Volvo 850 engine swap

Asked by Dewey May 18, 2020 at 10:55 PM about the 1993 Volvo 850 GLT

Question type: Car Customization

Can you drop an LS into a Volvo 850 GLT? If so, what kind of labor would I
be looking at? And if not, are there any alternatives with comparable
performance?

I recently found a 850 GLT with a nearly shot engine and I've been wanting
to get into autocross for a while, but I don't have a car I'm willing to tear up,
but I heard that Volvos can be turned into awesome cars, I just don't know if
that applies to the 850 as well.

Thanks in advance!

1 Answer

7,845

The 850 certainly has the potential to be turned into an awesome car, and they're excellent for autocross, however dropping an LS into one of them is not easy in anybody's definition of the word. First off, it's FWD. Second, the chassis can't accommodate the transmission. Third, the steering will have to be totally re-engineered since the rack is right where the transmission would go. Is it possible? Sure. Will it be even remotely cheap or easy? Hell no. That said, these are great platforms. The turbo 5 cylinders are great engines with LOTS of tuning potential. 300 WHP is easily achievable. With a manual transmission, they are a blast to drive.

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