Quote:
Originally Posted by StvC
Thanks for this, and yes it was Dai. I will track him down now.
What a write up, very helpful, do you have any thoughts on my theory that it might be more economical to +T an existing 2.3 lump rather than the full swap in 2021 given the rising prices of donor cars?
Also, quick note on your last comment about a later Torslanda or SE am I right in understanding it would be easier for the loom but harder for the gearbox swap? Persumably, the wiring is more awkward than the gearbox mods you detail if you felt led to raise that specific here?
Thanks once more, so helpful.
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Hi,
I bought a loose engine to start my engine conversion, I’m not sure I’d recommend the same route as I ended up having to buy a load of other bits I didn’t realise I needed/that had been removed from the engine/didn’t come with it- the advantage of a donor car is of course that you’ll have everything to make the engine run when you begin. Tatty 940s with no mot do come up for about a grand, given that some parts could be sold off as you break the car it might still be the most economical way to do it (look at ebay, Facebook marketplace and salvage places like copart).
The advantage of a Torslanda or a late se is that they’ll be running 2.4lh injection already, so the wiring is done for you and you’ll only need to swap the ecus.
If you had one of these cars then a +t might work out fairly well as the engine would ‘only’ need turbo manifold and turbo, exhaust pipe to suit, intercooler and pipework, oil feed and drain adding for the turbo and a clutch suitable for turbo power.
If you bought a car with k-jet you’d need to change the inlet manifold and block the k-jet injectors holes in the head as well as sorting out the wiring and the items listed above.
If you bought a car with a carb you’ll need to plumb in a flow and return line for fuel, as well as everything above.
So overall, I’d suggest buying a tatty 940 turbo and breaking it, but you may be able to find all the parts you need to +t a car relatively easily by putting wanted messages here and on the various Facebook pages. It may be easier to look for a suitable 240 and then see what you need.
Gearbox wise, in 1983 volvo swapped from a cable drive speedo (cable drive from the gearbox) to an electronic speedo with a sensor in the rear axle- a post 1983 car will be an easier car to convert as the majority of early cars came with 4 speed gearboxes and 5 speed gearboxes for early cars with a cable drive are rare. If you want to convert an early car here is a write up of a hybrid speedo conversion kit I wrote.
https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=312439
But assuming you buy a post 1983 car for a moment, it will most likely have an m47 5-speed in it, which are ok but not amazing. The later M90 gearbox is noticeably better and not hard to find.
Cheers