Hey, im Shawn. Ive been trying to think of a new car lately, and the volvo 200 series is the next stop in my long search for something that fits my needs. I haven't researched it much yet, so im hoping you guys can tell me a bit about them. Ive seen a few videos on youtube of turbocharged 240's and such that seem to put down pretty good numbers. Im looking for a car that would make a good sleeper, and nothing says sleeper like a volvo How much do the 240's weight? Is it possible to make them handle fairly well (not autoX well, but not like a boat either)? If im looking to turbocharge it, what years/models have the best starting point as far as the engine goes. On that note, how much power can the stock engine handle? How about the transmission?

Now, this car will be my daily driver. But i just wanted something i could have some fun in too. How reliable are these cars? What kind of city MPG can i expect? Thanks for your help guys.

edit: Oh ya, and how expensive are parts for these cars? are they pretty inexpensive to maintain?

 

Thats a lot of questions.
How much do the 240's weight?
Depends which one you get. Wagon 3130lbs, Sedan 3020 lbs, coupe 2900 lbs.

Is it possible to make them handle fairly well (not autoX well, but not like a boat either)?
Its possible to make them handle incredibly well. http://videos.streetfire.net/video/V...up-A_46684.htm they aren't even very "boaty" to start with. Of course the car in that video is an extreme example but, they're are guys running the same suspension set up that i have and use them for road racing.

If im looking to turbocharge it, what years/models....?
1981-1985 you can get a coupe through 1984, 1985 only had the wagon and the sedan. Other than those being the easiest to do it with. You can buy any year and with some skill and knowledge throw a turbo on a car for about 500 bucks. If you shop around.

How much power can the stock engine handle? How about the transmission?
Uhmm well, the engine depends on years, before 1986 the blocks were more stout, from 86 to 90 they had the low friction motors which were a little less strong, after that was a half way design between the original over built block and the low friction one. I might be slightly off on years, but thats about right. But also there are different motors, pre 85 turbo 240's came with a b21ft, good for about 400-450 hp on the bottom end same with the b23's at the time, but you'l have to mess with the pistons to get your compression down. Or just run a low boost turbo set up. It's not unheard of to run 300 bhp with some modification but nothing crazy on these cars. As for the transmission, the manual tends to start blowing up gears at about 250hp. I hear that the auto is good to about 300.

How reliable are these cars?
Very if properly maintained

What kind of city MPG can i expect?
I'm not one to stand by on this do to the modifications and my on off right foot, but i get about 18mpg. I've heard you can get about 22-24 realistically.

Oh ya, and how expensive are parts for these cars? are they pretty inexpensive to maintain?
Parts are cheap, if you can fix the car yourself, then the whole deal will be fairly cheap.

One last thing. The car is what you make it. If you decide to be cheap and half *** it, so will the car.

 

Volvo has been turbocharging engines forever and are probably the best built factory systems as far as reliability goes of any manufacturer.
The easiest way to turbo a 240 of any type would be to just swap in a late 740 turbo engine complete with harness and later engine management system.
Yes, people have slapped turbos onto 240's before and it has worked, but it's a lot of work and failures are common.

Regards, Andrew.

 

I disagree, the easiest way to turbo charge a 240 is to buy a turbocharged 240.

 

Well, yeah, you COULD do that too! I thought OP was looking to turbocharge one.

Regards, Andrew.