*!Build of the year candidate!* Strange PNW Build: E30+Volvo

[flyboyx]

no chain pulling. i don't know anything about these cars. serious question actually


adam, i noticed that since you lowered the suspension, you have some camber on the front wheels. i don't know if you are happy with it the way it is, but bmw makes a stock rubber upper strut mound that is offset to the outside that will move them back to almost the stock angle. i have a set of these on the mtech II car in my signature. i think they sell for about 70.00 each.

[adam.nonis]

no chain pulling. i don't know anything about these cars. serious question actually


adam, i noticed that since you lowered the suspension, you have some camber on the front wheels. i don't know if you are happy with it the way it is, but bmw makes a stock rubber upper strut mound that is offset to the outside that will move them back to almost the stock angle. i have a set of these on the mtech II car in my signature. i think they sell for about 70.00 each.

The car was originally RWD. Some Volvo people like to use the engines out of the FWD/AWD newer Volvos and convert them to be used in RWD applications. That takes a fair amount of work, cause the sump needs to be modified and there's a VERY small selection of transmissions that work with that engine family in a RWD application. I went this route to A) kill a lot of birds with one stone (as far as getting the car running/driving) B) upgrade the suspension design (originally it was double A arm front and solid axle rear) and C) allow for a far superior level of aftermarket support for the drivetrain and suspension.

Earlier on in the build I should have some pictures from when I built my own coilovers for the front including pillowball upper mounts/camber plates. I'm leaving the camber set how it is for now until I get the suspension/ride height/camber all dialed in exactly where I want it and I have final wheels/tires on there. Then I'll get a proper alignment and I'll have plenty of adjustment to set the camber to something more reasonable.

[LateFan]

More fun might be putting carbs on a DOHC redblock instead of converting to EFI.

Like so...?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Volvo_engines

Sorry for the distraction - Back to the build!

[adam.nonis]

Yup! Just like that in an Amazon. Bad ass.

[LateFan]

And that will bolt to the stock overdrive trans?

I know a sweet old Volvo head here with a decent white 122 wagon and a lot of spare parts.

[adam.nonis]

No. That’s an issue too. I used a B230 bellhousing, made an adapter and used an R154 Toyota trans.

[LateFan]

I see. Found these mounts at yoshifab....

https://yoshifab.com/store/vintage-to-ohc-red-block-mount-adapter-kit.html

"This kit allows you to bolt any engine mount that would bolt to a pushrod (b18/b20) to a OHC (b21/23/b230) redblock. They are laser cut steel and cad plated. Kit includes all necessary hardware.

These adapters adapt the early mount brackets to the late model block. The motor sits in the same upright position as the early motors, the bell housing bolts on as the stock early car would. It is suggested that you run the early oil pan and modify the oil pickup to suit. There is a slight difference in the block width that we deal with by running the 240 offset stud motor mounts."

[adam.nonis]

I have a speed dependent vibration that I’m almost completely sure is the wheels (there’s a reason the previous owner threw them away. They’re all jacked up), but the shifter is dead quiet. If it was guibo or center support bearing, I’d feel it in the shifter, right?

[flyboyx]

Most likely yes. There are a lot of places vibrations can emminate from though. Do you have another set of wheels to try?

[LateFan]

Just an idea for wheels....

These are 17" Charger wheels. Kind of a cool OEM steelie look, but BIG. I think this is a NW car.







I sort of like these old school hot rod grey spokes (but not the headlight rings)..



..or you could go old OLD skool.....!



<EDIT>....doh, you have E30 hubs now, not Volvo hubs!

[adam.nonis]

Just an idea for wheels....

These are 17" Charger wheels. Kind of a cool OEM steelie look, but BIG. I think this is a NW car.


<EDIT>....doh, you have E30 hubs now, not Volvo hubs!

I always wanted to put American Racing Salt Flats on it. I like the old school style, but I’m waiting until I convert it to five lug and have the suspension dialed

The wheels:



The original rendering I had a buddy do before I started this YEARS ago:



The original picture he used to make the rendering from:

[adam.nonis]

So, not a lot has gotten done lately. Mostly just driving it off and on to sort out the bugs. Got another set of temporary wheels to use until I can get it five lug swapped. I need to put new inner/outer tie rods on it soon (this thing is gonna be brand new by the time I finish replacing parts).

Volvo meet at XXX burger in Issaquah


(Some pictures stolen from FB)

New wheels:

got em for $165

Cleaned off the one remaining center cap:



Popular circa ‘99-early 2000s

They’re pretty light. Couple of cracks I needed to weld up. Kind of what I expected for the price. They balanced out. So I Dipped them up. I’ll throw them on this week probably

(sweet paint job bro)

[vtechnik]

What was the reaction at the meet? If I saw an e30 at the picnic with a volvo engine in it I'd be confused to say the least lol.

[adam.nonis]

What was the reaction at the meet? If I saw an e30 at the picnic with a volvo engine in it I'd be confused to say the least lol.

Well, Volvos have been motor swapped with stuff from other manufacturers for quite a while, so that wasn’t confusing. Once I start trying to explain that it’s more than just a motor swap, that’s when the confusion set in. Some people understood, others were lost. I may have to take a scale E30 and a scale Amazon and make a display

[adam.nonis]

Not bad! I even like the color. If I keep em a while, I'll probably paint them that color. Could use a meatier rear tire. Need to stop living that AWD tire life and embrace the stagger.