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’86 Volvo 740 Turbo, vibration and noise issues

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  • This topic has 100 replies, 10 voices, and was last updated 9 years ago by FrankFrank.
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  • #485667
    FrankFrank
    Participant

      EDIT: Read post: http://ericthecarguy.com/kunena/8-Service-and-Repair-Questions-Answered-Here/41968-86-volvo-740-turbo-vibration-and-noise-issues?start=70#83381

      Greetings all the way from Norway!

      I have an issue with my 1986 Volvo 740 Turbo Intercooler that I can’t find any solution to. When driving past 60 km/h the car start to vibrate. I have had my car to a couple of different workshops, but none have managed to get it fixed.

      Thought I could mention some technical specs about the car.
      Engine – B230ET (134kW, turbocharged)
      Injection system – Bosch Motronic ML 1.0
      Gearbox – M46 (manual 4-speed + electric activated overdrive)
      Rear axle – 1031 (torsen differential)

      Here is a runthrough of what I’ve done so far:
      * Replaced every bushing on the car.
      * Replaced engine mounts and gearbox mount.
      * Replaced bushing and bearing for the driveshaft.
      * Replaced the gearbox with one driven approx. 100.000km
      * Replaced the differential and had the rear axle at the Volvo dealer to check for slack. Found well within tolerance.
      * New tyres and rebalanced them.
      * Changed wheel bearings.
      * Changed rubber coupling (hardy coupling) between the gearbox and driveshaft.

      There have been vibrations since I bought the car 10 months ago. It is a common problem that the bushing for the driveshaft goes bad (which causes vibrations), so I didn’t really see that as a problem. After changing it I also realized that the driveshaft had a loose piece inside it that were impossible to remove. I then bought a used driveshaft. The vibrations were now less intensive, but very noticeble. I then replaced much of the things mentioned above, without any luck. Had it at a workshop to get the issue sorted out, the driveshaft were then replaced again with another used one. Got the car back as “fixed”, but there were still vibrations. Turned out the workshop installed it wrong (splines mismatched the balance markings. I corrected that, now the vibrations are almost gone, but are still there. Doesn’t look like any workshop know how to fix a RWD car anymore. None have equipment to measure angles etc.

      Any suggestions on what to do here? This have been bugging me for a long time and won’t give up until it is fixed!

      – Frank

    Viewing 15 replies - 16 through 30 (of 100 total)
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    • #505241
      college mancollege man
      Moderator

        keep us posted on your progress.

        #508160
        EricTheCarGuy 1EricTheCarGuy
        Keymaster

          I was going to mention when I read that you had the gears welded that this might come into play with your vibration. It seems you have that covered however. I think the mechanics at Volvo are on the right track looking to the drive line for the problem. To me this makes the most sense. Keep us posted on your progress.

          #509670
          FrankFrank
          Participant

            This is a little off-topic. But I’m curious… How much would a re-balance of the drive shaft cost in the US? Here it would in my case cost about $650 (brand new cost $560) to get my drive shaft re-balanced. I’ve spoken with other people, and the highest cost I’ve heard is about $1700 for a re-balance. There is only one company that does balancing like this in Norway, so shipping costs are not included, but would be about $43 I think.

            #510068
            FrankFrank
            Participant

              Spoke with the workshop today. Sadly they could not completely fix the issue. I were told the vibration is barely noticeable now, so it is very little. Since I have changed and checked almost everything, it is hard to say where the source is. They literally said they have given up my car, so I’m getting it back before the weekend now.

              I’ve been thinking and searching the web for a little bit now. Could the flywheel be out of balance or something that could cause slight vibration? The car have after all had a rough life, maybe the flywheel have gotten some beating from the clutch? I would assume the car have been driven sideways since the differential were welded stuck.

              Could the frame of the car cause slight vibration? If it have had a collision at some point and the frame is slightly misaligned thus putting the drive line/wheels out of alignment?

              #514645
              FrankFrank
              Participant

                I changed from studded winter tires to my summer tires (different rims for each set), and it seemed to be a slight improvement. I still feel some vibrations between 60 and 80 km/h, I also feel a slight vibration in the steering wheel (which I’ve been doing all along).

                After some further inspections I found that at least one of my front struts are bad. Slack in the top bearings and feel a bit too soft. Maybe this could cause some minor vibrations, so I’ve bought new struts and bearings which I’m going to replace this weekend. I’ve already changed the rear struts.

                I’m still unsure if it will help. The vibrations seem to become a little bit more intense when I accelerate. When accelerating I can hear a humming sound, almost like a subwoofer. This might be caused by the slight exhaust leak i can hear around the turbo when idling. Most likely the gasket for the exhaust manifold.

                I’ll update when I’ve changed the struts on Saturday.

                #514675
                college mancollege man
                Moderator

                  vibrations are caused by rotating assemblies.
                  not shocks and struts. keep us posted.

                  #514834
                  FrankFrank
                  Participant

                    It is a long shot, but since there is a little bit vibration in the steering wheel I’m going to give it a try. The vibration in the steering wheel appear at the same time as when I feel the vibrations in the chair. If it doesn’t help I’m going to get the tires checked for balancing issues again. If not, I’ll just have to start in the rear axle and work my way forward again I guess.

                    #515015
                    FrankFrank
                    Participant

                      I were supposed to get my valve clearances adjusted today, but got a phone call from the workshop that they could not do the job since they lack the necessary tools. So I went instead to a tire dealer to get my wheels balanced. The prices had doubled since the last time I were there, so balancing all four wheels cost me 700 NOK or about $120 USD. Sadly this did not help at all. Hopefully I’ll get some improvement tomorrow when replacing the front suspension. I’ll give a update tomorrow when I’m done.

                      #515328
                      FrankFrank
                      Participant

                        Replaced the front suspension yesterday. Didn’t help much really, got less shaking/vibration in the steering wheel now since the slack is gone, but can still feel some vibration. I also still have the same vibration that i feel in the chair. The positive thing is that the suspension is now ten times better than it was. :cheer:

                        I did however discover something that I haven’t been aware of earlier. When engaging to drive forward or backwards, I can sometimes hear a small knock/clunk sound in the back. I’m not sure if this is normal or not in rear wheel driven cars, maybe this should be looked further into as a possible vibration source?

                        Regarding the front suspension, I also found that the caliper on the left side were hard to get off. Kind of stuck to the brake disc. I would assume it is sticking a little bit, then I guess this cause some steering wheel shaking/vibration too? What I feel in the steering wheel do however seem to follow the other vibration felt in the chair, so I’m not sure if that is the cause.

                        #518865
                        FrankFrank
                        Participant

                          I opened up the cover for the differential yesterday. The oil I drained off were really discolored (dark grey) and were metallic. The magnet in the drain plug also had a lot of debris. The slack seem to come from the four small gears, one I know also thought they looked worn.

                          Here are some pictures:

                          The oil I drained off. Note that the oil is right under 6 months old and only driven about 5000km (~3000 miles).

                          [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130430_194822_zps87f01ad2.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130430_194822_zps87f01ad2.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

                          Here are some pictures from the cover. The damage I believe is old, when the differential were welded. Can’t see that wear on the gears.

                          [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130430_194853_zpsd07ae3ee.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130430_194853_zpsd07ae3ee.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
                          [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130430_194904_zps14264925.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130430_194904_zps14264925.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
                          [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130430_194926_zps7b5e0881.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130430_194926_zps7b5e0881.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

                          And the rest:

                          [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130430_194952_zps8f791065.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130430_194952_zps8f791065.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
                          [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130430_195004_zpse546ffd2.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130430_195004_zpse546ffd2.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
                          [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130430_195023_zps2f12800d.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130430_195023_zps2f12800d.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
                          [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130430_195033_zps318bc6ba.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130430_195033_zps318bc6ba.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

                          I also filmed while turning the mechanism. Not that the scraping sound is the brakes, the knocking sound is coming from the differential.

                          [video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKDXRMZbxKY[/video]

                          #519006
                          FrankFrank
                          Participant

                            I put the oil in a coca cola bottle now. A bit more visible how it looks. It is metallic in color and have small metal particles. I took it to the workshop that did the check on the rear axle last summer, and the guy I spoke with had never seen that black oil come out of a differential. Especially since it is driven for a relatively short time. He thought that probably one (or more) of the bearings must be broken.

                            [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130502_161315_zps58d38d52.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130502_161315_zps58d38d52.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
                            [URL=http://s1218.photobucket.com/user/frankbilder/media/20130502_161326_zps179efad2.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd414/frankbilder/20130502_161326_zps179efad2.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

                            #519481
                            FrankFrank
                            Participant

                              No suggestions? I remember when I brought back the rear axle after I had it at the Volvo workshop I were told that they had not filled oil back into it. I therefore got a couple of cans to fill it up with. When I were going to fill it up afterwards it already had oil in it. I didn’t think much of it then, probably just a simple misunderstanding. Now I’m quite unsure if they have actually measured the clearances, torqued it, replaced shims etc.

                              The only reason I haven’t checked the rear axle yet when troubleshooting is because it were supposed to be 100% okay.

                              If it is not the workshop that have done a poor job, then what causes wear on the gears, slack and noises? As mentioned earlier, the unit were driven 160000 km (about 99400 miles) when it were put in. I would expect something like this if it were driven 4 times the length, but not under 200000km.

                              I’m unsure if this is something I should complain about and demand to get repaired. When I showed them the oil I were told to drive it for a month and drain the oil again. It could be a broken bearing they said, but most likely just crud that haven’t been cleaned out properly. It didn’t vibrate much, so they would not worry about it.
                              I know that the oil were changed in late october, and once before that just before the summer. The oil did not have any unusual discoloring then, except in october when it contained small metal particles.

                              #519508
                              college mancollege man
                              Moderator

                                usually discolored oil means heat.The metallic in the oil is shavings.
                                You can see the teeth on the ring gear look worn. I would suggest something
                                is not set up right.

                                #519636
                                FrankFrank
                                Participant

                                  So it is not set up right. Can this happen all by it self, or is this from when it were replaced? If this is from when the welded gears was replaced, then I can assume the workshop have not done their job right?

                                  #519671
                                  college mancollege man
                                  Moderator

                                    [quote=”samaron” post=58581]So it is not set up right. Can this happen all by it self, or is this from when it were replaced? If this is from when the welded gears was replaced, then I can assume the workshop have not done their job right?[/quote]

                                    What I’m saying is something was not set up right at the time
                                    of repair/install

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