The wiring in my 544 is a mess. Not as bad now as when I got it, but it still has problems with chopped-off wires arcing at random. That'll keep you on your toes!

I suspect that the original wiring under the dash was never a model of great design. Modern cars use ribbon wires and gang plugs to make everything neat and accessible. One look under the drivers' side of your dash will tell you that this wasn't a high priority with Volvo in those days!

I really hate the way the gauge panel was designed - you can't install it with the light bulbs in place and you can't insert them after the panel is in! WHAT WERE THEY THINKING???

I've begun to attack the snarl of wiring one strand at a time, re-running each one if it seems to be routed wrong. Luckily, Volvo had dropped the use of the linen-covered wiring before my car left the asssembly line, otherwise I'd be forced to replace every piece of it.

At this point I'm in pretty good shape, excepting one dash light bulb, the AMP light, and the High Beam lights aren't in their sockets yet. Also, I haven't figured out how the spring and light for the glove box are supposed to work. I've made up a nice new glove box insert, but I haven't been able to stand on my head long enough to figure out that spring or how the light is supposed to work.

I think I may have to design new plug sockets to be able to install the gauge panel with the bulbs inserted. Maybe I'll use LED's so I'll never have to mess with them again...

Under the hood the car is now in pretty good shape, wiring-wise. I re-grouped the bundles of wires and encased them in 'snakeskin' and screwed that to the firewall in as many of the original holes as possible. I used nylon-insulated metal loops that fit under the snakeskin, so the attachment is nearly invisible.

Also, I've added a couple of new circuits (including the new driving lights) and replaced most of the gang plugs (does anyone else but me still call them Deiutz Plugs?) with some great ones I got from Painless Wiring.

If you want to cure all your wiring problems at once, I'd recommend making up a list of the pieces you need (wiring of which gauge, plugs, connectors, etc.) and order up a bunch of goodies from Painless. They make complete kits for various makes of car, and complete wiring harnesses for some cars. Unfortunately, the Volvo PV's aren't covered yet, so your best bet is to buy the pieces and make upp your own harness/loom.

I know some owners have had problems with the front lights/horn section of their original wiring, mostly due to the crappy gang plug on the left fender liner. Some have replaced that plug with a 7-contact trailer plug, which works fine, it's just twice as expensive as the Painless plug.

I plan to cut off the wiring harness just inside the firewall and replace everything under the dash with ribbon wire and a couple of gang plugs. That - and soldering all the terminals - should cure the snarl of wires, the arcing problems, and the loss of voltage caused by poor connections.

I would hope, in the end, to have a schematic so I could build as many upgrade wiring harnesses as I might need - knowing there are a LOT of owners out there with the very same problems I'm having.

The original wiring looks suspiciously like Lucas work; every connection is crimped, not soldered. Even with loving care and a heated garage you can't expect anything like that to last for too many years!





...and YES, I used silver snakeskin on the fuel and vacuum lines.