Upgrading my volvo s80 t6

itskewldank · Post by **itskewldank** » 16 Oct 2007, 18:18

Whats up everyone, i am new on this furm, but let me inform you of what i am driving with. I have a 1999 Volvo s80t6 and i love the car. I have 128600miles on the beast. Ive put in my own 360degree cold-air intake, since ive put this in i have gotton a little better results, nothing out of this world but enough to notice some improvement... Now what i really want to do is put a blow off valve on for my turbos, get an ecu upgrade and an exhaust upgrade, but one thing at a time, i would really like a blow off valve but i do not know what kind i should get or anything. Ive looked around, but would any universal one do???? The next thing i would like to do is do an exhaust. I was woundering, since i have two muffles for my car, could i cut off both of then and then add just one performance muffler???? Any help would be great.
Volvo all the way baby

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 16 Oct 2007, 19:28

You might want to read this: http://volvospeed.com/vs_forum/lofivers ... 84903.html

Post by **vegasjetskier** » 23 Dec 2007, 15:39

The main problem I see is getting the power to the ground. The T6 already produces enough torque to spin the front tires at wide-open throttle. As you accelerate, weight shifts from the front to the rear end, reducing traction. If one or both of the tires start to spin, the traction control reduces power from the engine to reduce the spinning. If the STC is on, it will actually apply the brake

on the side that is spinning more. The first thing I would do is upgrade the wheels/tires combo to some wider and/or stickier rubber. I don't know how big you can go and still get them under the fenders without rubbing. My car has the stock 225/50/17s on it and there are some slight rub marks on the insides of the fender liners.

The next thing I would do is upgrade the brakes with some crossdrilled and/or slotted rotors and ceramic brake pads. This should help substantially in the stopping department.

Now what i really want to do is put a blow off valve on for my turbos, get an ecu upgrade and an exhaust upgrade, but one thing at a time, i would really like a blow off valve but i do not know what kind i should get or anything. Ive looked around, but would any universal one do????

I'm not sure why you want the blowoff valve? Is it to make noise? The purpose of the valve is to keep the turbo spooled up when you're running hard (i.e. racing) and the throttle slams shut. Instead of creating a lot of backpressure on the turbo compressor section, slowing the turbo, the blowoff valve vents the pressure, allowing the turbine to stay spooled up. This is OK for manual transmission cars, but you have an automatic. When you floor it the transmission shifts up through the gears without you having to let off the throttle, so I don't see how you're going to benefit much from a blowoff valve. Also, the air the valve vents has already been measured, so your mixture will go rich, which can create some problems with your catalytic converters.

I think your best bet for increased power is a boost controller. I used to have a Mitsu 3000 GT VR-4. The 1st Generation had 300 HP with 6 psi boost. For Gen 2, they got 320 HP just by increasing the boost to 9 psi. Many owners added an aftermarket boost controller and got up to 400HP.
But that car had all-wheel-drive and the T6 is front-wheel-drive, so you're back to the problem of getting the power to the ground.

Keep us posted on your mods as you progress.