Sages,

Several months ago in a rush to pull some strut tubes off of a 1990 240, apparently, unknown to me at the time, not so much now as I've educated myself, they are different than the ones from 1986 - 1989 model year.

The reason for pulling said strut tubes was to get a pair ready with new front wheel bearings and Bilstien HD struts and then replace in my son's 1989.

So the dilemma that I'm currently in is that I've got money tied up in these tubes and I don't want to just get rid them as they are in great shape.

My plan was to press out the pressed in washers and then mill them down so that my HD struts would fit properly. However, the pressing part did not seem to have the effect that I intended it to have and my friend and I abandoned it as we were not willing to lose our lives over something exploding in front of us.

So my question to you all, is this. Has anyone had success in removing said washer and doing what I'm attempting to do? If so, how did you do it? Inquiring minds want to know!

Also, while attempting to press these washers out, we noticed that there is some sort of dimple on the bottom side of the strut tube that might be there to hold it in place. Has anyone ever drilled this out, or better yet, know what it is there for?

As always, thanks in advance,

Matt

What pressed in washer are you talking about?

Also, the strut stays centered in the tube because at the bottom of the tube there should be a rubber donut. My donut was gone when I replaced my struts...but I didn't fret and they are fine.

Use a spring compressor ($0 rental at autozone) to release the strut.

NewMexico240,

here is what I'm talking about:



In the years 90 - 93 Volvo changed there design of the strut tubes and Bilstein HD struts would no longer fit.

What I wanted to do was push the washer out that you see in the photograph, however our 12 ton press was giving us any love so we stopped.

My plan was once out I would mill them a bit and then reinstall and then place my Bilstein's in and be done with the whole mess. You need to do this as you only get a few threads on the gland nut with this new style strut tubes and I didn't trust that would be enough.

This next picture is what I'm talking about with the dimple.




I tried X-raying one of them today, but I could not figure out how it is all put together. So now I'm going to drill out the dimple and see what I see. If this dimple holds the washer in place, then I'll thread in an insert and I will have finally come up with a solution as to this problem.

Do you understand better now as to what I'm trying to do?

Matt

Nice images.

That is the seat for the strut cartridge bottom inside the strut tube.

From where did you purchase these Bilstein HDs?

See the note on iPds Bilstein HD strut cartridge damper (yes, I say dampener sometimes, still) for 240 page:

https://www.ipdusa.com/products/4952/100196-hd-front-strut-240-260

"Potential Product Fitment Issues

Does not fit late model 240s with ABS (Anti-Lock Brakes)."

I'll add it also WON'T fit later model 240 strut tubes without ABS.

Some will say it is the label or the paint that gets in the way. Sometime around maybe late 1987 or 1988 (I'm unsure) the 240 strut tube became a conical taper, getting smaller to the bottom.

My prior efforts with stupid Bilstein HDs, as everyone on this and other forums just raved and raved about Billy's Billy's Billy's now some years ago without any detail as to whether they fit or not, like a set of "de Carbons" ...

The image you show appears just the same as that on my 1990, 1991, and 1992 strut tubes.

IN order to enjoy the 200$+ expense in 2001 of a set of Bilstein front strut dampers for my 1991 240, I went back to the 1984-85 strut tubes (1986 will work, also, apparently) from the salvage yard and got lucky the spring seats were not infected with rust and the spring drains at the tube were clear in the toilet St. Louis rust belt with the snow, salt, and gooeybutter cake and stupid NHL blues.

These have in-set circular spring metal secured in a groove at the bottom of the strut tube just above the top of the ball joint stud. You would use a spacer to sit on top of this groove for short strut cartridges, like Koni, as I had on my now long dead and well missed 1979 grey market import 242 GT.

The seat is pressed in, and the three tabs are pressed out ward to secure in the strut tube. Heat may have been used so when it cooled, there was a more secure fit. It is a very strong assembly, perhaps the strongest variation of any model year. The dimple is part of strut hub-knuckle casting, I guess.

You may be able to press this fitting out from the top, after you've alleviated the the pictured strut tube seat of how it secures to the strut tube. I doubt it. Doing so may cause much bother, heartache, and bad words.

At any rate, some forums threads with images to illustrate.

The thread to illustrate why you need older strut tubes as the easier, faster, cheaper way to go. Or go Koni or Bilstein Touring Class. (Forget Sachs / Boge, yet better than, and all the rest.)
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=218849

Scroll down a ways for another take in a different thread using the same images from the same poster.
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=203083

(I cannot tell you how, ahem, envious, I am as I'll NEVER be able to do such modding.)

You'll read on of my three or so beeeeeeyotches in this forum on this subject.
https://www.brickboard.com/RWD/volvo/1611357/220/240/260/280/front_shocks_240.html

Billys, Billys, Billys!

How are you fitted for a replacement strut mounts? Here is the problem as OEM now made in Chinese junk, and Volvo Cars AB don't care:

http://www.turbobricks.com/forums/showthread.php?p=5280347

After market will do so, also. Perhaps more slowly. So, we have:

https://www.kaplhenke.com/collections/240/products/240-spherical-offset-strut-mounts

I must have purchased the final set of the good Volvo OEM strut mounts for my current 240. The last work being in 2012 or early 2013.

Questions?

Hope that helps.

Bilstein Touring Class Damper Boy (Going Forward - yet no moar 240s for me).
--
Give your brickboard.com a big thumbs up! Way up! - Roger Ebert.

KGV,

I'm glad you like the photo's!

I understand and know about everything posted out there. What I need to do now and take a step back and do some more documentation and investigation.

I have the Billy's sitting in my basement and these tubes which are virtually unusable, though I will make them work, somehow!

I know that the years 86-89 will work by pushing out the bottom washer, but what I don't know is did they, Volvo, replace the bottom washer by making the bottom part longer or what?

I don't believe they, Volvo, made the tubes narrower near the bottom as the strut bottoms out, though I don't know for a fact as that was on a strut tube installed in the vehicle.

What I will do tonight is take the tube that is not in the vehicle and insert my HD into it and then see where its bottom is in relation to the bottom of the tube. This will at least put to bed whether the tube is more narrow at the bottom or not. It still won't tell me how to get the overall insert out! UGH, but what I now see is the insert design seems to be the same on all years. The difference is, did Volvo increase the height of the insert instead of just having an extra spacer on top of it.

I'll check and get back to everyone.

Matt