Well I finally got those Bilstein front struts on my 850 wagon. The Haynes UK manual lists needing shims in the steering knuckle to lower strut housing attachment, but like most readers told me, there aren't any. The job itself was fairly easy, except for a weird strut retaining nut that Vovlo uses (I needed a wide-mouthed vice grip to loosen and re-tighten it). The biggest problem was with the front anti-sway bar connecting links, which had torn rubber boots on both sides, and which had spindles that spun whenever you tried to loosen or tighten nuts. Another hint, to reattach to connecting link to the strut, it's easiest to reattach the wheel, lower the car, insert the connecting link bolt into the strut, and then raise the car again to complete the tightening. That way, the weight of the car does the work of unloading the sway bar so the link nut and the strut attachment hole come into alignment.

OK - the big question, how much better did the ride and handling get? The ride is somewhat BETTER (not too harsh) because the car handles larger holes better, while smaller response is damped out without too much jitteriness. The handling is better in corners that involved rough roads, but on smooth off ramps, etc, I don't see much improvement. The rear Bilsteins made more of a difference on my wagon. I think if I needed to improve response and feel, I need to beef up the front bar, or add a sturt tower brace. My car has always felt like it has more cowl shake that a Volvo should. So, overall, I would definitely recommend the Bilsteins because ride is better, and under some conditions, so is handling.

Thanks for all the help.