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When I say “240”, what springs to mind? Probably one of the Nissan/Datsun S chassis. Be it a 240Z, S13 or S14, those are logical conclusions to arrive at. Unfortunately, those are all the wrong conclusions to arrive at. You see, Volvo made a a car called 240 as well. And like the Nissans, it was powered by an inline four cylinder engine, and sent power to the rear wheels; however, it never got the same fanatical following the S chassis received. And that’s a shame. Despite it looking EXACTLY like a child’s rendering of a car, they can be turned into some pretty awesome bricks.
Tate is one of those folks who transformed a mundane brick into an awesome brick. And he didn’t have to go crazy to do so, thanks to the worldwide followings Volvos have. He also didn’t have to know Swedish to get his hands on some parts. Thanks internet! Anyway, this brick is more ground bound thanks to a set of R Sport International coilovers, and Kaplhenke adjustable strut mounts. The suspension isn’t just limited to things that provide the lows. There’s also a set of Kaplhenke roll center correcters, and IPD sway bars, adjustable torque rods, and panhard bar. Remember: Volvo took their brilliant boxes on the touring car circuit, so seeing one of these handle isn’t out of the ordinary.
The gold mesh wheels look period correct, like they were pull offs from an E30 BMW 3 series or a GTi. They look period correct, but they aren’t period. They’re a set of MSW’s, and they’re shod in Yokohama rubber. If you look closely at the photo above, you’ll notice something ahead of the wheel. That would be the business end of the exhaust. One of many little touches this car has received.
The nose is accented by a 242 GT grille and accompanying driving lights, a set Hella 700′ driving lights, and a set of European (Oooo fancy!) corner lenses. Out back there’s a sweet ass trailer hitch, and a spoiler. It’s not from a Volvo though. Guess where it came from.
No, not a Honda.
Not a VW either.
Give up?
It’s from a Saab 9000. From one Swede to another.
The interior is a healthy mix of OEM, stuff found in other cars of the era, and creatively shoving aftermarket gauges into factory holes. The Volvo dash has all of these sweet little places for gauges, some of those holes housed Volvo gauges. Those holes don’t house Volvo gauges anymore. In their places sit an AEM UEGO gauge, and some gauges that’ll measure more boost and a wider range of temperatures than the old OEM counterparts. No fancy aftermarket wheel, just the tried and true factory wheel. The seats are OEM, just not OEM Volvo. Tate isn’t 100% sure where the Recaro style seats came from, but they get the job done. Also non-Volvo OEM: the Audi 4000 shift knob, that sits atop a Pro 5.0 shifter, that juts out from a T5WC transmission sourced from a Mustang. Wait, what?
Yeah, there’s a reason for the Mustang gearbox. The long block is the stock B21FT that came in the car, but a lot of other things are no longer stock.
Tate converted the car to EFI himself using Microsquirt, which he wired and tuned himself, and an intake manifold from a newer 240. A Swedish company called Do88 supplied the radiator, intercooler and piping. There’s a GT2871R ball bearing turbo with a ported compressor housing hanging from a one-off tubular exhaust manifold. A Tial MVS external wastegate that’s plummed into a custom three inch exhaust, the one that dumps right in front of the passenger rear wheel. A Forge Splitter diverter valve relieves anything above the current preset amount of boost. That amount is 20psi. That number will be increasing.
Oh, there’s also a ratchet strap holding things down. Hey man, necessity is the mother of invention.
When someone starts throwing around “240”, people’s mind will instantly jump to the Nissans. That’s all well and good, but hopefully after reading this you’ll ask them “do you mean the Volvo?” And then you’ll enlighten them about the glory that are the turbocharged, Swedish bricks.
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