Since I bought my Volvo 9 month and 12K miles ago I have this question: when the car goes over short
                       deep holes on the road (concrete seams, potholes), I feel how hard the front is hit. When the pothole is
                       big, I believe the front suspension hits its [limiting] rubber bumpers (sorry I do not know the right
                       technical term for this). It feels like my tires are made of metal and there are no springs and shocks on
                       the front.
                       The car handles well, and is silky smooth on a good road. But boy we have horrible roards in NYC! No
                       word can describe this.
                       I have somewhat worn (buit still good) tires (GoodYear Eagle), usually drive the car alone, keep tires at
                       36psi. The front suspension looks good, at least visually, and the car, though has 76K on it, was not
                       particularly abused (or so I believe).

                       I just drove friend's Acura 3.5RL and it took these road holes easy.

                       Is this something all 850s do, I have to look into my suspension (it is all stock as far as I know)?

                       Yuri

                       The 850 has always been known for having a sharp ride. Compared to even BMW 3's with sport
                       packages, the 850 lets in quite a bit of road. I recommend switching the shocks to Bilsteins, or changing
                       your rims and tires to a smaller rim with a thicker side wall.

                       Honestly though, it's more the sound of the dash then the actual bumps. Try playing the music loud
                       enough so that you cannot hear the bumps. Aren't they significantly softer now? The 850 has quite a bit
                       of dash noise that makes bumps seem bigger and harsher. Heck, under hard acceleration, the dash shifts
                       off the line.

                       Seriously, give the loud music test a try and you'll notice the bumps aren't necessarily felt as much as
                       they are heard.

                       >>Honestly though, it's more the sound of the dash then the actual bumps. Try playing the music loud
                       >>enough so that you cannot hear the bumps. Aren't they significantly softer now? The 850 has quite a bit
                       >>of dash noise that makes bumps seem bigger and harsher. Heck, under hard acceleration, the dash shifts
                       >>off the line.

                       I agree with this. It is indeed the dash and other interior parts that make the bumps louder. And yes,
                       loud music helps (I just don't like to listen to loud music all the time). But in Manhattan it is a good idea -
                       it will also muffle constant cab drivers honking.
                       Now I see that my experience is in line with others. I am a believer of all-stock cars (probably a minority
                       on this board) and would not be comfortable spending money replacing stock parts with third-party
                       parts.
                       Given that the dash is a big "bump amplifier", are there any good ways to quiet it?
                       Yuri

                       Trust me, if you went and lowered the air pressure in your tires, you'll definitely feel and hear less road
                       noise. 36 PSI is the recommended figure for high loads from Volvo--it is also a figure that helps them
                       meet their better looking MPG figures for the EPA. Lower them incrementally until you feel it is a good
                       tradeoff between ride and handling. Just don't overdo it and lower them to, like, 28 PSI.

                       Other than this, there isn't a whole lot you do with the dash unfortunately. Perhaps take it all apart and
                       stick in some foam pads to provide more of a cushion (a labourous and arduous task indeed).

                       boy, you haven't heard the hatch on a wagon rattle yet! my dash don't creak, but it thumps sickeningly.
                       and when that's accompanied by a cacophony of rattles from the rear, and my passengers ask "what've
                       you got in your boot/trunk?" i haveta give some excuse and up the radio volume a bit.
                       actually i think the hatch clips are on their way out, just haven't gotten down to replacing them.

                       oh, dave, you wrote:
                       "...you should find the softest springs available -- I do not believe too-soft springs exist for these cars
                       (especially if they're well-damped)."
                       that advice sure doesnt apply to ME! (go read my post under
                       http://brickboard.com/AFTERMARKET/READER/?f=50018348
                       My nivomat-springs were soooo soft, 2 passengers in the back seat and coupla bags in the trunk and
                       my wagon's rear sank to the extent an inch was and a half undre the wheel arch! have since replaced the
                       Rear springs with OEM Volvo Sport springs. how do they rate? they'll do until my SAM lowering
                       springs arrive...

                       rgds
                       jeff
                       95 855T5A, SAM ECU, IPD swaybars, S/sprint exos, Bilsteins

                       I think this suspension complaint you have is more of a design/systems problem more than anything else.
                       Honestly, switching your shocks to the heftier Bilsteins will not solve your problem because I know, I
                       have had Bilsteins on my '95 850 turbo for over 3 years now. Although the ride is definitely more sporty
                       and the handling is much improved over stock, the ride has remained a bit on the stiff and jarring side. I
                       think Sin is correct in that the dash and associated components like the steering column are not as well
                       as isolated and free of vibration as some other makes (notably BMW and Mercedes, both makes in
                       which I have spent considerable time driving).

                       Instead of throwing money at a problem that I don't think you can fix, I suggest switching to a
                       higher-profile tire the next time you need to get new tires. This will provide more of a cushion to soak up
                       some of that initial impact on those big potholes in NY. As a temporary fix, try lowering the amount of
                       air you have in your current set of tires--36 PSI seems a bit too much for daily street driving.

                       yuri, thats the perennial problem of all 850 owners, especially the turbo engined ones. 2 complaints
                       about T5s - one, they're a bit under-braked for their power and bulk/weight. two, the susp is
                       teeth-rattling harsh.
                       do a search on the BB, you'll find posts going back 2-3 years with the exact same complaints.
                       derspi - the bilsteins, imho, DO make a difference. yep, thats coming from the guy who was about to fit
                       bilsteins only to discover he has nivomats on his wagon! anyways, here's my 2 cents on the diff - the
                       stock shox are too SOFT. they allow crash thru on sharp ruts and major potholes ie. the wheel actually
                       maxes out and the entire shock is transmitted to the cabin.
                       now, the bilsteins are firmer, and they have some kinda dual level progressive movement ie. soft,
                       progressively miving to hard. then it comes to a point where the absorber dopesnt allow any further
                       movement, and the entire car body is allowed to move. so with bilsteins you'll feel the ride is hard, with
                       stock shox, the ride is harsh.

                       hope that makes some sense.
                       rgds
                       jeff
                       95 850T5 wagon auto, SAM chip, IPD bars, full S/sprint exos (no cat), Bilsteins, rear standard T5
                       non-Nivomat springs ... and a set of SAM lowering spring on the way!

                       Well, the Bilsteins make a small difference in that they are indeed stiffer and will soak up larger jolts and
                       bumps better than the stock shocks. Forget all that mumbo-jumbo marketing Bilstein throws out at
                       everyone because in our case, nothing makes up for the poor design. I honestly don't believe that even
                       the stock front shocks are too soft--the 850 is not underdamped in my opinion. I would consider the
                       850 under-chassised (just a term I made up), the chassis structure just isn't up to par for a car of this
                       weight, size and suspension setup. Because of this, the shocks cannot do their job efficiently. This isn't
                       the only problem either, the dash and steering column as well as other associated bits and pieces just
                       aren't very well isolated and damped from all this bumping and thumping. Whenever the car hits those
                       bumps and expansion joints, the dash and steering column vibrate like a cymbal and make ugly noises
                       that contribute to our sensation of bottoming out the suspension.

                       I have had Bilsteins for over 3 years now on my '95 850 turbo and have always noticed the dash
                       thumping and creeking in harmony with bumps and especially expansion joints (just like when I had my
                       stock shocks). The recent addition of an OMP strut brace has reduced this phenomenon quite a bit
                       although on the big stuff, the dash buzzes away (just not as loudly as before). The step by step upgrades
                       in the suspension that I have made has led me to believe that the 850's structure isn't all that stiff and that
                       all this talk of suspension crash through and the car being underdamped isn't entirely correct.

                       Just remember that the most meticulous and well-tuned suspension setup will not function efficiently if it
                       is attached to a so-so chassis structure.

                       I ordered mine with Sport Suspension, which turned out to be surplus
                       from the Spanish Inquisition.

                       I switched to std Turbo springs and Bilsteins 50K miles ago, and they're
                       finally broken in to the point where I could recommend them to someone who
                       is willing to accept a ride/handling compromise that's 15% ride and 80%
                       handling. (My car originally was perhaps 0.5% ride and 82% handling...)
                       I think the car's theoretical maximum ride value is perhaps 50% on the
                       imaginary r/h quotient scale, but only by reducing handling/safety quotient
                       to "acceptable only below 43 mph" (ie, going way too far soft).

                       My car was so stiff that it barely had an independent suspension (if the
                       suspension can't move without moving the whole car...)! So there were both
                       some ride comfort and some handling (on uneven surfaces) gains to be had.
                       (I think that's one definition of a "kit car".)

                       The thing about the Bilsteins is that suspension velocity affects damping,
                       so letting air out of the tires can actually give the ride a dull harshness
                       that may be absent with more air in the tires. Similarly, some jolting
                       bumps of a certain rate are actually felt MORE by the occupants when the
                       car is wearing its winter 195/60-15s than with the summer 205/50-16s.

                       There's a small tire pressure window in which the Bilsteins will do their
                       best to give the car decent jolt absorption (especially once speeds
                       increase) and still retain good handling prowess (but only if the car is
                       driven smooooothly).

                       The firmer the springs, the less the Bilsteins' 'magic' 2-stage action can
                       do the car/occupants any good at all. And the converse is true: if you
                       want maximum benefit of the Bilsteins' ride/comfort strategy/solution, you
                       should find the softest springs available -- I do not believe too-soft
                       springs exist for these cars (especially if they're well-damped).

                       For a more involved discussion of the ins/outs of 850 suspension harshness
                       woes/improvements, see http://davespeed.tripod.com/sprtsusp.htm.

                       Good luck. Cringing as one traverses bad pavement is a sign of bad
                       Volvo engineering wrt suspension tuning, and up with which you should not
                       have to put.

                       - Dave; '95 854T, 111K mi, Bilsteins