Broken Door Check Strap - Part One

It's never simple is it?? What I thought was a simple repair has turned out to be a tad bit more involved that I originally thought... Typical!

So I set out to replace the door check strap on the driver side, which had failed. Definitely a common and well documented problem with these cars. It's a very straightforward repair if the failed part hasn't been failed for too long. Which luckily mine hasn't, it hasn't weakened or torn the metal around the hinges.

I started by removing the door panel, which is simple enough.

Removing the white plastic cover near the big speaker gives access to the check strap.. Yep I can tell already that it is definitely broken.

That hole is JUST big enough to get the thing out of there. 

Old vs new...  Yep definitely time for a change!!!

So here's the problem.. This is the bolt that holds the check strap to the car itself, completely ground down over time... I don't know why it's done that, maybe because this bolt was taking all the force from the check strap itself, as both the main bolts in the door were broken off..

The nearest Volvo dealer is almost 3 hours away in Kansas City (perks of living in a shit midwest farm town and driving a "furrin car"), and I won't be able to get there till next week... I need to go to KC anyways, or I'd just order one. Once I get this bolt, hopefully I can install the part without any further drama... Tune in soon!