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This article was first published in 1999.
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History
Volvo introduced its 760 range of vehicles in 1983 and later updated it in 1985
to include the 740 and the 740 turbo. Interestingly in Australia, the early model
760 turbo was released as a virtually identical car to the 1985-debuting 740 turbo
- the 760 varied only by having slightly different trim and spec levels. Released
initially in sedan form, it was in February 1985 that the 740 turbo wagon (Estate)
version was released. The Estate is a car with a rare set of specs indeed - turbo,
rear wheel drive and a wagon. In Australia, at least, only one other car springs
to mind as a competitor - the VL Commodore Turbo, a much more downmarket car in
terms of trim, build quality and safety.
A massive total of 650,443 Seven series Volvos were produced - and note
that depending on the country of release, some of the following specifications may
vary slightly.
Chassis
The 740's chassis is the traditional Volvo layout - front engine and rear wheel
drive. Underneath the front wheel arches are MacPherson struts with an anti-roll
bar, while the rear uses a live axle arrangement comprising, coil springs, telescopic
dampers, trailing arms - another lot of arms - and an anti-roll bar. The braking
system uses ventilated front discs and solid rears. When new, these could pull the
car down from 100 km/h to standstill in 45 metres - Volvo brakes have always been
a strong point of the marque. Its power assisted steering is delivered through a
rack and pinion, which takes 3.5 turns from lock to lock. Handling of the car was
described by contemporary road tests as competent but not inspiring, safe but not
scintillating.
On the outside, the only distinguishing features of the turbo model are the driving
light equipped front spoiler, turbo and intercooler badging, and 15 inch alloy wheels.
Inside the car it's all Volvo styling - which means it's very practical, upright
and a little angular. Leather seats were an option on the slightly revised later
cars, as well as a backward-facing seat (designed for children) placed in the luggage
area. A driver's side airbag was also introduced around 1988. The grand total of
all its components adds up to 1350-1400 kilograms. Cabin and cargo space - especially
in the cavernous wagon - is generous.
Engine
Under the bonnet of the Volvo 740 turbo lies the faithful B230F longitudinal
four cylinder. Its spec sheet includes a bore and stroke of 96.0 and 80.0mm (displacing
2316cc), an alloy SOHC head with a belt driven cam, a relatively high compression
ratio of 8.7-9.0:1, and an intake system using a Garrett T3 turbo and an air-to-air
intercooler (placed in front of the radiator). Engine management is conducted with
a Bosch Motronic system using a hot-wire airflow meter.
All this gives a power output of 119kW at 5300 rpm, and a torque peak of 253Nm
at only 2900 rpm. In some counties, the manual gearbox versions made approximately
5kW more. It's a quite flexible engine on the road, having peak torque at just over
half the amount of revs at which it makes full power. The relatively high static
compression ratio makes the engine very responsive even off-boost, helping to smooth
the transition into boosted performance. The engine came with the choice of either
a M46 5 speed manual gearbox or an AW71 4-speed auto.
Performance
Performance of the cars varied substantially across different contemporary road
tests, being as fast as 8.7 seconds to 100 for an early manual 760 Turbo and as
slow as 11 seconds for a later 740 Turbo automatic. Quarter mile times varied from
16.4 seconds to 17.6 seconds. Fuel consumption depends very much on how the car
is driven - and it needs to be remembered that there's a relatively small turbo
four cylinder doing the work in a large, un-aerodynamic car! Around 15 litres/100
km is typical, but the car does have an 82 litre tank.
Mods
The engine used in the large Volvos has the 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship
under its belt with driver Robbie Francevic pedalling a 242 Turbo - it's a strong
mill that can be developed to provide very substantial power. However, specialised
knowledge of these engines won't be found at every turbo corner store - you should
entrust performance work only to those who really know the engines. One of the best
resources on performance modifications to any turbo Volvo can be found at http://www.turbobricks.org/
The photo of the smoking Volvo is reproduced from their site - it gives you an idea
of what to expect!
Given the engine's relatively high 9.0:1 compression ratio, we'd recommend that
when you start winding up the boost you make sure your fuel octane is sufficient
to avoid detonation. (Also note that in Australia, leaded fuel has dropped in octane
since these cars were released.) As a result we'd advise running premium unleaded
fuel all the time and/or adding a bottle of octane booster to every tank. Assembled
with a fairly soft, luxury car type of suspension, we'd also suggest fitting an
aftermarket set of springs and dampers to sharpen handling. Note that early 760's
in Australia had firmer suspension than later cars.
Buyers' Guide
The Volvo is a safe and very solid car. Its reliability is what you'd expect
from one of the world's largest manufacturers of commercial and marine engines.
It isn't uncommon for a B23F engine to last well over 400,000(!) kilometres, so
long as it has been regularly serviced and has had good quality oil changes. One
problem worthy of paying attention to though, is a worn auto trans, which depending
on the cause of the problem, can be quite expensive to fix.
The Volvos can now be picked up for a fraction of their new price. Back in 1989
these cars were listed at around A$70,000. Today, an early model one cost about
A$13,000, while the last of the model run fetch up to A$20,000.
Performance of Intended Role
Safe and decently quick in manual form, the Volvo mixes practicality with staid
looks and excellent durability. The wagon - especially - is ideally suited to someone
with the need for space but who wants to stay away from Australian Holden and Fords.
We'd suggest that a well-maintained, relatively low kilometre car would be an excellent
buy.
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