First off, thanks for the rapid responses. This is a good community to be a part of. I've been sitting in Volvos since my dad bought a NEW '72 145E two weeks before I got my drivers license,(do the math)! I've owned every Volvo carbed, but the elusive P1900, and have 8 older Volvos (mostly split window PVs). I even have a Sugga (brag, brag). But, as I mentioned, this 220 is my everyday beater, bought it from a boneyard for $300, dropped in an extra engine, and started driving. So, I'll admit to a certain (irrational)disinclination to put a bunch of time and money into it. It's a paradox, I know. I'll put tons of time and money into cars I hardly drive, and practically ignore the one I drive all the time. The shoemaker's children go barefoot!

To answer some of the questions and suggestions;
- I'm in San Diego, so not much ice, but a lot of 65mph+ freeway driving. "Hog on ice" was a phrase for the feeling of "squirmyness" which really describes the handling. Remember the Tom Waits song? Since it is a sort of pick up, I do usually have some junk in the back, maybe 30-50lbs., (old bumpers, a dead starter, or two; plus the spare tire, full tank of gas, etc, etc.)
- I just looked and the tires I have on the car are actually 195x65x15, NOT 185x65x15, Michelin MXV4 Plus Energy (whatever that all means). My suspicion of the tires was because when I stood next to the rear tire, and pushed against the side, the whole car sort of oozes sideways, just as if the tires were really underinflated, and the sidewalls were paper thin. But, I usually have had them at around 35+lbs. To confess, I probably have driven them beyond their "junk by" date.
- The car is sort of rough looking, but it is complete (all the chrome, etc.). I like having the original wheels for the looks, the original hubcaps, and trim rings. I know that in Europe widened slotted wheels are readily available, but not here. I'll spring to get mine widened, but I'd like to know that it will really help the problem.
- The KYBs aren't my first choice either, but Bilsteins aren't in the budget,
the ones I have are reserved for the '69 1800, and new ones, well, I do like to eat, and take the girlfriend out once in a while! I know, priorities. Hey, how about the idea of helper springs, or maybe air shocks?
- The car came (from the boneyard) with this big 'ol sway bar on the front, and nothing on the rear. I just assumed that with a big one on the front and nothing on the rear, it was somehow overstiffened, or unbalanced, or somesuch.
So, that's why I replaced the big one w/ an original size. Maybe I was wrong.
- I have also rebuilt the front end last summer; new upper and lower 'A" arm bushings, idler arm, tie rods and the steering box were overhauled. Ok, I didn't go out and get it aligned, but I promise I will. I guess that I thought the 122 wagons to be such tanks that a lot of fine tuning wasn't necessary. Maybe I was wrong.
- Since this is a later 220, the Panhard rod is different than the standard, or older one. This translates as a bigger "eye" where it attaches to the underbody. That is where I installed a red Urethane bushing. Man, I thought that the new rear springs were going to solve a lot of this!
- So, back to the big issue; I'll admit to being cheap, what honest (older)Volvo owner isn't? But, I also understand that you get what you pay for. I'll spend the money, but I want to solve a problem, not just throw money at a situation. Anything else I overlooked?
- so, onward through the fog,...














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I would suggest a couple of things:

1. Urethane busings in the front suspension.

2. Make sure all other bushings are good.

3. Put at least 195/65 15s on it. They are less than .4" shorter overall. About 1 mph difference at 70mph. The lower aspect ratio is not going to hurt you a bit! Since you have overdrive 205/60s are just a tad shorter but still tend to be a good fit. Most important is to check tire clearance in the front at full lock. every where else seems to have good clearance. From my perspective a 15x6' with 1" offset is pretty hard to go wrong with.

4. Find a set of late 80's/early 90s Bronco II wheels in 15x6". They are a perfect fit with 195/65 tires. 205/60s are fine too and no problems with clearance anywhere. They look good, are cheap. and a set of 140 trim rings dress them right up. On a wider tire, i think that extra 1/2 inch makes a difference.

4. Definitely, make sure you have no toe out!

5. I have a standard IPD bar in the front (28 mm I believe) I prefer it over the stock one.

6. I can't say I am a big fan of KYBs. In fact i just don't like em much at all. (no offense intended) I have Bilsteins on my wagon and they were a MAJOR improvement in handling.

220s do seem a little "waggly" in the rear, but they are pretty stable all the way up to the point where they break away. They tires will REALLY squall before they let loose. But mine will swap ends pretty quickly once they finally lose traction. In general though, although they feel a little "loose", it is pretty amazing how hard (or stupid) you have to drive em, to get in trouble.

I've been driving my 220 for about 9 months and have put about 20K on it. I added a set of John Parker's lowered springs (progressive front, straight rate rears) to top it all off and my wagon handles simply awesome. To get the most out of it, use a smooth sure hand really pays off. A note of caution, mine doesn't like being jerked around I can bring out bigtime oversteer by being hamhanded. I have scared myself!!

I think once everything is in shape and dialed in you will feel much more secure.

Oh yeah, find somehere to really wring it out. Do a little autocrossing. A nice controlled environment to explore the cars limits. It's a great confidence builder.

Hope this is some fodder to consider. I 'm certainly not the expert, but I put a lot of very satisfied miles on mine.

Mike

I have two wagons and drive them year round...lots of snow and ice in the winter. The IPD sway bar, all uretahne bushings help, but the girls still like to wiggle thier butts, and it is very easy to rotate on ice (and sand!). The overload coils also made a positive improvement, less leaning in back. I think a rear sway would really make a difference, but have not found one made specifically for the 220. Hancook makes a pretty stiff sidewall that I have liked for summer driving, and michelin makes one too although it is more $$. You mentioned that it was your work truck, having a full load in the back changes the handling dramatically of these cars. On mine the cornering attributes are more accurate than the fuel guage :).
When you replaced the bushings did you have all four wheels aligned? having the rear off by just a little will make an impact (more wagging).
Otherwise, I recommend you take it out on the ice and practice when no other cars are around to avoid over correcting (spinning) and try down shifting on the ice when turning, you can steer the rear with the gas pedal if you don't have an LSD. :)

Good luck and enjoy.

-Erik

Most guys seem to like squatty tires. I don't because they reduce ground
clearance and effective rear end ratio and I don't feel like the car handles
better. I'm using 195-75/15 tires on mine on stock wheels. They are readily
available (although size varies with brand - you need smaller ones in this size)
and look pretty normal for as big as they are, especially with the thin white
sidewall.
Did you get rubber or harder upper A-frame and panard rod bushings? I like
the hard ones (urethane, delrin, etc available from several suppliers).

Is your steering box good and tight?

Make sure your alignment is right, just a smidge of toe-in and about zero
caster and camber. A little toe-out will really make it steer all over.

I would think that the heavier sway bar would be better too.

BTW I have been driving 122s since 1970 and 220s since 1984. I have two of
them now, both 1966. To the best of my knowledge there are not a bunch of
different stock wheels for the 122 unless you have the later 4¼" bolt circle.
(Most are 4½".)
--
George Downs Bartlesville, Heart of the USA!

We used to have some Goodyear Wranglers on my beater BroncoII - got them as new take-offs from a Jeep for a price that was hard to refuse. They transformed the Bronco into a scary nervous mess at highway speeds. Just too much sidewall flex - tall squishy tires combined with the bronco's short wheelbase and you'd get into a sort of feedback loop with it if you tried to correct the gentle swaying too much. I think it was more of a sensation of an impending loss of control than a reality, but it was hard to untrain yourself to counter steer when you felt the tail waggling around a little. Never could cure it, finally got rid of the dreaded cheap Wranglers and put on a nice set of Michelin SUV tires and it tracks straight as an arrow now.

Similarly, I once temporarily ruined the handling on the Miata i used to have when I replaced the *excellent* original set of Bridgestones with a set of Pirelli's. Instanly, the same thing - a squirmy unsettled feel at highway speeds, that couldn't be 'tuned' away by altering the tire pressure.

Which brings up the final point - tuning the feel with tire pressure. Altering the pressure will make some subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) changes in the way the sidewalls deflect. (This is in addition to the why it changes how the tread sits on the pavement for better or worse). Generally speaking, more air pressure results in a stiffer tire. This has more to do with the transient feel as the tire goes from straight ahead to cornering, and not quite as much when in a steady state pull, but often the small things that happen in transition affect what the car does a little later - a little tail wag in transition can result in a full on slide once the car has started to rotate that way. So (within reason) you can tweak the handling from under to oversteer and back again by varying the pressures front to rear. The Miata was very sensitive to this - moving from predictable understeer to exciting voersteer within a range of only about 5 psi differential from front to rear. My suggestion to you would be to try a good 4 to 6 psi more in the rears than in the fronts (like 30/36) and see how that feels. If still a little to squirmy, try moving all the pressures up slightly (32/38) - until you hit the max pressure. Of course, at some point you might slightly reduce the traction by overinflating the tire relative to the load it is carrying - but generally I think you notice the feel of the tire a lot more than you notice the absolute grip.
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I'm JohnMc, and I approved this message.

Few things... Why did you remove the thicker front swaybar? 195-70s are going to be a lot taller, are you looking for taller and/or wider? I'd go for 195-65s, they're what I currently have on my 142. I've never been a fan of Michelins, too spendy for what you get. Which model tires do you have? Wider wheels help with the feel a little bit if you have skinny ones. What are the part nubmers? I think George knows some of the part numbers. I can check mine on the 142, they're 5.5" wide. The thicker swaybar will help with the uneasy feelings on the highway, and keep the car more stable in all situations.

You say it feels as if there's a lot of weight in the back, what makes you feel like this is the problem? I think it's normal for the PVs to be a little tail happy, but I don't actually own one nor have I driven one so I don't know from experience. The thicker front bar would help with this in most all cases. Why did you remove it?
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Kyle - '68 142? - Oregon Volvo Tuners?