'87

[AEstud]

no one ever checks the volvo section so I figured that I would post here also. All I want to know is what preformance modifications(even the slightest ones) can I do to get more pick up. Its a 4 cyclinder, 16 valve, b230f engine, 2.3 litre, 150 hp 87 240 gl volvo. Also its got alot of drag, even tho its a heavier body it should still do better then it does. It has around 140k miles but it is VERY well maintaintained. Any ideas or suggestions are welcome:bandit:

thanks

[SaabJohan]

For more power - put a turbo in it.

The easiest (and best) way is to buy a B23 or B21 turbo engine and put in the car. They have around 150-180 hp stock, and is much stronger than the newer B230 (low friction engines). If you then want more power, fit it with a Haltech system, a bigger turbo, intercooler, injectors and fuelpump and modify the top and you will have 400-500 hp. After that you must change the conrods.

[AEstud]

how much would the turbo engine cost?

[Polygon]

Well, you don't buy a turbo engine. You add a turbo on your engine, unless it is old. I would say without an engine swap about 3000-4000 grand. With a swap, 5000-6000. Very rough estimates as you can see.

[SaabJohan]

Actually you buy a turbo engine - your engine is to weak.

I've got I friend who is building a engine on a B21 block. He will get around 800-1000 hp in it and it will cost at least 7000.

But If you want less it's much cheaper.
He bought a engine (without top) for 700 kr (70 USD), okay it was in really bad condition but who cares it's got to be rebuilt anyway.

Say that you want 400-500 hp, this is what you need: (approx. cost)
B21 or B23 engine block with forged crankshaft and M conrods (USD 100)
A tuned 8, 16V, dentzel or 16V R sport top with valves and camshafts (500-1000)
Volvo turbo pistons or JE/ROSS/MAHLE/VENOLIA special pistons, the turbo pistons must be modified (100-1000)
Haltech management system (E6A or even better E6K), or Autronic SM2 (1000-2000)
A big turbo, Garrett T04 E or a GT40. (500)
Exhaust pipe to turbo. (300-500)
Bigger injectors
A big intercooler (100-300)

Then you must replace the clutch and gearbox. A special clutch cost around 400. Then use a getrag (bmw) gearbox instead of the original.

If you replace the volvo m conrods with fore example Verdi conrods (1000) and uses JE/ROSS/MAHLE/VENOLIA special pistons instead of the volvo pistons you can increase the power up to approx. 600 hp.

[texan]

AEstud- Here's a decent links list for you to peruse:

MVP
'87 240 turbo conversion page
Turbobricks (an owners club)
Brickboard (great resource site)
big ass links page for 240 owners

Now personally, I wouldn't go with another Volvo engine. Not that they aren't great, not that as Johan pointed out they can't be made very fast, but just because it's a lot of work to replace the motor with another one of about the same size and then go looking for a bunch more power from it. If I owned a 240 and wanted some real performance, my choice would definitely be the V8 conversion from Conversion Engineering. The engine starts out with the kind of torque you need for a heavier car (plus a good bit of hp too) and is scaleable to virtually any power level with very little money invested. All things being equal, a big car likes a big motor, and a bigger motor will outperform a smaller one while costing less to make the package fast. Check it out anyways, it might be something you'll find makes a lot of sense. Personally I just love the idea of having a V8 Volvo too .

[AEstud]

thank you so much texan. those links are very helpful.:bandit:

[texan]

Glad I could be of help. BTW, an old friend of mine used to have a Volvo 850 T-5R (5 speed manual 2.3L turbocharged inline 5) with a bunch of IPD gear (around 280hp), and it was a BLAST to drive! The kill list of unsuspecting cars was ridiculously long, and I once drove it against an E36 BMW M3. You should have seen the expression on this guy's face as his $40k super sedan got spanked by a Volvo .

[SaabJohan]

Why get a bigger engine when you can get more power from the smaller one?

I know there is volvos with V8 engines. But against the turbos they doesn't have a chance.

The reason for changing the engine is that the B230 is to weak, not that you need a bigger one.

For cheap power, just fit the original engine with a Mitsubishi TD04 turbo.

A tuning company that knew much about the older Volvos is the swedish TTR. www.ttr-racing.com Why not send them n e-mail and ask you questions to them? (their hompage is only in swedish)
They have been involved with the building of a white Volvo 242 with around 500 hp. That car does 1/4 mile in 11 seconds.

The 5 cylinder engines in 850/V70/S70 are also not as strong as the older B21 and B23. The max you can get out of that engine is 450-500 hp.

[texan]

"Why get a bigger engine when you can get more power from the smaller one?"

Because it's generally cheaper and easier to get the same or more power from a bigger engine. Also, for about $5000 dollars he can have both a brand new 320hp 302 V8 along with a brand new T5 tranny. Newness counts when you want reliability, and this route is also much simpler than a 10 year old inline 4 serious performance buildup to make about the same power. I know it's comparing apples to oranges, and normally I always recommend swapping engines and drivetrains that were available in the same car, but in this case, with the old parts he would have to source and the lack of people at every street corner having any idea how to work on it, the question is why? Why bother with an old Volvo motor that can be built to make large amounts of power when you can buy a larger, brand new motor that appears to bolt right in and will make at least as much power as the old hunk with no engine work to be done? And in response to the argument that an inline 4 of less than 2.5L of displacement being able to easily outpower a small block Ford, it's time to take a look at the facts. Sorry, but it's next to impossible to make a much smaller motor make more power than a bigger one that's also good without spending more money in the process. The small block starts out more powerful and will end up that way too if equal money is spent on each. Hell, just the addition of a basic $2500 supercharger kit is going to net you well over 400hp to the wheels with the Ford small block. Now he could always peice together a small block for about $2000 and it would potentially be more powerful too (depending upon chosen components), but 320hp for $3200 is a damn good deal ($10 dollars per hp of brand new engine).

Besides all that, which is just my opinion vs. yours, I suggested the small block route for it's simplicity, reliability, and ease of maintenence. I also think all AEstud is looking for is some increased fun without spending $10k dollars on another small Volvo engine, and something that will really increase the reliable mileage his car could stack up in the next 10 years. This option is a great one IMO considering he lives in America, but it's just one man's opinion. And I don't know enough about building up extinct Volvo engine lines to suggest another good alternative (a situation 99% of Americans are also in).

[SaabJohan]

For 5000 dollars you can build a 10 second volvo with turbo. And that includes the car!

But for better reliability it cost a little more, but if you already got the car...

And one thing more, turbo engines are more reliable than big V8 engines, thats a fact.
They will have a little slower reaction. The cure for this is a ballbearing turbo (nice but expensive). With a turbo built for maximum power they will get the power in the range 4000-9000 rpm.
And by adjusting the boost pressure you can chose wich power/fuel consumtion the engine shall have. Another thing is that the fuel consumtion when driven normally is very low, even lower than the original engine.

And if you ask the Volvo "proffessionals", they will say B23 or B21 with turbo.

[texan]

Originally posted by SaabJohan

And one thing more, turbo engines are more reliable than big V8 engines, thats a fact.

That's it, I give up.

[Steel]

lol, sorry texan, i feel for ya. Just one of those days, huh? well, if we ever meet, ill pop ya a cold one on me for that comment! lol.

[SaabJohan]

Let me explain why turbo engines are more reliable.
A natural aspiranted engine (like a V8) vs a turbocharged engine.
To get the same power from the naturally aspiranted it must rev higher or have a bigger volyme than the turbocharged engine which force air into the engine instead.
If the engine is bigger, its moving parts will get heavier which cause more stress on the parts. This cannot be solved by making them stronger because this will make them even heavier. Of course the use of exotic materials can make them stronger and lighter, but this is very expensive and can also be used in the turbo engine.
The higher engine speeds will also cause more stress.
When a turbocharged engine forces air into the machine this also causes a stress factor, but not as big as the factors when using a naturally aspiranted engine.

By taking a look at the statistics of long races (Like LeMans 24h race) you will found there is more cars with naturally aspiranted engines than turboengines that break because of engine failure.

[AEstud]

wow...thanks for all of the explantion peeps.....yeah I already have the car as you can see on the side where I post.:bandit: