Volvo AWD 850 Forum

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SWEDISH RICE??? 850

I'm your average 18 year old trying to compete with the import tuning scene which all my Honda-driving friends are living at this moment. I have a 94 850, just a regular, base model 850. It's got a lot of pep, but it looks...well...outdated, unloved, and hopeless (lol). I'm wondering if there are aftermarket bodykits out there for the 850 in a reasonable price range, and what it takes to upgrade a N/A 850 to a turbo.
Thanks in advance!
Nate








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SWEDISH RICE??? 850

I've seen some really nice body work done on 850's, most of the better kits consisted of ground effects, lower airdamn, side skirts, rear valence. This kind of thing looks really nice on a car with dropped springs and wider, lower profile wheels and tires. I would stay away from a custom hood, I don't think it would look good with the 850's lines, and please, oh god please, do not put one of those ridiculus rear wings on the back of the car. I swear, kids today will put a 6 foot high wing on anything. I just saw one the other day on a completley clapped out, basket case dodge stratus. If you spent a buck fifty on that wing, why not take the same money and do something like, oh I don't know, get the car running right! As someone else said, if you take the time to do the body, then get some decent paint on the car. Unpainted plastic doesn't really look good. I know good paintwork is expensive, but there's no subsitute.

As for putting in a turbo, like the other people said, sell it and buy a factory turbo car if that's what you want. You'll get better performance and the motor will live much longer. The turbo 850's had completely different engine internals that the N/A cars. Sodium filled valves, forged rods, etc.. You could probably get a turbo setup that would work, but you won't get much lifespan out of that drivetrain.

I have a 1993, N/A car, and for my uses it's fine. Next year it's my turn for something new and more performance oriented, so I'll be getting, most likely, the '05 Subaru Legacy GT turbo. But if I wanted to stay with a Volvo and wanted performance and couldn't afford something new, I'd be looking for a T-5. Prices on those cars are pretty reasonable, you could probably sell what you have now (if it's in good shape) and get a decent chunk of what you would need for the T-5.








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SWEDISH RICE??? 850

Another route to go on this -- your car is probably still worth a few thousand bucks. I have a 97 850 T-5, leather the works, which is powerful as far as I'm concerned (240 horses). Sell yours and buy a used 850 Turbo with some accessories -- edmunds.com says these cars should be around $5,000 or so and I figure by the time you factor in what it would cost you to put a turbo in your car, time, accessories etc you are in for a few thousand bucks anyway.








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SWEDISH RICE??? 850

From a dad of 3 teenagers...I have seen these cars with body kits...stay stock.

What is the point of a body kit unless you plan to paint the whole car too? If you do, go for it. All of the cars around here with body kits look terrible because the cars have 5 colors of paint on them and those kids cannot afford decent paint jobs.

As far as going turbo, it would be cheaper to buy a used turbo model and fix it up. The transmission in your car is not made for the turbo, so you will have to replace it too. How do I know, I owned what you now have a few years ago.








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SWEDISH RICE??? 850

I bought my '94 850 back when I was 21. I have some friends who drive Hondas and Mitsubishis. My car is also non-turbo. Check out cardomain.com, they have some 850's with body kits that look pretty good. It's already uphill tho if you want to "rice" out a non-turbo 850. After having my 850 for 2 years, I'm glad I kept it. My car is completely stock, except for tint and exhaust tip. If you're considering a new car though, check out the Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback. It has that Volvo style, and it's pretty damn impressive as a performance wagon. If you have a small fortune to burn, I'd get an old 740 turbo sedan or wagon. You can play around with the turbo boost and get some nice results. They also look good when modified. Good luck!

P.S. Check out wickedbodies.net for a good 850 body kit.

--
'94 854 N/A.







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