I cant believe the engineers at Volvo missed this?

let's all give ourselves a pat on the back...an 850 must have been well maintained if all you're doing is worrying about where the horns go (knocks on wood).....
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'94 854 N/A.

they didnt...they just wanted to put them somewhere they didnt get clouted on curbs, full of crap and have battery acid run all over them if the battery split....unlike the 940 which feature all of the above actions...

to be honest at highway speeds i odubt it makes much difference (think of the bloody great hole at the bottom of the bumper which has to shove more air in the the 'grill', stationary they should make about zero difference...

ok yes they will disturb the airflow..but behind the grill where it must already be in knots i doubt it has much effect.

The performance turbo boys move them to try and improve intercooler efficiency. but then again they probably remove the grill first and repalace with mesh to improve the airflow and no doubt also remove the upholstery to increase the power/weight ratio...

me i wouldnt worry about them...but if you like why not fit some airhorns under the front valance...

I moved the horns (t-5) and yes, I'd like to rip out all four interior panels
not to save weight but to RE-GLUE the cheap "upholstery".

im guessing your in america...

you see i only just worked out you pay about HALF what we do for your cars...my upholstery is absolutley perfact, in fact it has been on ALL the bricks my family have owned....6 i think...

maybe as we pay the extra in europe they put them together better???

dunno its just a thought....

Well, the horns certainly block some of the top 1/3 or so of the radiator. I think the grill probably does as much harm to the airflow in that area, especially at highway speeds. A significant portion of the airflow comes from under the bumper. I think you could argue that the air flow at the top of the radiator is already messed up because of the grill. Maybe putting the horns doesn't make it a lot worse than it already is. You'd need to do some actual testing with equipment to verify this.

I live in Texas, with temperatures around 100F for much of the summer, and no winter to speak of, but I have no trouble with either the A/C or overheating so there's not a real need for doing this.

My Mercedes had the horns in front of the radiator also, as did a BMW I drove for a while, so it's not as though Volvo has done something unique.

You want to talk about poor design? Let's discuss the window switches under the cup holder that get condensation moisture from cold drinks in them (or stuff spilled in them), the A/C evaporator failure rate, the ABS modules that go bad, the ventilation recirculate door link that breaks once a year on manual systems, and probably a few others I can't recall at the moment.

I don't see it as a problem unless the fan or thermo switch breaks.

The engineers didn't miss it, that's why a fan is there. Until I see some real evidence that removing the horns would make any difference other than making the fan run less, I wouldn't consider moving them.

Moving the horns out of the way, keeps the cooling fan from coming on more than necessary.

The more unnecessarily the cooling fan comes on, the more amperage is drawn from the charging system, which in turn makes the alternator work harder to keep up, which in turn makes the engine work harder to keep up with the increasing load of the alternator and so on.

Get the picture. All this extra work, will lead to a shorter life span of the cooling fan and relay for sure and other engine components.
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'88 240, '92 745, '98 v70 John, Tampa Bay

I get the picture. It's not necessary to be rude in order to make a point.

I just disagree that this is significant in the overall scheme of things.

Yes, it helps a lot. Just look at the design and see the defect.

Here in Florida, I use the AC 10 mos out of the year, and I get better air flow thru the condenser and radiator without the horns, thus the cooling fan doesn't have to work overtime to cool the engine and put extra strain on it.

The horns are blocking about 40% of the cooling area, and yes it was a poor design.

What I don't understand, is why most 850/70 owners don't see the poor design since is so obvious, and just move the horns out of the way. GO FIGURE!!!
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'88 240, '92 745, '98 v70 John, Tampa Bay

Well because mostof us don't have the tools or the know-how to move them, and where do you put them when you move them? It's not because we're stupid.

bay 13 or one of those site gives you a step by step with pics - cant get any easier. Next time I am dirty I will do it.

Hi everyone, I moved the horns on my '96 850 AWD 𖐹 brake LPT engine] some time ago and haven't noticed any difference at all, even when 'sprinting' with this car - don't know if you Americans know what sprinting is but it's a competition with one car on the course at a time and running against the clock. Temperatures over here in the UK are not as varied as in the states, so there might be some advantage where the ambient temp. is that much higher with more use of the AC.