1800: 1972 pv1800es

[Underdrive]

Hi Alan, I've been reading this thread with interest and now though I might offer a few suggestions that you might find helpful. Also speaking as a former MOT tester I can confirm not all testers are made of the same stuff and only using the same one several times and getting to know them will give you a real sense of how much you can trust them. Speedos have always been a bone of contention with me, they are not tested in an MOT for either function or accuracy and yet the law requires we have one and it needs to be accurate in order for us to stay within the speed limit. Lifting the rear of the car off the ground with the speedo cable disconnected at the instrument end and running the car briefly in gear should show the drive cable turning if everything is functional up to that point. Two things an MOT can do is align the headlights correctly which is useful(usually free as part of the test) and importantly test the brakes for efficiency and balance which is something we can't test properly at home(particularly rear brake proportioning valves). You could get an MOT garage to test these two things only but the cost may well be almost as much as a full MOT. Your oil leaks may be easier to diagnose if you clean the whole engine first. Whenever I get a new(to me) car or do any major work on someone elses, I use Gunk engine cleaner(the pink stuff) which is water based and is just washed off with a hose pipe. I apply it with a 'squirty' bottle such as what domestic window cleaner comes in and work it in to very bad areas with a brush. Having the engine warm but not hot before you start will improve grease/dirt/oil removal and it will dry quicker afterwards. Not only will the engine bay look better, be more pleasant to work in but will also allow you to see where the leaks are originating from. Front end on ramps will allow access to the front crossmember and sump. Hope this helps.

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Underdrive

Hi Alan, I've been reading this thread with interest and now though I might offer a few suggestions that you might find helpful. Also speaking as a former MOT tester I can confirm not all testers are made of the same stuff and only using the same one several times and getting to know them will give you a real sense of how much you can trust them. Speedos have always been a bone of contention with me, they are not tested in an MOT for either function or accuracy and yet the law requires we have one and it needs to be accurate in order for us to stay within the speed limit. Lifting the rear of the car off the ground with the speedo cable disconnected at the instrument end and running the car briefly in gear should show the drive cable turning if everything is functional up to that point. Two things an MOT can do is align the headlights correctly which is useful(usually free as part of the test) and importantly test the brakes for efficiency and balance which is something we can't test properly at home(particularly rear brake proportioning valves). You could get an MOT garage to test these two things only but the cost may well be almost as much as a full MOT. Your oil leaks may be easier to diagnose if you clean the whole engine first. Whenever I get a new(to me) car or do any major work on someone elses, I use Gunk engine cleaner(the pink stuff) which is water based and is just washed off with a hose pipe. I apply it with a 'squirty' bottle such as what domestic window cleaner comes in and work it in to very bad areas with a brush. Having the engine warm but not hot before you start will improve grease/dirt/oil removal and it will dry quicker afterwards. Not only will the engine bay look better, be more pleasant to work in but will also allow you to see where the leaks are originating from. Front end on ramps will allow access to the front crossmember and sump. Hope this helps.

Excellent, many thanks.
I've developed a good relationship with the local F1 Autocentre (because they like seeing my 244 (the RB) there - the young chaps there like the novelty of older cars. I'm pretty sure they will take care of aligning the headlamps and checking the brakes for the cost of a donation to the tea fund (the way I normally pay for their help with the RB). They are a MoT testing station and so have all the equipment. I'll get them to check the emissions at the same time - not that Delores needs an emissions check but it is a good guide to the einspritzen's health.
I think I'm on the right track with the speedo drive (with Paul's help - see above) - I'm pretty sure (although I didn't know what I was looking for at the time) the drive pin was either not fitted or had sheared when I took the right angle drive off at the weekend.



... I don't recall seeing the pin sticking out of the gearbox.

I certainly take your point about cleaning up the engine - I also use Gunk (I'm more of a motorbike guy that a car man, all bikers know about Gunk). When I next get the car back from the owner (week after next) I'll give it a good clean up. I think I may be on the right track with the oil filler seal - there is certainly oil above the bottom of the engine (so the crank main seal is less of a suspect - which may well save the owner quite a lot of money).
Many thanks for your advice - it is very welcome indeed.
Alan

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Othen

Many thanks for your help - I think I'm on the right track now and this little chap (or the lack of it) is the prime suspect regarding the non-working speedometer:



... it will have to wait until next week - but I have a feeling this will be the answer :-)

This forum really is a fantastic resource - it might have taken me a lot longer to work this out on my own.

Alan

Where does that dinky-looking length of Bowden cable officially live Alan?

[Othen]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Where does that dinky-looking length of Bowden cable officially live Alan?

... one end sticks into the gearbox (well the overdrive - same thing in this context) and the other into this right angle drive - the knurled fastener end in this photo:



... the speedo cable screws on to the other end.

Why Mr Volvo didn't just make the cable a bit longer and put it straight into the gearbox I don't know. I rather suspect this is designed to be a sacrificial part to protect the rest of the system. I don't recall seeing anything sticking out of the gearbox, so either the dinky-looking length of Bowden cable has been removed some time in the past, or it sheared off and there is a bit stuck in the gearbox end.

Watch this space...

Alan

[Laird Scooby]

I suspect it was removed while being restored and wasn't found while refitting things so was forgotten about - a bit like the headlight earths!

Hopefully as simple as that, fingers crossed anyway!

[Underdrive]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

I suspect it was removed while being restored and wasn't found while refitting things so was forgotten about - a bit like the headlight earths!

Hopefully as simple as that, fingers crossed anyway!

Or removed because of a tight or noisey cable?

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Underdrive

Or removed because of a tight or noisey cable?

Would have been much simpler to draw the Bowden cable out from the outer sheath at the cable end and smear some grease on it as prescribed by Volvo for lubing the cable - would have solved both problems that way!

[Underdrive]

After seeing the headlight wiring I would rule nothing out

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Underdrive

After seeing the headlight wiring I would rule nothing out

That's a very valid point - out of sight, out of mind as it were. Thankfully the rest seems to have been done to a reasonably good/high standard so with a bit of luck it will only be a few small niggles like this to sort out.

[Ron Kwas]

LS;

That is a length of speedometer drive cable...a Bowden Cable is push/pull cable used for transferring control or actuation force, and something quite different...picky, picky, picky...

The Speedometer right angle drive was added to models with OD so the cable could depart the drive pointing forward...in non-OD cars, cable departed straight, and just made a gentle arc, but in OD equipped cars, that would have put the departure further to the rear and made it necessitate a much longer cable, so they just added the right angle drive (which does cost more than simply increasing the length of the cable, I'm sure)...but from memory, it does get the cable further away from the exhaust system (I believe without the right angle drive, the cable runs right over the front muffler and gets cooked), so maybe that was a contributing factor for the change...

Cheers