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I traded my Range Rover in for my '96 Cdn-spec 854R back in May. Since then, I've added 20K kms to it for a total of about 172K. For the most part, its the most fun of any of the 5 Volvos I've owned although my '90 744T w/TurboPlus came pretty close. The best part of my R is that its one of the extremely rare for North America 247HP/5 speeds which is the reason I bought it. Actually my wife and I were looking for a V70 turbo wagon, but our local Volvo indy (dealer and wrench) had the R sitting there and I couldn't resist the rarity.
In any case, if you are looking for info, what my web-based research has uncovered is that approx. 5000 units were built in each of MY 1996 and 1997. Of those numbers, about 1500 were brought into North America each year, nearly all automatics with a 237HP motor. If my research is close to accurate, there were only 14 5-speeds (9 854s and 5 855s) brought in, all to Canada; but I have not been able to get info as to whether that was a grand total for both years, a total per year, or they were just brought-in in '96. Interestingly, in the last 6 months, counting mine, I've seen 3 5-speed Rs for sale in Southern Ontario, all '96s. I paid $13.5K CDN for mine and the other two ranged from $15.5K to $19.9K, all with similiar mileage and seemingly condition.
In regard to the motors, according to my owners manual, the autos were 237HP but this was limited to a duration of 30 seconds wherein the motor would be limited back to the more normal turbo level of 222HP. The 5-speeds were limited only in first gear (no spec given) but allowed to produce the 247HP in all the other gears. These cars have been documented to actually achieve the 155mph claimed by the factory and, frankly, I'd believe it. I've had mine to 180kph once and it had plenty left, plus it was gaining stability the faster it went. But since I was on a public road and my car is the flaming R red, the safety of my DL and my insurance came to mind "(oh sorry constable, but it IS A VOLVO").
You may have read or others will tell you about the trim aspects of the Rs that make them different than the other 850 turbos, but the only other mechanical bit that's different from other 850s in the 5-speed. The autos from what I can tell are identical to a standard turbo auto trans, but the R 5-speed is a different designation with different cogs in it. It has the same size clutch as a normal turbo (about .5 in larger in dia than a NA model), but some have said its a different material and able to take up to 400HP. Some have said this is just the standard turbo clutch, but since there are not many of these in North America either, its kind of hard to say what's what. The Euro guys probably can speak with more authority on the subject. In addition and unlike the autos, the 5-speeds also have a VC-based limited slip unit (similiar to what's on the front half shaft of the early AWD cars). I've read that this is supposed to provide about a 30% slip limitation but I can't find that in anything "official".
Anyway, hope this helps in your research. Bottom line though is if you can get hold of one, do it! They are different and although they might not be as screwed together as the newer R models, they are much more rare if you are into that uniqueness thing like I am.
Cheers and good luck,
Bill
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