Click the following links to find info on:
Aluminum Radiator (Ron Davis)
Big Brake installation (S60R Front Calipers/Rotors)
Bilsteins (revalving specs)

Coilover installation (from MVP)
Differential info (limited slip)
Bucina Aluminum Strut Brace
Dual Rear Sway Bar Tech (now ancient history)

Forge Compressor Bypass Valve
Big Intercooler from Spearco (with temp testing)
R-Sport Competition Struts/Shocks (and Valving Specs)

Transmission (Tremec T5Z 5 speed)

MODIFICATIONS and ADDITIONS TO DATE:

Exterior:
Hood and grill from a 1983 242 SE "flathood".
Roof rack removed.  I had the holes welded up and the top re-painted.
European (large) headlights with dual H-1 bulbs.
Vent-Visor smoke colored wind deflectors on all four windows.
New black vinyl strips below side windows.
New hinges for rear tailgate from IPD.
Full ground-effects kit imported from Sweden and painted to match the car.
Medium tinted windows all around.
Late model 240 exterior mirrors.  Right side is convex.

Wheels/Suspension/Brakes:
AXIS SE7EN's in 18 x 7.5 inch with Bridgestone Potenza S-02 A's (225/40ZR-18).
Cross-drilled and grooved ATE Power discs in front.  Cross-drilled Brembos in rear.
Braided stainless steel brake lines from ipd.
IPD sport lowering coils have now been replaced by adjustable coil-overs from MVP.   Scroll down for details.
Spherical end solid sway bar end links from MVP.

Update note: The below suspension has been changed.  Scroll down for details. Big Front Sway -- Dual Rears: from ipd  (rare) 28 mm front sway bar along with trick end links from MVP.  The big front sway bar was developed by IPD for the 260 and has been used for 240 V8 conversions.  It is no longer available. I also installed dual 25 mm IPD REAR sway bars. I initally played with this setup back in the ealy 90's on my old 244 DL as a way of increasing rear stiffness without parting with the cash.  Then on my 245 Turbo I played with it as there was no single rear bar big enough to compensate for the huge 28 mm front bar.  I had been previously running smaller rear sways, but found a little too much understeer at track speeds with the 28 mm bar in place.  It turned out that the car handled pretty well with the 28 mm front and dual 25 mm rears. This is a very simple installation.  The plate that holds the sway bars together is 8 gauge mild steel.  It measures 10 inches by 3 inches.  The offset for the sway bars is about 3/4 inch, or basically just enough to give the sway bars a tiny bit of breathing room.   Photos below.... Previous dual 22 mm rear sways: Pic #1,     Pic #2 Dual 25 mm sways: Pic #1,     Pic #2, Pic #3

Update note April 2003: The below suspension has been changed to adjustable coil-overs with R-Sport shocks.  Scroll down for details. Custom valved Bilstein shocks and struts.  Some of you may have heard my complaints that I felt the regular "Heavy Duty" Bilsteins I had previously installed in my 245 (October 2000) were too soft, particularly at the rear.  I was experiencing an unpleasant amount of rebound... most noticeable at the rear, especially when adding passengers to the back seat or gear in the cargo area.  This was using ipd Sport Springs.  I think these shocks are just right for a sedan the way they come (I later put them on my 242 DL and they were great), but I felt they were inadequate for my heavier wagon (weighing 3240 lbs. empty). I contacted Krupp-Bilstein in San Diego (Ph. 800-537-1085) and talked with Tech. Manager Jack French, who was happy to work out a successful formula for a set of shocks.  They charge $55.00 per shock or strut and they will revalve new or used ones for that price.  If used ones are revalved, they are rebuilt as well.  Mr. French worked out a formula based on the weight of my car, the front to rear bias (they have charts on this for different vehicles... a 245 is pretty much 50/50), and the spring rates, if known.  I have ipd sport springs and ipd provided the rates as follows:  FRONT: 152 lbs/in., REAR: 129 lbs/in. The result is a big improvement in control and only a slightly stiffer ride.  Ride is actually quite pleasant on the highway.  Below is the actual resistance measurements (before and after) for the Bilstein struts/shocks I had revalved.  (For standardization, measurements were made at a peak velocity of 500 mm/second on Bilstein's computerized dynamometer)

FRONT:
Original struts:	COMPRESSION:	75 Nm (measurement in Newton meters)
	REBOUND:	129 Nm
Revalved struts:	COMPRESSION:	100 Nm
	REBOUND:	220 Nm
REAR:
Original shocks:	COMPRESSION:	107 Nm
	REBOUND:	225 Nm
Revalved shocks:	COMPRESSION:	120 Nm
	REBOUND:	300 Nm

Other Volvo Owners' Re-Valved Bilstein Experiences:
Gary Harris has an ’84 244 with a Corvette LT1 / 4l60E drivetrain.  He wrote: "Jack recommended I go with 100/240 front and 120/300 rear since I am primarily (ie: 100%) street use.  I have installed the new springs (which are progressive, 175# at ride height, 250# at full compression) and I am so far very pleased with the results.  We definitely did not go too stiff on the front struts for my taste, and the vehicle has a very nice “taut” ride and no longer feels like a pogo stick!  I think your 125 / 300 suggestion at the front would have been just fine.

Gary's corner weights were as follows:
No driver present.

        LEFT         RIGHT      LEFT PCT       RIGHT PCT

F:     896#         890#         27.7                27.6

R:     702#         742#         21.7                23.0

TOTAL   3229#                   F/R PERCENT = 55.3 / 44.7

FYI, the springs were purchased from Spring Works in Santa Rosa, CA and cost about $270 a pair for the custom rate.
Spring Works, 50 West Barham Ave., Santa Rosa, CA 95407,  707-544-3833

New suspension setup installed April 2003
Volvo R-Sport Struts and Shocks with Adjustable Coil-Overs
I acquired a new set (new old stock) of Volvo R-Sport 240 struts and shocks.  These are no longer in production and very difficult to find.  They are made by DeCarbon (a French company I think).  They are yellow in color and bear Volvo part numbers 552197 (front) and 552198 (rear). These shocks together make up PN 552094, which is designated as the "Rally gas-pressure shock absorber set - extra hard setting for advanced driving. Intended for Rally and Rallycross".   

Close-up Rear shocks (click for photo)
Close-up Front struts (click for photo)

There are more mild R-Sport sets out there too, such as part numbers 552195 (front) and 552196 (rear).  These are gas shock absorbers that make up the "Road Gas Shock Kit" PN 552093 described as "moderately firm setting for road and rally".   I have not seen these shocks, but I they are also yellow in color (although I have heard one report of a RED set).

Since I was curious about the valving of my newly acquired R-Sport shocks, I took them to Krupp-Bilstein in San Diego and they graciously put them on their dyno for me.  Since you will probably not find any of the R-Sport shocks out there, these measurements may be used if you desire to have a set of Bilsteins re-valved to Volvo R-Sport Rallycross specifications.  (For standardization, measurements were made at a peak velocity of 500 mm/second on Bilstein's computerized dynamometer)

R-Sport Strut Cartridge (FRONT), Volvo PN 552197, COMPRESSION	100 Nm
REBOUND	360 Nm
R-Sport Shock (REAR), Volvo PN 552198, COMPRESSION	100 Nm
REBOUND	400 Nm

Actual complete Dynamometer print-outs with graphs are available...
click here to see >>>  FRONT  or   REAR

SIDE NOTE: Volvo 240 Group A Spec Competition Front Struts
David Russell (Chesapeake, VA) was able to locate a NEW set of Bilstein special valved competition front struts (serial # 35498) originally used for the Group A 240 Turbo race cars in the 1980's.  Based on the stampings, it appears the compression/rebound specs were set as follows:
Compression: 150 Nm.   Rebound: 450 Nm.

And the below specs from KGTrimning.com illustrate the different
specs used for special-valved Bilsteins for 240 racers.

Bilstein stötdämpare 200-serien

(Rally/Racing)
Model                                Front                            Price        Rear                            Price

Adjustable Coil-Over Suspension Kit
The below pics show MVP's Coil-Over kit for the 240. MVP no longer offers these kits, so you'll need to look elsewhere.  I opted for 200 lb. front springs and 175 lb. rear springs. The result, combined with the competition R-Sport shocks, is a pretty firm ride, but not too firm for a street driver.  If you decide to go with springs this stiff I recommend some very firm shocks to overcome the rebound for these springs.  I don't think unmodified HD Bilsteins will do at all.

The front strut housings in the pics didn't normally come with MVP's kit.  Your housings can be modified by a machinist (they included instructions for that).  I paid extra for MVP to send a set of modified housings on an exchange basis.

Installation took me about 8 hours at a leisurely pace.  That was including changing my previous monster sway bars to a more tame setup, flushing my brakes with ATE Super Blue fluid, and overcoming a few unplanned problems (related to Murphy's law).   Current sway bar is now a stock 23 mm front bar and one 25 mm rear IPD bar.  My feeling is that the stiffer springs and shocks pretty much eliminates the need for really large sway bars.

BIG BRAKES
Project completed March 2004.  The front caliper/rotor on the left is stock (except for the custom drilling) and those on the right are from the 2004 and later S60 R.  The R caliper is aluminum 4-piston Brembo. 
 

CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILED PAGE ON THIS INSTALLATION

I have installed a Dana/Volvo limited slip differential.

Cutting through all the myths about just what Volvos came with what rear ends and what Limited Slip or Locker differentials will actually fit is enough to drive you crazy.  The following information was submitted by various experienced people.  If you have any additions or corrections, feel free to email me.  Thanks, Dave. -from Justin Wade: This LSD info was confirmed by Reider Racing and MVP.  Justin reports that it seems the LSD's available are the same for all 1030 and 1031 axle cars, as it's also the same for the "standard" Dana 30 LSD.  The catch is the gearing cut-off for the particular rear end you have.  A rear end with gearing of 3.73 and higher will be different internally from one with 3.54 and lower.  The TrueTrack differential for instance, made by TracTech, carries a part number of 912A411 for 3.73 and higher cars, regardless of the variation being a 1030 or 1031 axle..  This LSD is supposed to be a very nice unit and is only a little over $300 at www.reiderracing.com. Of course many non-turbo cars and some turbos with autos came with 3.54's, so those would require a different part number.  Basically, TrueTrack (and also Dana) only make two limited slips each for the Dana 30, one part for 1030/1031 with 3.54's and below, and one part for 1030/1031 with 3.73's and above.  It just happens that most 1031's we see come with the 3.73's because of the cars this axle came in -- mostly turbos, towing package cars, and seemingly some random 5 speed cars.  UPDATE NOTE: (04-08-02) Derek Walker wrote that while in the process of examining different options for an LSD for his '89 745 GLE with a 5.0L Ford engine and 4.10:1 differential, he checked with Reider Racing regarding the TrueTrac per the recommendation here.  Reider responded that his 1031 Volvo housing will NOT accept the TrueTrac LSD due to slight dimensional differences from the 1030. They've got a few returns from Volvo owners due to incompatibility issues.  It's not clear if the issues are unique with the TrueTrac LSD or the 1031 housings. Also it does seem all 1031's have the "ears" on the right side of the pumpkin (they are not machined on 240's.  They attach to the torque tubes on the 740 suspension).  Justin's source for the info on the "ears" and the 1031 axle is Mike Knell at Jagsthatrun.  Mike wrote the V8 engine swap book on the Volvo 240.  From reading posts on 4x4 chat groups the TrueTrack sounds like a great LSD, especially for street performance.  The Dana Powr-Loc (which I'm pretty sure is what Volvo offered for towing packages) is also supposed to be a good, long-lasting differential, although very expensive. UPDATE NOTE: (12-08-02)  Stealthfti  from the Turbobricks Forum wrote: A 1030 is about 10.125 inches from the rear cover surface to the front of the pinion neck. A 1031 is almost exactly .5 inches longer. Visual differences: A 1030 has a single gusset on each side of the pinion neck, roughly centered along the pinion centerline... A 1031 has 2 gussets on each side; with the larger gusset spreading back from the top of the pinion neck; and the smaller gusset following the pinion centerline... UPDATE NOTE: (02-12-04):  tuff240 from the Turbobricks Forum wrote: The differentials are all the same up until they changed for the speedo tone ring. The only difference between a 1030 and 1031 is the housing itself and the R&P (ring and pinion). The differentials can be swapped back and forth. The R&P's cannot. The later model cars (86 and up) with speedo tone rings are, I believe, all 1031's. The true trac units that will be put in a car that requires a speedo tone ring will be different only to fit the tone ring. You can still swap tone ring or no tone ring differentials from 1030 to 1031. Only problem will be that you won't have a working speedo if you need a tone ring and install a diff that does not have a tone ring. AGAIN, the major difference is the R&P. Also the differential units come in 2 sizes depending on what R&P you have/want. There are 3:73 and up, or 3:73 and down. Make sure you pick accordingly in case you ever want to change gears. For example, you cannot change from a 3:91 R&P to a 3:31 R&P w/o changing the diff. This goes for stock oem diffs and True Trac diffs as well. *EDIT The pinion bearings are also different from 1030 to 1031. So make sure you get the right pinion bearings for whatever rear end you have. I abused a 1030 rear end with 200rwhp for about 15K miles with NO problems what so ever.  But keep in mind I have no personal experience with 700 series cars, just 200 series cars. ADDED INFO,  07-16-06 -from Matt Dupuis I installed a True Trac in my 244 this winter, and would like to share some info on that. Because my car is a V8, I chose to use a 3.31:1 gear ratio, so I ordered the low-preload diff for the 3.54:1 and down (p/n 374).  I'm using a 1031 axle from an '86+ car, so it's got the tone ring and speedo drive (I'd planned on using this with my Megasquirt, for traction control, at a later date).  At the same time, Dale Walmsley ordered a high-preload diff for the 3.73:1 and up (p/n 411), for his 122 which we installed a 240 1030 rear axle into. When I got my diff apart, I thought to measure the carriers to see if I needed to buy any different shims.  To my surprise, I needed to add about 0.120" to the ring side of the carrier and subtract that from the other side!!!  Since the factory shims are about .060" each, that meant I'd have to machine material from the carrier to get it to fit.  Obviously this isn't the right part for the car. So I borrowed Dale's True Trac and had a measure.  It was within .001" of my Volvo diff carrier, so I installed it using the original shims and new bearings, and the gear lash was even better than it was before I pulled the old one out. Again, I used a 3.73 and up True Trac with a 3.31 R&P in my 1031, and all fit perfectly well.  I've also installed the same diff (p/n 411) into a 760 with a 3.73 R&P, and it fit just as well. The theory is that tall gears (3.54:1 and down, in Dana's case) have to have a larger diameter pinion for all the teeth on it, so the ring gear must be moved even further offset from centerline in order to keep the thickness of the ring gear consistent with shorter ratios.  Many manufacturers do this by moving the flange on the diff carrier outboard for the "highway" gears, but it seems that Volvo, in the 1031s at least, used a thinner ring gear instead, and kept the differential carrier the same for all ratios.  I can't speak for the 1030 model diff, since that's closer to a true Dana 30, they might use thicker ring gears and offset flanges for the 3.54:1 and down, if they were ever delivered with those ratios. Another thing that occurred is the pickup for the speedo may drag on the True Trac.  My 240 had a light drag, and I didn't bother doing anything about it, but the 760 had a HEAVY drag, so I had to clearance the pickup sensor to clear the diff. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The following links go into greater detail about available LSD's. http://pacific.telebyte.com/allanw/binder/info/locker.html http://www.turbobricks.org/lsd.html http://nationaldrivetrain.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/page44.html

Polyurethane suspension bushings from SUPERFLEX in the U.K. 
    It's true that these bushings transmit some additional noise and vibration, especially on a lowered car, but it is
    certainly tolerable.  These bushings can also be obtained through SUPER-PRO in Australia.

Diagonal upper strut tower braces and lower A-arm to crossmember frame ties from a late seventies 242 GT.

Tower to tower aluminum strut brace from Steve Bucina in Florida. 
Steve made them for a number of years, but they are no longer in production.  
(See underhood photos below ).

Under Hood:
As of April 2001, my new motor and tranny are in.  You can get more details on the motor from my Engine Project Page.
Here are some older under hood pics:
The intercooler tubes are now polished aluminum (see pic on main page for more recent stuff).

Transmission:

As of April 2004 my car has a Ford Motorsport (Tremec) T5-Z 5-speed transmission.  Details on this conversion can be found at the Turbobricks.com forum
(and specific links below-left).  The transmission is adapted using a customized Volvo M46 bell housing and adapter plate made by Vintage Performance Developments in New York.     

Awesome links for T5 transmission conversion:
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=3620
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=23541
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=23646
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=23284
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=18952
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=17614
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=17283
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=16921
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=15408
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=16019
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=11183
http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=37552
And Aaron Baker's page: http://www.aaronreedbaker.com/t5swap.html

I designed the intercooler specs and provided Spearco with a drawing.  It generally follows the shape of an original intercooler.  If you are interested in having a similar intercooler manufactured for your brick, email me and I'll send you an image of my intercooler drawing.

INTERCOOLER TESTING
I have done some testing with this new intercooler and can say that it does its job very well.  I found a pretty steep uphill grade that runs for several miles which allows me to run moderate to heavy boost at freeway speeds for an extended climb.  The testing device used was a digital temperature gauge on my dash with one thermister installed in the intercooler pipe just after the turbo and another one just after the intercooler.   These temperature readings were taken on a sunny, 70 degree fahrenheit (21 deg. C) day, running 14-15 psi (1 bar) boost at part throttle for about 60 seconds at a stabilized speed of about 90 mph.  Oh, I almost forgot... I also had an air conditioning condenser in front of the intercooler, but of course the A/C was off.

The below temperatures were recorded as temperatures increased.

Stock Volvo Intercooler Efficiency
The below information was provided by Niels Bengaard of Denmark.  The tests were done on a standard 240 intercooler and standard Volvo 240 Turbo.... owner/tester: Henrik Mortensen of Denmark.  All measurements were made at a stabilized speed and boost. Outside temperature 28C (82F).
 

NOTE: In the original volvo papers that come with an intercooler kit, Volvo states that the intercooler is limited to reducing the temperature after the intercooler to 25 deg. C (77 F) above the surrounding temperature.

EFFICIENCY: Stock vs. Spearco
Based on the above measurements...
Efficiency: standard intercooler = (347 - 133) / (347 - 82) = 0.808 or  80.8%
Efficiency: Spearco intercooler = (340 - 77) / (340 - 70) = 0.974 or  97.4%

The above tests show that a stock Volvo intercooler is capable of approximately 81% efficiency.  Not too bad, but improvement is certainly possible.

The Spearco intercooler I am using has shown that it is capable of approximately 97% efficiency.

Keep in mind that many other factors will affect testing results.  My car is very modified, so it is difficult to tell how your car will react under similar testing.
 

Custom aluminum radiator from Ron Davis Radiators in Glendale, Arizona (Ph. 623-877-5000).
Click here for photo. This radiator is 22 inches wide, 16 inches tall, and 2 3/4 inches thick.  It has 2 rows of large 1 inch tubes.
Click here for some in-progress installation photos of the new intercooler and radiator.  This may not look like it, but it was a lot of work to squeeze them in.  Believe me, there is no wasted space here.
Under hood photo #1 (installation of intercooler and radiator in-progress)
Under hood photo #2 (just about all done)
Under hood photo #3 (the completed installation)

The primary electric puller fan is a Spal 16" shrouded high-flow type that I installed with this radiator.  CFM rating is something like 2300.  I purchased it from Mattson's Radiator, Inc., in Stanton, California (a Spal dealer and another custom aluminum radiator maker).  Their number is (714) 826-0357.

B230 (from 740 Turbo) Intake Manifold Conversion: This made a big difference in the smooooth idle department and increased power too.

I was originally using a Porsche (Bosch) Compressor Bypass Valve for the turbo.  This is a plstic type valve was used on twin turbo Porches at the time.  It's a little more stout that the Saab CBV's that were common and can better handle higher boost pressures.  The Porsche part number is 993-110-337-50.  Anthony Hyde has written a good page on Compressor Bypass Valves at http://wwwrsphysse.anu.edu.au/~amh110/Technical_pages/blow_off_valve.htm.

I am now using the Forge billet aluminum bypass valve from Stratmosphere.com.  See it at  http://www.stratmosphere.com/forge_valves.htm

Interior:
New tweed interior (reupholstered) to replace the original heavily ventilated leather upholstery.

White face gauges.  These were custom made by me using Adobe Pagemaker and my HP inkjet printer on high quality paper.    
After receiving a lot in inqueries asking if I would sell these faces and I have decided to make them available.  Click here for details...

Performance:
    Best 0-60 mph time:         5.97 seconds using my G-Tech/Pro.  Auto trans.
    Best 1/4 Mile Time:         No time recorded.
    MPG highway: Was 19 MPG with the auto trans... now 27 MPG with the 5-speed. 
    MPG light-foot/city: Was 16 or 17...  Now low 20's with the 5-speed.
    Dyno Results:  RWHP: 221 @ 4500 RPM (corrected)
                              RWTorque:  323 @ 3200 RPM (corrected)
 
 

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