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Not so coolant 850 1995

posted by  pflaumstrike on  Mon Aug 11 10:14 CST 2003
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Hello

1995 850 Turbo 73,000 miles. I was driving home from work the other day, and as I neared my apartment I noticed steam coming from the right side of the hood. The temperature gauge on the dash indicated normal temperature. I opened up the hood, to find coolant steaming/spilling out of the top of the coolant container. Let it cool down overnight. Coolant level shown as being below minimum. Topped off with water. Drove about five miles. Same result. Still temperature gauge showing normal temp. Came back 3 hours later, topped off with water, drove the five miles back home. Checked under the hood; no problem. Drove it about 10 miles this morning to work; no problem. Why does it appear to have corrected itself? Is the thermostat bad? Why does the temperature gauge not show that the car's overheating? Taking it to my mechanic this afternoon; just wanted some input. Thanks in advance.








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    Not so coolant 850 1995

    posted by  Chuckster on  Tue Aug 12 04:18 CST 2003
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    pflaumstrike,
    1997 850 GLT.
    First I had intermittent temp rises, then it would go up and stay up. My thermostat failed at 56,000 miles, 10 minutes to replace, problem solved. Use paste graphite never-seize on the thermostat housing bolt threads during reinstallation of thermo-housing, avoid over torqueing new bolts.
    One of the most critical part replacements that should be done every 30000 miles is changing the thermostat (Volvo OEM, not generic, I keep spare around). Change it along with the upper lower hoses, clamps, Volvo coolant, etc.
    The damage done by overheating can end up making you hate the idea of owning a 850.
    Cster








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      Not so coolant 850 1995

      posted by  someone claiming to be pflaumstrike on  Tue Aug 12 11:25 CST 2003 [RELATED]

      Thanks for your assistance everybody:

      According to my mechanic it was a combination of several things. One, the thermostat needed to be replaced. Two, the temperature sensor was not working properly (needed to be replaced) and therefore, the temperature gauge was not showing an accurate reading. Three, the green cap was found to be defective when subjected to pressure tests. $185.00 for parts/labor. Oh well.







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    Not so coolant 850 1995

    posted by  Erwin on  Mon Aug 11 11:30 CST 2003
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    last visit: Thu Oct 23 10:39 CST 2014
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    Check around the top of your cap for cracks. Not uncommon. Before buying a different colored cap be aware that the color indicates the pressure rating of the cap. My '95 855t came with a gray cap that was badly warped (I bought the car with around 75,000 miles on it) so bought the cyan or "green" cap. Probably not the reason my radiator failed last month but who knows? I just did a quick search and couldn't find the pressure ratings but there are three caps. Black, Grey and Green. The pressure rating is molded into the cap.
    --
    Erwin in Memphis, '88 745t 190,000 miles, '95 855t 92,000 miles








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    Not so coolant 850 1995

    posted by  someone claiming to be Ray N on  Mon Aug 11 11:21 CST 2003 [RELATED]

    The older pressure caps are known to fail (the should not be
    over-tightened). The newer design is blue/green/cyan colored
    (depending on who is describing it). You might try one of the
    newer caps








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    Not so coolant 850 1995

    posted by  T-luv on  Mon Aug 11 10:37 CST 2003
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    You might have trapped an air bubble that rapidly expanded causing the boil over. Provided your temp gauge seems to work correctly, i would refill as you did and keep an eye on it. Let us know what you find.

    T-luv







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      Not so coolant 850 1995

      posted by  davidm on  Mon Aug 11 10:41 CST 2003
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      Possibly a thermostat. The gauge is regulated - i.e., it's held in center position even though there may be minor variations in temperature. Also, you're pressure cap (on the refill/expansion bottle) may be bad. That's my suspicion.
      --


      David
      1998 S70 T5SE // misc mods (mostly lighting) // red calipers // Michelin Pilots
      1992 940 GLE//SilverStars//Hella MicroDE







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