Thad:
I discovered while traveling in Canada that you can buy South African made 1800 windshields and get them installed for about $200 Canadian. Next time I need a widshield I am heading for the great white north.
Mark

Can anyone comment on the correct part number for the windscreen? The part numbers I got from the GCP site didn't work at the dealer (though nice, had no idea what they were doing with a 1966). GCP listed 671891-0 for green glass and 673139-2 for clear... anyone know which is correct for a '66 S?
--
1966 1800S in sunny Sandy Eggo

First thing I'd do is report the person and dealership to Volvo. I guarantee this is not corporate's philosophy! Do not dispair, there are great Volvo dealer's around. Mine here in the Phoenix area, Powell Volvo, has a parts department that is knowledgeable, helpful like you wouldn't believe, courteous and friendly. Only problem they have is their micro-fiche library is so old and scratched that I have to take my own hard copy of the parts catalogue for my 1800. I've found that Genuine Classic Parts has almost everything that is available but the shipping charges are very high coming all the way from Sweden. Usually I can get it through the Volvo dealer plus they give me a great discount because of my VCOA and VSA memberships plus being a steady customer for almost 20 years.

If you wouldn't mind I'd like to know the Dealer's name in Seattle. My daughter lives there and drives an '80 242GT. Dad still pays for car parts and repair until she finishes college (June 2005-wheee!)and I don't want her to go there for parts. If you don't feel comfortable putting it here on the site, just send it too me directly. Thanks

Jay Norton
Tempe, Arizona
nimrodj@earthlink.net

Well, My windshield came in and this time an older gentelman called to let me know that it was here. He was very nice. When I went to the parts counter to get it the jerk that took my order was at the counter on the computer. He was dressed like a salesman not a parts guy and he was young. He wuld not talk to me. He just yelled to the older guy "Hey this is your customer". When the older guy came out he was wearing the uniform. He was very nice and very helpfull. He totally made up for the other jerk. You could tell that these were the cars that got him working for Volvo in the first place. My windshield was perfect and to my suprise the tag said that it was made in 2004 in finland for Volvo by Sekurit.

Thad

Thad,
I have had mostly good luck at Ravanna Volvo in Seattle, but occasionally get the mop boy. I have found it helps to ask for the "vintage parts" person. That's the one who is old enough to know what a microfiche is. :)
-e

A while ago I was driving from Riverside to San Luis Obispo in my 1970
volvo 164. I had been fiddling with the distributor and my girl friend
wanted to get going so I just put it into the car and went. I had been
noticing that the clutch was a little less clutchy for the pas 6 months
as well. Nothing like my 144 that just stopped going; it would just take
a second to settle the RPMs if I shifted and got on the throttle hard
right after the shift.

So, we get to SLO and I send her off to look at shoes while I borrow
her emery board to get the timing and points set right, or at least not
really wrong (as it was on the way up there, point gap set way too large).
I wash my hands, get in the car and tool around. Going up hill, shifting
into third and Zing! the car won't catch the clutch at all. Ease off and
drive slow, it works, but no way will it get me home.

I took it to the volvo dealership there in SLO -- now a clutch job isn't
rocket science but then a manual transmission 164 is probably a lot more
rare than you and your shiny 1800s and my 164 was a lot uglier than most
164s. The guy who was going to work on it said "Hey -- my dad use to work
on these!" and I thought "Hey -- can you go call your dad?"

They did the work, but mixed up the pressure plate and the car wouldn't
shift at all; they got me a rental and made good on the clutch. They did
the clutch, replaced a bunch of brake lines, and did some other stuff, and
it wasn't even super insanely expensive. If I were on vacation and my old
volvo died again and I didn't want to get more than "adjust the distributor"
dirty, I wouldn't hesitate to go to that volvo place again.

So, not all dealerships, as with anything else, are sucky.
chris

I did have a similar experience... parts manager refused to look up the parts I wanted in the microfiche, told me my car belonged in the crusher, said he'd never heard of such a thing as Genuine Classic Parts. I'd previously received good service at the same dealership from a different guy at the parts counter, but I never went back there again.

At a different dealership, the parts manager owned a 544 and several Amazons, and Ialways received service beyond the call of duty. It all depends who you talk to.