turbo volvo wagon opinions?

If it's slow, something is wrong...

Subscribing to this thread. The wife wants a turbo first and a wagon second, so these are high on the list.

So, any common problem areas to look for?

tuna55 wrote: If it's slow, something is wrong...

Indeed.

ClemSparks wrote: I just started driving a 740 turbo wagon (with 5 speed). Impressions so far: It's SLOW (even if it isn't as slow as my '82 Corolla wagon, it feels slower). It's SLOW (yes, it warranted saying twice). Clem

Is it building boost?

Yes...the exact quantity is about 50% of the yellow zone on the boostometer. (stupid non-graduated gauges).

Seriously though...I don't expect it to be fast (160 hp in a car that weights I-don't-know-how-much). I expected it to be a little more on-par with my old XR4Ti (which I also thought was slow).

I think I'm just calibrated differently than other folks. My XR4Ti(s) did not live up to my expectations of quickness. The TurboVolvo is slower yet. However, the '89 Corolla I was given felt surprisingly quick (still not fast, but quicker than I expected).

Clem

Some things to add to my list of impressions:

It rolls down the highway nice and smooth. I like that.

It seems to be sucking down the fuel. I haven't got any data yet (too soon) but the needle seems to be dropping at an alarming rate. (most of the problem is probably my desire to hear the turbo whistle ;)).

(so once I get this high speed howl taken care of, it'll be pretty nice for highway cruising).

Clem

It just needs more boost.

I thought my XRati was way slower than my Volvo, even though the wastegate didn't open on the XR.

I have a '98 V70 T5 wagon I am thinking about selling. Silver, 140k miles, Bilsteins, auto, 17" wheels. The T5 is the high pressure turbo model--155 MPH top speed back in the day. Aaron (at) Meisner (dot) net.

tuna55 wrote: I like three major things about the 740/940 over the 850/V70: RWD Bigger cargo room and entrance Much tighter turning radius. The thing seriously turns better than my wife's old Civic.

I've got a quarter million miles on my '96 960. You would not believe how tight this thing turns, I can do a u-turn in a little over one lane without breaking the rear tires loose.

Make sure the tining belt / tensioners / idlers are done if you buy one. I had 10k miles left before my belt was due to be replaced, but the previous owner had not changed anything other than the belt so my idler grenaded at 200k. This was the worst interference engine I had ever seen when I took it apart, valves bent into S shapes, snapped in half, guides broken, huge dents in pistons. So if the belt has gone, budget in a whole engine (I got my junkyard one for $900, which is probably too much, but it broke 7 hours from home)

psychic_mechanic wrote: I've got a quarter million miles on my '96 960.....This was the worst interference engine I had ever seen when I took it apart, valves bent into S shapes, snapped in half, guides broken, huge dents in pistons. .

The Turbo 4s don't have that problem. Non-interference FTW. Plus they can easily make more power than a stock 960 with a $5 home depot boost controller

Junkyard_Dog wrote: The Turbo 4s don't have that problem. Non-interference FTW. Plus they can easily make more power than a stock 960 with a $5 home depot boost controller

Interesting, I was guessing since it was the same block with a different number of cylinders, it would have the same issues.

I'm seriously thinking of swapping a T6 from an S80 into mine, if they haven't all been cash-4-clunkered. Is there any specific place I should look for internal differences on the motors such as compression ratios, piston composition, etc?

I know it would be cheaper and easier to swap in a V8 or a turbo engine with some aftermarket support, but I have a thing for straight sixes.