1988 Volvo 240GL
250k miles
Automatic 3 speed.

My fiance and I inherited this car from her grandfather who passed and it is special to us so we plan on keeping it forever. I love driving the car, but the lack of power is starting to get to me as my previous car was an R32. I dont want to try and turn my Volvo into an R32, but I do want more power.

A few things to consider...
-I don't want to spend a whole lot of money, probably $2-4 thousand.
-I don't want to harm the fuel mileage (I currently get 20-22mpg). I was hoping if I did an engine rebuild, perhaps I could gain efficiency?
-I don't want to swap the engine for another engine. I want to rebuild or work with the one I have.
-I just want the car to have a reasonable amount of power so I don't struggle passing people on the freeway or accelerating from a stop with a 5 passengers.
-I don't want to turbo charge the engine. But am open to supercharging it.
-I realize that I probably need to do Header and Exhaust but I dont wan the car to be super loud.

Leave a comment and let me know what you think and what you would do to increase the power?

Thanks in advance.

 

You should have no issue getting the performance you seek. Just keep in mind that with engine output increases, suspension and, to a degree brakes, must be improved as well. I hear what you're willing to do and rather not do...but for grins...hear me out. For 2k, I purchased and totally rebuilt a 94 940T motor and dropped it into my 89 245. The car went from 114 hp to 300. Turbos are factory equipment, easy to source including engine management. Superchargers...not so much and will most likely negatively impact the reliability of the car.

 

Thank you for the quick reply. I usually like the idea of a swap, but I really want to keep the original engine. I was looking at the cams from ipd and it got me thinking about possibly changing the head and doing an engine rebuild. I think I would be happy with about 150-170hp. I am just looking to make it more of a comfortably accelerating vehicle.

Here is what I don't get...The vehicle is a 2.3l engine and only produces 115hp and achieves just 22-24mph on average. This seems extremely inefficient. is it a poor engine design for power? Is it the internal components or too low compression?

Is there a way to make my engine a more efficient powerful naturally aspirated engine? I would be fine sacrificing mpg so long as I can still achieve 20-22mpg.

I am thinking about taking it to a guy who has done all of my fathers engines and looking at doing just a slight bore, new bottom end components, and beefing up the head a bit.

What do you think?

 

Oh, I wouldn't say it was poor design. More like purposely designing the entire car to under perform. Why? So it will last 300-500k miles. Everything in the drive train is overbuilt...then purposely under utilized. You have an engine block that can support 500-600 horsepower, should you be so inclined. The Swedes are doing it regularly. The rear end can support 400 hp without modification. I mention a motor swap simply because it is the cheapest, simplest way to double the horsepower and still have a 100% reliable daily driver. Still, getting to 160hp or a bit more with an n/a motor is not horribly difficult. The expense is a bit less than swapping in a turbo motor. The compression of the n/a motor is higher than a turbo motor. It has flat top pistons rather than dished. Some people simply swap in a turbo exhaust manifold, turbo fuel and icu computers and call it could. This is a relatively simple swap and will certainly allow you to reach your hp goals. Staying n/a means a larger, less restrictive exhaust. Swap the stock M cam for (your choice) an IPD cam, an H or K Volvo cam. Swap out the stock throttle body for one from an 850 or 960 (larger). Open up the air box and gut it for better air flow. Swap the 3 bar fuel pressure regulator for a 3.5 or 4 bar. Larger injectors. A new O2 sensor to make certain the ecu gets accurate information. Open up the rear end, swap in a G80 locker to get power to both rear tires, swap in a T5 transmission. Add 25mm IPD sway bars front and rear, Bilstein HD's all around, stainless steel brake lines for firmer braking and swap the 8" dual diaphragm brake booster for a single diaphragm 10" booster for a more linear feel when braking. And...lots more.