Paul & Stephanie Rowlands 64 P1800 (Project Saint Marie)

[Derek UK]

I could certainly never afford anything remotely close to the budget for this car. $90k could put several dream cars in my garage. Having a suitable garage would have to be a first priority!
If I was thinking about it I'd want to know that the changes to it would allow it to be driven hard for a few hundred miles in a day across some pretty rugged roads, something that a well maintained standard 1800 can take in its stride. The rear suspension rods and Panhard look neat but the bushings looked as if the compliance factors would be pretty uncompromising. NVH was a very inexact science when the 1800 and Amazon came out but the rubber bushings were adequate for fast touring on poor roads. Even standard sized modern poly bushings have negatives in the NVH department.
Perhaps the owner of this car can put 20k miles on it by this time next year and report back. Notes from a fast trip to New York and back via New Orleans would make interesting reading.

[asneddon]

About the price. USD60K is about NZD73K at the moment. My Audi cost NZD75K, so its about the same (not counting car purchase price and shipping etc). This isn't silly money for a new premium car in my opinion.

Then again, as Mitch says, I feel confindent paying that money to Audi, not so much to 'some random guy on the internet'. I need to see all the details and read end user reviews first. Thats why this thread is so interesting to me.

A question though. Are you looking at doing a right hand driver version?

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Originally Posted by asneddon

About the price. USD60K is about NZD73K at the moment. My Audi cost NZD75K, so its about the same (not counting car purchase price and shipping etc). This isn't silly money for a new premium car in my opinion.

Then again, as Mitch says, I feel confindent paying that money to Audi, not so much to 'some random guy on the internet'. I need to see all the details and read end user reviews first. Thats why this thread is so interesting to me.

A question though. Are you looking at doing a right hand driver version?

I totally understand that, and that is why I am posting this customer build thread.. I have a waiting list for the P1800's/Amazon's at this point, but am running this one and another as trial builds.. I have by guys and sources that I use for High end builds, but I am trying to get them in the Volvo Groove.

And yes, we can do right hand drive, if we are supplied a car... Our front end system is Right Hand Drive friendly, so there is no issue at all..

Here are a few pictures of one of my previous builds, that was used to develope and market product...

Here is a 1968 Pro-Touring Camaro that was built to market my other company's (Classic Auto Glass Innovations) Flush Mount Glass Products.... Full Custom Suspension, 500 horsepower LS6, t56 6-speed, Multiple and subtle body mods, Flush Mount Glass Kit, etc, etc... This is a complete build from a 20 year Pasture car, in an 18 week period of time. All the work was done by me, with the exception of final paint and seat covering.. I did all the design, metal working, wiring, drivetrain, suspension, brakes, steering, accessories, etc, etc. But, I am now working out a system that will allow the quality and multi build capability of the Volvo's. The Camaro was a bit easier, due to the availability of parts, and this is what I am trying to achieve with the Volvo P1800's and Amazon's by partnering up with company's I have product experience with... I am working to offer the necessary parts to achieve a quality build in a reasonable time frame, whether it be by Swedish Skunk Werks build shop, or someone purchasing from the catalog.

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Here are some of the wrap up and completed pictures..

[redcar]

the camaro looks pretty smart, and i for one am interested to see a complete hotrod build out of a p1800 (ala overhauling $$$). these and the amo's are prime targets for this sort of work... i think once people see the build from start to finish and the final build, confidence will be built.

good luck with your venture, Robert, i hope this turns into an enduring business, where we can call on you to help us modify our cars to our taste...

PS: how are those 17" steelies coming on btw? still waiting..

[940_Turbo]

It’s interesting this, as Mitch has pointed out there is a revised supposedly better front suspension. But just what constitutes “better”. So far it is untried and untested.

The real question is why? To me an old car is about stepping back in time. Stuffing in an LS1, big modern wheels, sticky tyres and a steering rack won’t get it up to the standard of a modern car. The reality is that if that’s what you want a few grand will buy you a Mercedes E55 AMG. It’ll eat a modified old car for breakfast and you’ll step out of it fresh as a daisy for dinner in Monaco. It was built by real engineers, tried, tested and sorted. The reality is also that obeying the speed limits a well sorted 122S will arrive at about the same time.

Drive your classic, see the world from the perspective of 40 years ago. A perfectly standard 122S or P1800 will cruise down to Monaco without turning a hair.

People are swapping SUs for fuel injection because SUs are unreliable. In point of fact you don’t need fuel injection; you need a mechanic who isn’t brain dead.

The whole resto mod thing is a form of vandalism. Do we “correct” old paintings because we can do the perspective better? Stick Formica on the Chippendale because it isn’t resistant to hot pans? Old cars are fun, too much fun to ignorantly screw them up by trying to impose arbitrary modern standards on them.

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Originally Posted by 940_Turbo

It’s interesting this, as Mitch has pointed out there is a revised supposedly better front suspension. But just what constitutes “better”. So far it is untried and untested.

The real question is why? To me an old car is about stepping back in time. Stuffing in an LS1, big modern wheels, sticky tyres and a steering rack won’t get it up to the standard of a modern car. The reality is that if that’s what you want a few grand will buy you a Mercedes E55 AMG. It’ll eat a modified old car for breakfast and you’ll step out of it fresh as a daisy for dinner in Monaco. It was built by real engineers, tried, tested and sorted. The reality is also that obeying the speed limits a well sorted 122S will arrive at about the same time.

Drive your classic, see the world from the perspective of 40 years ago. A perfectly standard 122S or P1800 will cruise down to Monaco without turning a hair.

People are swapping SUs for fuel injection because SUs are unreliable. In point of fact you don’t need fuel injection; you need a mechanic who isn’t brain dead.

The whole resto mod thing is a form of vandalism. Do we “correct” old paintings because we can do the perspective better? Stick Formica on the Chippendale because it isn’t resistant to hot pans? Old cars are fun, too much fun to ignorantly screw them up by trying to impose arbitrary modern standards on them.

Oh Please... I was waiting for this typical and programmed response.. LOL Apparently you are not familar with the Pro-Touring type builds. These type of cars actually compete with the modern monsters, and do quite well.. It is about taking the old car up to current performance standards, and having the nostalgic body with the modern feel.. Just drive a Pro-Touring style build, and I can promise you that you will eat your low respect words for this style build..

There is a big difference between Resto-Mod and Pro-Touring.. Sure you can stick a V8 in a tired old 40 year old car, along with sticking some wheels on it, but that is not even close to the same thing that is going on here.. You have to understand, here in the states, we have the 60's heavy American cars hanging on the track with the exotics in braking, cornering, acceleration, etc, and these are daily driver cars, so your analysis of the whole project is Way Off...

I know this isnt the style or norm for alot of people, and I expect the critism, but please educate yourself on what Pro-Touring actually means. It is a classic shell with Modern Performance in power, braking and ride.. This type of build is not a strictly a track car, it has all the modern conveniences and comforts of the modern cars, so the are daily drivers in every respect of the word. They are very dependable and servicable and are made to be abused on the tracks or the daily commute in bumper to bumper traffic. So you do step out fresh as a daisy in what ever driving situation you are in..

As far as tested and abused.. All the components used in our product and builds have years, if not decades of track time and driver road time on them.. We are using quality and tested components from top suppliers, who do have the engineering and testing time behind them.. So please hold back on that one a bit.. This isnt re-inventing the wheel, this is bringing some of the best products out there, and giving it a home in the Volvo platform...

[940_Turbo]

I know exactly what it means. That Camaro you posted looks horrible, ugly wheels, ugly interior and a general lack of taste.

Of course it comes down to personal preference and taste, or lack thereof. Ultimately it's the owner's car and the owner's property and they're perfectly entitled to do with it as they please.

However it isn't as you put it "a programmed response". It is a perfectly well reasoned point of view. As I said earlier these cars are a form of vandalism. People get all het up about cars getting destroyed in banger racing, but these monstrosities are just as irretrievably ruined as a car that get a final fling on the banger track.

I guess rednecks have to drive something too, but let's drop the pretence that this has even a nodding acquaintance with competent restoration.

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Originally Posted by 940_Turbo

I know exactly what it means. That Camaro you posted looks horrible, ugly wheels, ugly interior and a general lack of taste.

Of course it comes down to personal preference and taste, or lack thereof. Ultimately it's the owner's car and the owner's property and they're perfectly entitled to do with it as they please.

However it isn't as you put it "a programmed response". It is a perfectly well reasoned point of view. As I said earlier these cars are a form of vandalism. People get all het up about cars getting destroyed in banger racing, but these monstrosities are just as irretrievably ruined as a car that get a final fling on the banger track.

I guess rednecks have to drive something too, but let's drop the pretence that this has even a nodding acquaintance with competent restoration.

All I can do is laugh about that statement.. I think the intelligence level was very well demonstrated, and shows total lack of respect to any other view out there...

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Here are a couple of video's of the Redneck engineering as stated by 940Turbo. These are 1st Gen Camaro's which had no factory capability of road coursing, and were generally used for straight 1/4 mile cars. Now, some of these cars act as daily drivers, but get road hard on the weekends..

Our cars are using the same tested and abused components that these cars feature, and we are shaving about 800 pounds off the 1st gen Camaro's that were lightened up.

This first 2 video is what the Pro-Touring Classic are competing against, and I believe you will see an AMG or to.. ha ha And the 4th video is of a 1st gen Camaro that beat them all in the overall scoring, set up as a daily driver....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Be72NzLgqE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvLt4cN7_9E

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOle0...eature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sAkJ6q9G8w