Am I crazy?

[slalomskier]

I have a feeling the answer is yes. I know the answer is yes. But i just need to ask.

I am 18, and started off driving my old '93 240 wagon with a 5 speed manual and 450,000 miles. It was by true love, till it died. I am now driving my dad's old '02 xc70 with 114,000 miles and its an automatic. I have always felt like I am a better driver with a manual, i speed less, and as someone with A.D.D, it just keeps me more alert, and i also feel safer. I also am a sailor, and tow boats all the time.

Has anyone ever done a transmission swap to make an xc70 a manual?

First off, i have seen people do this with suburbans, because all of the mountings for even the petals are already there, and its a pretty simple swap. My question is how similar is everything between the manual and the automatic. Could i get a 5 or 6 speed transmission anywhere? How involved would this be.

I have installed a hitch, do oil changes, and most of my own maintenance. Is there any chance i could be able to do this, or get some friends with some experience to help out.

Am I crazy?

Probably, but if it is possible, I would like some input. FYI, I may wait 'till my transmission dies to due this.

And does anybody have a manual? I live in Connecticut if anyone wants to help :)

[ChazzyD]

You already know the best answer to this I suspect. Look for a nice rust-free '93 240 wagon with a manual tranny on Craigslist from the southern part of the USA (Atlanta, Chattanooga, etc). Drive down with a friend, pick it up and take it back to Conn. Turbocharge it from junkyard parts from a 740/940 when you get a little bored with it. ;) Nice 240s are going to waste every day in The South, come save one from the crusher. They don't seem to even know what they are wasting here.
Charles

[Allen]

I agree. I wold love to find an old 242 GT again. Torque monster!

[n00bkiller944]

I have a feeling the answer is yes. I know the answer is yes. But i just need to ask.

I am 18, and started off driving my old '93 240 wagon with a 5 speed manual and 450,000 miles. It was by true love, till it died. I am now driving my dad's old '02 xc70 with 114,000 miles and its an automatic. I have always felt like I am a better driver with a manual, i speed less, and as someone with A.D.D, it just keeps me more alert, and i also feel safer. I also am a sailor, and tow boats all the time.

Has anyone ever done a transmission swap to make an xc70 a manual?

First off, i have seen people do this with suburbans, because all of the mountings for even the petals are already there, and its a pretty simple swap. My question is how similar is everything between the manual and the automatic. Could i get a 5 or 6 speed transmission anywhere? How involved would this be.

I have installed a hitch, do oil changes, and most of my own maintenance. Is there any chance i could be able to do this, or get some friends with some experience to help out.

Am I crazy?

Probably, but if it is possible, I would like some input. FYI, I may wait 'till my transmission dies to due this.

And does anybody have a manual? I live in Connecticut if anyone wants to help :)

There is a guy over on another website looking for a 2001+ XC with a busted tranny to do a manual swap on... Might wanna ask him.

[JRL]

The simple answer is yes.
Not the easiest nor the cheapest of swaps but it can be done

[slalomskier]

I must say that the 240 was just amazing. My last big trip with it was towing out my Finn sailboat to Michigan, 14 hours each way. I was 16, drove out alone for the national championships, and pulled into the parking lot and i just heard the muffler drop out to the ground. Then the car overheated and blew out some wiring on the way to the dealer in Michigan. 500 bucks to get it all fixed. Got home, and sold it to a pastor for almost nothing. It got 30 mpg while driving to Boston to drop it off. I truly believe that the 240 wagon was the perfect car. It has more cargo space than this xc70, handled fine in snow with studded snows, great fuel economy, fun to drive, and has beautiful lines. The true classic.

Its kinda sad that I can miss a car that much...

[wgriswold]

I miss mine too. I often tell my wife that we should have kept it and done an extensive rebuild. Volvo, in those days, was more about cutting edge safety and utilitarianism. I wish the XC was more like the 240 in concept and execution. The move to near luxury status has been one that has added a great deal to the the cost of the car both in purchase price and upkeep and shortened its expected lifetime. Do I really need a $300 key? My 240 gave me over 200,000 miles of relatively trouble free service. I do not expect that from the XC.

[slalomskier]

I agree completely. I have a '02 xc70 with almost 120,000 miles, and am wondering if i should offload it before my transmission blows. I also miss having the option for a manual transmission. I loved the simple, minimalistic, black leather interior of my 240. Of course i love all the benefits of cup holders, but if my radio dies, i don't even want to think about the bill for a new one. I can't afford a new car, and finding a used xc70 with a manual is impossible.

If only i didn't love Volvo's so freaking much.

[PJ810]

I've had three 200 series Volvos, my first was an old manual wagon.

I prefer driving manual, hey, I drove a manual Benz SLK350 just the other day!

But today I took my XC70 automatic for a thorough blast both on the freeway (160km/h+) and a run through a very tight and twisty part of my local National Park, and gee it handles incredibly well!

Get to know your XC70 properly. Make sure the suspension is in top-notch condition. Make sure your AWD is working properly. Enjoy the luxury. Your radio isn't going to die anytime soon!

The superior safety of an XC70 compared to a 240, plus the much better dynamics should win you over. Don't get me wrong, a 240 is loads of fun to drive (in my opinion more fun that BMWs) but I wouldn't swap my XC in a million years for a 240! Been there done that.

[slalomskier]

I have always wondered if the transmission learns how i drive it. Someone told me that it records the first 1000 miles of information and adjusts its shifts to it. Is this true? We bought the car used, and I have always felt like it shifts late, and the rpm's just get too high for me so sometimes i shift it into manual mode to drive it like i like.

[Allen]

I have always wondered if the transmission learns how i drive it. Someone told me that it records the first 1000 miles of information and adjusts its shifts to it. Is this true? We bought the car used, and I have always felt like it shifts late, and the rpm's just get too high for me so sometimes i shift it into manual mode to drive it like i like.


Sounds a lot like my tranny. I had mine serviced recently by an independent Volvo shop. They installed Amsoil ATF. I installed Auto-Rx in the tranny.

The tranny shifts perfectly and quickly now.