2G (2004.5+) S40 Forum

Feature my ride Mark forum as read and return

(6 DEC 2005) I talked with Sales at Dension USA about iPod connectivity for the S40 and V50...

They were very nice and indicated that the ice>Link:Fibre iPod connector product that they are developing may be ready for the S40/V50 models in April or May 2006...

Here's a link that summarizes the product: http://www.densionusa.com/icelink_fibre_info.htm

When I called, they put me on their wait list...If you're interested in the product, it may not hurt to give 'em a call to: A) get on the list and B) provide some critical mass that may compel faster development by their team...

Their phone # is (USA) 866.822.3673...

The other question that I had for Dension was: Will the ice>Link:Fibre be compatible with Volvo's Premium Sound System package offering for the S40/V50? Answer? Too early to tell, as Dension has a full suite of testing they will need to do with each radio system...My guess is that, since the Premium Sound package uses M.O.S.T modular component fibre technology, it is fairly likely...but that's speculation...

All that said: for me, sooner the better as i'm gonna pull the trigger on a new V50 and think it's time to put my 93 civic si to bed...

I am posting this on both S40 and V50 forums…

JMcB

Hi All

My door central locking is stuck and I wish to remove the door panel. Thing is.. the door is permantly closed and will not open. Does anyone know how to remove the door panel as the door is locked shut? any photos/ ideas would be fab

Ash

Hi all. I have recently had a new altinator fitted and now the front passenger door doesnt open at all. Elec window works fine but the door remains locked. Still remaisn locked when trying to open front outside or inside

Any ideas?

I guess the battery was disconnected when they fitted new altinator.

Regards

http://www.dpccars.com/car-videos-13/05-01...ni-Gallardo.htm

420hp Volvo S40 T4 Autotech vs Lamborghini Gallardo LP520-4 E-gear, who is faster.

Hello,
I get a jerking sensation while driving , and it feels like the engine is going to stop. There is nothing particular that I have noticed which triggers it. Sometimes, it happens while driving at steady speed, other times when I am slowing down at traffic lights or a circle.

Any ideas, anyone.

Thanks

For over a year my 2008 S40 has had tail light issues. Part of the assembly works and other sections will not allow the lights to work for some reason. So the turning signals, back-up lights, brake light may work but other lights in the assmebly will not. Of course when the problem began I tried to simply replace bulbs but that did not remedy the situation. My local Volvo service department said I need a new tail light wiring harness assembly.
Does anyone know if there is a simple fix to get all of my bulbs operational or am I going to have to purchase an entire assembly?

When I try to lock or unlock my 2004 Volvo S40 T5, all the locks work except for the rear driver's door lock.

I checked the fuse for the door locks and it was fine.

When I lock or unlock the doors I can hear a clicking, so I disassembled the rear door and narrowed it down to this black box.

[attachment=7511:2010_07_...21.01.28.jpg]

I opened the box and plugged it back into the wiring - one of the relays inside it is the source of the clicking noise.

[attachment=7512:2010_07_...21.09.06.jpg]

I researched the relays and found this site but couldn't find any I could buy to replace but just this site:
Relay site

I called two Volvo dealerships to see if I could get this part replace but neither of them could find the part I was asking about and gave me this part number:

31253515 for $170

I think that this door control unit is the issue, does anyone know where I can buy a replacement part?

Door control unit

Or could it be something else like greasing the door terminals?

Good morning!

I have a bad wheel bearing on my S40 and decided to swap both front bearings myself. With other cars I've owned, the bearing assembly was bolted to the steering knuckle, usually from the rear. Now that I have the car up and mostly taken apart I realize Volvo had something else in mind. I need to know if I need special equipment to get these old noisy bearing assemblies out or do I just pick up my favorite hammer and go to work on them! Also, once the old assemblies are out, can I tap the new ones in with a block of wood and hammer like on my Jeep or do I need to find someone with a press?

*The headline say 04 but I have a 2005 S40 2.4i. Once again my fat fingers failed me!*

Any help would be greatly appreciated and thanks in advance!

I've got an issue concerning a 2007 S40 air conditioner. After a few minutes of blowing cold air it will shut off and at the same time blow musty, mildew smelling air.

- The air only smells like mold when this happens.
- the air smells fine if I press the AC button to turn off the AC on my own.
- sometimes it shuts off for 30 seconds, sometimes 10 minutes.

Help! Any thoughts?

I have a '06 S40 that I have to get the heater fixed for the past 2-3 years. The symptom is that there is no hot air from the vent even if the heater appeared to be on. Each time the dealer were able to fix it (but I had to shell out a Benjamin for the work) and they said it was fixed. However the next season comes, lo and behold, it's not working again. What's more, in the summer, the A/C is not working properly and I had to bring it to have IT adjusted. So every year I have to bring it in twice to get the heater or A/C adjusted/fixed. I am getting suspicious with the dealer. It almost feels like they just adjust the air intake to the vents so it gets more hot air in the winter and cold air in the summer. But what do I know, they are not telling me much. Are they pulling my legs? Does this heater/AC thing happen to other owners? Does this model tend to have heater or A/C problems?
Can somebody help me take a look at one the work orders I got this time and decipher it for me what the dealer was trying to fix (or what they claim to have fixed?)
Thanks in advance,
See attached scan of work order.

Hello Everyone!

I'm new to this site (although searching past posts as a guest has helped me out a few times) and I could really use some help. I have a 2005 S40 2.4i with 160,000+ miles on it. Over the past few months the CEL likes to show itself for about a day then goes away for a few weeks. The last couple times it lit up I had the auto parts store check the codes for me. It keeps popping up as "P0172" and each time the description changes. I've been doing research and asking around and have narrowed it down (I think) to the Cam Adjust Solenoid or the O2 Sensor. I have only had the car for about a year now and still trying to figure it out. Can anyone point me in the right direction so I don't go blowing the little money I have on the wrong part? Thanks in advance!

good day all, I have a 2007 Volvo s40 2.4i for about a good month now the anti-skid light comes on and turns off when the engine shuts down. but the drive is horrible and as I slightly start turning or sometime even speed the light comes on and the car swaves to the left nasty and to the right at times as well. Does anyone know what the issue is concerning this matter.

My 2006 s40 t5 had a dead battery that wouldn't hold a charge so I replaced it. With the new battery installed, the lights, ventilation, radio all work but the car won't start. I get a message on the display saying "immobilizer...see manual" and then another message saying "check skid control.". I've tried locking and unlocking the car five times. Does anybody have any ideas? There was no battery in the car for a couple of days so I'm thinking that a code needs to be reset but the dealer is very far away for the car to be towed.

This morning, after driving on the interstate and having at least one decent stop, I noticed the "ABS/ANTI-SKID SERVICE REQUIRED" light came on. It wasn't a markedly hard stop, nothing really out of the ordinary for heavy traffic driving.

Does anyone know how serious this is? There are just a few topics about it, but they are older. The car is still under warranty. Should I have it serviced myself or is this covered?

We've only had the poor car a couple weeks and love it! I hope this doesn't spoil it.


=============
2011 Volvo S40 T5, Certified with 19,000 miles

About 2 months ago, all of my CDs got stuck in the CD player. I cannot play any CD, nor can I change any CD. I was told that only the dealer can fix factory CD players, is this true? How much will this set me back to fix or should I just deal with the annoying clicking sound that occurs every time I start the car?

Hi,


I have a 2005 s40.

A couple of weeks ago I was driving the car in the morning after an ice storm. I scraped the windows before I drove it, but apparently there was still a little ice on the base of the driver's side window.

I tried putting the window down as I was driving, but it didn't work. I tried 2 or 3 times before I realized the ice must have it "frozen" in place. A few hours later after the ice melted, I put the window down, but it wouldn't go down automatically. I had to hold the button down the whole time, and this has been the issue since. I have to hold the button down or up to make this window work; it has lost it's automatic "one touch" capability so it seems. All of the other windows work fine.

It also sounds a little noisier than usual when I put it up and down.

I am wondering what the problem is here, and how I have to fix it. Could it be a fuse or relay that burned out, or do I need a whole new window motor?

Feel free to ask any questions.


Thank you,

Todd

I need help stat! This is my only vehicle. I noticed the other day that my car was swimming in a pool of oil. I pulled the dipstick out and it was pretty dry. I threw three quarts of oil in and the car sat overnight. When I went to look at it again ALL the oil was completely drained. What could this be? I'm pulling my hair out. PLEASE HELP!

I own a 2010 S40 and love the stock stereo controls of my Ipod Classic. I am wondering if anyone out there plugs in their Iphone to the stereo and whether it has the same easy control as a standard Ipod?

When I plug my Adroid phone to the USB, it will play the music on it, but without any real ability to contol it.

I own a 2010 S40 and love the stock stereo controls of my Ipod Classic. I am wondering if anyone out there plugs in their Iphone to the stereo and whether it has the same easy control as a standard Ipod?

When I plug my Adroid phone to the USB, it will play the music on it, but without any real ability to contol it.

I have a 2008 S40 that currently has 130,000 miles on the odometer. It has been a great car and I drive a lot of miles. I have maintained the car well and have had very few issues. My a/c compressor clutch went bad at 110,000 miles and the compressor was replaced. My fiance has been driving the car the past week while I am away. She is telling me that the a/c will just stop blowing air into the cabin but she can still hear air blowing at a reduced rate somewhere behind the dash. I told her to turn off the car then re-start it. When she does this the a/c blower operates properly for about an hour and then she says it stops blowing in the cabin again.

Anyone have any ideas? I thought perhaps the blower resistor is failing but I am not sure this is the issue especially if the blower is actually still blowing air somewhere when it ceases to blow in the cabin. Since I am away for a few weeks I cannot experience what the car is doing.

Has anybody tried sprint booster on there S40 T5's?
I find the factory setup to be very Lazy.

Can anyone help solve the mystery of an electric drivers seat that only works very intermittently? Garage have looked but conflicting opinions ranging from control unit to motor, surely if it was motor it wouldnt work at all!

Help please

Hello,

My 06 S40 has been acting up. Two days ago I started the car and while driving to work it seems sluggish. I parked the car and turned it off. Tried to restart vehicle and the engine would not turn over. Took me several tries to get vehicle to start and proceeded to head for home. Vehicle stalled out a few times but I managed to limp it home. Shut down the car and waited a few minutes and it started fine but the check engine light came on. Tried a few more times and car started fine. Got out and checked gas cap and re-tightened it. Started car a few more times and check engine light went off.

Next day everything was fine. Car started and got to and from work fine. Today, car started fine and got to work. Went out for lunch and car started fine. However, came back to car and it would not start. When it did start it would sputter and stall out. Finally did get it started but had to rev the engine to do so and there was a strong fuel smell. Again limped it home with a stall out on the way. Got home and car again seems to start fine but check engine light is on again.

I have hardly driven my car in the last two year - 1500km added in last 8 mths. I think I only filled up 6 times in 2012. The last time I filled up (before today) was beginning of Dec 2012. Wondering if the gas could be the issue or if this could be some other fuel system related issue.

So I'm new to this site and I've had a few issues with my Volvo S40 as of late and was wondering if anyone can give me some guidance. I live in Texas and the last 2 days we've had a constant rain. Today on my way home from work I noticed the floor for the back seat under my passenger seat was completely soaked. After a little investigating I realized the floor duct is flooded with water and when I use the floor vent the water is blown out onto the carpet. I have not used my Ac in weeks because its been cold but is it possible that if I have a clogged Ac condensation drain that the rain could be filling up my Ac system and backing up into my floor duct? I did check my sunroof and when I opened it the inside track was bone dry. The water is only on the floor board in the path of the floor vent and I can hear the water gurgling inside the floor duct.

Sorry, This post was removed due to the fact that I mis-posted it in the wrong cat.

Hell, I recently bought a 05, 2.0 diesel S40. Two problems which are presumably linked.
When I start it first thing in the morning (or when cold) you can feel the engine vibrating. This settles down after a very small bit of driving.
Then when cruising or accelerating gentle there is a very bad vibration from the engine. Not from wheels. Most noticable when cruise control is on and say going up a gentle incline when engine is under a small bit of pressure. If you accelerate hard then not an issue at all...

Any Clues?
Thanks

Hi everyone,I drive a Volvo s40 2001 and I would like to buy a diesel one from 2006.I found a garage who sells it with 6 months guarantee.But different people are making me aware that these Volvo's might be not a good choice because they run on Renault engines and so on.Now,I am not an expert in engines,I only know little.
Does anyone has any experience with this model of Volvo?Is it reliable?If it has the proper maintenance,how many km can it last?
I hope to hear from you.Thanks alot!!

I just recently purchased my first Volvo S40 from a one owner private party. For the past month when I go to start the car in the mornings or when it's been sitting and cold it will not start on the first try, I have to turn the key to the "1" position and then try again. It will start on the second try but feels rough. I've noticed the car's performance also seems a little off.
The check engine light came on a few days ago - my friend owns a scanner and a code of P0190 Fuel Rail Pressure Sensor Circuit appeared. He did not clear the light however it went off on it's own a day later.

I added fuel injector cleaner last night, hoping something simple could fix the issue...but this morning again, wouldn't start on the first try.

My question finally....could it be anything else related to the fuel pressure reg? Or is my best bet to have the actual sensor replaced? I have just heard that even though that particular code has come up it could be something in relation to and not necc. that particular piece.

Any feedback or help is really appreciated!

Hello all, I just purchased a 2009 volvo s40i with 30600. when started cold of course engine idles up but is a loud tapping normal maybe injectors with slight vibration. engine idles down after 30 sec then completely quiet and sounds and runs great after 45 sec to 1 min total. this id worrying me only because it was a used car and never owned a volvo. car just han routine 30000 mile service and diagnostic check at 30300 by last owner. otherwise car runs great and drives great.this only happens when car is totally cold , all other starting is fine.it is still under manufacture warrantee but the dealer is 1 hour and half away and wanted to make sure this was abnormal before i take it going to try to ad clip of start up thanks, Rob

Hello fellow proud S40 owners,

Today I was leaving the gas station and hit the gas pump pedestal. I cannot even find words to describe how devastated I am. My 2011 S40 hasn't had a single scratch since new and my clumsiness snapped off a part of her body.

I apologize for now knowing the name of the part I am desperately; it is a little part (about 4 in by 2 in) just under the rear door (towards to the end of the section). I am looking for it now. Any ideas on where I can find parts such as those? I live in Edmonton, Canada, but with online shopping it seems that our location doesn't really matter.

Thank you in advance!

Car wouldn't start and recived the "Ignition Key Error", after several minutes the car started and now the air bag light is on, the volume control won't work and the interior lights are doing some strange things. Can anybody give me any ideas? The nearest dealer is about 2hrs away.

Well hello folks. My first problem post. Thought I had nothing better to do yesterday morning but jump in the car get it started and all warmed up to take my son to school. But to my surprise I was confronted with "KEY ERROR...PLEASE TRY AGAIN", so I did and again and again with both keys, no joy. So it was a very fast walk to school which was good as it was -3 degrees C yesterday.
Back to the car I had to watch it being unceremoniously dragged off to the dealers. I called today to get an update to be told that a new steering column was on order?
Have any of you guys had something similar and can it be a steering column!! He says incredulously.

Spammer

My 2006 Volvo S40 is having an issue with both driver's side doors. The front driver's side won't lock/unlock and cannot be opened from the inside. It can be opened from the outside.

The rear driver's side door won't unlock. I can manually pull up on the pin and then open the door from both the outside and the inside but it won't respond to the key fob.

I just picked it up from the shop and they told me that the plastic latch was out of alignment on both doors. Now both doors will open from the inside and the outside but they will not lock. When I try to lock the doors the driver's side locks dont do anything - no sound either. The passenger's side functions normally.

What could be going on? The shop said I should replace the entire latch mechanism on both doors and it will cost $800.

The headliner cloth and door panel cloth is sagging in my Volvo. I ma not sure what caused this but is there any quick or easy fix for this?

Last time I was under my car changing my oil I noticed the hard line going into the trans was wet.. Ok I thought I'll look at that later.. well tonight I was going to pull the ATF dipstick to check the color and level and noticed the bottom of my trans is soaked now... But where's it coming from? It's dry from the dipstick tube base up... Is it the vertical plate that seems to bolt onto the front of the trans where the dipstick tube is moled into?
I've included some pics.

Also.. who's the $%*@ who designed the ATF dipstick? Ok.. so it's hidden and only accessable from under the car.. fine.. but when you go to pull it out there's a huge freeken wire bundle and rubber bushing righ in the freeken path! So.. blind, I'm trying to walk it out with 2 fingers.. and yep.. I break the da#$ thing off...
Anyone know where I can find a ATF dipstick? and HOW the hell are you expected to pull that thing out WITH THE CAR RUNNING... and check the level! is psychotic!

Volvo S40 2007
The check emission system warning light came on. The workshop cleared the light - clean purged v QB - thats what they did.
And now the light is back on again. It disappears occasionally and then comes back on again, though I havent been able to figure out what causes it.

When I start the car in the morning the Slow down or shift up message shows. If I turn off and restart the engine, the message disappears.
This happens only in the mornings, and rarely, after it has cooled down during the rest of the day?

any ideas on what could be wrong?

Hi Guys, I could use your expertise with a problem on my 2007 S40 1.6D please.
Warning message for Anti Skid Service came on intermittently for a few months then I noticed a reduced performance from the car which developed into it not going above 3000rpm. Last week the car shut down whilst I was trying to accelerate onto the motorway. I brought the car to a mechanic buddy of mine with a reader for the cars computer and it showed the following,
ABS 0130 and 0131 faulty.
Any ideas on a fix for this and what it should cost are appreciated.

The radio and CD have stopped working,all fuses are fine,any ideas?

Hi All,

Since we got this car (second hand, 4 years old), the horn has sounded a little feminine - it's a high pitched whine, one which could be louder. This is actually our second 2G S40 (the first one's roof picked a fight with the ground, and lost), the first one had a horn which sounded like a decent car's horn should, so it's not a general S40 thing.

The car has two horns: one high frequency, and one low frequency. I'm guessing that either the low frequency horn has given up, or it's not getting power. In order to test/replace the horns I need to get to them. As far as I can see, the only way to do this is to remove the bumper. Does the grille perhaps pop out? Or something else that would be easier than removing the bumper!

Many thanks.

Hi all, I have a problem with my S40 R design its a 1.9 diesel and the garage hasn't a clue so where else but here!! Its 3 years old and recently has started to lose power very briefly, the car feels like it has been switched on and off very quickly, all dash lights flicker on and it feels like its going to stop. After about 1 second the car runs normal again. Last time this happened my ' Anti Skid Service' light came on and the rev counter stopped functioning, after switching the car on and off all was well again.

Garage said they couldn't find anything wrong with it and to make sure i was a member of the AA !!!

I would be grateful for any ideas, Thanks

Hi all - My Volvo mechanic is struggling to figure out why my CEL keeps coming on and giving the code for "fuel trim - lower limit" on my '05 S40 with 128k miles. So far, he's done a 120k service (spark plugs, etc.), fuel pressure sensor, and mass air flow sensor. After each of those, the CEL/code clears. Then, I drive it about 30 miles in the morning and it's totally fine - no noticeable symptoms and no CEL. I park the car for about 3 hours, get in to drive to lunch, and the CEL comes on immediately and never goes off until I bring it in again for the next try. There's no whistling noise, so he doesn't expect the PCV. I know this code can be a real pain to narrow down. Anyone have any ideas or similar situations? Getting tired of going to the mechanic every other day!

THANKS!

Hi guys, advice needed. I am looking to buy a set of second hand alloys, the dimensions of my present wheels are 7J x 17 x 52.5

I have been offered a set but the dimensions are 7J x 17 x 49, would anyone know if this wee difference (49/52.5) is important or not.

My tire size is 205 x 50 x 17 the tire size on the wheels I have been offered are 225 x 50 x 17. I don't want to buy these wheels only to find out that my tires don't fit

Thanks for any advice (Glasgow)

I didn't buy a volvo. I bought a LINCOLN. And I'm very happy. I can't believe 20 people read this post and didn't answer back. Does this mean Volvo owners really are the stuck up, nose in the air jackasses I thought they were? Thanks for nothing. I quit your crappy Swedish forum.

I hope somebody can help or give advice with my newly developed problem.

Roughly two weeks ago I started my car and drove down the street at low speed with low revs as normal with no noticable problems. When I came to a main road and attempted to gain some normal speed I found that when my revs hit about 1600-1800rpm when the turbo kicks in my car usually starts to properly move there was nothing. The revs were reluctant to go above 2000rpm, they would climb but very slowly. This fault has happened about 6 times over 2 weeks and the thing I find unusual is that the fault is on random starts. If the car works ok it will be ok for the whole journey, If the car decides not to work ok it will not work for the whole journey. So once the car is on the move it will run either with or without the problem, the problem does not come and go when the car is moving.

Things to note:
Its a 2.0D Euro4 engine.
There are no modifications.
I have not heard anything unusual.
When fault is occuring revs build normally to 1600-1800rpm then revs build extremely slow from there.
The problem does not come and go while the engine is running. It is either there or not there until car is next used.

Extra thing to note (maybe a red herring, maybe important):
I had my car serviced in mid December and last week I had a look under the bonnet for any visible damage I found that my airbox was not closed properly and was not air tight. The airbox cover was loose enough at one corner for me to put the end of my little finger through the gap. The airbox cover has since been correctly fitted and the problem is still the same. The car was ok for three months with the poorly fitted cover.

I hope it is just a sensor problem and my car has gone into safe mode or somthing. Having just spent my life savings when I bought my first house last month a serious fault would be like a huge kick in the guts.

Hi All... I was 70 miles from home with a sick kid in the car and my car went bizerk... wipers turned on without my help and were on fast mode, then the car stopped and turned itself off and I couldn't turn it back on. in first position it said brake fluid low. 2nd position it said brake failure stop safely. then when I went back to first position it said immobilizer see manual. I did all the "tricks" clicked the key fob 5x I also pushed in the odometer for 30 seconds while in position 2.. Nothing. just 3 months ago I had the entire computer replaced $1200... then the radio stopped working. Now this...

Should I wrap around a tree? or are there home remedies to keep this hag running? It only has 60K miles on it and I maintenance it regularly!!

Help please!!!

Hello, I was wondering if anyone has a good "how to" for installing lowering springs. I will be purchasing/installing mine soon and would like to have as a reference. I'm familiar with altering suspension parts but I'd like to have a reference as a back-up. Thanks!

Hi guys I have a 05 S40 T5 a few week ago I let my GF drive it..long story short she ran it in some water and the EPS unit went out according to the local "Euro" mechanic. Its going to be 1200 to replace it an I dont have the money to do it at this time but it needs to be done. It cant be that hard to do but I like to know what Im in for before I just dive in. I work on Honda products so i have mechanical ability but comparing Honda to Volvo..well thats a whole different topic. Please help a write up or just some tips would be helpful

Hi All,

Having been irritated with the lack of an Aux input in the S40, I've tried around 6 different FM transmitters, none of which have left me satisfied with the sound quality. The worst one by far was the Griffin iTrip, the best was a no-name Chinese one.

I also wanted to install a subwoofer, which, seeing as the S40 does not provide a sub out, is not as straight forward as I would have liked. The official Volvo subwoofer, when I got a quote, was going to cost me in the region of R8000 (approx US$1000) when I got a quote around two years ago. Being a student, this was not an option.

I drive a mid 2004 2G Volvo S40. Being in South Africa, the car is right hand drive, so some of the photos here may depict a mirror image of what it would look like in countries where you drive on the wrong side of the road The car is fitted with Volvo Performance Sound (yes, the basic system - we got the car second hand).

In many sedans, there is sound proofing between the cabin and the boot. The S40 was designed to have a subwoofer in the boot, the result being that there are holes in the "roof" of the boot to allow sound to pass from the boot into the car. The holes are sized such that the boot becomes a resonant cavity - i.e. a very large subwoofer enclosure! You don't need a very large subwoofer in order to put quite a bit of bass into this car.

Unfortunately most of the photos here were taken after I'd finished installing everything in the car, so not all of them will show the detail I'd like. There are also restrictions as to how many images I can put in a post, so I've just linked to some of the less important ones. I installed the subwoofer and FM modulator at around the same time, so if you only want one, be selective as to what you do

I am not a Volvo technician. If I were, I would have told you to buy the Volvo subwoofer. I'm an Electrical Engineering student, and have some experience in sound engineering. I am also quite a keen music listener, and far prefer sound quality over sound quantity!

Although I have tried to ensure that these instructions are as accurate as possible, I take no responsibility for anything that may happen should you attempt to follow these instructions. Volvo might not be too happy with you making these modifications yourself, so think twice about doing this if your car is brand new.

Doing this doesn't require that much knowledge of cars or electrics, but if you get scared when you look behind your TV and DVD player, maybe it would be better if you got this done professionally. The choice is yours!

Work in progress:


Parts Purchased
FM Modulator
I purchased a Planet Audio PFM2 FM Modulator (http://www.planetaudiousa.com/main/567). This is a wired FM Modulator, as opposed to the USELESS wireless FM transmitters. The quality is outstanding - it's as good as a normal FM transmission. There is no hiss (you can start hearing a hiss when you turn the volume up to around 40% with no source connected - nothing worth worrying about), the frequency response is good, and you NEVER hear any crackling or interference from other radio stations. And best of all, it's pretty cheap!

There are several other FM modulators which I'm convinced (just by looking at their prices and physical appearance) are made in the same factory (such as the Boss FM-MOD), which will probably give the same quality. There are also more elegant, more expensive solutions featuring RDS, USB input, etc (I know Kenwood make a very nice one), which can be installed using the same method.

Subwoofer and Amp
I bought a sub and amp second hand from a friend at work.
The sub is an 800W (175W RMS) 10" Kenwood KFC-W2510.
The amp is an ICE Power Pro Series PL-1400 1400W 4 channel amp.

I drive the subwoofer through 2 channels of the amp, which means there is a maximum of 160W RMS going to the subwoofer.

How much power you'll need depends on whether you want to sound gangster, or just get a much fuller sound. Wanting the latter, I have the above setup with the amp's gain set at about 40%. This is perfect for my liking!

The subwoofer enclosure is just a wooden box as far as I'm concerned, however, the shape and volume of the wooden box have a big impact on the sound that comes out of the subwoofer. Speak to the people where you buy the sub and amp to find out what enclosure to get.

High-Low Converter
Due to the S40's lack of a line out of any form other than the amp's output to the speakers, you need one of these to tap off the audio signal. There are other methods which interface to the car's fibre optic system, but these, despite being more expensive, aren't going to give you sound quality much better than this will. Mine cost me R120, which is about US$15. They're probably all made in the same factory in China, so I don't think it matters which one you buy!


Background Info
Power Supply
Whether you install a subwoofer, a modulator, or both, you're going to need to power them. Running a direct line from the battery is (theoretically) the best, as you'll get less interference from the car's electrical system. However, any decent amp or modulator will have enough filters on the input to filter out noise from the alternator (this will be the biggest source of interference - I could hear the engine through my iTrip!) and the rest of the car's electrical system.

IF YOU ARE INSTALLING A HIGH POWER AMP, YOU MUST RUN A DIRECT LINE FROM THE BATTERY!

Because an amp doesn't draw a constant current, don't ever connect one to a factory-fitted power outlet, as it'll never perform at it's best due to the high impedance of the wiring to the outlet. Assuming that you don't blow fuses. Or the car's electrical system.

Volvo were very nice to provide us with a 15A power supply in the boot, intended for the Volvo subwoofer. I've used that to power my FM Modulator and amp. It's a thick orange cable with a green stripe, and can be found poking out of the wiring harness in the bottom of the boot, on the same side as the stock amp (LHS in my car). It turns on when you insert the key, and turns off a few minutes after you remove it.

I originally powered my FM modulator off the power socket in the back of the centre console, but this turns off a few seconds after the key is removed, often while the radio is still on. It worked well, but I got irritated by it turning off when the radio was still on, so it's now on the same power supply as the sub.

Aux Audio Line
You can run an aux line to the front of the car (the FM modulator will need to be installed with the antenna at the back of the car) however you like. I ran mine hidden under various things (details to follow), and made it pop up inside the centre console. That way when I'm not using it, I can just roll up the cable and shove it in the centre console. I have a standard 3.5mm audio jack on the end, so it plugs into my phone and MP3 player.

Connections
Where possible, solder your connections. Soldered connections mean that they're less likely come apart, and the wires are less likely to move against each other, eliminating sources of crackling and all sorts of other horrible noises. If you can't solder, just make sure your connections won't ever come apart!

Instructions
First off, a guy by the name of Gregg Rocheford has written a very good manual on installing a FM modulator. This is what I used as a guide to install mine. His was written for a V50, it's slightly different for a S40. Still, give it a read. It can be found at http://volvo.philipfotos.com/English_install_ver_6_5.pdf.

Step 1: Getting access to the required areas
If you've taken apart your S40 (or any other modern car) before, you can safely skip to step 2.

Most panels on modern cars, interior and exterior, just clip into place. What this means is that you can take most of a car's interior apart using your hands and sometimes a flat screwdriver to gently lever a panel off. If you need to use a scredriver, push it a few cm in and slide it sideways until you hit something, then gently lever it off. The panel will most likely pop out. You may need to repeat this until you've unclipped all the clips.

To get to the stock amp and power connections, you'll have to remove the lining of the boot on the LHS (for RHD models). Do this by removing the floor of the boot and the blocks that surround the spare wheel. Then remove all the clips which push through the lining: squeeze the tabs together with a thumb and forefinger, and pull outwards. There are 4 in my car, one of which you need to fold the back seat forward to get to. Then remove the plastic bit in the middle of the bumper by sliding your fingers under the edges and gently lifting, as shown in this photo. Then just pull the lining out, taking care to slide it over the prong sticking out at the top left of the boot opening.

To remove the C pillar cover to get to the antenna connections (you don't need to do this if you're installing only the subwoofer), just slide your fingers inside the front most edge of the cover as close to the bottom as possible, and lift it. When all the clips are undone, you'll be able to slide it forward and remove it. The C pillar with cover removed is shown in the image below.

IMPORTANT NOTE 1: Although my early 2G S40 does not have this, most later ones do - there will be a strap holding the C pillar cover to the C pillar itself. This is there to prevent the cover from flying across the car at great speed when the curtain airbag goes off. DO NOT cut or otherwise remove this strap, it's there for your safety!

IMPORTANT NOTE 2: Don't tamper with the airbag or anything that looks like it could have anything to do with the airbag!



Step 2: Connecting to the subwoofer power supply (recommended for subwoofer and modulator)
Make sure that the car has been turned off with the key removed for at least 10 minutes before doing this - you don't want to risk the short circuit which will happen if you touch a powered positive wire against anything metal in the car!

Locate the positive connector - It's a thick orange cable with a green stripe, and can be found poking out of the wiring harness in the bottom of the boot, on the same side as the stock amp (LHS in my car). Cut the white connector off it, and solder on a length of electrical wire. If you're connecting an amp to this power supply, stick with the thick cable! If you're only powering the modulator, anything goes, these use next to no power whatsoever! Make sure to cover your connection in insulating tape.



Connect the negative wire that's going to go to your amp and/or modulator to the ground point in the boot.



Step 3: Connect the antenna wiring (modulator only)
The instructions for the "9 volt method" of connecting to the antenna can be found in the manual by Gregg Rocheford, which is available at http://volvo.philipfotos.com/English_install_ver_6_5.pdf.

In the S40, I used high quality microphone cable to extend the cable which came with the modulator. Although not the best wire to use, I had it lying around at home, and it seems to work pretty well. Terrestrial television coaxial cable (RG-58) would be better, and is also something you may have lying around at home.

The connector onto the rear window is right at the top of the window, along the side. See this image to see my connections. I ran the cable behind the airbag, and through a hole in the "roof" of the boot by sticking my hand through the hole and grabbing the cables.

Step 4: Connect the aux line (modulator only)
As mentioned above, I have run an aux line from the front of the car, where I have a standard 3.5mm audio jack on a cable coming out of the centre console.

Photo of centre console wiring

The cable itself runs, from the front:
- Through the back of the centre console
- Towards the front of the car, tucked under the plastic of the centre console
- Under the passanger seat
- Down the side of the car, tucked under the plastic that runs along the side
- Under the back seat, into the boot. RCA cables plug into the modulator.

The back of the centre console levers off very easily, as with all the other panels. Cables can be just pushed under the plastic around the car using your fingers, as shown below. That way, you can't see the cables, but they're easy to get to should you need to.



Photo of cable under the front seat
Photo of cable under the back seat

Step 5: Connect the high-low converter (subwoofer only)
At the bottom left of the stock amplifier, there is a connector which connects the speakers to the amp. This is the plug with lots of wires coming out of it. Disconnect this plug from the amp. You're going to need to cut the speaker wires and solder in the high-low converter wires, as per the label on the high-low converter. The label should tell you which wires are for which speakers. Again, use insulating tape or heat shrink tubing to make sure you don't get short circuits! When you're done, secure the high-low converter somewhere. See my image below.

Because the sound system has delays built in so that the sound from the rear speakers get to the people in the front at the same time as the sound from the front speakers, you want to wire the subwoofer to the rear speakers.

According to the official wiring diagrams, the speaker wires are as follows (pin numbers on the connector on the amp are given - you probably won't need these unless you're trying to figure out which wires go to the centre speaker and which go to the right front speaker, as they use the same colour code):
+ Centre Speaker: White, red stripe. Pin 10
- Centre Speaker: Grey, red stripe. Pin 2

+ Left Front Speaker: White, black stripe. Pin 11 (RHD), Pin 9 (LHD)
- Left Front Speaker: Grey, black stripe. Pin 3 (RHD), Pin 1 (LHD)

+ Right Front Speaker: White, red stripe. Pin 9 (RHD), Pin 11 (LHD)
- Right Front Speaker: Grey, red stripe. Pin 1 (RHD), Pin 3 (LHD)

+ Left Rear Speaker: White, violet stripe. Pin 12
- Left Rear Speaker: Grey, white stripe. Pin 4

+ Right Rear Speaker: White. Pin 13
- Right Rear Speaker: Grey. Pin 5



Step 6: Mount the amplifier (subwoofer only)
Find a place in the car to mount the amplifier. The easiest place for me was on the back of the subwoofer enclosure. That way, when I pull the subwoofer out of the car, the amplifier comes with it, saving a bit of boot space. You'll have to work out where to run wires to the subwoofer itself too.



Step 7: Wire the subwoofer (subwoofer only)
Putting power to your subwoofer should be pretty straight forward, and is dependent on your specific amplifier. I've bridged my power supply and sense lines to force the amp to turn on when power is supplied; if you're running a supply directly from the battery you MUST NOT bridge this with the subwoofer supply in the boot, you can however use the subwoofer supply in the boot as your sense line. Comment below if this is unclear.

If you, like me, want to remove the subwoofer from time to time so that you have space to put golf clubs/scuba diving equipment/girlfriend's parents in the boot, buy a high current power socket and plug, and put this inline. That way, when you want to remove the subwoofer, you simply pull out the power plug, pull out audio plugs, and slide the subwoofer out of the boot.

Audio connections are dead easy, all that you need to do is run an RCA cable from the high-low converter to the inputs on the amplifier.

Step 8: Test that everything works
If you're confident that everything is connected properly, with no short circuits, turn the key on and play some music! Slowly turn up the amplifier gain.

If you don't hear some deep bass:
- Check that the sub is getting power
- Check that the amplifier gain is turned up. Twiddle all the knobs.
- Check your connections
- Check that you weren't reading this page for the FM modulator bits only.

Next, tune your radio the the frequency which your modulator is set to output on. You should hear silence at this frequency. Plug a source in, and check that works.

Further calibration can be done later.

Step 9: Put your car back together and mount the FM modulator
This should be fairly self explainitory. Just do everything you did to take your car apart, but in reverse!

I left mounting the modulator to last, as I wanted to put it where I could get to it easily should I want to change the frequency. Because it's so light, I made a small hole in the lining of the boot with a screwdriver (the kind of hole you wouldn't notice unless you were looking for it), pushed a cable tie through the hole, and tightened it around the modulator. I then pushed the slack in the cables over the top of the lining so they're hidden away nicely.



The final thing: FM Modulator can be seen top left, and the antenna cables can be seen going through the hole in the "roof" above the subwoofer. The subwoofer should be fairly easy to spot.


Step 10: Adjust the crossover and gain (subwoofer only)
As far as I'm aware, the easiest way to do this is trial-and-error. Trust your ears - if it sounds good, it is good.

If you want to sound like a gangster:
- Turn everything up to max, and enjoy.

If you want it to sound good:
Photo of my settings - they may or may not be useful (the lower REAR channels are driving my sub):

Input Selector: Low
Level (gain): 40%
Bass Boost: 0dB
HPF (High Pass Filter): Doesn't matter
X-Over (Crossover): LPF (Low Pass Filter)
LPF (Low Pass Filter): approx 250Hz
Subsonic: 10Hz

The subwoofer gives your car's sound system the audio frequencies which the car's speakers are lacking. If there is any common ground (the subwoofer and car speakers are outputting the same frequencies), your sound is going to start sounding like a muddy mess. If there is a gap between the subwoofer's max frequency and the car speakers' min frequency, you're going to have missing frequencies, obviously.

The best music to try and set up your system with is (as much as I hate to admit it) classical music, as this tends to have sound on most frequencies.

Suggested process for tuning (will vary depending on what crossover your amp has):
- Select LPF
- Turn up the crossover's LPF cutoff frequency to the highest frequency
- Adjust the gain so that the level of the sub more or less matches the level of the car speakers (you can hear the sub, but it's not trying to overpower the car speakers)
- Carefully listen to the sound (from one of the front seats). Slowly turn down the LPF frequency until it sounds like a part of the music is missing. Then turn it back up a bit.
- Make the same careful adjustments to the gain, trying to ensure that the subwoofer is not louder than the rest of the music, nor softer. Keep in mind that the subwoofer level will be dependent on the bass level on the car's sound system.

The above procedure is only a guideline, you'll probably have to make small adjustments over a couple of days. And if you're anything like me, the first time you go for a long drive with the subwoofer installed, you'll think to yourself "wow, I really do need to turn this thing down!"

End of instructions

I really hope that this article is useful to someone! Feel free to comment below if there are any questions or suggestions.

Is there any affordable and robust solutions for S40 AWD dual Mass Flywheel?

I maintain a fleet of Diesel 'VW's and we throw away the dual mass flywheels and replace with VR6. (something that will last a few hundred thousand miles.)

Does Volvo had a cheap and effective alternative?