850 / 850 T-5R / 850R

1991-1997 / Sedan / Estate / Sweden

All 850 / 850 T-5R / 850R problems All workshop problems

Common Brakes

Warped Front Discs and Brake Judder

Symptoms

Steering wheel shakes under braking, pulsing brake pedal. Gets worse the harder you brake or the hotter the brakes get.

Cause

Cheap aftermarket discs are the usual culprit. The 850's front brakes do serious work hauling down a 1,500 kg car with a five-cylinder up front. Original Volvo and quality OEM discs last well, but budget replacements warp quickly. Repeated hard braking without adequate cooling (city traffic, hill descents) accelerates the problem.

Fix

Replace discs and pads as a set.

Use OEM-quality brands: Brembo, ATE, or Zimmermann for discs; Textar or Jurid for pads.

Budget $250-400 per axle for quality parts.

While you're in there, inspect the rubber brake hoses — after 25 years they swell internally, restricting flow and causing spongy pedal feel even with new pads and discs.

Replace the hoses if they're original.

The 850R front caliper and rotor setup is a popular upgrade for standard models — bolt-on swap with larger rotors for better stopping power.

Cost mentioned in fix

Budget $250-400 per axle

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Other known issues

Common Brakes

ABS Pump and Module Failures

ABS light on, no ABS function. You might hear grinding or buzzing from the ABS unit under the bonnet.

Critical Brakes

Brake Master Cylinder Leaks

Soft or spongy brake pedal, brake fluid loss. The pedal might sink to the floor under sustained pressure.

Common Engine

PCV System Oil Leaks and Breather Box Failures

Oil everywhere, particularly around the back of the engine and firewall. You might see smoke at idle or a rough idle. In severe cases, the turbo oil feed line can blow apart because the crankcase is pressurised like a balloon.

Critical Engine

Timing Belt and Water Pump

The engine suddenly stops. If you're lucky, nothing else happens. If you're not, you've just destroyed pistons, valves, and possibly the head. This is an interference engine.

Critical Engine

Oil Consumption (Turbocharged Models)

You're adding a litre of oil every 1000-2000 km. Blue smoke on startup or under boost.

Common Engine

Turbo Failure (T5 and 850R)

Loss of power, screaming noises, oily exhaust smoke. The car feels gutless and the boost gauge stays flat.

All 850 / 850 T-5R / 850R problems