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best cam for a b230F +t, daily driving

A

autoloclys

Member
Joined
Dec 20, 2016
Location
Boston MA
at the risk of asking "how much boost can stock support"

I have a B230F squirter engine that is going to into my LH2.4 +t wagon, is there any consensus on the best cam for spirited daily driving?
 
I have a 91 740 wagon with a +T and 15G
With the T cam i could do brake stands and the car left hard off the line.
With an IPD turbo cam, its a little laggy, but crazy fun past 3K rpm.
still drives fine off boost under 3k, but not nearly as torqey with the T cam.
 
Pretty much anything other than the M cam that the engine came with.

As stated before, T seems to work well in a +T configuration as you have more compression in an NA motor.

An A, V, iPD turbo or other cam would be good as well. More duration + more lift = more fun (up to a limit).
 
Thanks for the advice.

Since the T cams seem harder to find the IPD turbo cam sounds like the next best option

The ipd turbo cam description makes it sound like it's focused on high revving performance @>5000 tpm. But It also improves low end? For daily driving I'm assuming idle to 4000 is where I care most about

Sorry for a basic question. Cam tuning is new to me
 
Automatic or Manual? What turbo? How much low speed / stop-n-go daily traffic?

Are you OK with running/shifting at higher RPMs most of the time so that you can have best high RPM performance, or would you prefer less performance and more sedate shift points?
 
M47 converted from an aw70 so the ratio in the rear end is low. Turbo is a 13c at stock boost. I live in a city so a high strung engine is not ideal.
 
^^^ agreed.

The late factory 240 turbo auto's had a 3.91 rear end. The 240 turbo manual's used 3.73. All the non-turbo auto's had a 3.73, so your converted auto will be the same gearing as the factory 240 manual turbos. In other words, you have Volvo's choice for a manual turbo DD.

The 13c is a smaller turbo, and is better suited to a lower RPM range. Keep your eye out for a good 15G - a bit more power but still boosts well at lower RPMs. The factory '85 turbos were a T3, which is an older design, with a bit higher RPM range.

The T cam was Volvo's choice for a turbo DD cam.

You certainly want to change to a turbo cam from your NA M? cam. In a simplistic view, the intake stroke on a NA engine sucks the fuel/air mix into the cylinder. At higher RPMs, the momentum in the intake manifold helps push air into the cylinder. On a turbo engine, the boost pressure also pushes the fuel/air mix into the cylinder. With this, you need a cam with less overlap than a NA cam to avoid the boost pressure pushing the fuel/air mix straight through the cylinder and immediately out the exhaust.
 
bobxyz said:
^^^ agreed.

The late factory 240 turbo auto's had a 3.91 rear end. The 240 turbo manual's used 3.73. All the non-turbo auto's had a 3.73, so your converted auto will be the same gearing as the factory 240 manual turbos. In other words, you have Volvo's choice for a manual turbo DD.

The 13c is a smaller turbo, and is better suited to a lower RPM range. Keep your eye out for a good 15G - a bit more power but still boosts well at lower RPMs. The factory '85 turbos were a T3, which is an older design, with a bit higher RPM range.

The T cam was Volvo's choice for a turbo DD cam.

You certainly want to change to a turbo cam from your NA M? cam. In a simplistic view, the intake stroke on a NA engine sucks the fuel/air mix into the cylinder. At higher RPMs, the momentum in the intake manifold helps push air into the cylinder. On a turbo engine, the boost pressure also pushes the fuel/air mix into the cylinder. With this, you need a cam with less overlap than a NA cam to avoid the boost pressure pushing the fuel/air mix straight through the cylinder and immediately out the exhaust.
Click to expand...

:uh:

Would you please stop it with the facts and common sense, this is Turbobricks home of the hopeless hapless dreams.

:sheesh:
 
If limited to used Volvo cams the A cam is the best bet for a daily.

If aftermarket the T3 grind is a great cam for a daily that still has decent low end but a much better mid/higher end
 
Ok while you are a city driver. The car has a 3.73 rear which likes a few rpms. It is fine with a T cam which is volvos choice. But in my experience it is even better with a cam that gives the engine more mid and high rpm power. The low gearing will still give you fine low rpm torque but having a better mid and top end will put more smiles per mile.

A Volvo A, or B cam is a good choice. If you go aftermarket I have only good experience with enem cams. The V15T would be what I suggest. I've been running that in my turbo for many years now.
 
Do you care about emissions? If not, you can go with a wider variety of cams, and tradeoff worse idle for better higher rpm performance. Compared to swapping in a +T'd engine, swapping cams is easy. Pick one and give it a try, while keeping an eye out for a different cam choice, and a 15G turbo.
 
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