I had reserved a time for changing the windscreen because it had some nasty cracks and probably wouldn't pass the MOT. So the time came, and they promised to change the windscreen "while you wait". Well... apparently they thought, hmm, it's an old car and the windscreen isn't a structural member so it's an easy job. Wrong. It took them an hour and a half...

At least I had the time to snap some pictures of rust in the lower edge of the hole where the windscreen used to sit.

Well, that wasn't so bad, compared to what happened next.

I started backing the car out of the working space. The place is elevated from the ground so there's a rather steep steel ramp that takes the car this 1.5m down. For some strange reason the car went up it without problems but when going down, the edge of the ramp caught the rear edge of the front silencer. There, immediately, I lost all drive both forward and backward so even when they came and lifted the car off that ramp edge, the car rolled down on its own. Now there's just a huge "crunch" in both D and R positions when the clutch starts to catch. I'm suspecting a mangled propeller shaft... Can't be so lucky that it just jumped off the splines.

Oh dear.
Sounds like quite a nightmare.

Did you get it home ok?
Or is it still stranded there?

Nope, it's still stranded there... alone on a cold parking lot.

But we'll see, as in the same yard (right next to this windscreen place) there is a repair place (garage?) and they said they'd take a look at what went wrong... not today though, they had their hands full (holiday week so not all workers were there) and if they find that it broke entirely due to that ramp, naturally they'll send the bill to the next door neighbour

Anyway I found a couple CVT propshafts at breakers already in case it's just the shaft.

Oh dear

You might want to hang around for a bit while they're fixing it, just in case the problem is CVT-specific ...

Tom

Did anyone there drive it or just you? If they did, did they know how to correctly operate a CVT?

Could be the prop having come off. If it is you need to check that the splines have not been damaged.

MJ wrote:Did anyone there drive it or just you? If they did, did they know how to correctly operate a CVT?

I drove

Yes, finally today I got it back. And it seems that indeed, the prop just came off. I couldn't talk to the guy who worked on it so I have no idea whether they knew to check the splines. It was just "yeah I tested it in the front yard, seems to work fine". Apparently when the ramp edge caught the front silencer, the exhaust was pushed forward, and at the same time the engine was pushed forward as well (and it has some rather loose rubber mounts). This then enabled the propshaft to pop out of position.

Anyway... no parts harmed, the bill was for approximately 2 hours of work, and the car is (for the moment) working. I'll get the spare propshafts though, just in case.

Just one question, what would be a modern replacement for the Volvo "High Tack Compound" (part number 1161077, found it by searching on this forum ) - is it just adhesive, or is it some extra viscous grease? Because I have a feeling this jobs needs doing properly some time in the near future.

(Now that the windscreen is changed, off to the MOT and we'll see what they say about the rest of the car )

OK, I guess it's grease... Got some CRC Super Adhesive Grease, it'll probably be a good enough match.

You might like to read this post about greasing splines:
http://www.volvo300mania.com/forum-uk/v ... php?t=6188

mac wrote:(in fact on CVT cars the prop should actually be glued in place by a compound called "Hytac")

Tom

This sort of thing happened to me and it was due to an ill fitted propshaft, the prop needs to be knocked towards the back of the car all of the way otherwise it will do it again.
Adam

Hmm this gets stranger and stranger. For "High Tack" google gives mainly two kinds of matches: extra sticky grease, and silicone sealant. There's also Permatex High Tack non-hardening gasket sealant which is also quite sticky, but sounds like a strange place to apply it... For Hytac I mostly get hits to the thermoforming industry. Also, Hytac(R) dental filling materials.

The CRC stuff is actually quite sticky but it's by no means a glue. It actually adds to the friction between two parts but allows them to slide when the force is large enough, and returns to "sticking" when the force is again lower.

Anyway we can safely assume that the Haynes manual is wrong again because it says

Haynes manual wrote:6. Refitting is a reversal of removal, but lightly grease the splines and ensure that the spring is located correctly.

Frankly I'd rather trust mac on this.

Anyway the MOT came and went, and even though the guy tapped around practically the whole underbody with a small hammer, he couldn't find any rust. The exhaust CO reading was a bit high so the mixture needs to be adjusted, and then he said that there's an oil leak somewhere which needs to be fixed before the second visit. Strange, though, because the engine doesn't really drink oil, neither does it leave drops of oil on the ground.