Volvo 740 family truckster project

Cripes, you already got me to buy a Grocery Life sticker, I think SEM will be in my future.

bastomatic wrote: Got around to investigating why the front speakers didn't work. I removed the factory speaker grilles to find this: I never guessed that they wouldn't install anything there from the factory. Fortunately there were speaker wires hiding behind that vinyl. Unfortunately the factory speaker size and mount isn't standard, so I ordered some 5.25" speakers and mount adapters. I also went to look at a Turbo 740 for a parts car yesterday, but when I arrived it wasn't a Turbo at all, just an auto-equipped N/A sedan. Oh well!

My saab has the same thing. Must be a Swedish thing.

Did you follow all of the SEM instructions for prep and buy their other stuff? Just curious since Ill be doing some bumper trim soon and was weighing this against the Duplicolor bumper paint.

I didn't buy their prep products. I sanded the bumpers with steel wool, then 600 grit sandpaper I believe. I wiped them down with rubbing alcohol about 15 minutes before painting. It took about 3 coats but it dries very quickly, maybe over 2 minutes.

My 745T is one of the few of my old cars that I miss.

Wow that's quite a transformation! Definitely adding the SEM stuff to the list for later reference.

My 744 Ti was the same with regards to the door speaker location. Had them in the package tray and the dash but not in the doors. I also painted my bumpers and mirrors but I used one of the spray paints for plastic I picked up from Lowe's. I painted the body side moldings as well as the grille (left the surround and diagonal chrome.) I also added some dancing moose emblems. Real conversation starters.

I may go back and fill in the grille later. Not sure yet.

If I ever end up adding a turbo or dropping in a V8, then maybe I'll do a prancing moose. Or this one.

The sem products are legit. I did a very nice quality interior color swap on the rabbit with this stuff. Like anything else paint, it's all about the prep. I used tons of dish soap and sponges. I ended up scrubbing everything thoroughly three times before i was satisfied there was no evil silicon lurking.

bastomatic wrote: I may go back and fill in the grille later. Not sure yet. If I ever end up adding a turbo or dropping in a V8, then maybe I'll do a prancing moose. Or this one.

Raging moose

Now I feel like I'm missing out on never having owned a Volvo. Went shopping for them a on multiple occasionS and came home empty handed.

Hey it's been a while! Priorities remain the same - a vintage-ish family truckster that can serve on long vacation road trips in comfort.

To that end, I bought a rooftop cargo box at REI this spring during their garage sale. I might paint it like the Swedish flag.

Other than that I've been putting the little upgrades I had planned on the back burner. Then my 4 year old daughter got me a Father's Day card and it contained this for inspiration:

Okay, okay kids. I get the hint.

From the mouths of babes, huh?

Sounds like someone wants to help.

Duplicolor has a trim paint that I've been trying out lately; it's slightly cheaper than SEM but much less expensive than the Mar-Hyde that everyone here used to use before the local parts giants stopped stocking it overnight.

The Duplicolor trim paint works pretty well so far: I've used it on rub strips, mirrors, bumpers and windshield wiper arms. If it's cheaper for you, having some more anecdata won't hurt.

The SEM stuff seems to be holding up well a year later.

I still love this car!

Nice that your daughter recognizes what you do at work, well, in a global sense at least . Mine no longer wants to know any specifics after she saw about 30 sec of a valve replacement video I was watching .

Good to know the SEM holds up well on the bumpers! I've used the trim paint on wiper arms and such, and it also seems to hold up well, even on cars that sit outside year-round.

In reply to XLR99:

Thanks a lot - I love it more each time I drive it. Luckily enough my daughter seems very intrigued by my job. She likes watching YouTube TED talks to learn about physiology.

Next project: fix the tailgate - actually two projects.

Crooked License plate - at some point in the past, a previous owner stripped 3 of the four studs for the license plate bracket. Rather than simply buying a new plate bracket at the cost of <$10, they had the genius idea of attaching the plate at one corner directly to the tailgate via a sheet metal screw.

Upon further inspection it appears their aim was off, or this process went predictably poorly, because hidden underneath the plate bracket were three holes in the sheet metal that I dare say were probably not put there by Sven the Swedish assembly line worker.

So, I did the right thing and filled the holes, and mounted up a new license plate bracket, and now the plate sits level as it ought.

To get to the bracket, you have to remove the interior panel, which leads to problem 2 - the tailgate panel had long ago busted all the plastic mounting points, which is a surprise to no Volvo owner. What was a surprise was the amount of tarry goop that was attempting to fill in for proper mounts. Again, likely not Sven's work.

This is another cheap fix - many sites sell a kit to reinforce these with metal and provide new tabs as well.

A few spare minutes on the weekend, and no more tarry mess. The newly actually-attached tailgate panel not flopping around like a drunken Norwegian each time you close it? That's just a nice bonus.

I knew the Volvo needed some suspension love when I got it, but when a trip to pick up mulch had it riding on the bump stops, the time for action had arrived. Of course that was two months ago, but the point is I eventually did get around to doing something about it.

iPD makes these great overload springs for older Volvo wagons, so I ordered a set, along with upgraded gas dampers in the rear, and Bilstein strut inserts up front. I replaced all the bushings and ball joints while I was in there. As you can see, the rear OE dampers were pretty toasted when I removed them.

I decided against going with more aggressive dampers because this is a long-distance family hauler, and I'm glad I did. This old wagon corners relatively flat now, with none of the pitch and dive that I had come to dread, but I couldn't tolerate a stiffer ride on these Michigan roads. I gained about an inch and a half of ride height in the rear, which is probably just back to stock.

I've got a road trip planned this weekend for a good shakedown test, but I'm very happy so far.

I used the IPD overloads and Bilstein dampers to replace stock springs and shot Nivomats on my daughter's 760 turbo wagon a long time back. Huge improvement.

My first car was a homemade NA-T 93 850 15 years ago. Back then the Volvo community was so small, so much ingenuity,so helpful. The older bricks (Pre 99) I feel like were the company's pinnacle. Seeing this one be so clean and getting love makes me feel fuzzy inside.

Thanks guys. Honestly when I traded away my 145, I worried I had made a big mistake. But this old grey grandpa is really starting to grow on me too, even if it doesn't have quite the same charm the little red wagon had.

This is looking great. Got to get together and compare cars. I've got a mojorly buggered up back so no slo-rolls right now, but maybe next week for coffee one evening.

My C30 has been sat in the garage for the last three weeks now the Porsche is back. As soon as I have time Koni FSD's are going on along with a complete timing belt swap, H20 pump and 100K service.

Little upgrades keep rolling in on the Battle Wagon. I managed to get a set of iPD 25mm sway bars and an OEM trailer hitch setup from a guy locally. Haven't tested it out yet but I'm betting the huge rear bar will make a big difference from having no rear sway bar.

I'm also eagerly awaiting another little surprise to be shipped from Europe.

bastomatic wrote: Hey it's been a while! Priorities remain the same - a vintage-ish family truckster that can serve on long vacation road trips in comfort. To that end, I bought a rooftop cargo box at REI this spring during their garage sale. I might paint it like the Swedish flag. Other than that I've been putting the little upgrades I had planned on the back burner. Then my 4 year old daughter got me a Father's Day card and it contained this for inspiration: Okay, okay kids. I get the hint.

I missed this post when you first put it up; the last line caught me so much by surprise I laughed and spit on my monitor.

I think your 4 year old's handwriting is a little suspiciously advanced. Are you sure it's not your wife sending you messages? ;-)

In reply to dculberson:

Heh, wouldn't put it past her, though the Father's day note actually came from her daycare. I've tried to disguise most of the upgrades as necessary maintenance, with little success. Here's our conversation from last night:

SWMBO: "what the heck could possibly still need fixing on that car?"

Me: "Oh it needed a rear sway bar. figured I'd get it done before vacation."

S: "Is that anything like the time like it "needed" new wheels?"

Me: "Well I'd better get to it!"

My wife --- ".....apparently 'needs' doesn't mean what I think it means......"