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Volvo Maintenance FAQ for 7xx/9xx/90 Cars                                                                                                                          Version 5.0

Had the local Volvo dealer (a good one) install factory hitch and trans cooler. Had trailer dealer install electric brake controller. Had to remove the black plastic skirting (wrong word, I know) to make room for the hitch. Total cost in 1992 was about $1K for everything. With this setup I towed a 1600 lb. Coleman pop-up camper around Virginia , including the mountains until we got stationed in California. Towed the camper behind the brick all the way across the country. We took the southern route, so the mountains weren't too bad, but I made up for it later towing the trailer a number of times into some 7-8K and better mountains while we lived in Southern CA. Never a problem. I serviced the trans every year or so just to ensure the fluid wasn't burnt. If I was equipping the car again today, I would install a trans temp gauge. With the electric brakes on the trailer, stopping distances weren't much worse than without, so we never had that panicky feeling, even in Los Angeles traffic. I bought some cheap but effective trailering mirrors that strapped onto the regular mirrors. They vibrated some, but worked well enough for safety. Started trailering with about 85K miles on the brick, it now has 211K. Same tranny, still going strong.

Just do your trailering smart and listen to the experts. Most of the rules for this sort of thing have been written in someone else's blood. As John Wayne said, "Life is tough; it's tougher when you're stupid."