I apologize in advance for the long post, but I might edit the title of this into a build thread later on depending on where things go. I joined SwedeSpeed back in July of 2020 when I received my parents’ 2008 Volvo XC90 V8 (hence the username) with 66k miles on it, which now has 70K issue-free miles on it. On that, I’ve done a plethora of things, each one being a huge learning experience for me that I’m sincerely grateful for; my dad always says “It’s more than just a brake job, it’s a life skill.” And that’s exactly what it is.
Anyways, I’ve always had a fascination with manual cars since a young age and after a good amount of searching, we found and bought this 2004 Volvo S60 R with 112,000 miles, the M66 AWD, WA/OR-kept (I’m in the Portland, OR area BTW, so hello to any of my fellow PNW Volvo owners!). Below is the Craigslist listing description, and I’ve attached to this post all the images that he provided.
Craigslist Posting Description:
Hard to find 6 speed manual Volvo S60R. 112K miles. At 103k new steering rack, lower control arm bushings, and front 4C shocks. At 101k new timing belt, water pump, pulleys, oil pump seal , and serpentine belt. At 72k new bevel gear. Have all receipts back to original window sticker. Has down pipe and TME exhaust. Interior in great shape, everything works. Great stereo with big amps and a sub. New battery.
As soon as I saw the “At 72k new bevel gear… and front 4C shocks…” I was hooked onto it and ended up buying the car for around $6,000. It has IPD engine and transmission mounts, a TME Cat-back Exhaust, some sort of downpipe, IPD Lowering Springs, a really nice custom sub setup, and I think that’s all that it has in terms of upgrades or modifications. Didn’t even have a K&N filter or Cold Air Intake, so I’d call it tastefully modded. I hate loud cars and this TME Exhaust is conservative but hi-flow, which I love.
Anyways, my questions are the following for you all:
- I’m getting new tires and brakes on it first thing, as per inspection recommendation. What other things should I look into repairing first, in order of importance/urgency?
- The car is currently debadged. Me being the person I am, I hate that–so my first job will be putting the rear badges back on the car. How can I make sure they go where they’re supposed to and aren’t crooked/misaligned, etc.?
- I completely polished, paint-corrected, and ceramic coated my parents’ XC90 V8 in Electric Silver Metallic (which, by the way, is the best color for the XC90 IMO) and that’s exactly what I plan to do to this R, very soon. However, the trim pieces just below the roof and above the door jambs seem to be suffering from peeling clear coat (I think? See images). Can this be fixed with a touch-up pen from the dealer? Or should I just buy new trim pieces? If so, what’s the P/N for these trim pieces?
- The very last image at the very bottom of this post shows the door jamb seal having some damage. I think that the only way to repair it is to get a new rubber seal that goes around the DOOR. Not the seal that goes around the chassis/body, but the rubber seal around the DOOR itself. Anyone have a P/N for this? How to replace this? EDIT: Here’s images of the seal closeup: 2 new photos by Shudhant Gautam
- Is there any way to display the current gear I’m in, in place of where the automatic transmission would display P/R/N/D? Is that possible?
- The Bevel Gear was replaced at 72K miles. The car currently has 112K. Should I do a fluid replacement on it to prolong its life? I have yet to do a Bevel Gear fluid change on my XC90 V8 so this would be my first time, but I know that at least on the XC90 V8, it’s a royal PITA to do.
- Along the lines of the driveline, I replaced the Haldex AOC filter in my Gen 3 Haldex in my XC90 V8 in November 2020 as well as the fluid for the Haldex AOC. Should I do the same for this S60R? I remember it was quite annoying as I had to drop the exhaust and the rear part of the driveshaft just to gain access to be able to remove the pump and clean the little screen on the pump. But I may be wrong if this 2004 S60R has a Gen 2 Haldex AOC (does it have a Gen 3 like my 2008 XC90 V8?).
- The front 4C struts were replaced at around 103K miles. When should I expect the rear 4C struts to go? And I don’t have a spring compressor at home (too scared to use it even if I had one) so the rear ones should be fairly simple to replace, no?
- The LCA Bushings were replaced, and so were the lower transmission mount and upper engine mount with solid blue polyurethane IPD mounts. What other bushings are common failure points on these Rs that I should address, and with what importance? (aka should I do it now, or later?)
- There is only one key with the car. What all do I need to get a second key (valet key works, just need to start the car in case I lose the main key with the fob), how much does it cost, etc.?
- I did a Pioneer DMH-WT8600NEX (yeah the big boy screens) radio upgrade and backup camera upgrade on my XC90 V8 using a kit from a European company called InCarTec. Is there anything different I need to know about D-DIN head unit upgrades for the Rs? I’ll also be installing a backup camera on it once I get the D-DIN head unit, which will all be around Black Friday because I’m a high school senior
- When I was test driving it, it was on his private drive (which is uphill) stopped and with the handbrake up. I forgot exactly how it happened but I heard a sort-of-loud bang from the rear, which I assume was the common parking brake grenade issue? Is this resolved with a simple parking brake shoe replacement and handbrake cable adjustment? Or do I have to mess with the springs or the parking brake shoe mechanism itself? How difficult is that repair?
- The interior black plastic “textured” trim pieces just below the Climate Control Module and around the silver Spaceball shifter is quite scratched up. Should I repair that, or replace it? What’s the P/N?
- As standard on these used Rs, my 18″ Pegasus rims are curb-rashed all around. I know of the IPD replicas, but I can’t justify spending $225 x 4 = $900 USD on a set of wheels for this car. I’ve heard of Plasti-Dip, but that’s only on my high school parking lot’s classic clapped-out Civics and Infinity G35/37 and Nissan 350/370Zs… Given that the color of this car is dark, what would you all recommend I do if I was to go the Plasti-Dip route? Or should I go the refinishing route? Looking for a cost-effective solution. And you all should know, that I give examples of the clapped-out Civics and VQ cars because I hate a show-off and flashy car and love tasteful mods; so that means please keep the Plasti-Dip color suggestions to a modest range! That’s why I almost didn’t buy this R when I saw it had been de-badged.
- ANYTHING else? Tips? Tricks? Suggestions? Concerns? Questions? Comments? Things y’all would recommend I do to the car (remember, keep it tasteful please, I dig the OEM/OEM+ look)? Seriously, I love positive feedback and constructive criticism with the Volvo community on here and after having done so for some time over on the P2 XC90 forum, I’m REALLY excited to come over here and get my feet wet.
Thank you all so much in advance! I’m really looking forward to getting into this subforum, and especially this S60R. Cheers!
–08XC90V8
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