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Found my old notes on my hard drive. Here they are in their entirety:
Always having to use the key to lock the door after you get out can be a nuisance. Not only does it take more time, if it's dark or your hands are full it just adds to the paint nicks. In the good ol' days you just hit the lock button with your fist as you got out and slammed the door behind you -fast and simple. Obviously Volvo didn't do this just to bug me, they did it to prevent me from locking the car with the key in the ignition. Is there a way to do this so you don't need the key?
[response Dave Stevens] I posted this a few years ago, but I couldn't find it in a search so here it is again.
I agree, having to put the key in to lock the doors is a PITA even though it's intentionally designed to protect me from my own absent mindendness.
o Many people get by simply by opening the back door and reaching around to the driver door lock button -works well especially if you've got the door open anyway to remove parcels or kids.
o Another solution is to modify the driver door locking mechanism to accept an aftermarket remote door lock system -easier said than done.
o My solution is to disable this feature altogether so it behaves like older cars. All that's required is a very minor modification to the door lock mechanism, but it's a little tricky to remove the assembly in order to make the modification if you're not familiar with working inside your doors.
I have to give fair warning, you do this at your own risk. The first time I demonstrated this modification to someone I promptly locked the doors with the key inside and the engine running. Either be sure you are *always* packing a spare key or have a spare key hidden somewhere on the car -pick an inconspicuous location, even so it won't be noticed when the car is in a shop up on a hoist. Make sure the key is protected by wrapping it in something like a section of bike inner tube, folded and tied to the car or use one of those magnetic key holders (which I don't trust as much). It's also better to hide the valet/service key rather than the master key.
The procedure is basically the same for 940's, 740's, 240's and anything else with a similar lock. First you have to extricate the door lock mechanism from inside the door. Then you identify the tab that's preventing the door lock button from moving when the door is open. Then you simply bend that tab so it always thinks the door is shut. For the mechanics among you familiar with Volvo doors or who like a challenge, just go to it without reading further. The rest of you may prefer some tips.
1) Remove the door panel
a) For 740/940's: Unscrew and remove the door lock button. Slide the speaker to the right off its pins. Remove the door release pocket by turning the plastic screw in the bottom at 90 degrees, lift out the screw, carefully wiggle the pocket up and remove it -the power window switch block will need to be lifted up a bit as you do this and afterward you must push it back down. Remove the three white plastic "hair clips" from under the bottom of the door by prying them straight down with a screwdriver. Remove the red door marker light lens by prying it straight out. Lift the door panel off by pulling out at the bottom and pushing straight up to release the window ledge clips. Disconnect the marker light and speaker wire connectors.
b) For 240's: Unscrew and remove the door lock button. Remove the window crank -carefully pry off the plastic insert to access the screw head. Pull out the two plugs in the door handle using something like a wood screw as a grip into the holes and remove the long mounting screws. For power windows, wiggle out the switch block, otherwise take the whole door handle and lift it up at close to a 90 degree angle so the top post will come out of its keyed hole. Remove the screws holding the door pocket posts and lift it up and out. Loosen the door panel by popping off all the plastic pins around the edges -use the small slot of a trim tool around the posts or carefully pry up next to the posts with a flat blade wrapped in protective tape. Lift the door panel off by pushing straight up to release the window ledge clips. Disconnect the speaker wire connectors.
2) Access the door lock mechanism
Make sure the window is raised all the way up. Undo the electric door lock connector and cut the plastic tie fastening the wires to the door panel. Peel back the plastic (or paper) liner at the left to gain access to the top and bottom inner door panel cut-outs.
a) For 740/940's: There's a plastic window slide and lock cover inside. For a 940 it's held in by two T-25 Torx screws at the lower end of the door. For a 740 it's held in by two Phillips screws up closer to the lock. Reach in and pull the window slide gasket out of its track starting at the lower end. Slide the plastic panel out of the way by pulling down and pushing it over to the right. There's no need to get brutal.
3) Free the door lock mechanism
Remove the outer door lock mechanism. For 240's it's two 5mm hex head bolts. For 740/940's it's two T-45 Torx head bolts. A socketed version is better than a key wrench as these bolts will likely be very tight. Release the inner door lock mechanism by removing the screw just exposed under the outer door lock.
4) Disconnect the door lock linkages
There's a short rod from the door handle -disconnect it by simply pulling out at the bottom. There's a longer rod right next to it from the key lock -simply flip back the lower retaining clip with a small screwdriver and pull the rod out of the plastic collar. You can leave the door knob rod connected to the lock mechanism. Now drop the whole door lock mechanism so you can access the clip pin at the end of the rail coming from the interior door handle. The clip on the back is a bit tricky to remove -you have to pry out the outer part of the tab while sliding the clip off the pin head.
5) Remove the inner door lock assembly by simply dropping it down and wiggling it out.
And now for the modification. There are two spring loaded pawls. One for the main catch and the other for the cam used as the door open signal. The latter is the one we're interested in. It has a hooked end that rests under a small tab. What you need to do is move that hook back a bit and bend it in so that it rests against the lock frame and can never move forward under the tab. A clean way to bend the hook is to stick a piece of bar stock (or something like a punch handle) behind the pawl toward its pivot point to keep the pawl from being totally twisted out of shape. Then press the tip of the hook inward by pinching the door lock assembly in a vise using something like a short square headed power driver bit between the jaw and the hook point. You should now be able to lift the knob rod up and down freely.
Now, as they say, installation is simply the reverse of removal. It may take a few attempts to get that lower pin clip back on. Note that the entire clip goes on the one side with the arched tab facing out and going over the pin head. There should be no door alignment issues, but if there are it's done by adjusting the jamb on the B pillar. If you haven't done it in a while, now's the time to make sure the door bottom edge drain holes are clear and to lube the door lock mechanism using some white lithium grease and wiping off any excess.
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Dave -still with 940's, prev 740/240/140/120 You'd think I'd have learned by now
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