C70 folding roof problems to look for

[Baxlin]

My local used car dealer sourced mine for me, and tested it all before he bought it. Unfortunately when I came to look at it for the first time the 'yellow button' failed to work, which also stopped the roof going back up.

After a simple diagnosis at the local Volvo dealer, one sensor (out of 14 in the roof mechanism I understand) was replaced, and no further problems. And I use the mechanism a lot, as I too am of the 'if it's not raining the top's down' brigade.

A previous post mentioned the wind breaker/blocker, if your car doesn't come with one, I would certainly get hold of one, it makes the car an almost Year-round top down proposition. Actually, it's like three cars: top up it's a lovely saloon, with top down, and windows and windbreak up it's SWMBO-proof, and top and windows down it's real wind in (what's left of) the hair FUN!!

It seems Saab 93 vert to C70 is a natural progression, been there, done that......

[Yorkieuk666]

After spending most of my sunny holiday looking at c70s for sale I decided to take the plunge and bought one. Still had original invoice for 38k. Originals buyers loss is my gain and I Love it. Got good weather down here and it's had the roof down many times commuting. My good lady loves the comfort. Roof is Quality, the only thing I have heard it suffering from is the odd squeeky window seal in the morning. Apparently Gummi Pflege can take care of this. My local spanner says he uses wd40. Is this good for rubber seals?
I did read while doing my roof research that Volvo are much superior. Take on board kerb parking while operating, it felt the motors had a bit of a struggle. Never again lol

[Clan]

Originally Posted by ex Triumph Man

Thanks guys. Your words of reassurance are much appreciated. The bit about completing the cycle is a handy tip to know.

stopping half way will cause no problems at all if all is working ok , in fact the service position is half open where you can reach all the parts ... I can't think of a reason why you would want to stop half way though ..

Any troubles on older ones which appear to have sensor fault codes are 90% broken wires in the hinge area . so fault trace the continuity of the 2 wires for each sensor first ! Very rare a sensor will fail .

If you get any water in the boot it will run into the spare wheel well where the roof hydraulic pump lives wrapped in foam to keep it quiet , the foam will absorb the water and ruin the pump/motor which will cost the best part of £2000 to renew , so have a look , make sure the area under the motor cover in the boot is dry !
( a 3mm hole drilled in the lowest part of the spare wheel well is good insurance .)

[Clan]

Originally Posted by ex Triumph Man

Well that's it. SWMBO fell for the car. So, all being well, we should take delivery 1 October.

Lloyd Volvo, Carlisle, say they have only ever had one C70 give problems with the sun roof and that was on a car the AA had fiddled about with at the side of the road, otherwise no issues with the roof.

It certainly is an impressive piece of kit and seems solidly constructed. Sensible advice seems to be not to change direction mid-travel, not to operate while on the move and as above, keep the car on the level.

Again, many thanks to all who have replied. I suppose having the sun shining when the car appeared on the drive sealed the deal.

Regards

Indeed , it is a heavy car about 1800 kg so keep those tyre pressure to upper 30's both ends ..

[Mellor3456]

As confirmation to a previous comment about only operating the roof whilst the car is on the flat and level, I got caught out by trying to close the roof when on a forward slope whilst parked. The slope was about 1 in 10. After much panic and a phone call to a Volvo dealer (who didn’t add much value), I moved the car and tried one more time, and the roof worked perfectly. Phew!
The moral to the story is to only operate the roof on the flat and level...

[FredGraham]

I think the point made in operating the roof on a flat/even surface is valid. Because the roof is really heavy, I think it is important to keep the weight level. I own, probably one of the oldest C70's, MY 2006 and shortly after buying it the roof had a catastrophic part failure caused by, I believe, wear & tear to one of the hydraulic rams. The ones between front & mid roof sections. The hydraulics were fine, it was the metal loop that broke. Luckily the warranty company, after a bit of persuasion, covered the cost of the repair. Admittedly I got the part from a breaker for £170.00, the part new from Volvo cost £1094.00 but since the repair the roof has been fine. Happy days.

[T6S80]

Originally Posted by FredGraham

I think the point made in operating the roof on a flat/even surface is valid. Because the roof is really heavy, I think it is important to keep the weight level. I own, probably one of the oldest C70's, MY 2006 and shortly after buying it the roof had a catastrophic part failure caused by, I believe, wear & tear to one of the hydraulic rams. The ones between front & mid roof sections. The hydraulics were fine, it was the metal loop that broke. Luckily the warranty company, after a bit of persuasion, covered the cost of the repair. Admittedly I got the part from a breaker for £170.00, the part new from Volvo cost £1094.00 but since the repair the roof has been fine. Happy days.

Many thanks for all the info re the roof and my apologies for going off topic - slightly! I am currently thinking of purchasing a 2007 C70 2.4 D5 SE with 67k on the clock and my main concern was the roof mechanism - lessons now learnt!
Is there any other areas I should be concerned about?
Tks for the help.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by T6S80

Many thanks for all the info re the roof and my apologies for going off topic - slightly! I am currently thinking of purchasing a 2007 C70 2.4 D5 SE with 67k on the clock and my main concern was the roof mechanism - lessons now learnt!
Is there any other areas I should be concerned about?
Tks for the help.

The above was an isolated problem, these roofs are extremely reliable . On the launch event volvo had a batch of cars and the cars did around 6000 up and down movements with no problem , There is a counter so the details can be recalled .

points to watch? water in the boot , the foam sound insulation around the hydraulic pump will soak it up and ruin the pump so make sure the well in the boot is always bone dry , they are not prone to leaking but it can happen .
The only other possible fault is a "sensor" fault code , in 9 times out of 10 it is never a sensor but a broken wire in the roof loom where it folds ....

[Christopher jz]

Originally Posted by T6S80

Many thanks for all the info re the roof and my apologies for going off topic - slightly! I am currently thinking of purchasing a 2007 C70 2.4 D5 SE with 67k on the clock and my main concern was the roof mechanism - lessons now learnt!
Is there any other areas I should be concerned about?
Tks for the help.

Only operate the roof when the engine is running. If there isn't enough charge on your battery it will trigger a roof service message and you'll lose the ability to operate it. Found this out the hard way. I disconnected the battery straight away left it for a few mins then reconnected and it cleared the code and the message was gone. The roof worked but it was a scary few minutes thinking i was going to have a big bill.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Christopher jz

Only operate the roof when the engine is running. If there isn't enough charge on your battery it will trigger a roof service message and you'll lose the ability to operate it. Found this out the hard way. I disconnected the battery straight away left it for a few mins then reconnected and it cleared the code and the message was gone. The roof worked but it was a scary few minutes thinking i was going to have a big bill.

If that happened when you have been using the car regularly it is the first sign the battery is weak ... It should easily work the roof without the problems you had ...