I guess I would ask if it weren't rubbing would you otherwise be happy with everything? Because the suspension is working as designed, and everything about suspension is about compromise. You can have it harder so it travels less, but that will make the ride noiser and less comfortable. It will make your passengers less comfortable and it will cause more vibration and maybe even cause damage to your cargo. That said, I lower all my cars (which automatically limits travel through stiffer springs) and the trade off of all those same things is worth it to me.

My point is that if the car is handling fine and you'd be happy if it weren't rubbing, then your answer is to just knock a few mm off your spacers and be done with it, because it's purely a perception issue. You say it "shouldn't" travel that much, yet clearly that's what it's designed to do given the target market parameters. If the suspension ony traveled 3 inches versus four what does that even mean? It does have to be able to travel 4 inches, so if you stiffen it up it'll just travel that far less often, rather than not doing it at all.

If you're committed to reducing the travel, a firmer spring will help, as well as an air bag type helper system. I would not do anything you can get generically off the shelf at an auto parts store. It wouldn't surprise me if Volvo even had OEM overload coils as part of a towing package that you can buy. Unfortunately all I do is lower my cars so I can't help with stock height overload parts.

I do understand wanting your car to be exactly the way you want it, so good luck and report back if you find something that satisfies you.

 

I also always lower my cars, and was going to lower the XC originally. My other car is lowered and handles amazing, as were most previous cars, including the 855 T5 I used for work prior to the XC. But the thicker fender edges with the cladding deterred me. And the ride quality and ground clearance have grown on me for the purposes of this (my work-only) car.. The work stuff in the back has weighed down the rear about 1", so I trimmed a bit off the front coils to level it out. Ride quality is very good, and has grown on me. Handling still leaves a bit to be desired, but the R rear sway helped a LOT. Going from 14mm to 20mm was a nice improvement.

The rub itself is not what bothers me, nor is it what I am seeking a solution for. And obviously, I can do the math to realize a smaller spacer will solve that, Mr. "un-friggen believable!!!"... But I would sooner trim or roll the inner edge of the fender. It only rubs in one small spot, and its 2mm tops.

My concern is that the spot where the tire rubs is ~3.5" from the spot it hits the fender liner when the car is stationary and flat. I almost never have passengers in this car. Just me (~200 lbs) and 200-250lbs of crap in the hatch & back seat floor. Far from "loaded", like it would be with 5 people and hatch full of luggage etc. And yet somehow a small dip in the road or highway is enough to cause the rear suspension to drop 3.5". This seems very excessive to me, as if maybe the rear springs are worn, or possibly the bump stops are too small/worn. The front wheels sit just as flush, and have the same ~3.5" gap from tire to fender, and they do not rub..

I'd like to stiffen the rear so it travels that far less often, as you put it. Ideally, I would prefer the stiffness and handling of an H&R spring, without the drastic drop. When I researched lowering the car, everything involved making it basically a lowered V70 AWD, no longer a lowered XC. And that was too drastic of a drop for what I wanted. And the thicker fender cladding of the XC would require sucked-under wheels to tuck it. I would rather be flush & have the higher height. It's growing on me. But I hear you, I am always a lowered car guy..

I remember seeing overload springs for my old 850, but can't seem to find them for the P2 XC. That would ideally work I think. I was hoping the shocks would have helped more, and that there was an upgraded (Bilstein) shock available. The old struts were definitely shot and not damping right, but I need a bit more. I was also hoping to not have to change & remove the spring again since I just did that and it was a pain in the ass..

 

Because you don't want to remove the oversized spacers, WE should worry about your issue (if you want to call it that)?
Try a spacer that's 2-4mm smaller, if you can't find one, machine yours.

That's probably all you need...from 2 to 4 mm thinner..... un-friggen believable!!! :facepalm:

 

Try putting somewhat close to a proper size tire, wheel and spacer combination on it.
You're not going to get much sympathy here.

They can be lowered as much as lowered R (which would be nearly 3" from stock XC height) and with the right tire, 17 or 18" and wheel combo will NOT rub and handle quite well.
Instead of your childish bitching and moaning, go to www.XC70.com and find some pictures over there of lowered XCs.

I'll do your work for you
http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showthread.php?20997-Lets-see-your-lowered-XC70&highlight=lowered+xcs
Eh, never mind, I see you've already been there and arguing with people who told you how to lower an XC properly

 

Try putting somewhat close to a proper size tire, wheel and spacer combination on it.
You're not going to get much sympathy here.

They can be lowered as much as lowered R (which would be nearly 3" from stock XC height) and with the right tire, 17 or 18" and wheel combo will NOT rub and handle quite well.
Instead of your childish bitching and moaning, go to www.XC70.com and find some pictures over there of lowered XCs.

I'll do your work for you
http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showthread.php?20997-Lets-see-your-lowered-XC70&highlight=lowered+xcs

Not sure what is prompting the attitude there guy, but nobody is being childish. Nor am I looking for even the slightest bit of "sympathy". My tires have a whopping 3mm more radius than stock, plenty proper. And the same size TireRack suggests for 18s on an XC, but what do they know.. Also not looking for how to lower my XC. And I will say again, I am not looking to solve the rub, as the solution to that is obvious. As stated in the title and every post, I am looking to tighten or stiffen the rear to have less easy suspension travel. Such as an overload coil etc.

Seriously, drop the attitude JRL. I'm not sure why you interpret my posts as childish bitching, but they are not. I am not complaining or looking for sympathy, and far from a child or acting like one..

 

Custom springs.

 

Or maybe airbag helper springs. If you can find some of those to fit this car, they're custom tunable.

 

do they make air shocks for these? they were great on my old el camino when i needed to haul heavy loads.

 

Whats the average life of a standard OEM coil spring? Do they soften over time? Maybe thats my issue. I've never had them 'go bad' before but who knows..

 

80-90k miles.

And yes.