D24T - Volvo 740 - slow to warm up?

[tofufi]

Hi Folks,

I'm new to the forum, having recently bought a 1990 Volvo 740TD. I'm sure I'll have plenty of questions in time, as I do most maintenance on my cars myself...

My first question is... how long should a D24T take to get up to temperature?

In the UK at the moment it's about 0-10 degrees C (32-50F) and my Volvo takes ages to warm up. On the 120 mile run home from collecting it, I didn't exceed 60mph and the temp gauge never got above 1/4 mark.

I've found that if I sit at 70mph (GPS, 75mph speedometer) it does get up to 1/2 on the gauge, but it takes a very long time at this speed to get warm. If I slow to 50mph for roadworks, the temp goes down to 1/3 on the gauge...

This evening I went for a drive, 8 miles including 1 mile at 60mph and then 4 miles towing another car, and it didn't get above 1/4 on the gauge...

Does this sound right to you?

I've already changed the thermostat and the cold-start wax stat, so these should hopefully be OK... my next thought is to change the temp sender, but tucked under the alternator bracket it looks a real pain to get at!

Any thoughts much appreciated - thanks