Volvo X (Pro-Touring 1967 Amazon)

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

I am starting a thread on my 1967 Amazon build, because it will be coming together very quickly. I have not stopped on Project Changling, because I am duplicating key parts for both projects.. Project Changling will be marketing the Flush Mount Glass Kits along with the Newly Designed Crossmember/Suspension kit I am releasing shortly.

The goal of the Volvo X build, is to build a Daily Driver/Track Friendly car, that has all the comforts of a newer car.. I have been asked why I have gone with the Volvo Builds at this time. All I can say is, they need alot of support, and it is much easier to stand out in the Volvo Community with an awsome build.. LOL

I am still debating on the actual Powertrain at this point, but there are three choices I am working with..

1st Choice- A 5cyl Turbo Volvo Powerplant, that is capable of a very dependable 450 horsepower, but can be a bit tempermental during daily driving. Performance parts and Knowledge isnt as widely available as it is with the other 2 choices, so that has to be considered.

2nd Choice- A 2002 LS1 V8 that I have sitting around, and had already planned on using a LS1 in my Project Changling Build.. I am planning on offer several Motor Mount Options for different engine upgrades with my suspension kits, so I didnt really want to build two cars with the same powerplant.

3rd Choice- A Nissan Sr20Det Turbo 4cylinder.. These motors are also capable of a dependable 450 horsepower, and have a wider range of parts and knowledge supporting them. The engines are widely available, and seem to have plenty of testing behind them.

This Amazon will have the Crossmember/Suspension kit that my company is producing, so the car will now have.

Rack and Pinion Steering
Tubular Control Arms
Adjustable Coil Over Suspension
Quick Adjust ride height Feature with the Front and Rear Suspension
Rear Adjustable Coil Over Suspension with Adjustable 4-link arms.
14 inch Wilwood Drilled/Slotted front rotor assemblies with 6 Piston Calipers
13 inch Rear Wilwood Drilled/Slotted brake kit.

I am wanting to go with a Race theme.. So, I am thinking about a nice Satin Paint Job with some sort of striping.. I am also debating about a Swedish Flag on the roof with racing numbers on the doors. As far as body mods go, I may flare out the rear archs a bit, I will be removing the rear reflectors, and remove the large front park lamps. I am not real clear what I am going to do about the bumpers, I see alot of nice cars with the bumpers left on them, so I am very open about that so far.. I would like to consider some sort of Air Dam, that I dont have to kill myself trying to make or make fit, but the bumper would have to be eliminated if an air dam was installed.

Any suggestions as to direction with the car would be greatly appreciated.. I plan on the car going to the track and hopefully some of the Events the Pro-Touring and Lateral G guys are having so much fun at.. I am tired of hearing about all the fun, and would really like to join in.

I am also looking for a seasoned driver, that would be interested in helping me post a great time at one of these events.. I plan on giving the car hell myself, at these events, but I am really an amatuer, and I dont need that handicapping the cars capability. This will be a promotional car, so it does need to prove a point to the Volvo Builders out there when it comes to the capability of the suspension products. I am taking names and suggestions... LOL

Here are a few Pics of the build, along with some various pics and video's of other builds.

Here is some current pictures of the stance so far after the suspension install.. In the pictures, I have factory steel wheels and 16inch Factory Mustang Wheels installed. I am not using these wheels in the build.









Here are some pictures of the Prototype Crossmember/Suspension Kit. Pictured are the Standard 11 inch brakes with the base kit. I will post pics of the 14 inch Brake kits, when the actual Production Crossmember/Suspension Kit comes in.





Here are some pics of the style wheels I plan on running.. These are 19x8.5 front and 19x10 rear.. I may end up stepping it down to an 18 inch wheel if I dont like the overall all stance and ride height. I think the 14 inch Wilwood front brakes, and 13 inch rear brakes, are going to look great with this style wheel.








Here are a few pictures of various Amazons with different stances and styling.. The first car is factory wheels and factory stance, the others are cars people tweeked..















Here are a few Youtube videos.. These are running the later Model Upgraded Volvo Turbo Powerplants. The first Video, is a really cool computer generated Police Concept car.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTBU9-8ZsB4

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

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

[lukeball]

The car in the second video uses a 4 cylinder Volvo motor. I think that it is a B23FT with a B234 16V head. The B23FT was the strongest motor Volvo ever made, but they have become hard to find. The most that I have ever seen this engine make is around 750HP. This one makes more though.

http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=115858

The B230FT is about the same as the B23FT, but not as strong.

Here are some videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf1_dDU19P8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ks9o7nYhX00
http://www.facebook.com/video/video....50174239271749

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Originally Posted by lukeball

The car in the second video uses a 4 cylinder Volvo motor. I think that it is a B23FT with a B234 16V head. The B23FT was the strongest motor Volvo ever made, but they have become hard to find. The most that I have ever seen this engine make is around 750HP. This one makes more though.

I am building a practical daily driver, along with a car that can be tracked. Anything above 450-500 horsepower is basically over-kill and will probably take away from the Daily Driving capabilities and may affect the Road Course capability... There is a sweet spot, that balances the capability of both types of fun and practical use.

[lukeball]

Originally Posted by Iamtheonlyreal1

I am building a practical daily driver, along with a car that can be tracked. Anything above 450-500 horsepower is basically over-kill and will probably take away from the Daily Driving capabilities and may affect the Road Course capability... There is a sweet spot, that balances the capability of both types of fun and practical use.

I completely understand. I was just showing you another option. I don't know what pro-touring class rules are, but normally if an engine is swapped, it puts you into an entirely different class.

You might want to check that out. I race in SCCA solo with another car; just by upgrading the turbo and getting the car tuned, it would put me into the Street Modified class. I would have no chance in that class because my brother races his EVO with 400AWHP in the same class.

Good luck and let me know which motor you decide to use. I would think that a heavy motor would offset the balance of the Amazon and lead to worse handling.

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Originally Posted by lukeball

I completely understand. I was just showing you another option. I don't know what pro-touring class rules are, but normally if an engine is swapped, it puts you into an entirely different class.

You might want to check that out. I race in SCCA solo with another car; just by upgrading the turbo and getting the car tuned, it would put me into the Street Modified class. I would have no chance in that class because my brother races his EVO with 400AWHP in the same class.

Good luck and let me know which motor you decide to use. I would think that a heavy motor would offset the balance of the Amazon and lead to worse handling.

The Ls1 V8 is 75 pounds heavier than the original B18 engine, but the suspension and brake kit should make up the difference.

As far as the Pro-Touring class, check out the Optima Challenges here in the states.. There really isnt any real rule, other than embarrassing yourself with a joke build. There are alot of forum events all over the U.S. that allow you take your Pro-Touring built cars on some of the coolest road courses..

Pro-Touing cars are upgraded to modern drivetrain and technology, that allows the older car to perform and compete with the new high end performance cars.. Also, the pro-touring cars are typically made to be daily drivers, that are very driver friendly, economic and durable..

[Burdekin]

Robert, this forum may be of help with tuning the Volvo engine: http://www.s40concepts.net/ 450hp is doable but that's with a big turbo, so maybe a twin turbo set-up with the 5 cylinder would be a better option?

[Burdekin]

Robert, are you any closer to picking an engine? I know it's probably done to death in the US but the thing about the LS engines in my opinion is you have so much back up and parts available over your way. The LS range of engine will handle the HP as well where the 5 cylinder Volvo I wouldn't think will be that durable if being thrashed during racing. There is also GM performance parts in the US and Parts World Performance in the UK supplying all the goodies you could dream of, obviously big bucks involved but if you are thinking of doing kits to support engine/gearbox/diff conversions then people would have a great range of new or used options, especially in the US and if you look hard enough you can also get them in the UK. I sourced a LS2/T56 and Getrag diff (from PWP) in the UK from a Vauxhall Monaro for my P1800. An Amazon with a LS3 or LS7, T56 and Getrag diff would be an awesome racing package, if not a wee bit scary. ;-) It would be nice to keep it all Volvo is the downer on going LS in my opinion and maybe the LS is a bit common in the US?

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Originally Posted by mitch1971

Robert, are you any closer to picking an engine? I know it's probably done to death in the US but the thing about the LS engines in my opinion is you have so much back up and parts available over your way. The LS range of engine will handle the HP as well where the 5 cylinder Volvo I wouldn't think will be that durable if being thrashed during racing. There is also GM performance parts in the US and Parts World Performance in the UK supplying all the goodies you could dream of, obviously big bucks involved but if you are thinking of doing kits to support engine/gearbox/diff conversions then people would have a great range of new or used options, especially in the US and if you look hard enough you can also get them in the UK. I sourced a LS2/T56 and Getrag diff (from PWP) in the UK from a Vauxhall Monaro for my P1800. An Amazon with a LS3 or LS7, T56 and Getrag diff would be an awesome racing package, if not a wee bit scary. ;-) It would be nice to keep it all Volvo is the downer on going LS in my opinion and maybe the LS is a bit common in the US?

Mitch I believe I have come to a decision about the motor direction.. I have been pricing Volvo Power plants that would achieve what I am looking for, with some dependability, and I dont think it is worth the money.. I am not saying these guys are not worth what they do, but why tweek something at a high cost, when you can get something off the shelf that is more than capable.?

For the 5 cyl Volvo Power Plant to be about 450-500 hosepower after accessorizing and tuning is involved, you are over 10,000 dollars for a complete drop in. Even with that, I dont think it is an easy drop in and you have everything necessary. I can get a brand new Crate LS6 completely accessorized with harness and programmed computer for about 7500 dollars.. The motor has everything NEW (Powersteeing, altenator, coils, wirining, etc, etc, etc, just minus the Ac compressor and headers.

I know the Ls is over done, but there is a good reason for it.. Good solid dependibility and plenty of parts and technical resources. So, I am think that is the Route I am going to go with my Amazon at this point. I already have a motor on hand, and it makes more sense to run it.. And I wonder if it is truely over done in Volvo's case, because I see alot of late model Volvo Powerplant swaps on Youtube and other forums.

My company plans on building a short run of rebadged Amazons. They will have all the best of our suspension kits options and rear end options. Equipped with 14 inch front brakes and 13 inch rear brakes, with the 9 inch ford rear end conversion. I am working with Vinage Air to build an updated Ac/Heater Unit that will work with the body to conceal it. The LS and other later model engines already support AC and Power Steering options, so it would make these upgrades very easy.

These Re-Badged cars will be completely gone through.. They will have particular Paint schemes and colors.. They will have an updated, but usable interior... The will be complety Daily Driver Friendly with better fuel economy that the original B18... The will be capable of competitive track use on the weekends with just a couple of Quick Suspension Adjustments.. I can go on and on, but you will have to wait and see. I have a few of them sold, if I can get the components together to achieve such a car, that is why I am making everything completely bolt for Mass Production of these cars.

I have a few more styling tricks up my sleeve that I will have to keep quiet for now. Lets just say, I am trying to put all my sources together to make a nice package at a reasonable price.. I will also be offering the complete suspension packages for the guys that want to do it for themselves.

[jakobandhismakarov]

These crossmember \ brake kits of yours look interesting, especially if you can upgrade the brakes.

Keep us posted on this one, and whether or not you plan to ship any our side........

[Iamtheonlyreal1]

Originally Posted by jakobandhismakarov

These crossmember \ brake kits of yours look interesting, especially if you can upgrade the brakes.

Keep us posted on this one, and whether or not you plan to ship any our side........

I will ship where ever they need to go.. I have been chatting with a couple of retailers over in Europe, so maybe you can contact who ever normally imports parts, and there can be a group purchase to save on shipping.