93 Volvo 240 Pickup Build

This gives me bad ideas. I love it! 

Does anyone have a link to the Saab truck thread? That thing just looks... right. 

In reply to spandak :

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/midwest-grmer-meetup-chicagoland-2017-challenge-pa/132077/page1/

Today I put the driver seat back in and measured where I wanted the cab to be. I cut off 4-1/2 more inches and it looks better now. 

That looks nice. What are the plans for suspension and drivetrain?

Stampie said:

That looks nice. What are the plans for suspension and drivetrain?

No plans yet, I'm thinking about lifting it a bit. Maybe a v8 in the future. 

Definitely looks better with that extra bit chopped out. 

What's the plan for rear window and the front of the bed? 

The plan is to weld in the hatch complete as the rear of the cab and fill in with sheet metal as needed. The small rear windows will be lexan, I am hoping I can cut a piece of the original rear window seals to fit the opening. 

Cool, I'm eager to see how that comes out. 

Rad.

Have you seen the Mighty Car Mods episode on YT where they a quite similar thing to a Subaru WRX wagon? Came out pretty sweet, and the video details a lot of the dirty work they did to make it. Might be worth checking out.

Link to MCM episode: Subarute Build

damen

EvanB said:

Stampie said:

That looks nice. What are the plans for suspension and drivetrain?

No plans yet, I'm thinking about lifting it a bit. Maybe a v8 in the future. 

Cage it so we can rallyx! (I need to cage mine too now...)

In reply to badwaytolive :

Yep, I've seen that. It was a pretty cool episode. 

In reply to Robbie :

If I cage any car it will be something for stage rally. 

Although I could probably rally this...

EvanB said:

Today I changed the oil in the Merkur and filled it with coolant.

I would recommend against this, coolant does not have the lubrication properties of oil. It might run for a while, but you'll probably seize pretty soon.  

Very cool, these things are so cheap now seems like a good donor for a pickup bed!

Btw, looking at the pics I just can't believe how perfect the Volvo is for this conversion.

You're going to love the results.

pinchvalve said:

EvanB said:

Today I changed the oil in the Merkur and filled it with coolant.

I would recommend against this, coolant does not have the lubrication properties of oil. It might run for a while, but you'll probably seize pretty soon.  

It's ok, I replaced the coolant with oil so it should cancel out. 

Check out this 940 pickup build for inspiration: http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=329056

In reply to Duder :

I saw that one but pics are blocked at work. I need to remember to pull it up again at home. I do love the name suggestion of Fjord Ranchero from that thread. 

I was looking for some images of 245 pickups I have tech inspected but the only ones so far are this strange contraption:

No clue on why they left the rear doors in place. However, you see some of the strenghtening we recommend in Sweden, an X under the cargo floor and there are also some sketch lines of a beam where the rear side window lower edge was. Usually we also try to get an X in the rear cab wall.

This is a Citroën CX but you get the principle.

If possible I also recommend a brace in the rear doors.

I'm not saying a car without these things will break into pieces, just wanted to show how we tackle this in Sweden where a build like this needs to be checked before registration.

Gustaf

Maybe they left the rear doors to get the "crew cab" effect?

The rear doors are definitely going to be braced (one is already, have to do the other one) along with bracing the rear of the cab. I will have a brace at the top of the rear doors and one lower in the opening. Those will both be tied together across the back and I'll put an X brace between them. 

No idea why you would do this and leave the rear doors. 

A sad thing about that one (the 245) is that I think it was a genuine 245 Turbo. Not too many of them left.

Sounds like Evan is on a good track with the reinforcements.

Gustaf

Do you need another hatch to get enough material for the back of the cab and the tailgate? I'm trying to imagine one cut that would give you all you need but I just can't see it. 

I'm going to have to get another one to make the tailgate. Unfortunately the one currently at the pick n pull is missing the tailgate, I'll have to wait for another to pop up. 

Got a little more done today. I am almost out of gas for the welder so I won't get too much more welded until Monday when I can get a refill. 

I did get the door reinforcement bars finished. 

And tacked on the rear of the cab. 

I got the rear of the cab tacked onto the top of the door and had to put the tailgate on to mock it up. It is just sitting on a piece of 4x4 so it isn't aligned perfectly. There is a bit of a gap around the edges that I will have to fill with sheet metal. There are some filing cabinets being scrapped at work that I will grab for extra metal. 

Overall I am happy with how it lines up. My welds are pretty bad but they are getting better as I go. Tomorrow I will try to start tacking in the tailgate until I run out of gas.