). I could have just ignored this one, or just removed the adjustable bits and it would not have really affected the Royal Barge, but as you know I enjoy fixing things on the car.

The Royal Barge has been a treasure during this pandemic lock down. I'd run out of projects around the house and garage: my other two cars (Porsche and Skoda) are much newer and needed nothing and I'd finished all the spring maintenance on my bikes (major service complete on the Triumph, new battery and oil change on the CCM, new front tyre and service on the SV650, kick the tyres on the Bloop). The RB has given me a few things to do since February, and I've enjoyed it a great deal.

Best wishes,

Alan

[Othen]

Maybe everyone is aware of this already - but beware not all 286 bulbs are created equal.

286 are the little wedge type bulbs, I think sometimes called T5, that on a 240 are used for the clock, the rear centre console light and probably the automatic box gear indicator.

I thought I'd get some for my 244 (there was nothing wrong with the incandescent lamps - this was a solution is desperate search of a problem).

I ordered some of these from Classic car LEDs Ltd (a reputable firm I believe), like the top one in the photo:



You will see they have 4 posts (well, you may see two on this side, there are two the same on the other side). This is the problem, the 286 bulb holders have just two contacts - 12v covering one side and -ve return on the other, unfortunately the LED have a closed circuit (very low Ohm) between any two of the adjacent posts on opposite sides. As I discovered straight away: this will of course blow the 10A is position #4 instantly.

The problem is explained in this drawing better than I've described it:



I asked Classic Car LEDs Ltd about the issue, and I'm pleased to say it responded straight away with an explanation: the bulbs are made for a different type of 286 bulb holder with 4 connections (I don't know what the other two do). The +ve and -ve terminals are diagonal opposites and may be discovered with a 12v battery, the other two posts are not only redundant, but will cause a short circuit if used in the type of bulb holder fitted to the Royal Barge.

Classic Car LEDs Ltd helpfully suggested customers had made the bulbs work by scraping away the conductors on the two redundant posts. What I have experimented with is (as you may see from the bottom bulb in the first photo above) painting over the two redundant posts on the LED with some touch up paint (for my Skoda, but that is not significant). I'll give it another coat this morn and let you all know whether it works tomorrow.

So (maybe everyone knows this), if you buy LED 286 bulbs for your 240 interior lights, make sure you get the 2 post type, not 4 post - otherwise you will spend a lot of time changing 10A fuses!

:-)

[Laird Scooby]

Very interesting stuff Alan! I'm guessing the 286 LEDs you bought were for the CANBus equipped cars?

I've dealt with Classic Car LEDs a lot and know they are good at what they do and sell. I've not come across a 286 holder with 4 connections though hence my guess about them being for CANBus cars.

These might be an easier option for you instead :

https://www.classiccarleds.co.uk/pro...b2837501&_ss=r

I've used similar without any problems of the sort you describe and the good thing is, they fit easier into confined spaces!

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Very interesting stuff Alan! I'm guessing the 286 LEDs you bought were for the CANBus equipped cars?

I've dealt with Classic Car LEDs a lot and know they are good at what they do and sell. I've not come across a 286 holder with 4 connections though hence my guess about them being for CANBus cars.

These might be an easier option for you instead :

https://www.classiccarleds.co.uk/pro...b2837501&_ss=r

I've used similar without any problems of the sort you describe and the good thing is, they fit easier into confined spaces!

Hi Dave,

There is no indication in the ad that the 286 LEDs were for CANBus fitted cars, indeed the implication (although it is not explicit) is that they are for classic cars:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-x-286-...53.m2749.l2649

I'm slightly irritated that Classic Car LEDs Ltd knew of the problem but had not put a health warning in the ad, that being said, the chap did respond quickly and told me what the problem was:


You are correct that these are not suitable for certain holders. We have a couple of vehicle warnings in the description but the Volvo is a new one to us.

The issue is the LEDs have 4 contacts which creates a short in the few 286 holders that are solid on each side rather than split. The positive and negative contacts on the LEDs are diagonally opposite each other (they can be found with the aid of a 9 or 12v battery and 2 wires). We've had a couple of customers remove the other contacts on the LEDs by scraping the contacts back which cures the problem.



They were only about a fiver (for 10), and the easy way to fix it would just be to order another fiver's worth of different ones that would work (thank you for the link, I'm sure the ones you suggest would work perfectly well) and put these in the bin, but I always like a challenge.

I tried out one of the LEDs that I had modified with some touch up paint in the rear console light (the most accessible of the locations), and I'm pleased to say my paint bodge has worked fine. The LED is nice and bright (much better than the incandescent bulb I took out). The clock bulbs are a bit more difficult to get at, so I've given those two LEDs another coat of paint this morn to make sure the insulation is good, and will try them out later today or tomorrow.

I'm a bit irritated, but pleased I've come up with a pretty simple solution to make the bulbs work in the Royal Barge.

Best wishes,

Alan