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IMPORT
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Saabs and Volvos have always stood out from the
crowd with their distinctive styling and sometimes
unique mechanical designs. But once you become
familiar with a few of the quirks and oddities com-
mon to the two, you'll find a number of profitable
repairs which will help “Sweden” your bottom line.
This month’s Swedish Service Sampler will deal
with assorted problems and repair tips which apply
to both Saabs and Volvos.
Then, we'll run a special edition of Electrical
Service which will deal exclusively with electrical
problems and fixes for these two vehicles.
Our sincere thanks to the great folks at both
locations of the Swedish Solution in Cleveland Heights
and Orange Village, Ohio. These gentlemen do noth-
ing but Saabs and Volvos, and are always willing to
share their time and expertise.
—By Ralph Birnbaum
Page 2
If you get a nasty vibration with the air conditioner
turned on in a Saab 900, check the condition of the
A/C compressor bracket and the tightness of all at-
tachment bolts. The brackets are plenty thick, but will
crack from vibration as this one has done.
The idle on this Saab 900 hunts on occasion, and right
now it’s staying too high. It seems the idle stabilizer
is varnished up and wants to stick. Tapping lightly on
the housing “unsticks” it and our idle drops to its
normal base setting. Our host shop replaces these on
a regular basis.
There are two universal joints in the Saab 900 steering
column. The one outside the firewall can rust and
bind over time and lead to “steering by Armstrong.”
Some steering racks have been mistakenly blamed
and replaced before the real cause of the problem was
discovered,
These newer style hydraulic Saab motor mounts are
used on 9000s and late model 900s. They will fracture
over time in the general area shown by our arrows and
leak oil. A bad mount may be more noticeable in a 900
when drivetrain torque produces a noise, and causes
excessive shifter movement.
Page 3
Swede Tooth
This is NOT the crankcase drain plug on a Saab. But
some folks still insist on draining the differential
instead of the crankcase during an oil change. The
differential fries, even though the engine ends up
plenty full. After all, the stuff coming out of the
differential drain hole is engine oil, isn’t it?
When checking the front suspension on a Saab 900, or
replacing ball joints, insert this special tool (or equiva-
lent) between the control arm and chassis. Otherwise
the coil spring pushes the suspension all the way
down, and you may not find a loose or worn part.
Saab
Harmonic balancers on Saab 900s are hidden down
low, out of sight. If you hear a scraping or grinding
noise from that area, check the balancer. The outer
ring can separate from the rubber connecting it to the
inner hub. Then it walks toward the engine until it
starts grinding away at the front cover.
Caliper wear on Saab 900s can cause a loud clunk
when braking in reverse. Replace the calipers and
brake hardware, and put a slight downward bend in
the brake pad retainer clips as shown. For a detailed
explanation of this procedure, please refer to page 14
of the August 1988 issue of Import Service.
Page 4
Swede Tooth
Saab or Volvo
If a Saab or Volvo bucks or hesitates on acceleration,
and the ignition system is okay, the prepump feeding
the main fuel pump may be bad, starving the main
pump. Volvo prepumps feed directly to the main
pump. Saabs fill a chamber in the gas tank which
feeds the main pump.
Ifthe customer complains that his LH equipped Volvo
starts hard cold, coughs black smoke, and has a fuel
pump which growls like an unfed dog, check fuel
pressure first thing. Stuck pressure regulators can
send system pressure to the 100 PSI range, causing an
extremely rich mixture.
Saab.or Volvo
Some K-Jet cars will intermittently refuse to restart
after sitting for between 10 minutes and 2 hours. If
rest pressure in the fuel system drops too quickly, and
the fuel pump check valve is okay, the problem may
be a faulty fuel distributor. Fuel may be leaking past
the control plunger.
If your Volvo has a combined problem which seems to
affect proper operation of both the cruise control and
heater/defroster controls, check the vacuum hoses at
the main vacuum source on the intake manifold.
Cracks in dry hoses can cause leaks in the main
vacuum source to both systems.
Page 5
Swede Tooth
Overheating problems on 1986 and newer Volvos can
be caused by plugged radiators. The radiators are the
aluminum/plastic variety, and the giveaway that it’s
plugged is a cold lower right hand corner of the
radiator near the lower hose outlet.
A common cause of irregular idle and driveability
problems on Volvos can be traced to carbon deposits
which can interfere with normal throttle movement.
The throttle can bind, which throws off the throttle
switch adjustment. Clean with carb cleaner and check
throttle switch adjustment when you're through.
Volvo flame traps have been mentioned before in
these pages. Acting as a crankcase breather restriction,
they can get so plugged that the crankcase can’t breathe.
If your Volvo customer can’t get the oil leaks stopped,
it may be because crankcase pressure is forcing oil
past seals and gaskets.
When replacing the tailgate supports on a 7-Series
Volvo wagon, check the pivot studs at the base of the
rod for wear. Some will wear toa point where they can
pop off if someone lifts up on the hatch when it’s
already fully open. The new pivot studs screw into
the body, and are easily replaced.
Page 6
Swede Tooth
You say the owner of that Volvo diesel with 80,000
miles on it is reluctant to change the timing belt?
Show him this photo and emphasize that this belt
snapped at about 85 grand, laying waste to assorted
internal engine components in a fraction of a second.
The recommended interval is 75,000 miles.
When the coolant gets hot on a Volvo 7-Series, the
radiator thermo switch closes and turns on an elec-
trical auxiliary fan. The closed switch also tells the
computer to advance ignition timing. If base timing is
adjusted when the switch is closed the ignition
timing will be retarded when the switch opens.
This Volvo power steering pump is mounted in rubber
bushings. The pump housing moves on separate slides
to adjust belt tension. When adjusting belt tension,
make sure the pump pulley is perfectly parallel to the
crank pulley when you tighten the bolts or you'll have
belt noise and premature belt wear.
Don’t assume that the switch mentioned in the pre-
vious step is good just because the fan isn’t running.
Many of these fans are seizing and won’t turn even
when the switch closes. The fan on the very first car
we checked was bad. By the way, the nut holding the
fan to the motor is a left-hand thread.
Page 7
Swede Tooth
Some Volvos were equipped with Chrysler distribu-
tors. The pins on the Chrysler Hall generator are
thinner than the mating connectors in the Volvo
harness. Three spacers (arrow) must be installed on
the pins to ensure a tight connection. If you replace a
pickup make sure you install new spacers.
This patch harness can repair a Volvo 7-Series which
starts but floods and stalls at temperatures below 25
degrees F. Remove the blue/green wire from the plug
at the cold start injector. Snip off the end of the wire
and insulate the bare end by taping back against the
carside harness.
If you have a no-start caused by a no-spark on a Volvo
Regina system, crank the engine and watch the dash-
board tach. If the tach needle bounces, you know the
ignition module, the distributor pickup, the coil pri-
mary circuit, and all related wiring are okay. The
problem is in the secondary ignition circuit.
To Cold Start Injector
To Starter
Py,
Original Blue/Green Wire
Volvo
Insert the metal wire connector in the plug to the cold
start harness and plug it back onto the cold start
injector. Take the insulated end of the harness and
plug it onto the spare pin (15a or 16) at the starter
solenoid. Now the injector will work only when the
starter is cranked.
Page 8
Swede Tooth
i swedish Sampler
Here’s a grab bag of miscellaneous information on both cars.
Volvo Fluid Requirements
Power Steering All Cars Type F™
Manual Transmission All Cars Type F
Automatic Transmissions
BW55/AW55 All Type F
AW70/AW71 1982-1983* Type F
*(These were filled with type F at the factory. Dexron Il and type F should never
be mixed in these units in the event that topping off is necessary. Dexron II can
be used in rebuilt or replacement units.)
AW70/71 1984 and later Dexron II ™
AW70L All Dexron II
AW72L All Dexron II
ZFHP22 All Dexron II
Volvo's fluid recommendations also include a caution about friction modified
versus non-friction modified fluids, as follows:
* Cans labeled Dexron II/Mercon are acceptable.
* Cans labeled Mercon only are NOT.
© Type F is acceptable for use in power steering units, manual transmissions,
and older automatics.
* Type F is NOT acceptable in newer automatics.
On Volvo 240 and 245 (station wagon models) through the 1984 model year,
inoperative or intermittent wipers (both front and rear), may be caused by water
filled relays. The relay are behind the carpeting just ahead of the driver's left
foot. The relays were mounted “face up” and drowned if there was a water leak
on that side.
shifted from 2nd to 3rd gears, the shift linkage centering spring is probably
broken. It’s located outside the transmission, inside the shift console, and can
be replaced from inside the car.
If you lift a Volvo in the air on a frame contact lift, and it’s equipped with the
new Nivomat rear suspension system, the shocks will fully extend, and the rear
of the car may be lower than normal when you first let it down. The shocks have
an internal “pump” which will raise the car as it is driven, toa preset level. They
do more than just dampen, they also work with special springs to keep the car
at proper ride height.
The bushings in the torque rod to the lower control arm on 7-series Volvos can
wear a point where the control arm wants to move fore and aft during
acceleration or braking. The bushings are easy to replace and can eliminate that
nasty clunk.
Here's a caution for your friendly tow truck driver: Many rear axles and panhard
rods on Saab 900s have been damaged when the flatbed driver hooks his pull
down chains to the axle or panhard rod, and pulls the car down until the tires
are flat. Just an ounce of prevention.
Dirty ABS wheel sensors can cause the ABS warning light to illuminate. Metal
shavings and debris cling to the head of the sensor and its normal wheel speed
signal gets weak. Our host shop has started cleaning them with brake cleaner
and compressed air as part of a maintenance.
Some fog light kits for Saab 9000s come with mounting bolts to attach the lights
to the body. But the bolts are too long and can interfere with the wiring harness
which runs along the front of the car. There may not be an immediate problem,
but the bolts will eventually wear through the harness.
If you add one of those third brakes lights to a Saab, don’t just tap into one ofthe
tail light assemblies to power it. The current imbalance will trigger the bulb
warning pictogram on the dash. To avoid this problem, go all the way to the
brake light switch and tap in there.
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