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How to make my V70 XC powerful?

Help, Advice and DIY Tutorials on Volvo's P80 platform cars -- Volvo's 1990s "bread and butter" cars -- powered by the ubiquitous and durable Volvo inline 5-cylinder engine.

1992 - 1997 850, including 850 R, 850 T-5R, 850 T-5, 850 GLT
1997 - 2000 S70, S70 AWD
1997 - 2000 V70, V70 AWD
1997 - 2000 V70-XC
1997 - 2004 C70

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Rattnalle
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Re: How to make my V70 XC powerful?

Post by Rattnalle »

Isn't there a 1000 hp PV544 around somewhere..? I've probably seen it on YouTube.

tryingbe
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Post by tryingbe »

How much $$$$$ do you have for this quest?
85 GLH, 367 whp
00 Insight, 72 mpg

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bmdubya1198
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Post by bmdubya1198 »

First off, welcome!

I didn't read through the entire thread, but I'm just going to add my $0.02. 500-600 hp is a lot to ask out of one of these engines. You will undoubtedly need to tear it down and build it up to achieve this. Stock internals likely won't handle it.

Secondly, you will not be able to use an automatic transmission without a lot of fabrication work (read: a stronger transmission). Most of us performance oriented guys just manual swap, as these autos are good for about 300 whp (I don't know this from experience, this just seems to be the general consensus). Or in my case just because I hate autos!

As for the exhaust, do NOT dump it right below yourself. My cousin's V70 was like that when he picked it up and the drone was absolutely unbearable. It rattled your brain.
The closed/dummy muffler on the driver's side is stock for AWD models other than the 2000 R, that's just how Volvo made them.

There are no OBD2 "tuners" or "chips" that will work effectively for what you want to achieve. You'll need a tune from a reputable tuner like Va5t, iPd, or ARD.

Just like the transmission, a twin turbo setup will take a bit of fabrication. There is no bolt-on setup for these 5 cylinders. You'd be better off using a larger single turbo, probably some sort of Garrett with a custom manifold.

As for an intake, iPd makes one that has good feedback, but as with most intakes you're not going to net any significant gains in stock form. Slap-on cone filters aren't going to do much for you without a heat shield and some good ducting.
There's also the Simota CCI intake that ViVA sells. It's a little pricey, but it has good feedback. Both would pair best with Snabb's intake elbow for maximum flow.
You're not going to find a cheap intake unless you make one yourself.

I'm usually pretty optimistic, and I hate seeing people say "that can't be done" on threads like this (you can do anything you set your mind to, it's just a lot easier if you have deep pockets!) but these are big goals. If you're planning on using the car to tow a tiny house cross country ( :mrgreen: ) you'll probably want to either hold off or use a different car. Your best bet is to do a stage zero and enjoy the car. However if you really want to build something crazy, it can totally be done. You'll just want to do a LOT of reading.

I recommend checking out Volvospeed. A user "lookforjoe" built a V70XC that made over 400 AWHP, but it wasn't just a bolt-on matter. He used an M66 (AWD manual transmission). His build is well-documented, and I suggest you read through his posts. Another user named "Dougy" has (or had, not sure if he sold them yet) an 850 T5 and an S60R, both automatic, making something like 300-400+ HP and 600+ HP, respectively. I don't know exactly what he did to hold that kind of power on an automatic, but I'm sure if you look around you can find out.

Best of luck with your build, and keep us posted if you decide to go through with it!
00 V70R Venetian Red/Charcoal M56 Swapped 214k
07 XC90 V8 AWD Sport Titanium Grey/Black 220k
92 245 White/Beige 249k
91 944 Turbo 175k
…and a bunch of other stuff
Sold-
03 S60 2.4T
00 S70 GLT
98 V70 GLT
93 944
98 S90
95 850 GLT
01 S60 2.4T
05 S60R M66
08 S40 2.4i
88 744 Turbo M46

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CIK7
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Post by CIK7 »

bmdubya1198 wrote: 15 Jan 2019, 17:40 First off, welcome!

I didn't read through the entire thread, but I'm just going to add my $0.02. 500-600 hp is a lot to ask out of one of these engines. You will undoubtedly need to tear it down and build it up to achieve this. Stock internals likely won't handle it.

Secondly, you will not be able to use an automatic transmission without a lot of fabrication work (read: a stronger transmission). Most of us performance oriented guys just manual swap, as these autos are good for about 300 whp (I don't know this from experience, this just seems to be the general consensus). Or in my case just because I hate autos!

As for the exhaust, do NOT dump it right below yourself. My cousin's V70 was like that when he picked it up and the drone was absolutely unbearable. It rattled your brain.
The closed/dummy muffler on the driver's side is stock for AWD models other than the 2000 R, that's just how Volvo made them.

There are no OBD2 "tuners" or "chips" that will work effectively for what you want to achieve. You'll need a tune from a reputable tuner like Va5t, iPd, or ARD.

Just like the transmission, a twin turbo setup will take a bit of fabrication. There is no bolt-on setup for these 5 cylinders. You'd be better off using a larger single turbo, probably some sort of Garrett with a custom manifold.

As for an intake, iPd makes one that has good feedback, but as with most intakes you're not going to net any significant gains in stock form. Slap-on cone filters aren't going to do much for you without a heat shield and some good ducting.
There's also the Simota CCI intake that ViVA sells. It's a little pricey, but it has good feedback. Both would pair best with Snabb's intake elbow for maximum flow.
You're not going to find a cheap intake unless you make one yourself.

I'm usually pretty optimistic, and I hate seeing people say "that can't be done" on threads like this (you can do anything you set your mind to, it's just a lot easier if you have deep pockets!) but these are big goals. If you're planning on using the car to tow a tiny house cross country ( :mrgreen: ) you'll probably want to either hold off or use a different car. Your best bet is to do a stage zero and enjoy the car. However if you really want to build something crazy, it can totally be done. You'll just want to do a LOT of reading.

I recommend checking out Volvospeed. A user "lookforjoe" built a V70XC that made over 400 AWHP, but it wasn't just a bolt-on matter. He used an M66 (AWD manual transmission). His build is well-documented, and I suggest you read through his posts. Another user named "Dougy" has (or had, not sure if he sold them yet) an 850 T5 and an S60R, both automatic, making something like 300-400+ HP and 600+ HP, respectively. I don't know exactly what he did to hold that kind of power on an automatic, but I'm sure if you look around you can find out.

Best of luck with your build, and keep us posted if you decide to go through with it!
Thank ypu so much very helpful!
95 854 Turbo 258K, auto, current
09 Rav4 Ltd3.5Fwd, red, 208K, current
98 V GLE/SE red, 379k (277k), 5sp, trailer in progress...
05 CRV EX AWD, Navy, 170K/184k, sold
03 Accord 2dr V6 silver, 196K/214K, 6sp, t-boned, sold
98 S GT white, 175K, 5sp, sold
96 964 silver, 146K, diff&trans/engine self-destr, crushed 😭
98 XC black, 151K, flooded&bent rod, crushed
01 V Base white, 168k, traded for XC
09 Impala LT1 gray, 196K, sold for 01

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BEJinFbk
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Post by BEJinFbk »

Here’s “Look for Joe’s” trail of XR bread crumbs:
http://volvospeed.com/vs_forum/topic/11 ... try2231555

And an Excellent AWD component sticky from over at SS:
https://forums.swedespeed.com/showthrea ... s-Listings
'98 V70 R - Well Equipped for Life Up North... ;)

scot850
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Post by scot850 »

4 speed autos are rated to 320bhp. There is a guy in our province trying to sell a 400bhp 850 with an auto trans. I wish him luck!

I knew of an 850 (FWD) that had close to 500bhp, but it was built at huge cost for the owner by TWR in England. They ran the racing 850's and Arrows F-1 team as well as Jaguar racing. The engine had many custom parts including pistons. Hate to even think what it cost!

My 2000 V70R with the standard engine has been tuned by Rica software to supposedly run 312bhp and close to 300ft/lb torque. It goes well but again with auto trans and the AWD I expect some issues down the line!

Neil.
2006 V70 2.5T AWD Polestar tune
2000 V70 R - still being an endless PITA
2006 XC70 - Our son now has this and still parked in our garage
2003 Toyota 4Runner V8 Limited
2015 Kia Sportage EX-L - Sold
1993 850 GLT -Sold
1998 V70 XC - Sold
1997 Volvo 850 SE NA - Went to niece in California - Sold
2000 V70 SE NA - Sold

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CIK7
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Post by CIK7 »

scot850 wrote: 15 Jan 2019, 19:40 4 speed autos are rated to 320bhp. There is a guy in our province trying to sell a 400bhp 850 with an auto trans. I wish him luck!

I knew of an 850 (FWD) that had close to 500bhp, but it was built at huge cost for the owner by TWR in England. They ran the racing 850's and Arrows F-1 team as well as Jaguar racing. The engine had many custom parts including pistons. Hate to even think what it cost!

My 2000 V70R with the standard engine has been tuned by Rica software to supposedly run 312bhp and close to 300ft/lb torque. It goes well but again with auto trans and the AWD I expect some issues down the line!

Neil.
Thank you again Neil!
95 854 Turbo 258K, auto, current
09 Rav4 Ltd3.5Fwd, red, 208K, current
98 V GLE/SE red, 379k (277k), 5sp, trailer in progress...
05 CRV EX AWD, Navy, 170K/184k, sold
03 Accord 2dr V6 silver, 196K/214K, 6sp, t-boned, sold
98 S GT white, 175K, 5sp, sold
96 964 silver, 146K, diff&trans/engine self-destr, crushed 😭
98 XC black, 151K, flooded&bent rod, crushed
01 V Base white, 168k, traded for XC
09 Impala LT1 gray, 196K, sold for 01

Sommerfeldt
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Post by Sommerfeldt »

I second taking a look at those builds bmdubya mentions - the S60 “Dougy” at SS built (is building?) is insane, and there’s about a thousand pictures and a massive amount of info available. :D

- S
2018 S90 T8 Inscription - glossy black with amber interior and dark as night rear windows.
[Gone] '96 855 T5 - R bumper and spoiler, Koni Yellows & blue H&R springs all 'round.
[Sold] '97 S70 T5
[Gone] '95 855 T5-R - one of the black ones... sadly stolen and wrecked.

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bmdubya1198
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Post by bmdubya1198 »

Sommerfeldt wrote: 15 Jan 2019, 21:50 I second taking a look at those builds bmdubya mentions - the S60 “Dougy” at SS built (is building?) is insane, and there’s about a thousand pictures and a massive amount of info available. :D

- S
That car is for sale currently, so I guess "built"!
00 V70R Venetian Red/Charcoal M56 Swapped 214k
07 XC90 V8 AWD Sport Titanium Grey/Black 220k
92 245 White/Beige 249k
91 944 Turbo 175k
…and a bunch of other stuff
Sold-
03 S60 2.4T
00 S70 GLT
98 V70 GLT
93 944
98 S90
95 850 GLT
01 S60 2.4T
05 S60R M66
08 S40 2.4i
88 744 Turbo M46

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Rattnalle
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Post by Rattnalle »

Speaking about what's possible with enough work.

https://engineswapdepot.com/?p=35398

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