Nivomats...

[cornclose]

...who has 'em ?

How do they ride, as compare to 'standard' V70 rear setup ? Has anyone converted to Nivomats from standard, if so, can you give any feedback ?

[5seaterT5x2]

think/thought they were standard on most anyway t5s at least both my 95s have em. they are hideously expensive, are you sure yours dont have em? they are distinguished by black rubber gaiters on the bottom half of shocks.
personally i think they are very good bleedin should be for the price

[cornclose]

Well, put it this way, if mine does have them I'm convinced they're knackered as last summer when we had three kids, roofbox, four bikes and a caravan on, the V70 was on it's @rse!

Rufe did a search on my reg number some time ago and said that mine didn't leave the factory with nivomats on - I havn't checked the colour of the gaiters - can they be easily seen without removing the wheel ?

[5seaterT5x2]

Well, put it this way, if mine does have them I'm convinced they're knackered as last summer when we had three kids, roofbox, four bikes and a caravan on, the V70 was on it's @rse!

Rufe did a search on my reg number some time ago and said that mine didn't leave the factory with nivomats on - I havn't checked the colour of the gaiters - can they be easily seen without removing the wheel ?

well could be that yours dont have rufe will know far better than me.
as you say if you got them they dont seem to well mine work well enough for me and they've done 150,000 plus.
yes you can see the gaiters just have a look in behind the back wheel from the back might need a torch they should be quite easy to see.
but i'm pretty certain if you aint got em you might not want em very very expensive and i think you gotta change the springs as well ;-/ oh and the top mounts i think?

[cornclose]

I'll have a look later on... Cheers

[dave stew]

And the rear anti roll bar if you are being exceedingly pedantic...

[cornclose]

eh ? You mean I can tell by looking at the ARB ? How ?

[cornclose]

Ok checked under the car - very dim light and not a lot of room under there to swing a cat, but couldn't see any gaiter at all - what's the ARB comment about Dave ?

[dave stew]

Oh, sorry - it's to stiffen the rear suspension. When you use the Volvo suspension kit that changes the rear springs (softer) and Nivos, the kit recommends a stiffer rear ARB, too.

[dave stew]

There you go: http://vccs.volvocars.se/accessories/cat/en-GB/P2X/styling/chassis/VCC-249472.htm

[cornclose]

Ah yeah, been looking at that kit, it came up before in another post some months back. I think you said it was about £900.

I thought you meant that the absence or presence of a rear ARB would signify that I don't/do have nivomats.

I'm none the wiser though now, as I do have a rear ARB it would appear.

And what's this 'light car' and 'heavy car' business ?

[cornclose]

Ok, I guess No.2 is a standard rear shock, and No.3 is a Nivomat ?

http://vccs.volvocars.se/accessories/cat/images/P2X/0900c8af81840037.jpg

[5seaterT5x2]

Ok, I guess No.2 is a standard rear shock, and No.3 is a Nivomat ?

http://vccs.volvocars.se/accessories/cat/images/P2X/0900c8af81840037.jpg

thats it yes

[cornclose]

Right - now I know what I'm looking for - thanks.

[Rufe]

T5's have never had Nivomats as standard, they have been an optional extra on everything other than the XC70's which all had it.

[cornclose]

Thanks for the info Simon. Do you know anything about the 'light car' and 'heavy car' references in that link to the Volvo accessories page ?

Edit - This;
http://vccs.volvocars.se/accessories/cat/en-GB/P2X/styling/chassis/VCC-249472.htm

[Rufe]

yes mate, a light car are those in the first list, under light car.

the heavy car are those covered in the second list, under heavy car.

So, to explain in case i have not made sense, the heavy cars are:
Turbo, Petrol, automatic, With air con
Diesel, Manual, with air con
Diesel, automatic, with air con
Diesel, automatic, without air con.

all other cars fall into the light car category in the first list.

they say 'excluding R' on that link, becasue none of these kits are suitable for the AWD models

hope this clear that up,

Simon

[cornclose]

Ah, I see, yes, thanks. Wasn't reading it right.

So, go on then, shock me - how much for my car.... ?

[Rufe]

Ah, I see, yes, thanks. Wasn't reading it right.

So, go on then, shock me - how much for my car.... ?

Here you go then as you requested... all prices include vat


Chassis Kit: [30714836]
Retail Price £789.36 / Our Price £670.96

You have the option of the A.R.B. too:
Anti Roll Bar, 21mm Diameter: [8622794]
Retail Price £148.79 / Our Price £126.45

And if you have 235 width tyres fitted you also need the limiting kit:
Limiter Kit: [8666253]
Retail Price £74.17 / Our Price £54.1

Postage:
£20.00 DHL 48

These parts would have to come over from Sweden, but roughly a week maximum from ordering to turning up at your door i would guess.

Simon

[cornclose]

Thanks - that's worth of consideration then...

[5seaterT5x2]

T5's have never had Nivomats as standard, they have been an optional extra on everything other than the XC70's which all had it.

They dont? oh ok i never knew guess i was just lucky? both mine have nivos ;-/

[t5owner]

Just go and buy an explod

Nivo`s as standard

But my arse sits well off the ground

Put some weight in the back and it goes down then adjusts and springs back up effin pain in the arse as it looks so silly being so high it`s not far off looking like a bloody xc70

Cheers

stuart

[cornclose]

Ok, is it really that bad ? Can you post some pics ?

[dave stew]

Look at the average cop car, Chris. They run Nivos too and look like a startled ostrich.

[cornclose]

Right, I'll see if I can find one (a cop car). Praps I should go winging it down the ring road - that ought to attract one or two...

[richiemat]

Right, I'll see if I can find one (a cop car). Praps I should go winging it down the ring road - that ought to attract one or two...

next time you follow one why not try stopping it and advise of a faulty rear bulb .. that'll give you more than enough time to take a look :D

[cornclose]

...from within the confines of the rear seats I suspect...

[cornclose]

T5owner, any chance you could measure the distance from the tyre surface to the wheel arch for me ? i.e. the gap between the wheel's rolling surface and the arch at the top of the wheel... (?)

[Redbrick]

And if you have 235 width tyres fitted you also need the limiting kit:
Limiter Kit: [8666253]
Retail Price £74.17 / Our Price £54.1


YIKES!! Just what exactly is in that 'kit' Simon? Is it really necessary?

I thought there were two ride heights for Nivomats, its lower on the cars with 'Dynamic Sports Chassis'? or maybe I'm wrong?? Mine doesn't ride that high at the back.

[Redbrick]

T5owner, any chance you could measure the distance from the tyre surface to the wheel arch for me ? i.e. the gap between the wheel's rolling surface and the arch at the top of the wheel... (?)

My D5 with dynamic sports chassis and nivos, 35mm from top of tyre to wheel arch. Middle of wheel centre cap to bottom of arch 360mm.

[cornclose]

Is this...

http://vccs.volvocars.se/accessories/cat/en-GB/P2X/styling/chassis/VCC-249472.htm

...the 'Dynamic Sports Chassis' or is what you refer to the later system with three settings on the dash (sport, comfort, auto or whatever) ?

[Redbrick]

That link looks spot on to what I've got :) I've changed my front shocks at 100K for Bilstein B6's, Heavy duty. Car rides beautifully, great in the corners with the strut bar conversion. Nivomats are good for when its loaded up. Only slight irritation that I've learned to accept, is the back end gets slightly unsettled by harsh bumps on bends- expansion joints on sweeping corners on bridges is the daily one- back tends to feel like its jumped a few inches. As I say I've learnt to live with that trait, normal corners utterly planted. Wouldn't take the nivos off for anything- car is a work horse at end of the day not a track day toy.

[dave stew]

The comment about the rear skipping about on bumpy roads reminds me of my old leaf sprung Mk2 RS2000!

[cornclose]

Thanks Redbrick. Hmm, decisions decisions. I really can't do without nivos on the rear for when loaded up, sits right on it's arse with a normal setup.

Anyone know what springs and shocks are in the above Volvo kit ? Or are they 'Volvo's own' ?

[Redbrick]

Am I getting confused? lol

The Volvo kit in the link does come with Nivomats:

''This lowering kit is supplied complete with Volvo's fully automatic level control, which enables your car maintain its load capacity despite it being lowered.''

When I asked around last year there were no OEM Nivomats available for the P2 V70's but there was one available for the older 850/V70's.

The nivomat itself controls the ride height so there must be two different types, the nivomat for the kit in the link and the standard nivomat (might be wrong though!). What I'm saying is if there was to be an OEM nivomat available would it be the version that gave the lower ride height?

That kit might appear expensive but when you look at what you get, 4 shocks (2 mega expensive nivomats), set of lowered springs, ARB etc that is not a bad price IMHO.

H&R do a spring kit for P2's with Nivos- there has been some debate as to how it would work considering the nivo controls the ride height however, that kit is around the £250 mark alone.


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/H-R-Federn-Volvo-V70-Kombi-2WD-S-30-30mm-29452-2_W0QQitemZ140315797718QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAutoteil e_Zubeh%C3%B6r?hash=item140315797718&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1683%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C 240%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50

[Redbrick]

The comment about the rear skipping about on bumpy roads reminds me of my old leaf sprung Mk2 RS2000!

Quirky and characterful ;)

[cornclose]

That kit might appear expensive but when you look at what you get, 4 shocks (2 mega expensive nivomats), set of lowered springs, ARB etc that is not a bad price IMHO.


Thanks Redbrick. It would probably be worth clarifying exactly what is included in this Volvo kit - Simon (Rufe) are you able to tell us ?

[t5owner]

T5owner, any chance you could measure the distance from the tyre surface to the wheel arch for me ? i.e. the gap between the wheel's rolling surface and the arch at the top of the wheel... (?)

Yep no probs

The gap between tyre and middle of wheel arch at body is 100 mm or 4 inches if you prefer told you it sits damn high

Inside measurement is roughly 10 inches mate i:e tyre surface to wheel arch liner taken from centre of tyre upwards

Your welcome to come see for yourself if you want as i`m only down the road in carlton

Cheers

stuart

[Rufe]

The kit includes:
Front and Rear Sport shock absorbers with fully automatic level control. Front and Rear Road Springs, a pair of Rear Top Mounts, a pair of front Bump Stops and all fittings and fixings (nuts, bolts and washers etc) required to do this job, as well as the full fitting instructions too.

Hope this helps

Simon :)

[cornclose]

Thanks mate - excellent

[Volvo Family]

Might be cheaper to buy a car that's got them on. Alternatively I've ended up putting rubber spring assistors on the rear of mine. Not completely perfect as it does tend to drag when I've got a boot full and 4 bikes on a tow bar mounted bike rack, but much better than it was before.

[JimmyBurnWorld]

Here you go then as you requested... all prices include vat


Chassis Kit: [30714836]
Retail Price £789.36 / Our Price £670.96

You have the option of the A.R.B. too:
Anti Roll Bar, 21mm Diameter: [8622794]
Retail Price £148.79 / Our Price £126.45

And if you have 235 width tyres fitted you also need the limiting kit:
Limiter Kit: [8666253]
Retail Price £74.17 / Our Price £54.1

Postage:
£20.00 DHL 48

These parts would have to come over from Sweden, but roughly a week maximum from ordering to turning up at your door i would guess.

Simon

Rufe, do these prices still apply? I'm a bit of a newbie to this T5 lark. I'm looking to buy a T5, and I've been toying with the idea of an ex-plod (see my numerous other nagging posts :D ). I figure if I go ex-plod, the suspension will need replacing. Will this do the job?

[cornclose]

Rufe, do these prices still apply? I'm a bit of a newbie to this T5 lark. I'm looking to buy a T5, and I've been toying with the idea of an ex-plod (see my numerous other nagging posts :D ). I figure if I go ex-plod, the suspension will need replacing. Will this do the job?

I had that upgrade recently fitted to my T5. Whilst at it, I replaced a few other bits too. The result is like a brand new car. Read more here (http://www.vpcuk.org/forums/showthread.php?t=23457).

[dave stew]

yes mate, a light car are those in the first list, under light car.

the heavy car are those covered in the second list, under heavy car.

So, to explain in case i have not made sense, the heavy cars are:
Turbo, Petrol, automatic, With air con
Diesel, Manual, with air con
Diesel, automatic, with air con
Diesel, automatic, without air con.

all other cars fall into the light car category in the first list.

they say 'excluding R' on that link, becasue none of these kits are suitable for the AWD models

hope this clear that up,

Simon

Yeay! So my V70's officially 'light'. Another benefit of using that left leg, Chris! And a manual T5 just slips under the tax bracket at 225g/km.

Oh, how I miss that slurring tranny thinking
"If I twitch my foot off the throttle slightly, it'll change up a gear...no, no, oh yes, now it has".

[cornclose]

I don't drive in auto, only in tiptronic, so I don't get that uncertainty. It still changes gear when I want it to change gear, only I don't use me left leg...

[Rufe]

Rufe, do these prices still apply?

Yes mate they do. :)

[dave stew]

I don't drive in auto, only in tiptronic, so I don't get that uncertainty. It still changes gear when I want it to change gear, only I don't use me left leg...

Aha! Got you! The auto lads hate me...

[cornclose]

Nah, I agree with you actually. A bog standard auto I would HATE. For exactly the reasons you state (will it, won't it change up/down...).

Which is why I use the geartronic feature 99% of the time. It seems I'm in a minority though.

The old argument that "it doesn't change when you want it to" doesn't stack up either. When you drive a manual, you de-clutch and stir the stick, then engage the clutch again in time to power into the next gear. This whole process takes some amount of time, yes it can be fast, but nevertheless it does take time. Therefore, when driving a manual, your brain factors in this time so that you progress through the gears with the feeling of total control.

It's the same with geartronic in manual mode. Sure, it doesn't change gear the instant you flick up or down the stick, but it doesn't matter, the time it takes to shift is automatically factored into your driving by the brain. Actually I think in most cases the shift is as quick if not quicker than it would be to de-clutch/change/clutch in a manual. Don't take the A6 tiptronic as a benchmark, that is way slow compared to Volvo's unit...

But I'm starting to sound like a broken record. As are you Dave... :B_thumb:

[dave stew]

Ah yes, but I have two words:
Torque Converter.

You love this banter, don't you?

Remember I can be killed with the statement 'I want a Jaguar XF' - but that wouldn't be as much fun.

Wait till 'Billy Serious' with the C70 Auto joins in and calls me a Chav because I have the peasant's three pedal layout. I love it! (The banter that is, not my car's transmission as that would be borderline tragic)!

[cornclose]

Boy you can tell its Friday...