dmm
https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/ashfield-area/cars-vans-utes/1996-volvo-850t-wagon/1163773855
Seeking some initial guidance please on the suitability of this particular T-5 as the basis for a possible longer-term quick wagon project (wide eyed from too many late night youtube clips of heavily tuned examples getting piloted around the ring).
Most HPT 850s seem to have clocked 200k+ kms and original 850Rs tend to look pretty tired and in need of significant money to sharpen them up. So on a total project budget of say $7-$12k, would economising on the base car with a cheapy like this and allocating most of the funds to full drivetrain rebuild and other components make sense? Or a false economy and better off starting with the best (but affordable) manual 850R to begin with?
Cheers,
goodenough
If you’re willing to put in that amount of time and money. I would go with a rear wheel drive like a 940 turbo or a late 740 turbo with a b230ft. They can be highly modified and In my experience for what it’s worth they are far less problematic at this age and they don’t suffer from torque steer and other issues you get with front wheel drives with excessive power. After owning 2 850s I cant speak too highly of them compared to the older rwd. They say on this forum that if you buy an 850 be prepared to spend another $2000 before you get it up to scratch. So you might be looking at a $2700 already
goodenough
Dash rattles aarrrgghhhhh everything rattles f#£k lol
Spac
Depends on what you want to do with the car once it is finished.
Nothing Cav said is wrong, but none of the problems are insurmountable. If you were able to buy a brand new 240 and a brand new 850, you'd choose the 850 every time - faster, less fuel, quieter, safer, better road holding...
As a road car, I would even question whether the RWD offers any real benefits, despite what the gut feeling might say.
Really, as a project base, the things that you need to fix/change are different, but the cost and amount of work is ultimately similar.
If the car will be daily driven then I would choose the newer car (for all of the practical reasons).
If it is going to be a toy that is used occasionally, then it comes down to your skills and preferences.
jamesinc
@CamZH and Em have done a pretty good job getting an 850 T-5 going fast, maybe check out the build thread to see what might be in store.
https://ozvolvo.org/discussion/1465/cams-850-t5-wagon-astrid-fringle/
Ex850R
And as @Ghettobird will attest, an LSD added to the fwd will make torque steer go away.
Go for an 850AWD or V70R.
I have had 855R and many v70's, the V70R is just so much better in steering and of course awd and the independent rear suspension too over the fwd variant.
Having many 240s too, I wouldn't like one again.....
nickm
The 850 is a good platform.
The Whiteblock 5 is a far superior engine to a B230 in any tune.
Stock for Stock the 850 T5 is quicker, better handling and stopping and safer than a 740 or 940 T.
Any 9/740 T will require work to get to the base line 850 T5 performance.
Seats are far more comfortable and it has many more creature comforts, abs airbags are standard.
9/740 are easier to work on but the platform is old and to drive daily it feels like an old car.
And unless you want sight line drag strip or burnouts I would lean toward an 850.
Big flag on that car is the water pump. It is cambelt driven and like any modern car cambelt breaks can ruin an engine. Or if it has dumped it's coolant expect it to have been overheated.
Ex850R
Considering the waterpump issues Nick mentioned, if car is nice enough cosmetically then your budget would put a rebuilt later RN motor in there which is a better thing, update to me 4.4 ecu and replace everything that wears, have a good basis (Stage 0) to tune up from.
goodenough
It depends if you want to accelerate into corners or out of them as to whether rwd or fwd suits you. The t5 is a quick and strong motor and it was the rest of the car that was the let down for me. Continuous annoying failures amounting to a fast and rattly frustrating car and they are heavy in the front. Literally everything rattles from the dash back. But I did not have the means or know how necessary to solve all the problems as they arose so my attitude towards the 850 models is somewhat invalid. It was just my experience that what can go wrong will f$$$ing go wrong in an 850. Very frustrating car. Would have loved a new one. So I think If it’s a toy car then simpler is funner and still makes good power. ??
goodenough
And yeah 850s do look really good I admit
Jamest5r_
850's are great car's, once you sort the basics out they are reliable and pretty easy to make fast.
Ex850R
All the niggles are easy if you have the time and patience, kits are available and links to repair how tos many. Plenty of help here too!
We here have done it all.
Great car.
Couldn't live without the 5cyl turbo, the comfortable interior that puts many cars to shame.
Parts easy and cheap from USA or UK, FCP Euro in particular, lifetime guarantee on everything including oil filters! Send it back, get new, add some parts in, service items maybe, postage isn't cheap but we'll worth the parts cost savings over buying here, and very fast.
dmm
Thanks all for your sage advice, which I'm progressively digesting.
An 850 wagon is definitely the format I'm after.
Perhaps a holding out for a registered, lower-kms stock T-5 and build it up over time would best suit me (reasonable mechanical skills but limited spare time etc).
Thanks again
Ex850R
Look into an 850 AWD.
Most seem to be manual.
The furphy about angle gears, driveshaft etc is just that, Rob on here has debunked all that in building his awd c70 coupe. Finding bearings at local bearing shop etc. It is a great platform to drive.
Spac
Been a few AWD 855s for sale lately. I'd always choose a manual FWD over an auto AWD, though (and not just for gearbox reliability).
Ex850R
I've had one auto fwd fail but I should have done a repair earlier or I guess new box. Mostly ok on autos on all other ones. Do accumulator mod, it's good.
My only manual was the 96 855 and boy did my knee complain in city driving. Plus, the 1st,2nd ratio change is atrocious, done so to stop wheels pin after the traction control turns off at 40kmph iirc. So you lose boost, bog down and second gear corners become a mad 1st or slow 2nd,hated it on the Great Ocean Road. 6spd swap if you must go manual!
morgan
Having had a an 850r wagon and a 240 turbo , the 240 was more fun but the 850 was a touch faster and better around corners although with the hard suspension it did rattle like I had a tin of marbles in the glove box , and much costlier to maintain
94_850_t5
You just can't beat the growl of a 5 cylinder turbo. I'd buy one just for that :) Having had my 850 t5 for 10 years I can tell you what I'd do!
nickm
dmm
The asking price is now $500 neg. Is anyone in Sydney game enough to buy it, sort the water pump (and hopefully little else) and offer it up for sale back here at members rates?