History of the 240T FIA Evolution Cars

[MarkPetch]

Originally Posted by John V, outside agitator

Mark, I'm a dinosaur..Engine gerabox diff and suspension guy, not a clicky-cliack nerd boy..I was taught how to post piccies by a very kind and patient Canajian guy I was building a gravel Sierra for..Do this..
Do you have your piccies scanned? So they're somewhere stored on your confuser..OK

Are they "hosted" on some photo hosting service???

IF they're "hosted" (sitting) on some serive, you go there and click on the piccie, like here's my Canajuan friends 'build journal" with the local (my) made versions of Ford's Group N rally struts...
When that pccie is open look up in the "address bar" and you'll see an address looking like
http://www.rallyrace.net/view/?2004-09-26/jvab_struts.jpg

To put the piccie here you "left click and hold it down and swipe over the address and either type Ctrl and C or right-click and in the drop down menu choose "Copy".

Then where you want to post the photo you can either look just above this screen at the 3rd symbol from the right..and click it
A box pups up and you hit "Ctrl" (lowest left on the keyboard) and V
Then hit OK and POOF!




Opps maybe I should have said when the photo is displayed at the Host site you "right click" and hit "copy image address" and put that in the box OR you can type
[img] ---then "paste" ----then [/img]

Originally Posted by OttoB

I know a guy who had GrA suspension components in his 242. Might have something to do with that rallycross chassis. Can ask him for details.

Do you know what kind of cylinder head Volvo had in their cars? I know they used 531 heads, but valve cover seems to be older style with high filler tube. Why I'm asking? I got very nicely ported 531 head with std size valves, cast date early 80's. K-Jet injector holes.I have been thinking that might be from GrA

Hi Otto,

The only valuable and very rare VMS suspension component today, is the 3 piece rear axle, with the half tube's bolt flange's machined on a taper to give 1.5º negative camber at the wheel. The centre section "pumpkin" was cast in Aluminium.

These very rare 1031 GpA are worth their weight in Gold! Well not really, but worth say US$10K. The rest of the suspension bits are easily obtainable today at very reasonable prices.

All of the Factory VMS GpA engines had the old style rocker cover with the tubular looking breather connection running sideway's across the front half of the rocker cover, and were all uncoated when they left VMS.

Cheers,

Mark.

[megulon-7]

question for the man who knows:

I have heard a legend that some of those Gp. A cars had the body shell modified; the front clip was cut and re-welded to change caster but remain within the rules, this left a wedge shaped reveal between the front fender and the door. True or fiction?

Thanks, Al.

Also, I almost bought the red car from the original owner about 15 years ago! Glad to see it went somewhere good.

[NotSoFresh]

Thank you very much for sharing with us Mark, It is a glorious treat. Now a couple questions if you are up for it:

Originally Posted by MarkPetch

Hi Otto,

This was the last factory "Work"s car ever built, as Volvo pulled the plug on its official involvement in GpA, after loosing the 1986 ETC because of cheating allegations, following the disqualification of the RAS team's two car with Fuel irregularities.

"Fuel irregularities".......As I have been able to research they were using fuel that was up to 70% toluene to control detonation at the boost levels they were running, yet still managed to sorta pass on track testing...... Any truth to this?

Also, If I am correct, the suspension pickup points needed to be as-homologated in the race car. The strut bar and the braces back to the firewall have adjusters on them in the Australian team car you have, How much extra camber and caster were they getting by screwing these adjusters down after tech inspection??....

[igor]

Woah! I go away for a few years and miss THIS?

Thanks for sharing, Mark. I had no idea this was going on in NZ - disappointed I wasn't in the country for the Legends of Bathurst at Hampton Downs. I did find this though:

https://www.facebook.com/hamptondown...5285762699537/

Good stuff.

[John V, outside agitator]

Originally Posted by igor

Woah! I go away for a few years and miss THIS?

Thanks for sharing, Mark. I had no idea this was going on in NZ - disappointed I wasn't in the country for the Legends of Bathurst at Hampton Downs. I did find this though:

https://www.facebook.com/hamptondown...5285762699537/

Good stuff.

That'll teach ya to wander off....Hows the ol PV going?

[igor]

Hi John! PV is under a dusty cover, waiting patiently for me to renew my competition licence. I've been too busy adventuring on old motorcycles. Volvos haven't had a look in. That'll change now that I'm staying put for a while.

[John V, outside agitator]

Originally Posted by igor

Hi John! PV is under a dusty cover, waiting patiently for me to renew my competition licence. I've been too busy adventuring on old motorcycles. Volvos haven't had a look in. That'll change now that I'm staying put for a while.

fawkme sideways I've been looking at old bikes too!...Must be daft..
Saw a 1980 250 KTM...Hmmmmmmmm

[mikep]

Hi Igor, welcome back.
JV, I do most of my riding on the 1980 XT250 I got from SteveMD. Probably not as competent as the KTM, but it jumps logs well, and is street-legal. I bought an ST1100 this year, need to do head gaskets on it.

[PCH]

Brief mention of Group A and Volvo Motorsport in this cool article: https://petrolicious.com/articles/ic...aphor-for-life

[bgpzfm142]

Originally Posted by PCH

Brief mention of Group A and Volvo Motorsport in this cool article: https://petrolicious.com/articles/ic...aphor-for-life

IIRC Söderqvist was the purchaser of the three Australian Volvo Dealer Team cars back in November 1986, and brought them over to Europe to run in the 1987 ETC. Guess we'll see if my recollection is correct when the English version of Mark's book is released.

[Janspeed]

recently i stumbled on a YT presentation by Gale Banks. You know, from bankspower.com He mentioned that he once was commisioned by Volvo to develop the worlds first turbocharged car that used an oxygen sensor. He never mentioned the type of car but it has to be the B21ET/B23ET, right? I'm curious if he was also involved in the WTCC Volvo racing effort during the 1980's. Anybody know?

[dbarton]

Lambda Sond was introduced by Volvo in 1977. There were turbo projects done for 240s well before the 240 Turbo came out or was homologated for racing. I recall one that iPD was involved with also circa 1978. So Banks involvement may have occurred in the 1970s.
Dave B

Originally Posted by Janspeed

recently i stumbled on a YT presentation by Gale Banks. You know, from bankspower.com He mentioned that he once was commisioned by Volvo to develop the worlds first turbocharged car that used an oxygen sensor. He never mentioned the type of car but it has to be the B21ET/B23ET, right? I'm curious if he was also involved in the WTCC Volvo racing effort during the 1980's. Anybody know?

[hiperfauto]

Banks was hired by Volvo in 1975.

http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=318170

[jwernerny]

I just stumbled upon this thread (having myself been inactive during the time it was active), and wanted to add some info about the Dan Theil/Wayne Baldwin car.

I've know the car in question since about '91, when I first met Dan Theil. Over time, I figure my parents and I have paid for both of Dan's kid's college education. :-) . Kurt's Garage (his shop) is my go-to place when I have a Volvo problem that I can't solve.

Back in a decade or more ago, when I was still writing the competition column for Rolling, I had a chance to talk to Wayne Baldwin and one other VP at VCNA whose name escapes me. I asked about them about the history of the Rally GrpA car that Dan Theil has.

The car was built from the spare GrpA parts as a way of showing what could be done with the competition parts. It's first and only public appearance as a Volvo built vehicle was at the NY Car show of that year (1981?). One of the head officials of VCNA (or maybe Volvo) saw the car sitting in the Volvo Stand, turned to Wayne and his friend and said "Volvo does not build race cars. I don't ever want to see this car again."

Wayne and the VP competed in the SCCA Pro Rally series a few times. It was rolled once. Eventually the car was shopped around for a buyer. Bill Maher, a local Rochester racer at the time (who last I know owns one of the original IPD race cars), was given the option to buy the 16V beast. He passed and I remember Bill saying it has some problems running because it was running factory fuel and/or ignition systems.

Eventually, Dan Theil bought the car. He ran the SCCA Pro Rally series first in it competing in the Open class. Eventually a friend (Gail McGuire) came across the Group A homologation papers for it, at which point Dan Theil went to Group A. In '91 (or was it '92) Dan and his navigator (another name I can't think of) finished 2nd in Group A to a factory backed Subaru Legacy GT. Dan's was a privateer effort (which I am sure I well funded at his shop -- we never got cars fixed at the shop just before or after an event. :-) ).

At the time he was running, the 16V head was gone and it was running a built 8V head with water (50% alcohol) injection and the correct Getrag 5speed.

About a decade ago, Dan restored the car and dropped in a B230FT motor with a "modern" FI system. Dan claims the car runs better with the stock motor then it ever did in full race trim

[thomfr]

Hello,
Just now finding this topic but infected for life by the Group A 240 turbo since I saw (14 years old, my father raced in a Group H race in the same weekend) Per Stureson become 3rd at the Zolder "Bergische Löwe" DTM race behind the TWR Rover. Funny thing I also remember is that TWR came with a fleet of trailers, hospitality and motor homes (modern racing which I hate) and IPS came with an old converted Volvo bus which loaded the 240 in the back and accommodated the team up front.
I searched for the book mentioned in this topic about the Group A 240's but cannot find it. Was it ever published?
Thanks!
Thom