greetings all, I have a 1988 volvo 245 with an automatic transmission and without a tachometer (yet). was wondering what the max speed was in each gear. How fast can I go in third gear for example. I did a search on this site but did not find the answer. also does this car have a built in rev. limiter??
thanks all
as ever
peter

If you have the owner's manual, near the end they list speeds in gears.

Your max speed in each gear is based on a few things, one variable being tire size. The stock 185R-14 has an OD of about 25.4 inches, and a 195/70-14 is about 24.75. And while the engine has a rev limiter which cuts out at 6000 rpm, with an automatic you probably won't reach that speed unless you shift manually.

That said, for a 6000 rpm rev limit, 3.73 final drive, and 185R14 tires, the max speeds in each gear are:
1 - 50 mph
2 - 84 mph
3 - 121 mph
OD - 176 mph

With a lower tire (smaller OD) the speeds would be slightly less.

The 240's boxy shape and limited HP give it a realistic top speed in stock trim of around 115 mph. Might take 10 minutes to get there, though. The wagon is slightly more aerodynamic than the sedan and without a roof rack might do a few mph better at the top end. Recognize that top gear (OD) would probably be useless for reaching speeds much over 100 mph on an unmodified engine.
--
Thank goodness we don't get all the government we pay for. -- Wiley Post

I'm pretty sure those top speeds are all given re. standard transmission gear ratios. I gave that part of the manual a pretty careful read, looking for that information for auto trans.

Did anyone calculate to see if the standard trans. gear ratios combined with standard's final rear end gear come out to be the same as auto trans gear ratios plus auto final drive rear end?
--
Sven: '89 245 NA, 951 ECU, open-front airbox, E-fan, 205/65-15's, IPD sways, E-Codes, amber front corner reflectors, quad horns. Wifemobile '89 245 NA stock. 90 244 NA spare, runs.

I'm sending you a spreadsheet via e-mail that will help you calculate all that good stuff.
--
Thank goodness we don't get all the government we pay for. -- Wiley Post

What I found re. max speed in gears

1st gear max about 40
2nd gear max about 70
3rd gear max - I never dared

My car has no tach, has auto trans. But you can hear it shift and you can hear the engine - especially with the open front airbox modification on my car.

Mine is a wagon so the tires are a bit larger diameter than a sedan. So my road speed at any given rpm is a bit higher than in a sedan. Just FYI.

On an open road, from a full stop, peg the gas pedal. It will accelerate to 40 mph without shifting. At that point the engine sounds pretty darn fast so I let up and allow it to shift. It will go to about 70ish in second before it screams for mercy.

Cruising at about 50ish with OD disabled via shifter button, you can peg the gas and it will downshift into second. Of course it will downshift into second from OD just the same but by locking it out you know you WERE in 3rd and hear the shift into 2nd.

Now that you're in 2nd at 50 you can keep the pedal pegged to the floor and watch it accelerate to about 70. Still in 2nd! At that point it's screaming pretty loud so that's where I back off. Of course if you have a tach you'd know exactly what the rpms really are.

A related topic - I've become interested in maximizing my mpg. Of course screaming fast rpms can drive your mpg straight down. All those high rpms become dollars in the pockets of people who may not have my own best interests at heart. So I've been driving for economy lately. Now getting 23-24 mpg even in winter with four snow tires!
--
Sven: '89 245 NA, 951 ECU, open-front airbox, E-fan, 205/65-15's, IPD sways, E-Codes, amber front corner reflectors, quad horns. Wifemobile '89 245 NA stock. 90 244 NA spare, runs.

Tachs are cool things to have. May help get better mileage. Doesn't AyeRoll have a spare kicking around?

Wow, there are 27 people on-line while I'm editing this post!
--
1980 245 Canadian B21A with SU carb and M46 trans in Brampton, Ont.

If you look closely, you will see little dots on your speedo. Oh, you've seen 'em, but never knew what they were?

Max speed per gear, that's what they are!

Interesting!

If true, that would mean two different speedometer faces, one for auto and one for standard trans. As the # of gears is different, as well as their gear ratios.

This would be on top of the known existing types of speedo face:
sedan vs. wagon (to accomodate the different tire diameters)
ABS vs. non-ABS (to accomodate the higher # of pulses-per-km of ABS)
These differences are shown in the "k" numbers at bottom of speedo face.

Anyone have confirming information on this?
If anyone has untampered examples of both auto and standard trans cars it would be interesting to check this out.
--
Sven: '89 245 NA, 951 ECU, open-front airbox, E-fan, 205/65-15's, IPD sways, E-Codes, amber front corner reflectors, quad horns. Wifemobile '89 245 NA stock. 90 244 NA spare, runs.

Those dots are the in-between marks for km/hour. At least on my car they are.
--
Sven: '89 245 NA, 951 ECU, open-front airbox, E-fan, 205/65-15's, IPD sways, E-Codes, amber front corner reflectors, quad horns. Wifemobile '89 245 NA stock. 90 244 NA spare, runs.

The horsepower curve on that engine is such that in the 3000 to 5000 rpm range you get incresing amount of power per rev.

My 1986 and 1988 244GL cars came with autotrans and tach. Only in times when I want more acceleration I do manually control. Otherwise I stay happy with the default "Grandma" shift points.

If you control shift points: 1st to 2nd shift at 2500 maybe 3000. Feel a good snap.

2nd to 3rd shift depends on circumstances and speed limit. Run up to 3500 or 4000 in 2nd, WOT. Try holding the gas pedal fixed and feel the power increase.

Then go to 3rd, and take it easy and let the o/d kick in.

Note that the tranny and rear axle ratios are such that if you do not fear it, stomping on it away from a stop light and running to 3500 rpm for the first two shifts will surprise the hell out of the Mustang or Rice Rocket in the next lane.

Get the tach. It will make driving your brick a lot more fun.

Good Luck,

Bob

:>)

PS Stay within the speed limits, the police will screw up your insurance rates.

yes this car does have a built in rev limiter! Correct me if I'm worng, but I believe it kicks in at 6000 RPM? I far as max speeds, the ABSOLUTE speeds in each gear are: 1st-25, 2nd-45, 3rd-95ish?, and 4th will go to 120 I think. I never tested that one before. But yes a tach makes a big difference as far as economy goes. I knwo its easier to watch the tach and keep the engine at a constant rev, other than going off the speed alone. A little side note, when you get the engine up around the 5000's it sounds like it might blow up! Good luck! And Happy bricking!
--
1987 244DL Auto, new rear main seal! Back to the stock air box:(

Ok, so I was a little of with that....oops...I guess I have been used to driving so slow on a college campus! Eek, I cant stand it!
--
1987 244DL Auto, new rear main seal! Back to the stock air box:(

thanks for the info. MY car(brick) loses speed on long highway up-hills, the engine does seem very busy at 70-mph in third gear. glad to know I can hold it there or more if needed. A tach is in its future.

The stock engine is indeed noisy at the upper rev range. With the VX cam the noise seems less pronounced, probably because the engine breathes easier with different valve timing and higher lift.
--
Thank goodness we don't get all the government we pay for. -- Wiley Post

I have an 82 245 with a tac and I usually don't push it unless it needs to be pushed. I hold first until roughly 15-18 mph, 2nd until 30-35, 3rd until 45-50 and then 4th from 50-60 and then OD for cruising. Since 3rd is your passing gear im sure you can go 60 to 65 if you really wanted to but why? All of these equal out to around 3000 RPM on the tac. This is just my preferance for my car other people undoubtadly drive their cars differently so just listen to your motor and if you don't like the way it sounds at one point just shift before that. Hope I helped you.