volvo p1800 automatic?

All the talk about 1800s has me wishing my fathers 1970 p1800 with B20 and manual gearbox with overdrive hadn't been destroyed by a sleepy driver.

I had to get a new window put into my old man's Focus and I decided to walk over to the local euro parts store for a set of plugs. Well I noticed something in the parking lot that caught my attention. A p1800, it looks solid but has 4 flat tires. I peeked in the window and it had an auto transmission which I don't like. The 4speed manual with overdrive is the one to have.

I'm thinking about asking if the thing is for sale, maybe offer 300-500$ for it and see what happens.

Anyone have any info on automatic 1800s? I really like the looks of them, they are the coolest car volvo ever made styling wise and if it has the B20 the only issue is the automatic gearbox. Any suggestions are appreciated.

I know that the fenders are welded on and rust repair is tricky on them.

The Borg Warner 35 automatic transmission is a British invention used to convert rotary motion into a stream of oil on the ground.

Not actually that bad, but they are the best way to ruin an old Volvo that I can think of. On the upside, if you can find a donor, its an easy swap.

That is what I thought I'd hear about the auto transmission. I bet a proper gearbox and overdrive would be a good 1000$. It might not be worth even dicking with. Thanks for the info.

I'm not too afraid of a welded fender, my car uses seam sealer, 2hours with a heat gun to get a fender off.

benzbaron wrote: That is what I thought I'd hear about the auto transmission. I bet a proper gearbox and overdrive would be a good 1000$. It might not be worth even dicking with. Thanks for the info.

I did a BW35 to M41 conversion in our '73 1800ES. I don't think we have $1000 into the conversion, although we did get a great deal on the transmission. The advantage is it a bolt-in conversion.

If the car has a reasonably solid body (minimal to no rust) the transmission wouldn't be a deciding factor.

Perfect excuse for a 1.8L Miata engine and transmission.

Ya know, I'd not mind having an ES wagon.

The stock motor would have to go, I'm thinking VG30.

In reply to Jensenman:

Jensenman, try that pic again, you have me curious now.

Maybe this one won't get the hotlink cut. I like them in red best.

John Brown wrote: Perfect excuse for a 1.8L Miata engine and transmission.

I thought VERY seriously about this.

The problem with any engine swap into an 1800 is the engine bay. A Miata bay is positively roomy by comparison... In an 1800, the engine sits on the front cross-member between the upper control arm mounts (vs. say a Cobra where the engine is behind the front the suspension). With a B18/20, this is ok as the manifolds clear this. This is what makes V8 conversions into 1800's difficult - there's no place for the exhaust headers to go...

The other problem is because the inner fender wells are a structural part of the uni-body, one has to be careful with chopping metal away for clearance.

However, My idea was/is to graft the entire front and rear subframes from a Miata under an 1800. Of course, the natural progression from there is one of Flying Miata's LS1 conversions...

Ian F wrote:

John Brown wrote: Perfect excuse for a 1.8L Miata engine and transmission.

I thought VERY seriously about this. The problem with any engine swap into an 1800 is the engine bay. A Miata bay is positively roomy by comparison... In an 1800, the engine sits on the front cross-member between the upper control arm mounts (vs. say a Cobra where the engine is behind the front the suspension). With a B18/20, this is ok as the manifolds clear this. This is what makes V8 conversions into 1800's difficult - there's no place for the exhaust headers to go... The other problem is because the inner fender wells are a structural part of the uni-body, one has to be careful with chopping metal away for clearance. However, My idea was/is to graft the entire front and rear subframes from a Miata under an 1800. Of course, the natural progression from there is one of Flying Miata's LS1 conversions...

I have seen a couple "white block" 1.9T swaps into 1800's. Everywhere else in the world could buy the fist s40 v40 with a high pressure 200 hp 200 ftlb version of the 1.9T with sodium filled exhaust valves, oil squirters, and a few other tweaks. It is easy to make the low pressure version the US received make the same or more power. They are very compact 4 bangers showing up in junkyards everywhere. T5 transmissions connect with minimal fussiness IIRC.

I didn't say it couldn't be done. It's a matter of how much fabrication you're willing to do. My point is I see failed swaps all the time because folks think swapping [pick random engine] will be easy and it's not. So far, the only semi-easy swap I've read about is a B230 which doesn't require too much cutting... of course, the guy who posted about the swap operates a race car fabrication shop, so "easy" can be a relative term...

This looks like a 300 hp T4 but it fits very easily in terms of clearance..

http://www.vocks.se/?p=viewgallery&gid=5

A t5 and a couple red blocks...

http://volvo1800pictures.com/a_ES_73_105/Volvo_1800ES_ES73_105_id_2219.htm

http://volvo1800pictures.com/0_car_photos/ES/1973/46/Volvo_1800ES_73_46_2351.htm

http://volvo1800pictures.com/0_car_photos/ES/1972/noc/Volvo_1800ES_72_noc_2346.htm

Yes, I've seen all of those pics a number of times... nothing new... and by looking at the pics, a couple of those are more show than go...

Look, I own two 1800's. One if them is currently sans engine. The other I did the M41 swap in. I won't call myself an expert on them (not when VClassics is around), but I know them pretty well... so if you want to get an 1800 and swap something else in place of the B20, go for it... but don't dream for a second it will be easy.

Hell, swapping a T5 in place of the M41 (still keeping the B20) is not as easy - and definitely not as cheap - as it sounds.

This subject seems to pop up every 6 months or so... and I always regret posting about it... but I've just seen too many ill-planned & hacked up 1800's to let it go...

So Mister..., you gonna finish that P1800?

Ian F wrote: Yes, I've seen all of those pics a number of times... nothing new... and by looking at the pics, a couple of those are more show than go... Look, I own two 1800's. One if them is currently sans engine. The other I did the M41 swap in. I won't call myself an expert on them (not when VClassics is around), but I know them pretty well... so if you want to get an 1800 and swap something else in place of the B20, go for it... but don't dream for a second it will be easy. Hell, swapping a T5 in place of the M41 (still keeping the B20) is not as easy - and definitely not as cheap - as it sounds. This subject seems to pop up every 6 months or so... and I always regret posting about it... but I've just seen too many ill-planned & hacked up 1800's to let it go...

I put together a v8 monza bits into a vega a long time ago and it was really really hard and helped a friend put a 340 into a slat 6 barracuda and even that was hard. The m41 in place of m40 in my 145 was hard. the m40 in place of the borg warner thingie was hard in an earlier 145 was hard. I have no illusions. I like the T4 Idea in relation to the p1800 because it is such a small foot print motor, weighs less than any b2x push rod or overhead cam motor and will make the car scoot nicely without opening the motor up. Sure, it would be hard. But all the cutting you talked about as being an issue with putting a v8 in a p1800 goes away, let alone the miata under a p1800 project. Sorry to bore you with the pictures, I like them.

The T4 looks like it fits, but not well enough for what I would want the car for. it's a clean looking installation, but skips a few items that would be important to me. There are a few items on that car make make me ask why he even bothered... but it does look pretty... and I'm sure it moves along fine...

Unfortunately, I'm fighting with Revit right now which tends to put me into a crappy mood...