caring about a volvo 262c bertone

Discussion in 'General Motoring' started by Ingars, Jul 31, 2006.

  1. Ingars

    Ingars Guest

    Hello!

    I'm a new member of the group and a new owner of a volvo 262. I'd like
    to ask a few questions about maintenance and other stuff to more
    experienced owners of this car.

    So, the car I bought is a '78 model from sweden. automatic gearbox, all
    equipment original, all looks great and new. i've read on the forums a
    few 'problem' issues with this car. namely, the camshaft wear on the
    engine, the rusting so forth. i intend to preserve this car in a good
    condition (as it was bought) and therefore am asking for tips on the
    routine maintenance on the car as well as some suggested improvement on
    it.

    about the camshafts- is regular oiling enough? how often should that be
    done? what oil should be used/is absolutely neccessary - synthetic or
    is mineral enough? i read about improved oiling on the engine by
    creating additional leaks into the engine. what exactly is done? how
    difficult/expensive is that to do? are there any trade- offs for this?

    sorry about a dumb question - what routine jobs can be done to prevent
    rust before it hits the car? (i do intend to drive in rain, snow) i
    mean, currently its rust-free (the previous owner has been caring) and
    i'd like to stick to that.

    any other suggested 'improvement jobs' on anything on the vehicle?

    a few quesitons on the usage:

    doesn't this model include a fog light? i have had a 240 before and
    they all had, when bough this car i didn't pay attention; however now i
    discover that there is no switch. on the switchboard there are to
    switches for windows, two for seat heating, one for airconditioning,
    one for hazard and one key for regulating the light on the speedometer
    panel, but none for foglight!

    dumb question again - when i read it's a vinyl roof, i thought it would
    be vinly like the long players, but to me it looks like leather. it
    maybe vinyl under it, but why is it called vinyl then? could it be that
    it should have been vinyl but now it's covered with leather? could it
    be that the material i think is leather, is actually vinyl? any other
    explanation? i don't have another car to compare to.

    what is the switch left of the steering wheel on 'the part that hold
    the steering wheel' (don't know how it's called) for?

    the lighting of the saloon - how do you change from that 'pointer-
    light' to the 'normal' light?


    sorry for being so long. if anyone is kind to answer anything of this.
    i'd greatly appreciate that.

    regards,

    Ingars
     
    Ingars, Jul 31, 2006
    #1
  2. Hi, Ingars.
    For preserving your engine, you should change oil every 5000km..
    You should use synthetic oil, and one with viscocity (not very thick oil!).
    The thing, is that the oil-canals inside the engine, are very tiny and
    therefore might get clogged.
    Then the camaxle wont get enough lubrication and therefore wear out excessivly.

    If the engine fails, you can think about fitting the b280 instead, as that's an
    improved version, but still a v6, so it wont be a "fake child".
    As for the rust: wash it often in winter, fix chipped paint, etc.

    Some places on the 240's rust more than others:
    spare wheel whells, also the "canals" (beneath the doors, you have to open and
    spray with techtyl made for body of the car.. very sticky stuff).. Also
    remember to keep the paint in good condition, dont wax it in sunshine, but wax
    in the shades..

    Congrats with a classy ride!

    sincerely,
    Olav
     
    Olav Alexander Mjelde, Jul 31, 2006
    #2
  3. Ingars

    M-gineering Guest

    AFAIK the camshaft trouble was caused by a series of camshafts which had
    the asymmetric profile ground on backwards. This type of problem should
    show up early in the engine's life
     
    M-gineering, Jul 31, 2006
    #3
  4. Ingars

    Johan Plane Guest

    Then I would say you are misinformed.
    I had a 265 first with B27E which I replaced with a B28E. The B27,
    regardless of A or E model, definitely had insufficient lubrication on the
    camshaft which was improved on the B28. Furthermore the problems on the B27
    was made worse by Volvos service recommendations, 15000 km, whereas changing
    oil every 5000 km improves the lifespan of the camshafts.

    Johan Plane
    Uppsala, Sweden
     
    Johan Plane, Aug 1, 2006
    #4
  5. Ingars

    User Guest

    The unofficial factory excuse for the camshaft/rocker/rockershaft
    problem, was to blame everyone but the designers. The B27-28 motors are
    98% Renault and 2% Volvo. Originally designed as a V8 in 1974 it was
    shortened to the 90* uneven fire V6 design an introduced in the European
    market, I believe in 1975. Volvo was expanding rapidly and spent time
    investigating the production of P200 chassis cars in the US in
    Chesapeake, VA.

    The uneven fire characteristics, mainly rough idle, of the motor were as
    immediately unpopular with the American market as was the first uneven
    fire Buick V6 in 1962. American mechanics thought that a proven bad idea
    from years before was a joke. The US version with the twin plenum CI
    injection was miserable to work on. The plumbing was atrocious, with the
    ignition layout not far behind. The French idea of using oil pressure to
    tension the skinny little timing chain proved to be a bad idea as well.
    Whenever the motor is started there is a delay in oil reaching the top
    of the motor since the cam delivery galley drained back through the
    tensioner channel.

    Since 1976 was a heavy production year, it lasted from the August
    changeover in 1975 until May or June of 1977, the ability to provide
    parts from various vendors was stressed to the max. In order to acquire
    enough camshafts and rockers, it seemed anyone who could grind cams or
    cast rockers was tapped to provide them. Hence an inconsistency in the
    metallurgy among suppliers and among parts led to the initial rash of
    premature camshaft failures. By 1982 the camshaft problem was
    essentially solved.

    By the time the B280 arrived nearly all the oiling and heat dissipation
    problems had been addressed and cured as well as the development of the
    offset crank journals that allowed an even firing motor. Volvo
    redesigned the heads with a taller internal baffle to retain more oil
    around the cam shaft when the motor was stopped. This also helped
    conduct heat away from the rockers and the cam to stop the oil from
    smoking and coking under the valve covers. The LH injection stopped the
    overinjection of fuel during warmup that showed up as severe to moderate
    fuel dilution in as few as 3000 miles. With the service interval at 7500
    miles the oil was inadequate as a lubricant by less then half the
    recommended oil changing distance. Couple that with mechanics
    enrichening the idle mixture to help smooth the idle and it became no
    surprise that the cams suffered an early demise. Credit the French with
    buiding a bottom end that was unbelievably stout and seldom failed. Most
    likely due to the motor's design used in the 2.4L turbo configuration in
    the group 6 Alpine prototype cars and the continued development in the
    Renault chassis F1 1.5L turbo iron block versions (the iron block was
    identical to the aluminum block, it's just that the engine was a sressed
    member in the F1 chassis and the aluminum block simply wasn't rigid
    enough to handle the loads of the rear suspension and drive train).

    Bob
     
    User, Aug 1, 2006
    #5
  6. Ingars

    zencraps Guest

    To minimize rust, keep it washed and waxed.

    Use the hose to regularly flush accumulated dirt and grit from the
    wheel well / fender area, and make sure all drains are free running.
     
    zencraps, Aug 1, 2006
    #6
  7. Ingars

    Ingars Guest

    thanks a lot for the tips.

    still curious about the vinyl roof and the foglight, though - could
    anyone please comment?
     
    Ingars, Aug 1, 2006
    #7
  8. Ingars

    Johan Plane Guest

    1. Vinyl roof. It's leather look-alike but it is vinyl = plastic. Should
    be treated with cleaner/conditioner for vinyl, no waxing and avoid high
    water pressures when washing car.

    2. Foglight. At least on the european cars, there were no foglights
    whatsoever as standard, but could be ordered as extra. The wiring for rear
    foglights is already there. I beleive the reason why they omitted
    foglights in the front was that the space where they would have been
    fitted, i.e. in the front spoiler, was occupied with ventilation slots
    necessary to pass air to front brake disks.

    Johan
     
    Johan Plane, Aug 1, 2006
    #8
  9. Ingars

    Ingars Guest

    thanks, Johan

    that satisfies my interest

     
    Ingars, Aug 3, 2006
    #9
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