[Adam.Nonis]

Back when my New-To-Me V70R got hit I needed something to drive in the meantime. I wanted something that could be a potential donor chassis for everything from the V70R. After looking around for a bit a found a 99 V70XC and was really smitten with the red. I typically don’t like red, but I do on this car for some reason.

Driving home after a standardly awkward Craigslist car purchase.

The first steps were to do some maintenance and clean up the car. I can’t believe how dirty it was. The doors would NOT come clean. Until I found the the magic goods!

After driving it for a while, I had trouble with the saggy butt and an easier fix (for me) was to bring the front down to match. Also, some of it was preparation for either fixing the VR or making this into a XCR. So....I found sleeves that would fit the P80 strut tubes. Found out that a 2.5” coilover spring just about seats in the inner pocket on iPd HD spring seats.

That got me to here

 

[Adam.Nonis]

Next thing I did was delete the cat. It was rattling. Also changed out a really bad couple of motor mounts.

By this time, the insurance decided not to total out the VR, so I convinced my awesome wife to let me keep this P80 as well and it will be the “shop truck”. So, since I had one lowered P80, I figured I might as well have one lifted too. After some research, I decided to start out with some suspension spacer type lift stuff.

For the fronts, I spun the coilovers up almost all the way and put 1.3” UHMWPE spacers about the top mounts

For the rears, I made a 1” spacer for above the spring top mount and 1.3” spacer to go under the rear spring. I also relocated the rear shock lower mount to the top of the control arm

That gets me to here. I have plans to change out the springs front and rear to taller pieces. Also going to make subframe spacers front and rear

Next will be a custom roof rack and skid plates. Then on to some bigger changes. All of this will be slower progressing than the VR did.

 

[mattlach]

Nice work.

I'm amazed that the seller would leave all the garbage in the car when selling it.

Every car I've ever sold has gotten the best detail I can give it before the sale, to entice as many buyers as possible.

 

[mattlach]

Ive never heard of anyone lifting a V70 XC (I also haven't looked very hard, so maybe it is more common than I realize)

How does it drive after the modification? I would be worried it might be less confident on the road.

 

[Adam.Nonis]

Ive never heard of anyone lifting a V70 XC (I also haven't looked very hard, so maybe it is more common than I realize)

How does it drive after the modification? I would be worried it might be less confident on the road.

Not super common, but definitely a group of people who do it. More P2s than P80s though. So far, so good, but I’ve had lots of lowered cars in my life, this is just the other way.

Nice work.

I'm amazed that the seller would leave all the garbage in the car when selling it.

Every car I've ever sold has gotten the best detail I can give it before the sale, to entice as many buyers as possible.

Far more people out there consider Volvos disposable than the other way. There was soooo much wrong with this car that the previous owner hid. Check engine and ETM bulbs were removed from the cluster. The cluster is out of a 50k mile lower S70. The thermostat had the center removed. And the rear has one Nivomat and one non-Nivomat

 

[jstrat85]

How does the car sound with the cat delete? I was thinking about doing the same thing.

 

[Adam.Nonis]

How does the car sound with the cat delete? I was thinking about doing the same thing.

Barely noticeable. Little more turbo whistle sounds.

 

[jstrat85]

Really.

 

[Adam.Nonis]

Ya

 

[jstrat85]

Ya

That sucks.

 

[CYB3RBYTE]

Been in the same boat, thought I was getting a 157k car for $400.

SIKE, 216k lol. With the check engine bulb out.

 

[PresseR]

Next thing I did was delete the cat. It was rattling. Also changed out a really bad couple of motor mounts.

By this time, the insurance decided not to total out the VR, so I convinced my awesome wife to let me keep this P80 as well and it will be the “shop truck”. So, since I had one lowered P80, I figured I might as well have one lifted too. After some research, I decided to start out with some suspension spacer type lift stuff.

For the fronts, I spun the coilovers up almost all the way and put 1.3” UHMWPE spacers about the top mounts

For the rears, I made a 1” spacer for above the spring top mount and 1.3” spacer to go under the rear spring. I also relocated the rear shock lower mount to the top of the control arm

That gets me to here. I have plans to change out the springs front and rear to taller pieces. Also going to make subframe spacers front and rear

Next will be a custom roof rack and skid plates. Then on to some bigger changes. All of this will be slower progressing than the VR did.

This is great. Yeah you don't see many p80s sitting higher on all terrains. I've been wanting to go this direction with my '99 V70R daily.

So in the front...that's the coil spring sleeves adjusted upwards all the way?

Are they 10-in springs or...?

And lastly, Did you have to remove a material from the IPD spring seat?

Looking to do this and appreciate you leading the way. I'm just hoping my fabrication skills can rise towards yours to get it done.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[tuner4life]

I have been thinking about doing this exact thing to an XC for a few years now. Glad to see someone taking the plunge. This is cool! Can't wait to see it with the tires on

 

[Adam.Nonis]

I have been thinking about doing this exact thing to an XC for a few years now. Glad to see someone taking the plunge. This is cool! Can't wait to see it with the tires on

This is great. Yeah you don't see many p80s sitting higher on all terrains. I've been wanting to go this direction with my '99 V70R daily.

So in the front...that's the coil spring sleeves adjusted upwards all the way?

Are they 10-in springs or...?

And lastly, Did you have to remove a material from the IPD spring seat?

Looking to do this and appreciate you leading the way. I'm just hoping my fabrication skills can rise towards yours to get it done.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Exactly. These sleeves:

Coil Over Kit, 5 Sleeve, 2 Body for QA1 Shock https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075NQHB6Z/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_u6XPEbWRMP1T3

And these springs (10” 275lb 2.5” coilover spring)

Eibach 1000-250-0275 (2.5" ID) 10" Coil Over Spring https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003TPJDLA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_W6XPEb1TRKMBM

300lb is a good rate too, but a little stiffer and I wanted these soft-ish.

Plus the 1.3” top plate spacers. I am going to buy some 12” springs though. I’d like a little more adjustment available up front. Before long I’ll be swapping the back out to 14” 300lb 3” coilover springs. And deleting all the spacer stuff I have going on.

 

[Adam.Nonis]

This is great. Yeah you don't see many p80s sitting higher on all terrains. I've been wanting to go this direction with my '99 V70R daily.

So in the front...that's the coil spring sleeves adjusted upwards all the way?

Are they 10-in springs or...?

And lastly, Did you have to remove a material from the IPD spring seat?

Looking to do this and appreciate you leading the way. I'm just hoping my fabrication skills can rise towards yours to get it done.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Sorry, I missed the last one, yes, you have to remove a teeny tiny amount. I did the first set on my CNC , but the second set with my die grinder. You also need a special top washer. If you run with no upper washer the strut can punch through the upper mount, but the OEM one (attaches to the top of the bump stop, I think) won’t fit inside a 2.5” coilover spring. I’ll see if I can measure it, but I thinks it’s a standard size washer (I got mine at Tacoma Screw).

 

[Adam.Nonis]

Got some new tires and different wheels. I’m gonna put 302s on this weekend.

Then I had an idea. With a set of really low mile P2 front struts hanging out and the set of OE struts from the XC kicking around, soooooo....

Waiting on some laser cut reinforcement plates to show up next week and I’ll pop these in. I actually might wait until I have some taller front springs. I’m mostly doing this so I can pull the top mount spacers out. I wasn’t thrilled about the fact that the upper strut mount isn’t flat, but I’m just tightening down everything as if it was.

 

[Adam.Nonis]

Upgrading the brakes with the parts I pulled off of the New-to-me V70R. 302mm fronts and vented rears. This car is the gift that keeps on giving though. I knew the parking brake cable was broken from when I first swapped different wheels on (well, from the first time I tried to use the parking brake).

But I didn’t know that when I pulled this rear rotor off...

That I would find this.....

Or, more to the point, the lack of this...

So, now I gotta round up a bunch of parking brake stuff.

 

[Adam.Nonis]

Vented rears

302’s just barely clear 16” wheels

 

[PresseR]

It's like you can see my Volvo daydreams and make them reality.

Have you done the subframe spacers on this?

Does the AWD work on this car? In considering raising my car, I had concerns that radical suspension changes could wreak havoc on the bevel gear with these cars.

 

[Adam.Nonis]

It's like you can see my Volvo daydreams and make them reality.

Have you done the subframe spacers on this?

Does the AWD work on this car? In considering raising my car, I had concerns that radical suspension changes could wreak havoc on the bevel gear with these cars.

I’m working on the subframe stuff next. Here’s the thing to note though, lowering the front subframe is ONLY to help control arm and axle angles. Since the strut upper mount is attached to the body, it doesn’t increase lift at all, while lowering the rear subframe (on a P80) ONLY adds lift and DOESN’T help control arm and axle angles. This is because the upper spring mount is built into the rear subframe. You would want to lower both the same amount though (in my opinion) to maintain the alignment of the AWD driveshaft. When I was doing the brakes, I lowered the front subframe to take measurements of everything I could and I found that I couldn’t even lower the front subframe an inch before the steering shaft bound on the firewall opening.

Whereas everything I’ve heard about P2s is that you don’t run into this issue until about 2” of subframe drop. So, my plan is to lower the subframe 1” and raise the steering rack on the subframe 1/2”. I know it’ll technically change the bumpsteer, but I’m willing to give it a shot and test drive it a bit to see.

As far as I know the AWD works and I wouldn’t think anything I did would change that. I’ve had a few really lowered AWD Volvos with no issues and these axle angles are similar, just the other direction. Nothing angular has changed between the bevel gear and the rear differential.