Tailgate won't stay up (back door suspension dead)

[Mike_v]

Hi there,
One morning everything is normal, in the afternoon the tailgate seems to have trouble staying up, and in the evening it is dead. The tailgate opens but it needs a lot of manpower to open and hold open.

My local repair shop says fixing it will need:
= two new original Volvo suspensions: $100 ($50 each)
= $100 - $150 labor

Do you have any tips?

About DIY:
What suspension would fit, only original Volvo?
How can I get to those suspensions (they are deep inside those openings in the back near the roof...)?
Would I need special tools?

Thanks for any thoughts.

[JRL]

Suspension?
It's called a tailgate STRUT and that price is very reasonable.
All the interior plastic in the rear has to be removed to get at the struts

[Art]

As JR pointed out, it's likely your tailgate gas springs are shot. (item #6 in the diagram below) You'll need to remove several interior panels on both sides of the cargo area (including the D-post panel) in order to gain access to those struts.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b249/Batstar/TailgateHinge.jpg

[Mike_v]

thanks a lot for the info! It seems that the strut or gas spring (so that's what it's called) is fixed to the car with regular six angled bolts (what's the right word for that?) although I can't be sure from the VADIS pic. I might give it a go to see if I can get to it and then perhaps order part #6.
Thanks again,

[JRC19S]

Had the same problem on my 850

1. I bought struts off ebay from a dealer in Melbourne for about 1/2 the volvo price, incl postage to me in Sydney. If you cant find a ebay / mailorder dealer in the US id be very surprised.
2. Instructions to fit on an 850 are in http://volvospeed.com/Repair/TailgateStruts.php
I have had a look at my XC and it looks pretty much the same repair. Took me ~1h to do both sides on the 850.

Now, Open the latch and STAND CLEAR!!!

[JRC19S]

The struts are held in place with shaped wire clips. I did not have to undo ANY bolts to do the job; just get the struts on and off the ball shaped mountings.
A piece of wood about 1.9m long is handy to hold the tailgate up. Obviously, do't knock it!
You want to make sure you get thhe right struts. I had a look on ebay for volvo tailgate struts & there are a heap of items but none for an XC. I did this not just for you but because I need to do the job soon on my xc, btw.

http://www.swedishautoparts.com/XC70/Volvo-XC70-parts.html has the part number as 30799161 for XC 2001-7; the V70 strut for 01 to 06 is 30674494 at US 70/strut or 25 as an afternmarket strut. It would be nice if you could use that one but I would confirm first. At least you are in the same timezone. If it is a unique XC strut (which I doubt) that means 2 struts will be 300 AUD for me if I cant source elsewhere!! I reckon your best bet might be to talk to swedish auto & see what you can find out.

[JRC19S]

...or talk to Art. Looks like 30674494 is the strut in his XC diagram which appears to be available as a cheaper aftermarket item . It did surprise me volvo would have different back door struts for essentially the same sub assembly

[Art]

The IPD link confirms those part #s but it looks like they're currently out of stock.

http://www.ipdusa.com/Volvo-V70XC70-2001-2007/Exterior/Rear-Hatch-Support-Shocks/p-127-386-4684/

According to VADIS, you may want to exercise a bit of caution when removing the D-post panel.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b249/Batstar/CargoShelfUpholstery.jpg

[sjonnie]

FCP has aftermarket replacements:
http://www.fcpgroton.com/images/products/main/8643038.JPG
http://www.fcpgroton.com/product-exec/product_id/711/nm/Volvo+V70+Tailgate+Strut+(2001-2007)
$25 a pop, plus FCP are right there on the east coast. Should be a relatively straightforward job, good luck!

[Mike_v]

After reading your comments I believe the V70 strut for 01 to 06 (30674494 at US 25 aftermarket) will fit. So I ordered two of those at FCP. I expect to get them in a few days and will likely do the job next weekend.

I've printed both VADIS screenshots that you gave and I'll drop a line in a week or so to confirm that the 30674494 part is the right one for an 01 XC.

Sjonnie, JRL, Art, and JRC19S: thanks a lot!

[Mike_v]

To confirm:
the tailgate strut that I ordered from
http://www.fcpgroton.com/product-exec/product_id/711/nm/Volvo+V70+Tailgate+Strut+%282001-2007
(with order number 8643038) is said to be for the V70 but fit my 2001 V70 XC fine.

It was a pretty easy job, about an hour. Did need help for five minutes to hold up the tailgate when I popped the strut into place.

Thanks again to those who responded to my question post: The repair shop quoted (about) $250,- I was done for $59 (incl shipping, and an hour of work)!

[Mike_v]

One more source to buy tailgate struts:
http://www.partsgeek.com/catalog/2001/volvo/v70/body_mechanical_-ar-_trim/hood_strut.html

[Giltweasel]

I'm going to ask this here instead of starting a new thread in the 1999-2000 forum.

What part #'s are the struts in the '99 V70 XC? And what alternatives are there in the FCP warehouse or elsewhere?

TIA

Giltweasel/Joe

P.S. I see the FCPgroton strut on their site, but they have it listed for the v70 xc AWD turbo. I don't know if that's my car.
I guess I need to do more digging.

[Art]

Here's the one that you want.

http://www.fcpgroton.com/product-exec/product_id/718/nm/Volvo+V70+Tailgate+Strut+%281998-2000%29