GTP Cool Wall: Volvo 240 Estate Turbo

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Volvo 240 Estate Turbo

  • Total voters
    87
  • Poll closed .
TheBook

TheBook

Literary Member
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Sturgis, MI
GTP_ty00123
1981-1985 Volvo 240 Estate Turbo

245turbo.jpg


Specs:

Wheelbase: 104.3 in (2649 mm)
Length: 190.7 in (4844 mm)
Weight: 3,132 lb (1,421 kg)

Transmissions: 4-speed manual with electrical overdrive, 5-speed manual
Engine: B21ET (2.1 litre, 4 cylinder, 8 valve, turbo-charged)
Power: 153 bhp (114 kW)
Torque: 240 Nm (177 ft·lb)

Top speed: 197 km/h (122 mph)

0-100 km/h (0-62 mph): 9.3 sec​
 
I don't know who was nuts enough to nominate this but I'll surely be nuts enough to give it its first and possibly only Sub-Zero. Those looks combined to a turbo engine with quite a boost kick, and up to 180 bhp from the factory with an optional intercooler kit. Not to mention that it has 50/50 weight distribution which nobody believes anyway but it's still true. Arguably also the fastest mass produced estate in the world by the time of its introduction.
 
Turbo bricks are cool, and this one is cooler than most since it's RWD. I'd rock one.
 
Greycap
I don't know who was nuts enough to nominate this but I'll surely be nuts enough to give it its first and possibly only Sub-Zero.
Click to expand...

I totally backed you on the Sub-Zero.

There are very, very few cars that rival the 240 Estate for coolness-per-dollar. The only other that comes close is the Saab 900. Nothing else has the same character, life force, soul or interesting-factor as the 240 Estate. Usually rarity adds to coolness, but the commonness of these 25 year-old economy cars attest to their might and continuity, adding to their cool factor. If I had to own a car right now, the 240 Estate would be on the top of the list because of its cool factor.

True stories:

I had a friend who bought a 240 off of craigslist just to have a larger car for a weekend of moving. Within the 48 hours he planned on owning the thing, he fell in love and still drives it to this day.

Another buddy has one, but it refuses to die. He doesn't like it much (because he really isn't a cool guy) but refuses to buy anything before the thing dies. It just doesn't, and is pushing a half million or something ludicrous like that. The 240 has become part of its driver's character, something that few cars are capable of.
 
Seriously uncool.

It's a wagon, it's a Volvo, it's a Volvo wagon.

My neighbor used to have one, it was a POS. Only "cool" thing about it was that it was able to punt a soccer ball a great distance. Ah, memories.
 
Meh.

It's a great car, but there just isn't anything that says "cool" or "uncool" though.
 
exigeracer
There are very, very few cars that rival the 240 Estate for coolness-per-dollar. The only other that comes close is the Saab 900.
Click to expand...

Driven both as both have been in the family, the Saab was my dad's and the brick is my own. Driven them quite a lot. And the Volvo is a driver's car to a far greater extent than the Saab. The Saab is... with one word, quirky. But admittedly cool in its own odd rights.

exigeracer
Nothing else has the same character, life force, soul or interesting-factor as the 240 Estate... If I had to own a car right now, the 240 Estate would be on the top of the list because of its cool factor.
Click to expand...

Character? Tons of. Life force? Tell me about it. 200.000+ miles on the clock and the engine doesn't have an idea of what a side note is. Soul? Exceeds even the amount of character by a fair margin. You'll have to own or at least drive one to really realize it. But interesting-factor... I still wouldn't say so. Actually those stories of yours describe it very well, I'll add one of my own.

When I bought mine in early 2008 the plan was to have it as my first car, learn to really drive in it, and then upgrade to a 940 Turbo or something like that in about two years. Well, now it's spring 2010, those two years have passed by. The 240 is still standing there in my parking space having turned me into another old school Volvo enthusiast, looking and running better than ever and I'm actually beginning to think I'll never sell it - I'll buy something else and keep this as a memento. It won't die on me and I could make not much more than 1000€ by selling it. I'll save that kind of money in two or three months by not buying unnecessary stuff. It's just worth so much more, the sentimental value alone is immeasurable as it's been my trusty transportation during many of the most memorable situations in my life. And as with your buddy #2, it's become a part of my own character. It feels more like a family member than a car.

The bottom line to really explain its unexplainable appeal... I have the money to buy something like a Celica GT-Four, or to keep with the Volvo theme, an 850R tomorrow if I want to. And pay for it in cash. But I still choose to sit on the worn seat that feels like it has contoured around my body, fire up that old red block and turn the Great White onto the streets once again.
 
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Also meh.

It's a model I've never seen in real life, which surprises me, but even though it has a turbo an can do 0-60 in 9.3 seconds (pretty good for a wagon), there aren't any qualities that make cool or uncool.
 
ever station wagon ever made is cool. add turbo, nice wheels and interestingness and it really, really climbs. It's reliability and box-lines seal the deal for me. And I have never seen one.
 
Sub-Zero, because it is a Volvo. And if it wasn't a Volvo, Sub-Zero, because it is a turbocharged sleeper wagon.

Too bad PD screwed the weight of the Volvo wagon on GT4. 👎
 
Bitchin engine in a.... a wagon?

Meh. Drove one before, quite boring, even with a heavy foot..
 
I've seen loads of them, should try to get one as a spot (might not be a turbo).

Cool, just because it became an icon on the road, find the design a bit heavy though.
 
It's a Lolvo. It's a wagon. It's a Lolvo wagon. With a turbo. And RWD.

Sub-zero. Hit something, said object disintegrates because it's a Volvo. It'll go forever, even when running twice factory power, because it's a Volvo. The cops will pay no attention to it as it's both a Volvo and a wagon, ricers and hoons won't bother you in it even if it's had the boost cranked and the exhaust redone, etc etc.
 
Cool to someone who knows what it is, not cool to someone who doesn't. That means you have to explain it and anything that needs to be explained isn't cool.
 
Let's see. Turbo, check. Rear-wheel-drive, check. Space for a set of trackday tires even if you do get a cage...Check.

Great. Now I want one as a Drift car...

Main problem is finding parts, particularly Speed parts, which is hard to do if you're not Swedish. Fortunately, I have a Swedish friend.

I guess this deserves Sub-Zero. Keeps running.
 
Hmm
1. it's a brick. I like bricks
2. It's a turbo. I like turbos

It's cool 👍
 
What's wrong with putting SBC's in other cars? I see that as awsome. Can't go wrong with more power...
 
Sub-Zero, even if the only reason was for one of the most entertaining 2-lap races on the Nurburgring in GT4.

That, and Volvos are awesome. The people who DRIVE them though, are not.
 
JCE
What's wrong with putting SBC's in other cars? I see that as awsome. Can't go wrong with more power...
Click to expand...

Because it's not exactly creative. The Small Block Chevy is the Rule 34 of automotivedom: if it exists, an SBC has been crammed, shoved, or otherwise placed under the bonnet. or somewhere in the body. The only example where I can think of it being really, truly creative is a certain S2000 that exists on the forums...

Granted, it's not bad with what it does. That's why it's so common. It's just played out, in my mind, especially now, with readily available Small-block Fords and Gen III HEMI engines. Can't stand '32 FORDS with Chevrolet power, even though it's the most common kind of 'rod.

But, eh, this is about Volvos anyway.
 
Cool, I've always loved the 240 volvos and for a station wagon it looks pretty good. I'd get one if I have some extra cash and room. Plus I'm sure it'd look great lowered a tad and a little chamber :)
 
Jim Prower
Because it's not exactly creative. The Small Block Chevy is the Rule 34 of automotivedom: if it exists, an SBC has been crammed, shoved, or otherwise placed under the bonnet. or somewhere in the body. The only example where I can think of it being really, truly creative is a certain S2000 that exists on the forums...

Granted, it's not bad with what it does. That's why it's so common. It's just played out, in my mind, especially now, with readily available Small-block Fords and Gen III HEMI engines. Can't stand '32 FORDS with Chevrolet power, even though it's the most common kind of 'rod.

But, eh, this is about Volvos anyway.
Click to expand...

Granted I'd rather have a SBF 302 over the SBC, but that still doesn't mean much when I think it just improves most vehicles they are crammed in. But, alas this is for another topic. :D
 
As a kid my dad had a couple of 240's as company cars. They were awful, awful cars, even compared to the Vauxhall Cavaliers he had before and after. They look terrible too, although the estate is marginally less horrific than the saloon. I can't see that adding a turbo to it makes it that much better either. It's a rose-tinted spectacle car.
 

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