Well, in my first week or so as a "new" Volvo owner I've already come up with a few questions to post to this board which I've been following since I began to consider purchasing a Volvo. First off, I'd like to say that much of the info posted has been of great help to me even though I haven't been asking questions.

Okay, so I bought a '97 850 base with ~123k miles on the clock. I looked at quite a few and this one was by far the best I saw. From reading the forum, I know I am a member of the large group of owners whose heated seats don't function. I did a little investigating and determined that the wires had just broken off of the connector that attaches under the seat. An easy fix. Only problem is that I don't know which wire attaches to which prong under the seat. There are two wires, one red and the other white with red [I believe]. I can feel the two prongs under the seat but before fixing it, I want to make sure that I hook the right wires up. Hopefully someone before me has had the same/similar problem and can shed some light on this for me. Does the red wire attach to the front-most or rear-most prong?

Also, a question about the radio. While I know not to expect sonic excellence from any factory radio, I am pretty disappointed with the sound/reception of the radio. Either it is getting bad reception on stations that otherwise come in loud and clear or I have a blown speaker or two. Is it possible (or common) for the antenna wire to come loose? Do 850's often suffer from blown speakers?

Thanks in advance for any help


Jeremy

Using the balance and fader knobs, you should be able to focus on one (or two, depending on which speaker setup you have) speakers at a time to help you diagnose the problem. You may want to put decent aftermarket speakers on your shopping list afer you've done all the have-to items; new speakers are the best bang for the buck in audio upgrades on the Volvo unless you have perfect pitch and a soundproof car.
If the p.o. replaced the radio, then put the original back to sell the car, you could easily have an antenna cable which is loosely/not connected, as well as other wiring / connection issues if he cut and spliced. There should be enough slack in the wiring bundles to pull the radio out and check the solidity of the connections, and look for big wads of electrical tape.

What model radio do you have, and how many speakers? You can use the search function with the radio model, or with terms likely to be used in describing the problem, and get a lot of info.

Welcome to the board.
--
We have met the enemy and they is us. [Pogo] S70 cop car : Rough Rider tires& suspension, Walmart fog lights, eBay speakers, ambiance by Pall Mall, trim by Le Duc d'Tape, 8-channel THD by OEM amps

If you pull on the prongs carefully, youll be able to pull out the thermostat. Chances are you may need a new one. As for which one goes on which, it doesnt really matter, it didnt with mine.

Im just guessing with the radio, but Id say its blown speakers.
--
1993 854 - Hopefully the next million mile Volvo