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I've been noticing lately that my 940 turbo's ride is a bit on the harsh side. We arent exactly blessed with the smoothest roads here, and I find the car tends crashes harshly on rough roads and over expansion joints. Now, I know my struts/shocks are a bit on the worn side, but I'm wondering if that's the problem or is it just the inherent nature of the way these cars ride. Many other cars I drive seem to deal better with these road conditions, but they're the type of cars that I think shouldnt. My friend's 2003 VW GTI, with 17" wheels and low profile tires seems to ride much smoother on poor roads. On my friends camry you barely feel a thing going over these same roads. So is it my dampeners or is it just something that's part of 940 ownership?
--
'93 945 turbo. A big comfy box.... and a '90 Mazda 626 GT turbo, 16psi on upgraded turbo and a bunch of other mods.
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From my experience with my 93 945T, I agree with the responses below: shocks first. I went with Boge ProGas, but they are almost too stiff on Metro Chicago's excuse for pavement - too many ripples, repairs and holes. I'd recommend Boge TurboGas, softer and of course more forgiving and comfortable.
Another suspension I made in addition to 25mm sway bars is upper and lower chassis braces. I was surprised that they added such a solid feel even after I installed the bars, bushings and Bridgestones. Good Luck.
Jim Weiss
83 245T, 90 744T/M46, 90 760T, 93 945T, want more ...
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Shocks & struts sound like the main culprit, but springs can make a difference, too. Last fall I replaced my front springs (kept original strut inserts), and the ride improved noticeably on rough surfaces, like a cobblestone road. New rear springs would probably help too... when I changed mine, I also switched from winter to summer tires, so I wasn't able to isolate the difference in ride quality.
- Brian '93 945T
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Yes I would definitely check the tire pressure and see if it what Volvo specifies in the owners manual. Also check the condition of your tires and do the test that ringlee said about pushing down on the bumper. In Massachusetts, our roads suck but the Volvo rides pretty good.
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92 240 2.3 L 98,000 Miles...Almost 100,000
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Yes, shocks & struts will make a huge difference. Additionally, your bushings are likely in need of replacement on your control arms and control arm stays.
Jeff Pierce
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'93 945 Turbo ( one kickass family car ! ), '92 Mercedes 190E (my daily driver), '53 Willys-Overland Pickup (my snow-plow truck/conversation piece -- sold to a loving home), '85 Jeep CJ-7 w/ Fisher plow
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Already replaced all the bushings, ball joints, & stabilizer links. I guess it's time to price out new struts/shocks.
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'93 945 turbo. A big comfy box.... and a '90 Mazda 626 GT turbo, 16psi on upgraded turbo and a bunch of other mods.
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You're right -- shocks and struts should be your next order of business. I agree with what Brian S said about springs. When I changed my shocks and struts, my front suspension was still too soft. I was experiencing what I considered dramatic "brake dive". New springs fixed the problem.
Jeff Pierce
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'93 945 Turbo ( one kickass family car ! ), '92 Mercedes 190E (my daily driver), '53 Willys-Overland Pickup (my snow-plow truck/conversation piece -- sold to a loving home), '85 Jeep CJ-7 w/ Fisher plow
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Shocks are definitely at fault. When my Bilsteins failed, the ride gradually went to tank-like. New shocks cured the troubles.
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Dear anarchyx34,
Good a.m. and may this find you well. How many miles on your '93 945 turbo and more to the point, how many miles since shocks/struts were replaced?
If roads are rough in your area, and/or you heavily load your car, anything over 125K probably means it's time for replacement. On the other hand, those, who live in places where a mild climate and generous road maintenance budgets prevail, will do much better.
A comparison with a 2003 vehicle - 10 years newer - seems unfair. Moreover, even when new, a 1993 Volvo would have had stiffer suspension many other makes/models comparably priced. That is, Volvo engineers never tried to provide a "soft" ride: they want the driver and passengers to have "road feel".
Try the following test. Go to a rear corner of the car. Press down firmly on the corner of the bumper. If the bumper springs back quickly, the shock is OK.
If the bumper bounces several times, before coming to "rest", the shocks need to be replaced.
Further, if you can jack up the car - or put it up on ramps - inspect the shocks. If there are signs of leakage in the middle, the shocks need to be replaced.
The same tests can be done on the struts. If the front of the car bounces several times before coming to rest, it is time to replace the cartridges.
Hope this helps.
Yours faithfully
spook
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Thanks for the reply. I'm pushing 190k miles now. Im not sure if the shocks have ever been replaced before, I dont think they have though. I already know the shocks are worn out, the car gets really floaty/bouncy when going over dips. I'm just wondering if the shocks are also responsible for the feeling like the fillings are going to come out of my teeth when going over rough pavement and expansion joints.
Anyone have any recommendations for shocks? I'm looking into Bilstein touring class, but I'm wondering if they might be too stiff.
--
'93 945 turbo. A big comfy box.... and a '90 Mazda 626 GT turbo, 16psi on upgraded turbo and a bunch of other mods.
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posted by
someone claiming to be Steve C
on
Mon Feb 16 00:59 CST 2004 [ RELATED]
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Sounds like your shocks/struts were due 60k miles ago. I find that the bouncing bumper test is unreliable. If your car oscillates several times when you lean on one corner, the shocks obviously need replacement. However, my experience has been that even cars that behave normally under this test have had ride/handling problems long before that fail this test, problems that are resolved w/ new shocks/struts. My test is now more subjective - if it feels like it is riding bad, floating at highway speeds, or feeling less than solid in turns, the shocks/struts get gets replaced. Commuting in NJ gets me 100K - 120 K miles per set on all my cars.
I just did my 92 945t at 115K. I used Sachs Advantage, reportedly same as Boge Turbo Gas, and found that they are definitely on the stiff side. Next time, Boge OEM.
Change your shocks and struts, it will feel like a whole new car. If you do it yourself, you can get parts at places like fcpgroton for under $200. I wrote a detailed description of my experience replacing shocks/strts a few weeks ago on this forum - search on Steve C.
Steve C
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posted by
someone claiming to be Steve C
on
Mon Feb 16 00:59 CST 2004 [ RELATED]
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Sounds like your shocks/struts were due 60k miles ago. I find that the bouncing bumper test is unreliable. If your car oscillates several times when you lean on one corner, the shocks obviously need replacement. However, my experience has been that even cars that behave normally under this test have had ride/handling problems long before that fail this test, problems that are resolved w/ new shocks/struts. My test is now more subjective - if it feels like it is riding bad, floating at highway speeds, or feeling less than solid in turns, the shocks/struts get gets replaced. Commuting in NJ gets me 100K - 120 K miles per set on all my cars.
I just did my 92 945t at 115K. I used Sachs Advantage, reportedly same as Boge Turbo Gas, and found that they are definitely on the stiff side. Next time, Boge OEM.
Change your shocks and struts, it will feel like a whole new car. If you do it yourself, you can get parts at places like fcpgroton for under $200. I wrote a detailed description of my experience replacing shocks/strts a few weeks ago on this forum - search on Steve C.
Steve C
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