1988 Volvo 740 Turbo in Arizona Heat?

Question

I have a 1988 Volvo 740 Turbo living in Arizona. I'm preparing for another globalwarming summer and would like to know if anyone can provide tips on how to keep this Swedish heat hating car cooler during the hot summer months. The car's cooling system doesn't seem to be able to keep the engine cool enough and it will shut itself off to prevent overheating. With the turbo option it also absolutely needs to not overheat or it will damage the expensive tubro components. Any feedback is welcome. Comments on Nordic cars living outside thier normal domains?

Answer 1

I love these cars! Your B230FT engine is easy to maintain but some parts are expensive. Without looking at your car or knowing its history lets cover some basics that will help. First off check the quality of your coolant. This should be replaced every 30K miles. The mix percentage of coolant to water should be 50/50. Water is what transfers the heat, coolant just raises the boiling point. How long has the thermostat been in the car? No milage recommendation is really given but I like to replace them with the coolant. Lots of hoses on this one. You can tell if they're leaking by traces of white residue around the ends. With the engine cold, squeeze the hoses along the length. They should feel firm, not hard or have soft spots. Have your mechanic check the following items; expansion tank cap, fan clutch operation, water pump and radiator. The water pump and radiator can be checked with a simple (albeit expensive) laser temp gun. They will measure the coolant temp at strategic points to determine if a flow problem is present. The fan clutch should not slip when the car is at running temp. The expansion tank cap can be checked with a pressure pump but if its more than 5 years old just replace it, they're cheap.

Answer 2

All cars are built to withstand even 120 degree Arizona heat in the summer. Check the Temperature Sensor. Do a cooling system rebuild, that means a new themistat and good coolant flush. If it has a belt driven fan, check the clutch, if electrical, make sure the temp switch for it is good. Put new hoses on it for reliability. You can add an extra electic fan, and/or get a bigger radiator.

As far as interior temperaturs are concerned, tint helps out alot for keeping a car cool, and you can insulate it, and insulate the return line in the AC system. Also you can wire in a theristat for the AC compresser, to reduce its use to save gas.

I must say that is a great feature to have the engine save itself from overheating!

Answer 3

first off the engine of this car will not shut off if overheated. it will keep running until it binds up or blows a head gasket.
the secrets to keeping these cars cool are:
1 radiator condition [this is a plastic tanked car] replace it with a metal one from ipd usa.
2 blow out fins of inter-cooler and a/c condenser with compressed air[gets the bugs and larger dirt and rock] followed by a healthy rinse from the garden hose followed by more compressed air [this gets the little stuff]
3 test fan clutch operation i have seen a lot of these fail over the years
4 a new thermostat and seal ring gasket is cheap insurance
5 inspect the entire system [ is the mushroom seal at the top of the water pump leaking are the belts and hoses in good shape?] has the coolant been changed at regular intervals, is it due now?
6 is the dash mtd temp gauge lying to me? if the gauge regulator circuit board is bad it can be replaced for about $50.00 or bypassed for about $20.00 check with ipd usa.

good luck and keep the maintenance up and don't scrimp on the cooling system having a wife or daughter stranded in the desert because a fairly inexpensive part failed will go over like the proverbial turd in the punch bowl [tastes nasty and never forgotten]

Answer 4

Both answers are excellent.The only other info i can provide is to check the air guide located under the car.Its the black plastic that collects air from the holes in your bumper and deflects it upwards to the a\c condenser to help cool it.Another thing you can do is remove the splash shield under the engine.You do not really need it and it will allow some of the heat to escape.

Answer 5

Black smoke sounds like you have a fuel delivery problem. Something is making it burn too much gas. Volvos are bad about leaky injectors and the fuel pressure regulator could be an issue also.

Answer 6

Spark plugs, wires , cap, rotor and coolant that are meant for hot temps. 5W-30 oil and a new fuel filter.