Without much guidance I removed the nose piece, the brace portions behind it (where the radiator hangs) the hood and side fenders all by removing bolts and screws. Some were hidden by years of gunk and others were quasi-rusted.

I think I started by removing the headlights and signal lights, then the front fenders. Re: the front fenders there are a series of large metal screws that run along the top edge of the engine compartment that attach the fender to the inner fender (which can be rust prone so check it out once you have the fender off). There are two bolts along the vertical seam below the headlight that joins this part of the fender to the front nose piece (check for rust along this seam). There is also a bolt for the mudflap brace that joins the fender (at the bottom of the wheel well) to the underbody. I took pictures along the way so I could reference everything later and I had a bunch of ziploc baggies to put bolts/pieces into and labelled everything as to where they belonged.

You will find strips and gobs of what looks to be plumbers putty in seams and gaps - take note of where the stuff is and buy replacement butyl(?) putty from IPD or your local Recreational Vehicle supply shop (its used to seal windows in trailers, etc.)

Some of the more challenging removals were the series of small screws that run across the back plate of the nose piece, the bolts that hold the headlight bucket to the fender, the V-O-L-V-O letters on the hood and that small trim rail on the front of the hood. Oh yeah removing the antenna was a real trip too. The side emblems need to be carefully removed if you want to use them again.

The side trim I removed using an inside panel pry tool (or was it a plastic putty knife? - the fender was going to be painted anyways). The trim is held to the body by wire clips that are pushed through holes. I could not remove the chrome trim at the bottom of the door windows - but I did remove the chrome trim along the rear wagon windows (but can't recall how other than somebody on the Brickboard gave me some pointers on this). For the wagons this is a prime rust area and I wanted to make sure there were no rust issues there (there were and I was forced to remove the side windows through a method which the Brickboard helped me with).

I found the whole process of panel/trim removal and gunk and rust clean up a very satisfying experience as there were lots of hidden places were rust had established itself. POR-15 and all the fixings were key to the clean up.

waggin

1965 220 wagon
1985 245 turbo wagon