New owner of a 98 C70 T5M

[Revdoc]

Hi everyone, Volvo newbie here but not new to wrenching on cars. I picked up a 98 C70 T5 with a 5 speed (!) the other day for $2500, kind of scary for me because it has 212k miles but it was owned and serviced locally and came with a folder full of maintenance history. It also drives and pulls pretty good. I was really looking for a V70 but when this popped up on Craigslist I jumped on it solely for the manual trans. Pics:

I have been reading a lot and this site has already been a great resource. My plan is to fix what's wrong with the car (front left LCA and tie rod) and get it to Stage 0, then do intake, exhaust, tune and maybe an intercooler/piping upgrade. I had some questions that I haven't searched yet, but maybe if you're responding anyway you can point me in the right direction.

1. How do you remove the 4 bolts through the frame to replace the lower control arm? I have seen videos where you can get a box end wrench on the back side of the bolt, but it is 2-3" from the oil pan so it looks like there's no way to pull them without lifting the engine slightly. Do you just reuse the old bolts?

2. Is the console the same on the C70 auto and C70 manual? My wood trim is messed up under the cup holder and if I have to source it from another manual C70 it might be hard to come by.

3. Is there a shifter upgrade other than the Snabb shift plate that you bolt onto the transmission? And the delrin/steel bushings, of course.

[mecheng]

There should be two bolts through the frame to replace the lower control arm, and it is easy, hold one end with an open end/box wrench and the other loosen with ratchet. The only trick is to make sure you torque the bolts at ride height, I do it with the tires on and sneek under the car.
You can use after market LCA (with somewhat shorter life), but I would stick with OEM tie rod.

For the shifter upgrade, I believe there is a post with a modified bushing.

Nice car btw, it does have high mileage but looks great. Before you go throwing tonnes of money at it, I would do a compression test to make sure the engine is healthy. Adjusting the waste gate does wonders on these cars too.

[kahl]

I used a off set box end on the BIL C70 convertible. Gets in fine by the oil pan and on the drivers side by the transmission. Flex sockets on the rest. I think it had the four bolt control arms. The convertible also has some frame braces in the front that unbolt to get out of the way.