After a bit of a Volvo hiatus i'm back in the game although this time i've gone away from the 240's and to the darkside that is modern.

I needed a soft-roader that can take me down some fire trails but still provide a bit of fun in the twisties as well as safety and reliability for the missus. The latter being slightly questionable. It's replacing my Discovery 2 and I'm hoping it will suffice as the occasional tow vehicle for my S2 rx7. The rx7 takes up a lot of my time so i'm doing my best not to make this Volvo a project.

I was set on an xc60 T6 and one popped up that ticked all the boxes for an alarmingly low price. I jumped on it straight away, did everything you aren't supposed to do and bought a car late at night without much of a chance to give it a good look over. This 2009 T6 set me back $6k, it has a solid service history, 210 000kms, and in the light of day looks pretty good, sounds and feels solid, free of rattles, nocks and any other funny sounds (turbo aside).

I took it for it's first thrashing today to try and worm out any issues and low and behold the plastic tube coming off the thermostat housing that one of the hoses clamps over broke off, pissing coolant out everywhere. Another thing I noticed when I took off the engine cover was some engine oil, hopefully, it's just the filler cap. At the price I paid i'm expecting there will be some woes.

List so far:

Thermostat + gasket + Intake manifold O ringsFluid Flush - Engine, transmission, power steering, diff, haldexSpark plugs200k Serpentine belt. Water pump at the same time?Replace headliner clothClean up headlight lensesSource and repair the oil pool on top of the engine

Do88 IntakeIPD DownpipeIntercoolerTune

I'll source parts from IPD and FCP but if anyone has anything i've listed, particularly a thermostat around Sydney I can grab this weekend that would be fantastic.

I would buy a Eight 8 Fabrication downpipe. Joshua does great work as an emerging stand alone business.

I have a DP in back of my car I'm threatening to copy in large diameter asap too.....it WILL happen.....

TDI Tuning box is good start.

Laborde Motorsports Tuning is a Perth based genius who has shops worldwide, I'm getting him to do my tunes rather than Hilton or other.

Beware the IPD DP , it's been finicky and not without issue. Firstly it was smaller diameter than stock......................

Do water pump and alternator with accessories belt and tensioners.

There's more I'll be back, I'm finished work now!

I have V60T6 2011.

Ive got a new in box Volvo radiator fan unit incl controller if you want peace of mind, mine failed at 170,000k others not so lucky, I grabbed one for the s80 but it's different......

If you get to doing bushes, links etc in suspension (and suspension) do the haldex input bearing while it's out to do bushes. It fails due to Ford putting a cheap part in yet in LR Defender they put a LR bearing in..........Ive got LR bearing in now.

Sounds like the XC60 is a good all rounder, perfect for a daily. How's it compare to the D2? I have spent a bit of time in D2's , but 0 time in a XC60.

I'm not sure of what the market rate of these cars is, but for $6k, looks like a very good buy.

@Ex850R invaluable information, much appreciated. The eight8 dp looks way better, probably thicker as well.

I might dm you about the radiator fan. I haven't actually witnessed mine spinning yet and she got pretty hot in traffic yesterday. I would love a temp gauge somewhere.

    @GreenGL I loved my D2, so much character and was a fun drive, handled shockingly well for a solid front axle 4x4. I just found I hadn't been using it enough anymore for what it is.

    The XC60 is a totally different can of worms, it's quick, very relaxing and quiet although I don't quite trust it yet as much as the D2 but I'm sure that will come with time. I actually find the XC a little bit trickier in the ridiculous narrow lanes around my place in the city because of the way the nose drops away, you can't see the corners of the car.

    I didn't really enjoy working on the D2 that much, everything was either seized up or brittle. I pulled a bit of the XC apart yesterday to change the thermostat and it was so nice and easy. I've had Audi's of the same era and they were absolute hell, the Volvo looks a bit more considerate in the engine bay.

    6k was a good price but we will see how much it costs me over the next year or so.

    Cal

    @Ex850R invaluable information, much appreciated. The eight8 dp looks way better, probably thicker as well.

    I might dm you about the radiator fan. I haven't actually witnessed mine spinning yet and she got pretty hot in traffic yesterday. I would love a temp gauge somewhere.

    Nah, don't have to worry about temp , you can always put a android Auto or tablet in to display car metrics if you need.

    The fan controller fails and it gets too hot throwing warnings on the guage cluster.

    Does no damage.

    Coils going bad also put up a code saying OVERTEMPERATURE os something which isn't to be confused with overheat!

    It senses a hot component is the coil/s , usually a warning to change up or pull over and misfire with it.

    May get burning electrical smell and smoke from under back edge of bonnet.

    At worst, the oily insulation under the plastic engine cover catches fire ?.

    Get new coils from FCP Euro.

    Or Rockauto.

    Fan unit unclips easily after unplugging then slide up reverse and plug in new complete unit.

    Can be north of $1K, msg me for OV Discount!

    I may have bought a set of coils too! When car was getting serviced 2 Volvo ones went in before I could stop the buggers doing it......

    I'll find them......

      Check your cabin and air filters , definetly the Haldex seal and oil ,

      brake disc thicknesses, pads ,

      take the engine cover off and check for weeping from small black pipe that connects to front of manifold , comes from driver's side

      What version of software is the dash at , check its been updated

      Definetly full flush of gearbox and adaptors reset.

      Free play in front suspension and steering rack

      Brake fluid flush

      Coolant flush

      If you want to convert cigarette lighter to phone usb charger.

      If you buy the 90 degree Titan charger lead you can put your phone in the centre console and slide the lid closed.

      Hugh at Moss Vale Volvo parts manager had a full front and rear set of genuine volvo XC60 rubber floor mats , 3 sided rear tray and small panel where you put the key fob in , brand new , free freight , $430 phn 02 48691100 ext3

        242GT

        Check your cabin and air filters , definetly the Haldex seal and oil ,

        brake disc thicknesses, pads ,

        take the engine cover off and check for weeping from small black pipe that connects to front of manifold , comes from driver's side

        What version of software is the dash at , check its been updated

        Definetly full flush of gearbox and adaptors reset.

        Free play in front suspension and steering rack

        Brake fluid flush

        Coolant flush

        https://cdn.ozvolvo.org/uploads/9FQYBNG47SVO/20211204-113621-7e2.jpg

        https://cdn.ozvolvo.org/uploads/VK4RU4T1P7KH/20211204-161154-7e2.jpg

        If you want to convert cigarette lighter to phone usb charger.

        If you buy the 90 degree Titan charger lead you can put your phone in the centre console and slide the lid closed.

        Hugh at Moss Vale Volvo parts manager had a set of genuine volvo XC60 rubber floor mats , 3 sided rear tray and small panel where you put the key fob in , brand new , free freight

        Yes.The rubber mats are great, the rear full one with sides is in back of my V60T6, saves the carpet, pull it out and wash it.

        The rubber hose ^ is part of PCV system?

        Change the PCV, buy new one, easy install.

        Watch oil levels!

        *Mine has turned on me, after off throttle descents it makes like a choo Choo Train with smoke......

        Could be turbo, probably valves, uses oil now so please keep an eye on yours.

        More regular oil changes than book time intervals as oil gets pretty funky , you will see ....

        TDI Tuning box is cheap for entry into power way above standard.

        A Polestar tune does good stuff but $1000.

        See link above for access to options in computers.

        Also I am talking to a private guy about tuning!

        If you really want I can fabricate a downpipe when I do mine......motivation!

        Les

          https://blog.fcpeuro.com/the-definitive-guide-to-the-volvo-si6-engine

          here'san article for you to read about the T6 engine

          Playing with the haldex controller might be interesting!

          Turn off all traction controllers, split the power 50/50, fun time.....

          a month later

          What better time for an update than a broken car.

          I took the little xc to a campsite near Wombeyan Caves that I used to go to in my Discovery. Considering there were four of us in the car with swags, tents, fridges, firewood and booze, it did shockingly well and was thoroughly tested. We bottomed out a few times but I don't think that would have been an issue if it wasn't for the load. On our way in it was the first time ever i've found hill-decent necessary which was cool, on our way out I missed having low-range for the climb but only a little bit.

          Not long after this trip the water pump gave out. So while at it, I took everyone's advice and went about changing the serpentine belt, tensioner, idler pulley. It wasn't too difficult, just time consuming and fiddly. I also changed PCV unit, oil filter, 4 out of 6 coils because 2 had recently been done and 6 new plugs, a IPD high flow filter, power steering and coolant flush.

          Maybe foolishly, I did all of this at the same time...

          First start was a breeze, ran it for a few seconds before turning off and topping up power steering and oil. Started again with no issues, ran for a minute maybe then shut it off and did the same.

          On my third time it will crank but not start and the engine lights flashing. Then it wouldn't even crank. That was because the battery connection wasn't snug enough. So I tightened the terminals up and it's cranking again but not firing.

          Checked all the plugs around the coils and everything is in place, I was pretty careful when I was down in the water-pump area and don't think I busted any vacuum lines or wires.

          Have I missed some kind of reset step when you change one of these items?

          Is it possible to throw the timing out when changing the accessory belt?

          16 days later

          Turned out it was the coils fuse. Poor battery connection during cranking may have blown it.

          I put a few thousand kms on it over Christmas which included some highly anticipated beach driving.

          Shocked at how well it went on the sand, only dropped the tyres down to around 20psi, switched off the traction control and put it in manual mode keeping the revs up. It was absolutely gliding, the sand was fairly soft and ruts got pretty deep from the big rigs but we didn't feel close to getting stuck. High power and low weight made for a lot of fun. I could hear the fans running for a while after I stopped so i'm guessing she got pretty hot, it was around 34 degrees that day.

          Gave it a good bath afterwards and next up on the to-do's are haldex and diff service. Probably should have done those before the beach but ah well.

          Attached some pictures of the setup. The Landcruiser ended up pulling the Ranger out of that spot.

          Current Inspo

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