Volvo P1800ES...kinda

Hard to explain... just... everything... cooling system, brakes, HVAC, etc, etc... like I said, the more I thought about all of the systems as a whole, rather than individual parts, it started to make a lot more sense to just cut out the bottom of the car and graft it onto a Miata pan. But even that didn't address a few other mundane issues - like the wipers - which operate in a completely different manner. One system affects another system and the next thing you know, you're re-engineering EVERY system on the car, from the complex to the mundane, from scratch.

That was the point where I gave up and decided to keep the B20 and most of the OE suspension. It's be one thing if I were building a race car and a certain level of finish and ergonomics could be ignored, but that's not what I want.

spent a few hours in the shop last night. Added the shock to the jig assembly so that I can start thinking about how this will all tie together.

The good news is that my Solidworks model agrees with reality and the upper control arm pivot point wants to reside withing the framerail saddle and hence also the volvo frame. Clearancing is not really a big deal. What is a head scratcher is how to deal with the long bolt that serves as the pivot. I need to be able to get wrenches on the bolt and slide it forward the whole lenght.

I am starting to get a better mental image of how the shock assembly is going to tie in to the subframe.What I might do is roll the table out and with the k member in the jig lower the car over the assembly.

My gut feeling is that this is going to be a Beta K-member. Once it is together and proof of function is proven I will rewind with a more elegant design. Maybe

Need to get my hands on a steering rack before I go a lot further just to make sure it plays with my plans.

I call dibs on your 1800 vented front rotors with calipers and brackets.

While I look for a rack and colum for the front, I decided to see just how the rear Miata subframe was going to fit.

Side to side it is a perfect fit between the Volvo rails. Front to rear requires a small amount of clearancing.

I cut some openings in what is nominamlly called the "Rear seat" area of the volvo. With the intrusion being on the order of 1/2" I dont think it will mess too much with this area when I put the interrior back in.

The rear is going to be a bit more fun since Volvo put a crossmember in the way. I need to get up another 3/4" so either the Mazda bit or the Volvo crossmember is going to have to go.

man, that looks SO much like the back end of all my alfas...

I should make some measurements, and check fitment.

I know it is getting way ahead of the game, but as a gift to the wife unit, I bought her this Personal Plate for the car.

Most excellent.

seems like a strange choice, BJ OR NAGN? i'm gonna pick BJ every day of the week, and twice on Saturday.

Still at it, got a rack and made it fit in the space.

Waiting for the foam engine to arrive so that I can start to visualize the engine mount/steering column/header relationship.

I also need to assemble/fabricate the pile of steel on the floor into a frame rack that I can do final locate and assembly on so that everything is flat and square. Building stuff off the garage floor takes too many mathematical calculations to keep straight!

Got the plastic block in today. This thing is way neat compared to muscling around the iron block.

With the Miata suspension not intruding into the engine compartment, the engine can move forward from where it would be on a traditional Volvo swap and there is tons of room for headers and starter.

The engine is going to set back even with the front of the heater box hole; about 2". That will give me the room I need up front to get the rad in with a Ford Motorsports short water pump kit.

Have some headers or manifolds around to test fit? That's the only issue I see there. Looks cool, how much did the foamie run you?

Tuna:

One step at a time! Now that I have a block in place, I can start looking for headers. But first I want to get the steering shaft where it needs to be.

This project is like a giant Rubik's cube.

It is a nice change from the rustoration work I have been doing on Brit cars for the last ten years.

I also need to build a chassis jig so that all these bits go on nice and square.

Where did you source the plastic block? I've been thinking about one, but they cost way more than a junk core.

Gimp wrote: Where did you source the plastic block? I've been thinking about one, but they cost way more than a junk core.

http://www.payr.com/

I have a junk core. Still not a fun one man job to locate the engine and you still have to wrestle the heads.Yeah..I is getting old and lazy.

I looked around quite a bit to find a used one with no luck. This suggest that I should not have too much trouble selling this one when done.

Got a pan in place over the rack with the rack located. This pretty much dictates the fore-aft location of the engine.

Next step is to offer this lot up with the block in place and see what kind of head room I have for an intake and sideroom for headers.I still have room to cut a notch in the pan ala Monster Miata to get a few inches of space up top.

So, someone shoulda told me this was going to be fun!

Picked up a short front dress from a 94-95 mustang and finished the steering rack mounts to the crossmember.

Got that lot in place and dropped the foam engine in place to see where it wants to live.

The good news is that it is all in the unmodified engine compartment. The bad news is that I want it back about two inches into the firewall so that I free up some space up front for a radiator. <img src="" />

I think I can take a bite out of the front sump structure up to a point where it is a perpendicular face. The pan can also come up 1/2" and well see how far back that moves things. The original plan was that the engine would be set back even with where the aperture for the heater starts.

The other option is just to design around the front structure to get a radiator in the available space up front. If it means moving everything forward then so be it.

Header space looks adequate.

Overhead space looks good if I go with one of the low profile manifolds or even more so if I bite the budget and use the FAST FI system.

Steering is a chicken and egg thing. Not a natural fit at this point. Plan to use the Miata column as much as possible. going to need re-routing but do I do headers first or steering column and work around it?

If anyone knows how to forecast header fit so that I dont end up buying 20 sets before I decide that I have to make my own, the advice would be welcome!

You've probably seen it already - but lots of ideas in this thread a la front/rear suspension redux and fitting a V8 into the 1800....emphasis on 'ideas'; I wouldn't send this guy any money.

http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=235130&highlight=Amazon+V8

In reply to MichaelYount:

Robert's projects have been discussed numerous times. I know of guys who have received their orders, so the subframes 'do' exist - at least the front subframe kit - but it's not something I'd buy if on a schedule.

It's not something I would buy even COD, it has serious design flaws in my eyes.

You can't put the kind of loads (his mods would imply) into a cut up unibody chassis.

All show and no go, I would also suggest that his marketing scheme closely resembles ponzi.

In reply to bentwrench:

What? Robert's sub-frame kits don't require cutting the unibody at all. The kits are bolt-in using mostly OE mounting points. His personal cars are a different matter, but those reflect more of the custom cars he builds for customers. The Volvo stuff is just a side business he does for fun.

So, took a bit of a left hand turn. I was going to go with the FM rear suspension kit, but accidentally bought this Boss Frog mounting kit for the T-bird 8.8 differential.

While for reasons that I can't quite quantify, I see the Ford as a less elegant design, it will be substantially cheaper than the Getrag option when it is all said and done. I also have a feeling that a bit more weight in the rear wont work against me with this car.

Also, now that I am committed, I can focus the parts search to complete the rear rather than vacillate over how I want to proceed.

How much additional weight is it and how do you accidentally buy something?

tuna55 wrote: How much additional weight is it and how do you accidentally buy something?

How much extra weight? Good question. The Cadillac CTS Getrag diff is aluminum and fairly compact. The T-bird 8.8 is cast iron and certainly beefier and dimensionally larger. So lets say 20 lbs? If anyone knows better, please chime in. (Keith?)

As to how to "buy things by accident"!! I have a habit of showing up with tools and cars that I did not set out to buy, but became a good idea at some point. I gave up trying to figure me out many years ago.

So, what do I do once I get my first relatively rust free classic car that does not need years of panel replacement? I cut the thing up!

The hole looks huge, but I bet the AOD gearbox will want a bit more room around the edges.

I would be lying if I said this does not make me wonder about my sanity.

The engine is about as far back as it needs to go. This is MUCH less shoved in to the driver's compartment than the typical (?) P1800 swap.

The Volvo front suspension forces the engine to be shoved back behind the crossmember. This red car is typical of this swap.

I have right around 5 inches to get a rad and some sort of fan in front of the engine before I have to start cutting the front shroud. The engine CAN go back further if need be.

No going back now!

OK, I DID say that a bit more weight in the rear would not be a bad thing. Holy crap are these T-bird center sections heavy!

Got my hands on a Locker with a 3.08 out of a Superbird. Separating this from the rusty remains of an Ontario donor car was NOT fun.