I am taking a break from all the upkeep hassles, amongst other things, of a VW Vanagon. After doing a lot of research I settled on a Volvo and really wanted a 940 tuebo and luckily I founf one after a lot of patience. It has 148,000 miles, original owner trade in. Any other car I would not nuy at this time with that many miles, but I am banking on the relaibility/durability of the 95 B230ft engine. The jet black paint is great. Dash, headliner, carpet, most trim is great. Front passenger leather seat is cracking pretty bad and driver's side just starting to. Only other cosmetic issue is the door panels in the upper corners near the windows, the leather is pulling away.

On to the questions.
1. There appears to be no boost gauge, guess I am spoiled by my friends 300 twin turbo z. I see that IPD has an A-pod mount, but I had another location in mind. Is it possible to replace the analog cloc in the dash with a boost gauge?

2. What do you reccomend for an air-intake? That big black box needs to go.

3. IPD only has one turbo sport exhaust upgrade. Know of any other suppliers? I was thinking dual tip of some kind.

4. My seats seem really high. I am only 5'7 and my head almost touches. I have lowered it with the power controls as far as it will go. The back seat also seems to low for anybody over 5'9. Am I missing something?

5. I hate hubcaps and I thought Volvo's would be too good to have thwm, but I was mistaken. What are popular replacements?

6. I heard mention of not switching to Mobil 1 this late in the mileage, is this really true?

7. I can't fit my 6.5 CDTs in the door. Has anybody had luck cuting away metal to make performance 6.5 components fit?

What is the best repair manual? Any other tips, advice?

Hi Blackbeauty,

Wow. I'd love to own that car! Probably the best all around Volvo ever built (IMO). Take care of it!!! Monsta made some good suggestions, I'll add a few things:

- Volvo makes a dual tip muffler. I think it's listed as for a '87-'89 740T or something like that. I was told you have to buy the whole kit though (Cat-back), but that's no big deal as the price is good, the mufflers have a lifetime warranty, and they're Volvo quality parts. I want to get the dual tip setup for my 745T and put the exhaust off it on my 745 NA as it's a Volvo replacement. Just got to find the extra $$ :)

- Any 15" or 16" 700 or 940 rim will fit as well as any 960 rim up until '94 (offset was different for '95). Look for a 16" rim called "Hydra" or if you're REALLY lucky a "Galaxy". There's also another 16", but I don't remember the name. There are some nice 15"s too.

- Synthetic oil is great. The engine *may* (unlikely) start to leak in a place or two after the changeover, but those would just be leaks that were soon to happen anyway. Most oil leaks on these engines are relatively easy to fix. I use Amsoil synthetic in my 745T (10W40). Other good brands are: Redline, Royal Purple, Mobil 1, among others.

- Like Monsta said, look in the FAQ at what's needed to get your 940 back to time "0" and keep up with the maintenance to keep it there. If you do so, that car has 100s of thousands or miles left in it, maybe even a million (no joke).

Enjoy! And I hope this helps!
--
Chris. Halifax N.S. '91 745Ti, 290K km and '91 745 NA, 382K km.

Thanks, I sure hope it lasts me awhile. So far I am very impressed. Outside of my Vanagon, my last couple of cars have had under 100K miles and the Volvo at 148K is just as solid. I love the thud when the doors close. Everything seems solid and well built. Also, it came with new factory Volvo mats. The interior is a little basic, the door panels leave a little too be desired. I preferred the door panels of my 97' Diamante and my 97' Blazer LT. The seats are great, I read how comfortable they were, but had no idea. Besides the stuff in the FAQ to get to zero miles, I need an alignment and some new shocks. The ride is kind of rough at times. Plus, one of the rotors is warped and the car shimmys when I brake. Brakes are solid though, 1000x times better than the notoriosuly poor Vanagon brakes. The trunk is huge, too. Head room is one of the few complaints. Also, it seems to have nice low end power/torque, but freeway accelaration at around 70mph seems to be lacking. I know it's not a sports car, but it is a turbo and who doesn't like a little something extra. Sure it will never be a twin turbo Supra.

What about non-volvo rims? Like some 17 in chrome alloys or something? Probably something that will have to wait since i should do preventive stuff, but still could use the ideas. Also, I like the look of some I saw on cardomain with spoliers and body kits, but that is all more stuff out of my budget for the moment.

I am a novice on mechanical stuff, computers and electronics are more my forte, but I am the ultimate DIY'er and the word is that the 940 is easy to work on. Maybe not as easy as a rear engine VW, but easy. The engine compartment is excellent, much better than my friends twin turbo Z. You have to take the engine out to do anything on his car. Anyhow, with that said, how hard is it to change the timing belt for a novice?

One thing that wasn't good about the purchase is that I don't have the records. It was a one owner trade in for a BMW. Does the Volvo dealer have a database of all maintenance done by the factory shops based on vin #?

Your 940 should last a LONG time :) Yeah, the door panels are a little basic and there's not much that can be done. They don't bother me though, I think they match the car's style well. I believe you can get aftermarket wood trim kits that include pieces that replace the carpet in the doors, but I think they're kinda tacky. You're car should have ample power at 70 mph, not a ton, but ample. Maybe it would be wise to check the turbo boost pressure setting (might need a mechanic for this) and preform a "tune-up" (plugs, cap, rotor, wires, etc). If everything checks out and your are still not satisfied after the tune up, you can purchase a "Turbo cam" from IPD to improve engine power and performance as well as a "manual boost controler". With the boost controller it would be a good idea to have an acurate boost guage and some way to measure air/fuel mixture if running boost over say 10-12 psi. There are lots of options for getting more power from a B230FT, it just depends on how far you want to go, how much you want to affect longevity, and how much money you want to spend. As for shocks, again it depends on how much you want to spend; I use KYBs (good price, good handling, firm ride, lifetime warranty). Boge is stock and I believe Konis are the best. If replacing the cone bushings doesn't help with the brakes then you're probably in for new front rotors and pads. When reinstalling the front wheels make sure to only torque the lug nuts to 65-80 ft/lbs.

There's not a whole lot of non-Volvo rims out there for the 940, I'm not sure where to point you. Try www.tirerack.com. Don't give up on Volvo wheels though, there are some nice ones. You can get a 940 spoiler here: VLVworld.com. They also have Volvo factory mudguards (fit well, look good, and protect the paint). I don't remember if the body kit is still available.

These cars are pretty much a DIY'ers dream come true when you factor in the overall livability of the car :)

Yes, you may be able to get the service records from Volvo. Take you VIN to a local dealer. Do you have the owner's manual? If so, the "maintenance manual" should be with it which should include recordings of maintenance. With turbos it is very important to keep the oil clean and allow the turbo to "cool down" before shut off it the turbo has been boosting.

Hopefully this will help :)
--
Chris. Halifax N.S. '91 745Ti, 290K km and '91 745 NA, 382K km.

congrats on the purchase...

As part of your '0' mile maint. you might want to replace the strut rod bushings. This is probably contributing to your shimmy while braking. These are a 2 part conical bushing that take a large majority of the load while braking. These bushings are a known menace on 700/900 suspension systems. fcpgroton.com has a great exploded view of the 700/900 suspension.

You can buy polyurethane replacements from ipdusa.com or from fcpgroton

The timing belt is insanely easy to change. Buy a Volvo replacement belt, do your research in the FAQ, and its a snap. While changing the timing belt it is a perfect time to change the tensioner (due every 2nd belt change), and the front engine seals. (the seals are also quite simple, I used cut and deburred PVC pipe to press the new seals into the block/head.) Your car is 10 years old, so it would hurt to think about doing the radiator as well. The radiator design volvo used has plastic tanks that tend to crack near the upper hose. Depends on your budget.


--
'82 DL - 158k, '93 945 - 116k

relaibility/durability: See the FAQ/700-900/HighMileageVehiclePrevMaint. Don’t think you can get a break from maintenance until you get this car to 0 miles. Plan on spending $250-$500, depending.

Leather sets from the FAQ “[Tip from John Acampora] All of the guys on my Mercedes list swear by leatherique. They have stuff to repair cracked dashes and re-dye/maintain leather.”

Crinkled door panels: See the FAQ

Boost gage: Get one from a pre-’95 T at a parts yard. Get the Turbo badge too.

Air Intake: You have a good one. Use a Mann air filter. Remove the foam in the intake box. Get a Dawes device for increased boost.

Dual exhaust? Kind of ricey, isn’t it?

Seat lowering instruction in the FAQ. You must have a sun roof.

Wheels: Alloys…ebay, Brickboard classified, parts yard, any 15’from a 740/940.

Ok to switch. No, it’s a MUST to switch to synthetic in a turbo.

6” in the door, nope, just use quality speakers that fit.

Repairs: This board, the FAQ, a UK Haynes, and an OEM wiring diagram, to start.

Thanks for the response. Sorry meant dual tip, not dual exhaust. I don't much care for the stock s-tip. It has to be more reliable than my 345,00 vanagon, no matter what. lol The air intake may be decent, but I jsut don't much care for that big black box. I was thinking more along the lines of a nice and simple cone, but due to budget after doing some preventive maintenance I may be sol on anything else. I have been reading through the FAQ even before buying, there is a lot of good stuff there.

if you really want to effect the durability of the engine, go ahead fit a cone..it will kill it...

go do some searches on people wh oahave done filtration tests on cones...it aint good, i mean it REALLY aint good (or cost effective!)

but hese a fun thought...rip out the air restrictor into the stock box (trunpet device inside air intake), remove ALL foam..and silly plastic spacers..dont make much difference but a bot and it sounds good without all the aound deadening!

next fit a high flow cat & exhaust (im fortuate where i live i can just ditch the cat.,.hehehehehe)

now tune it up, at 70 it SHOULD just be comming on song..so standard stuff applies (do all the HT electrical side), clean the throtle out.

You ar probably about due a new turbo (depends on maintenance) and ditch the ides of the fancy ricy boy wheels and just do get a set of volvo genuines (btw you should get 5 thats how volvo sold em)

im 6'2" with a sunroof in mine and have loads of room..so its an adjsutment thing on the seats...

oh and change ALL the fluids...

last (but not least) CLEAN YOUR FLAMETRAP (learn this mantra!)