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Blixt Begins! - 1996 Volvo 855 R Restoration

28K views 357 replies 31 participants last post by  CYB3RBYTE 
#1 · (Edited)
About a week back, I was browsing the facebook marketplace (which is the only real thing I use facebook for anyways) and spotted a 1996 R estate for sale outside of chicago. I contacted the poster, and eventually spoke to the owner, who told me that I could have it this week for $400. Now, I don't know about you, but $400 between me and my dream car? Done. So I went to go pick it up and drove it back in the worst rainstorm I've seen in a decade. Because of all the lightning going on around us, I named it Brixt, which is the Swedish translation of lightning.

So, background information:

Blixt is a genuine 850 R with 157,xxx on the currently broken odometer. IF ANYONE KNOWS HOW TO PULL ACTUAL MILEAGE OFF A OBD II 850 PLEASE LET ME KNOW! He has some minor surface rust on two doors and the tailgate, probably a 6/10. His charcoal interior is in good condition, maybe a 7/10. As you can all see, at some point in his life he developed cleft-bumper, so my plan is to mount a GLT bumper on him for the time being. He has numerous mechanical boo-boos, but he runs and drives at the moment. I will admit that I have never dealt with one of these turbo cars so I am a bit frightened but willing to learn. He has a lifter tick, so any advice on that is also appreciated.

Here is all of the things I plan to do to him as the months go by. He will not be my daily driver, and I will be keeping him unregistered and uninsured until I fix him back to good mechanical condition, and he'll also get to live in my grandma's out garage during winter.

Things to be done:

- Brakes, check and replace all four sides pad and rotor wise, pulling slightly to left
- Timing Belt, and all accessories
- Full stage 0, and removal of that dumb K&N filter. If anyone has a top to a turbo airbox please let me know.
- throttle cable and clean throttle body with upgrade to N/A throttlebody
- Oil pan flush and re-gasket / seal
- check turbo and replace all vacuum hoses, I will definitely need some help with basic turbo maintenance here
- oxygen sensor, currently check engine light for it
- exhaust, very loud and smelly right now, considering an IPD solution or stock which ever is better.
- there's a dead spot in the steering, could use adjustment. Also steering wheel is out of alignment
- Oil leak on back side of engine near transmission I noticed the day after buying, any idea? cam seals? rear main seal (gulp)?
- climate control is blinking multiple times when car is first started, diagnose using vol-FCR
- Identify and solve lifter tick, possibly change out lifters if necessary

But hey, the suspension is fine!

I know that's a lot, but this is my big fixer upper. This car has potential and I'm determined to see it through.

Here he is in his current, albeit fading, glory:

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Brixt begins by Charles Conto, on Flickr

Video of the lifter tick:

 
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#286 ·
Makes sense. I had seen on a different forums someone had replaced the thermal fuse inside and was able to use their same resistor again. However if mine if just cooked I'll go grab one. What values should I be testing for to see if it's a good one from the JY?
 
#287 · (Edited)
Early Spring 2020 update. Finally got around to procuring my own set of tools, no more bothering dad to borrow his, lol. They're cheap but at least they're mine.

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Pulled a working power stage from my local yard. Installed it, and still nothing from the blower. I was receiving power from the power stage itself, so I pulled the blower. Oof, it's definitely given up the ghost.

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Cleaning it, lubricating it, and testing it, this blower is gone. It didn't even try to spin connected to the battery, the contacts inside must have failed. New Bosch unit ordered off eBay, hopefully get that in by the end of the week if it gets any colder here.

Next up, fixing a stupid mistake. Don't try to move mirrors that won't fold in, because then you break it off entirely, lol. Again, junkyard find, with better paint than the old one as well!

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

And finally, I noticed the right engine mount was destroyed when replacing the timing belt. Found a good condition slightly used one in my stash, and now my oil thermostat is no longer half an inch from my subframe haha.

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Exhaust is coming soon. What are best practices when removing the turbo exhaust flange?
 
#288 ·
Early Spring 2020 update. Finally got around to procuring my own set of tools, no more bothering dad to borrow his, lol. They're cheap but at least they're mine.

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Pulled a working power stage from my local yard. Installed it, and still nothing from the blower. I was receiving power from the power stage itself, so I pulled the blower. Oof, it's definitely given up the ghost.

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Cleaning it, lubricating it, and testing it, this blower is gone. It didn't even try to spin connected to the battery, the contacts inside must have failed. New Bosch unit ordered off eBay, hopefully get that in by the end of the week if it gets any colder here.

Next up, fixing a stupid mistake. Don't try to move mirrors that won't fold in, because then you break it off entirely, lol. Again, junkyard find, with better paint than the old one as well!

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

And finally, I noticed the right engine mount was destroyed when replacing the timing belt. Found a good condition slightly used one in my stash, and now my oil thermostat is no longer half an inch from my subframe haha.

Spring 2020 R Update by CYB3RBYTE, on Flickr

Exhaust is coming soon. What are best practices when removing the turbo exhaust flange?
Penetrating oil, ratcheting wrenches, a Dremel if necessary

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#290 ·
A taste of what's to come:



Do I have to use the $8 a piece Volvo 8mm lock nuts for the exhaust manifold and downpipe? Or can I use something else because there's a part of me that's gonna be really sad if I need to buy $60 of only Volvo nuts.
 
#292 ·
I know what I would do...
A taste of what's to come:

Do I have to use the $8 a piece Volvo 8mm lock nuts for the exhaust manifold and downpipe? Or can I use something else because there's a part of me that's gonna be really sad if I need to buy $60 of only Volvo nuts.
 
#295 ·
I bought a bunch of the bolts from the first link you gave me Chuck. Thanks!

In other good news, the blower motor turned up, and after install everything is working! Reading my ECC codes, I only have two now: 2-3-1 (ventilation damper), and 2-3-3 (floor defrost). I am going to do the motor readjustment procedure because I rebuilt the floor motor, but maybe it's in the wrong position still.
 
#296 ·
My work has been kind enough to close down during these odd times and pay me throughout the period we are going to be closed. Think I’ll tackle the oil pan seals now. I’ve been hearing things about the “revised” pickup, what is it (part number) and is it alright if I don’t replace it as I don’t have one on hand?
 
#298 · (Edited)
Okay. I'm going to wait on the oil pan job then until later while the pickup is coming.

Finally got the driver's side knee bolster back in place. The plastic behind the vinyl mounting tabs was destroyed, so I had an idea to cut up a mixing stick and superglue them in place to provide support. Holding so far.





The exhaust showed up today. While I have plenty of time to install it, I'm quite eager. I can't figure out how the rear tailpipe section is oriented when installed, which way do I setup the hangers? If anyone has a Simons or similar exhaust please post it so my dumb brain can understand.



When I was removing some of the turbo flange bolts today, I noticed this. Cleaned it up and tightened the hose, but is this anything to be worried about? Such as back-pressure of some sort from headgasket? No oil in the tank, just coolant but it was leaking from the overflow.

 
#299 ·
The rear hanger goes on with the captive nut facing the ground. Two hangers are provided, one for stock exhaust tip one for the included cannon.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#300 ·
Got to work yesterday on the removal of the old, terrible exhaust.







Great. Now I won't feel bad after trying to do a pull and stinking up the road.



New to me angle flange housing and downpipe installed. Got a little late in the evening to disturb the neighbors when people are all home these days, haha. Going to be working on getting the new system in today.
 
#303 · (Edited)
I've been lucky to speak with many of my managers directly on the subject. Because of the generosity on their part (and granted they were one of the first companies to pay their workers throughout this), I volunteered to work the skeleton shifts while we were shutting down. There's a weird feeling seeing everything being taken down around you.

Anyways, got to work lining up the new exhaust this morning. I am 5 inches short, so I have to find some way to bridge this gap. My thought is some sort of pipe in halves that can be clamped together if people sell those.





Another issue, the heat shield on the side of the gas tank fell off. The mounts disintegrated. Will I be able to get by until I get some heat wrap or something?



Doesn't look too bad. End pipe is a little large for my tastes but maybe I'll get used to it.
 
#304 ·
You can put the stock tip back on.

Also rather low....need to massage the connections a bit to get it in the right place.
 
#305 ·
Unfortunately I never got the stock tip. From my previous photos that was all that was under the car. I’ll try to get it to go higher.
 
#306 ·
Unfortunately I never got the stock tip. From my previous photos that was all that was under the car. I'll try to get it to go higher.
Oh. Nevermind then.

I think this is what you want:

 
#307 ·
Wish I had one of those. Got the install finished with a temporary joiner. I need to find someone who can weld to get it connected permanently.

Car started leaking oil as soon as I started it, couple drops every 30 seconds, I'm guessing it was either something to do with the turbo oil banjo bolt or the turbo drain return tube. I snugged the bolt down pretty good so we'll hope it's not the banjo bolt. Got it back to storage and grabbed the daily for now.
 
#308 ·
Since the Governor decided to lock down the state, I figured I better go back and grab the project in case there are things I can do on it.

Got a cheap O2 sensor in the exhaust for the moment, going to an OEM sensor once I pass emissions. Think the old one was destroyed?



Remounted the tailpipe as well, using the stock bracket. It's not touching, but its gonna get burned if I leave it like this. Gonna try to bend the bracket a little lower.



So now when I start the car I have a pretty good oil leak. Methinks it's the oil line as pictured, and the rear motor mount below is covered in oil as well as the back of the front subframe and oil pan. Any thoughts?









It's the only thing I messed with during the exhaust install so that has to be it. I have a whole bunch of gaskets arriving on Thursday.

When it rains it pours... coolant that is. Found this on the passenger side. Stock Volvo radiator for replacement?

 
#309 ·
When it rains it pours... coolant that is. Found this on the passenger side. Stock Volvo radiator for replacement?

I have Nissens in both my 850Rs. I have an all aluminum DO88 I bought and later found out are often unreliable, so I'm torn as to whether I am willing to have the DO88 pressure tested and use it, or just not risk it.

Throwing away a $400 radiator is cheaper than doing a head job I suppose if it fails....

But a lot of people go OE. You probably should look at the heater core, firewall junction and all 8 coolant hoses at the same time.
 
#310 ·
The revised oil pickup is not compatible with the N pan





 
#311 · (Edited)
Thanks for the info, Jared. Seems I've ordered the wrong metal gasket for an angle flange downpipes, it was far too small. Does anyone have the PN for it?

Decided to do the rear brakes before the weekend. This is probably the most I've been ashamed of my ignorance in fixing cars, I should've checked this earlier. Parking brakes need some love still, waiting on the parts.



Because that gas tank heat shield fell off, and I don't feel like being the human torch before halloween this year, I did what I could with heat wrap. After a short drive I checked the temp in that area and it seemed nominal.



This weekend finally came, however the rest of the repairs were put off by the family P1 car, my brother's C70, needing a brake job. Easiest I've done in a while, except for the fact that everyone sells three different size of rotors and nowhere knows which were specific to the C70 or model year.

Got to the turbo gaskets today, and now that I have some ratcheting wrenches it's much easier to get at those manifold to housing bolts. Got everything apart in about an hour, and back together in about two, with cleaning of the tube a little as well as the other surfaces on the block. It got oil EVERYWHERE.





Again, ordered the wrong gasket for the drain line. It fix the holes perfectly, but I didn't want the little tail on it. Cut it down, I thought I did pretty good.





As you can see, the old bottom drain gasket was destroyed, but I think it was the top and bottom causing the leak as the top was full of oil too.



I put all the bolts back on the correct way this time, just for ScottishBrick lol.



Forgot to mention, the turbo feels really nice and tight from the rear, no play that I could see. However that may just be from how it's mounted, or idk. Either way it's getting a new CHRA eventually.

With all this pandemonium, I've been pretty anxious lately. This has been a welcome getaway from that, even if I never left the house.

 
#314 ·
What's under the cover on the left?
That's the next project, which I may get to this week. 1977 Triumph Spitfire 1500. Needs the water pump housing replaced.
 
#315 ·
The "tail" on the return drain upper gasket is so you can slide it in with the drain tube in its proper position.
Ah, well, the more you know. It looked really similar to the oil pan gaskets, albeit thinner of course.
 
#316 ·
Based on this spark plug, I'd say the wagon was overdue for a tune-up.



Full stage 0 done. Again, should have done this sooner on this car, but amazingly it was driving okay beforehand.



While I was tidying up the engine bay and vacuum tube routing, the cam position sensor's connector decided to disintegrate. Luckily my local JY is still doing pull your part, and no one was out there that day. I didn't feel like paying $90 for a new CPS right this second. Found one, cleaned it up, and installed it along with a new door check for the drivers side.



The old door check tension mechanism exploded at some point...

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While replacing the fuel filter, I was met with this bracket. I'm no independent mechanic, but cmon people, clean up where you've been after your done lol.



After everything was done, this car cranks over and runs so much easier now, it catches much faster than it used to. She's smooth as buttaaaa.

Need to source a replacement for this roof rail cap, apparently they're NLA.

 
#349 · (Edited)
While replacing the fuel filter, I was met with this bracket. I'm no independent mechanic, but cmon people, clean up where you've been after your done lol.

Mine was in a similar state. I couldn't even see the captive nut to get a spanner on it to undo the bolt
I eventually decided to force the bolt clockwise to straighten the bracket enough to allow me to see the captive nut which is 14mm square and that allowed me to get the bolt off

I removed the bracket and straightened it up in the vice with a plan to painting it but on closer inspection the outer edge is factory covered in underseal with the entire bracket galvanised and in good condition, so I gave it a light coat of grease and refitted it.

 
#317 ·
Really enjoying this thread. Nice to see there are a few others in the area with the Volvo bug. Just got my ‘07 a few weeks ago but really dig the older bricks (Dad had few growing up).
 
#318 ·
Really enjoying this thread. Nice to see there are a few others in the area with the Volvo bug.
Thanks, we'll have to catch up sometime!

Finally completed the exhaust, ignore the covers off of the borrowed welder that seemed to fail intermittently.





With some grinding it came out less ugly than expected. Still gonna put some clamps over the weld sections to prevent them from rusting. The car is now quieter than both my dad's C70 and Jaguar at idle.

I've been trying to eliminate codes from my ECC one step at a time, finally figured out where the ventilation damper lives. People on YouTube would say it's impossible, it was actually quite easy once you pull the knee bolster on the drivers side. Cleaned it, relubicrated it, and reinstalled.

HOWEVER, it will not change position still. This climate computer is driving me wild. If this didn't make Volvo money in service costs, I'd be surprised. It does recirc, temperature, blower speed, just fine. But it will not change the floor, defrost, or passenger air flow. Both actuator motors are known good. I think it's locked up, as I can't get the codes to clear now via the blinky lights. Searching the web, people make it seem like I will need a Volvo system tester...
 
#319 · (Edited)
Got a nice VDO boost gauge in, made a "C U S T O M" mounting solution. As you can see I grazed the sides with the dremel a little but I thought it turned out pretty nice overall.



Fixed the rattling tailgate as well. Never knew the latch itself could make so much noise, it also destroyed my inner panel mounts too so I had to reorder some of those and reinforce it again only 2 years after the first time. Here's hoping it will last a bit longer!
 
#322 ·
Some good updates here:



Finally replaced the old, malfunctioning wiper drive that would only go up halfway and then put the wipers back into the cowl where they certainly don't belong.

Melted cheese anyone? Yummm!



Fresh one from the yard for $30. Looking good. While there, I also grabbed the wiper arms from an S70. No more wiper arm issues!



Started working on the rear parking brakes, since those were totally destroyed. I would show you before pictures, but lets just say there was nothing left on the shoes.



Also, fun fact, if your dash tweeters are destroyed from being brittle, you can replace them from ones in a S70 as well! Just had to resolder the connections, but they have the same ohm rating and fit inside the plastic mounts.




Fixed the fuel vent hose as well, no more smelling like gas after fill-ups. Found some former residents, needless to say I was impressed at their size.






And finally, replacing the right rear caliper as some idiot rounded the line bolt the last time they touched it, so now I get to flare the line. Thought I did pretty well just practicing it in my garage before doing it for real on the car. I usually get my calipers from O'Reily's since they're close by, and the ones they sell are all remanufactured ATE's. Interesting.



 
#333 · (Edited)
Not going to lie, unless you drill EXACTLY where the hose clamps are, you're gonna have a hard time. Plus, both of my clamps were rusted tight. I'd recommend waiting until you are at a low enough level of gas that you can just drop the tank. And you need the specific hose from Volvo, I was able to get it through FCP for $14 I believe.

I've been happy with the reman calipers so far, no issues. That right front will definitely be getting replaced soon enough, tiny bit of air in the lines is making a squishier than normal brake pedal. Will probably go to stainless lines at the same time as well. Then 302's.
 
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