08 Maintenance and service
Car care
08
336
Washing the car
Wash the car as soon as it becomes dirty.
Wash the car in a car wash with oil separator.
Use car shampoo.
•Remove bird droppings from the paintwork
as soon as possible. Bird droppings con-
tain chemicals that affect and discolour
paintwork very quickly. An authorised
Volvo workshop is recommended for the
removal of any discoloration.
•Hose down the underbody.
•Rinse the entire car to remove loose dirt.
Do not spray directly onto the locks.
•Wash using a sponge, car shampoo and
plenty of lukewarm water.
•Clean the wiper blades with a lukewarm
soap solution or car shampoo.
•Use cold degreasing agent on very dirty
surfaces.
•Dry the car using a clean, soft chamois or
a water scraper.
WARNING
Always have the engine cleaned by a work-
shop. There is a risk of fire if the engine is
hot.
IMPORTANT
Dirty headlamps have impaired functional-
ity. Clean them regularly, when refuelling for
example.
NOTE
Outside lighting such as headlamps, fog
lamps and rear lamps may temporarily have
condensation on the inside of the lens. This
is normal, all exterior lighting is designed to
withstand this. Condensation is normally
vented out of the lamp housing when the
lamp has been switched on for a time.
Cleaning the wiper bladesAsphalt, dust and salt residue on wiper blades,
as well as insects, ice etc. on the windscreen,
impair the service life of wiper blades.
For cleaning:
Set the wiper blades in service position,
see page 319.
NOTE
Wash the wiper blades and windscreen reg-
ularly with lukewarm soap solution or car
shampoo.
Do not use any strong solvents.
Automatic car washesAn automatic car wash is a simple and quick
way of washing the car, but it cannot reach
everywhere. Handwashing the car is recom-
mended for achieving optimum results.
NOTE
During the first few months a new car must
only be handwashed. This is because the
paintwork is more sensitive when it is new.
High-pressure washingWhen using high-pressure washing, use
sweeping movements and make sure that the
nozzle does not come closer than 30 cm to the
surface of the car (the distance applies to all
exterior parts). Do not spray directly onto the
locks.
Testing the brakes
WARNING
Always test the brakes after washing the
car, including the parking brake, to ensure
that moisture and corrosion do not attack
the brake linings and reduce braking per-
formance.
Lightly depress the brake pedal now and then
when driving long distances in rain or slush.
The heat from the friction causes the brake lin-
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