940 estaste DIESEL

[deanrosc]

I CURRENTLY HAVE AN 850SE SALOON WITH AN LPG CONVERSION. THE TANK TAKES UP A LOT OF ROOM AND MY WIFE IS EXPECTING OUR 2ND CHILD SO I NEED A BIT MORE ROOM IN THE BOOT. I PREVIOUSLY HAD A 940 SALOON BUT WAS PETROL. CAN ANYONE GIVE ME SOME INFO ON ECONOMY OF THIS SERIES AND IF ITS A SMOOTH DIESEL OR A BAG OF BOLTS?

DEAN
:-)

[Peter Milnes]

Go for the 1995-1998 models as they are the better sorted. The engine has hydraulic tappets and an adjustable cambelt tensioner idler and the interior has three lap/diagonal inertial seatbelts for the rear seat occupants. The centre rear seat has an improved child seat built in. You should be able to average 35 mpg on a mixed bag of journeys with 45mpg attainable on a long motorway cruise. The intercooler fitted to most of them gives a 122 bhp output coupled with as much torque as the V6 and Turbo-4 engines and is tuneable for similar increasesin bhp and torque to the electronically controlled fuel systems in the more modern engines (Audi/VW 2.5 and Volvo D5 2.4, both being five cylinder engines. Mine currently has about 145 bhp and over 300lbsft torque and is capable of 225 bhp and around 400lbsft torque, however this requires a different camshaft and turbo.

The only weak points in the engine are the glowplugs which when one or two fail can give rather awkward cold starts with gouts of smoke for the first couple of minutes. Strangely enough standard Land-Rover glowplugs are more reliable than the OEM Volvo ones with this engine (D24TIC). They are also better without EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) and the catalyser sometimes fitted. Mine has a stainless steel exhaust made for the car by Longlife in Cardiff, which is a two box straight through type and is remarkably effective.

With these cars the tyres should be 195/65/15 size and they should be fitted with Nivomat self levelling rear suspension. One thing to watch for is if the steering has a clunk near the wheel at the top of the column. This is due to an incorrect column top bearing. It should have been recalled but Volvo kept quiet about it.

To keep these diesels sweet they should use Fully Synthetic engine oil. Mobil 1 is probably the best one but most firms produce quite high standard synthetics nowadays. For best performance use BP Ultimate diesel fuel which has beneficial effects for the engine. You will get less mpg with supwermarket diesel and need to use fuel cleaner additive if you do to prevent trouble.

All in all a well looked after example with a very full service history and documentation to prove that the cam and pump belts have been changed at the reccomended intervals, if more than 80,000 miles is showing on the odometer, is almost a guarantee of long and faithful service to come.

The only trouble is that they are a bit like hen's teeth and very sought after, so make sure that your purchase is a good one before shelling out.

All the best, Peter

[deanrosc]

Thanks for the advice.

I'll be keeping my eyes peeled.

Dean.

Hi, Peter!Hope you are doing OK after your recent surgery!
I have a 1992 944TD, and was interested when you mentioned tuning the diesels. Is this engine tunable like those in the later 940TDs? And where is the best starting point for tuning them?
Mine has 150k miles up, cold starts beautifully and the sound when the revs hit 3000 is positively musical! I haven't hitched my caravan on the back yet (only had it 5 weeks) but I think the car won't notice it's there!:-)
Best regards,
MadNurseGaz

[Peter Milnes]

Thank you for your kind words MNG. Yes they can certainly handle tuning just like the electronically controlled models. The only thing with your engine is that you need to reset the tappet clearances every 20,000 miles for best results and you adjust cambelt tension with the water pump!! The best starting point is to set up the fuel pump as in the Green Book. Then make sure that the cold start and slow running together with the top rev limit is set accurately. Then if you have EGR fitted it would be best to totally disable it. Your exhaust stack will probably have a three box design. The front box may be a catalyser in which case I recommend the replacement of the exhaust system by a stainless steel two box one such, as produced by "Lifelong" in Cardiff (and a couple of other places). Just taking the catalyser out of the system will give you back 10 useful bhp! After this preparatory work you will need to take your car to an expert, such as Allan Allard in Monmouth, where he will be able to adjust the settings under the dome cap on the pump for increased performance. Mine now gives about 145 bhp (up from 122) and a lot more torque than it had originally. I have a hard time keeping down to 60 mph on the motorways with my 1100kg Lunar on the back. 3,000 revs is about 70 mph in fifth gear for mine but it feels like it could do with an overdrive as there is so much pulling power at these revs. The most awkward part of servicing is changing the glowplugs when it becomes necessary. Landrover plugs will do fine if you don't want to pay dealer prices, but GS&F stock them.

All the best, Peter

Thank you so much, Peter, that's exactly the sort of stuff I wanted to know! It may take me some time to get round to actually doing any tuning, but when I do, I'll let you know how I get on!
Best Regards,
MadNurseGaz