New Volvo Member to our family- and a question

Discussion in 'General Motoring' started by Randy G., Apr 13, 2009.

  1. Randy G.

    Randy G. Guest

    Mom's 1989 Taurus finally blew a head gasket (at 127,000 miles- what a
    POS), so we talked her into a Volvo. I found a pretty decent 1985 245
    auto with the OD tranny. The Air conditioning has been
    updated/retrofitted, and the OD works flawlessly. The can has
    late-model turbo mag wheels and they look awesome on the car! The
    interior looks abut as close to new as one would expect other than the
    cracks in the dashboard.

    The car runs like it's being chased, happily pulling 70++ up the long
    grade to where we live in the mountains.

    The only problem- the alternator accessory bushing had worn so far
    that about 85% of the upper adjustment mount had been ground off by
    the water pump/fan pulley! I hit the Pick-N-Pull the next day and
    found all the parts I needed, and all is well now. Also replaced the
    all-important e-brake switch so the dash lamp illuminates when the
    handle is pulled up.

    THE QUESTION: The OD light on the dash works opposite what it should-
    comes on when the OD is on and the lamp is off when the OD is off.
    Could someone tell me where to look for that signal wire and how it
    could be hooked up backwards. ADDITIONAL: the previous owner told me
    he had someone work on the OD and they replaced the relay.. could it
    be the wrong relay or just wired wrong?

    Any guidance would be appreciated.
    __ __
    Randy & \ \/ /alerie's
    \__/olvos
    '90 245 Estate - '93 965 Estate
    "Shelby" & "Kate"
     
    Randy G., Apr 13, 2009
    #1
  2. Randy G.

    James Sweet Guest


    While I've never tried to see what would happen, I suspect someone has
    installed a relay intended for a manual transmission car. Grab an OD
    relay from a junkyard automatic car and try that. If it works, you'll
    probably want to resolder the circuit board in the relay as a
    preventative thing.
     
    James Sweet, Apr 13, 2009
    #2
  3. Randy G.

    Randy G. Guest

    James,

    Let me first thank you on behalf of myself as well as the rest of the
    group here, if I may be so presumptuous, for all the time and effort
    you put into assisting folks with their car problems. I have been
    doing much the same with various coffee groups on the WWW so I
    understand the time and dedication it takes, as well as the love for
    the subject matter.

    I have the correct numbers from the Volvo Vadis and know the location
    of the relay, so will check into the relay numbers... Thanks again!
    Very much appreciated.

    You should love this stuff:

    After I got the car over to Mom on Sunday, I took her out in it,
    letting her drive to get use to it a bit. My schedule is pretty full
    until next week, so don't have the time to take her out on a long
    drive just yet.

    She lives along a mountain road, and on the way back from the test
    drive we came to a bend and she started to apply the brakes (we were
    doing about 40). I told her, "Let off the brakes and just steer it
    around the turn."

    She got through the turn with a bit of apprehension, and then she
    said, "Wow! I now see why you two love your Volvos so much!"

    Ya.. Now she knows! ;-)


    __ __
    Randy & \ \/ /alerie's
    \__/olvos
    '90 245 Estate - '93 965 Estate
    "Shelby" & "Kate"
     
    Randy G., Apr 13, 2009
    #3
  4. Randy G.

    Glenn K Guest

    Does the OD work ? if so then maybe the incorrect relay installed I am
    not sure as I have not worked on a 240 in a very long time but if I
    remember correctly it should be a white relay also remove the spring
    clip that holds the relay in place as this causes the relay to short out
    internally if you have vadis @ home then check for the correct part # if
    it is correct then check the wire coming out of the shifter bucket &
    going down to the trans as this wire always becomes dried out & breaks
    check these & post back & I will try to help more if needed
    Glenn K
    Volvo Certified Technician 2008
    ASE Certified Technician 2008
     
    Glenn K, Apr 13, 2009
    #4
  5. Randy G.

    James Sweet Guest



    The relays were made in many colors, I've seen white, orange and red but
    I believe there were others. I've never had a problem with the spring
    clip, the usual failure for these is the soldering on the heavy pins
    where the relay armature and external plug pins attach to the circuit
    board. Flow in a bit of fresh solder and it's good as new.

    You're right about the wire under the car to the solenoid. These have
    the crumbling insulation and should be replaced or it will burn out
    relays and blow fuses. It's just a single wire with a bullet connector
    on the end so it's easy to replace, just splice it where it comes up
    under the carpet into the center console.
     
    James Sweet, Apr 13, 2009
    #5
  6. Randy G.

    James Sweet Guest



    The relays were made in many colors, I've seen white, orange and red but
    I believe there were others. I've never had a problem with the spring
    clip, the usual failure for these is the soldering on the heavy pins
    where the relay armature and external plug pins attach to the circuit
    board. Flow in a bit of fresh solder and it's good as new.

    You're right about the wire under the car to the solenoid. These have
    the crumbling insulation and should be replaced or it will burn out
    relays and blow fuses. It's just a single wire with a bullet connector
    on the end so it's easy to replace, just splice it where it comes up
    under the carpet into the center console.
     
    James Sweet, Apr 13, 2009
    #6
  7. Randy G.

    Randy G. Guest

    Glenn (and James)-

    The OD works flawlessly, happily shifting in and out of OD as it
    should, and it does so smoothly. The only problem is the light on the
    dash works opposite of what it should. Since the relay simply plugs
    in, I would guess that it is the relay from the manual box. I won't
    get a chance to get to the wrecker's yard until next week and will
    report back when I get a chance to get into Mom's car again.

    According to Vadis, the correct number for the relay used on the Auto
    gearbox is:
    - 3523804

    Interestingly, the one for the manual box of that year is 352805, and
    it comes first on the parts list, with a "SEE NOTE" reference next to
    it. I suspect that the generic mechanic who worked on it looked up the
    relay and ordered the first one on the list (the 352805).

    I will get under the car next week and check out the wire as
    suggested.
    __ __
    Randy & \ \/ /alerie's
    \__/olvos
    '90 245 Estate - '93 965 Estate
    "Shelby" & "Kate"
     
    Randy G., Apr 13, 2009
    #7

  8. Much the same happened with my girlfriend driving my V70.
    She absolutely hated to drive cars, UNTIL she drove the D5 geartronic.
    whenever she had to drive a stickshift car there was some sort of
    constant panic about stopping the engine, wrong gears etc
    for that same reason she never ever drove in the mountains.
    about a mont ago i kinda forced her to drive my car, at first she was
    very reluctant and that same panic came up again. But then, only after
    few hundred meters or so, slowly a litle smile came up wich evolved to
    a big smile! Week later we went to the French alpes and one day i
    came back from skiing noticing the car was not in the driveway. She
    came home about five minutes later with an even bigger smile than i
    had seen before and a victorious rush, she had drove alp roads, on
    the snow, through hairpin bends and was perfectly happy doing so. You
    cannot imagine how much this fills me with joy. Only downside.... now
    if have to share my car with here until she gets a geartronic herself!

    Cheers

    Marc
     
    Marc Amsterdam, Apr 14, 2009
    #8
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