Volvo P1800 Project (LS1 build/custom body mods)

I am currently in the process of build a Pro-Touring style P1800 based off the Renditions of the Vox Volvo. I will be performing body mods and developing Newly Designed glass kits to update the car. I will be moulding the grill shell into the body and extending it a bit forward at the top, installing layed back headlamps with the outer glass lenses, recessing the tail lamps and license plate mount, installing a hood scoop, shaving drip rails, flaring out the quarters and fenders a bit, moulding in the front marker lights, removing the side trim, modifying 63 Corvette rear bumpers.

I am working with a suspension company to see if we can develope a bolt in updated crossmember.. The options will be rack and pinions steering, tubular control arms, adjustable Coil over (height and dampning), up to 13 inch drilled slotted rotors with 6 piston calipers, and the crossmember will accept several motor configerations.. I am also having some nice 4-link adjustable arms made for the existing rear end with coil over shock replacment for the factory Coil spring.

My company designs Flush Mount Glass Kits for the classic cars and they require no body mods. I will be making the flush mount windshield and rear glass, along with the one piece Green House glass roof and rear glass. I am not sure if they will be offered for sale, because I am not sure the demand would be there.. I have always loved these cars, and fell in love with the updated version.

This is what I started with.. I paid 1000 U.S dollars for this car, and it ran just fine. I had installed the wheels and lowered a bit to see what size wheels the body would accept without evasive mods.







I am sure all you guys are familar with this rendition of the P1800 Volvo done by a designer from Vox.

 

My first engine and drivetrain source, was the Toyota Supra's 2jz twin turbo inline 6 cylinder and 6-speed.. I really wanted to go this route because I felt European car in this style should not have a V8 in it.. The 2jz motor looked beautiful in the car, but it was going to take way too much work to make it happen.. Dont get me wrong, the V8 is work, but it was going to take even more to get the car to drive right with the motor positioning..

 

Now for the body mods so far... I have added a hood scoop from a donor car, it fits perfectly I think.. I didnt have to do any manipulation to shape it, it had all the correct contours and curves..

I removed the drip rails, and will be making larger quarter glass openings with the correct shaped glass to fill in the holes.. There is a curve to the body there, so it wouldnt look right to just install flat glass.
I have shortened the Rear Fins by several inches, and I think it actually looks alot cleaner and sophisticated. They are just roughed in at this point, and will need some hammering and dollying, and finish welding to look better..

This next week, I will be working on the Flush Mount Windshield and Rear Glass.. After I get the samples made, I will then start on the Green House Roof pattern, and working on the install channel for the roof.
The Green Tape outlines the Quarter Window and Green House Roof... I think they look fairly proportional.

 

someones lost................


http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44274




.

 

Get the popcorn ready...

 

I like hookers

 

Oh boy...

 

This is a fantastic post man, but it's definitely out of the box for here. Please post these up at www.dogfightmag.com though! Good luck.

 

Here are the Drip Rails and the Hood Scoop Install pics..

 

careful......

 

One of my next issues is the Tail lamps.. I cant seem to find a recessed light style that ressembles the P1800 or the Vox rendition, so I am considering other options.. It appears that I may be able to make the bulb sockets snap into the body to get rid of the tail light housing. The lense fits in body where the housing would normally mount, so I am considering a few options to stream line them if I dont actually recess them.

 

Am I in the wrong place?

 

I am testing fitting an LS1 motor that I had laying around.. I really liked the looks of the 2JZ motor, but the LS1 opens it up a bit. I was thinking about turning the intake around and making my fresh air vent in front of the winshield my air intake and filter housing, but there really doest appear to be the room to make it look right.. My other plan is to build a filter tray on top of the radiator support and making the hood scoop an functional Ram Air...

So far, everything looks managable. The shorty style headers are going to be tight, but I believe they will work out with a bit of tweeking. The accessorie clearance is good along with the starter and oil pan height. I can move the motor back a bit more, and I may do that, but I am trying to get all the floor space I can get. The V8 Bellhousings are a bit wider, and I would rather have a bit more width if possible, without sacrificing handling. Overall the motor position doesnt look bad, and it seems to sit nice and low in the body...

 

Here are some pics of the rear bumpers I am going to start with and modify.. I think I can use the these 63 Corvette Rears and the Factory Volvo rear bumper to blend something very close to the rendition.. I am going to trim out of the inside edge of the bumper, rather than add material to fill in the gaps between the bumper and body contour. I will be taking about 1/3 to 1/2 the over all bumper bulkiness out of it, to give the streamline fit that appears in the rendition (Atleast I hope that works...ha ha ) The front bumper is an early factory Bull Horn bumper flipped upside down...

The green tape in the last picture shows about how much bulk I will be taking off the Corvette Bumper.. By the time I remove all that surface area, the bumper will make the nice defuser feature in the picture. I am hoping that if done correctly, all the contours of the body will fit nicely to the Rework bumper edges...

 

Those are some nice bikes ya got there, and the car is pretty cool n I hate ta burst your bubble, but uh... FYI This aint a forum for that kinda stuff...

Oh yeah and if it was up to me, I'd more than likely go with a BMW 4.4 V8. It would fit the car better than your standard LS1 swap... < very over done

 

the hamb is catered towards pre '64 Hot Rods and Customs. Mostly american. This build will go over GREAT at www.dogfightmag.com, a site related to this one. Typically off topic cars like this get bashed even though it's quality work..

 

Well I got the passenger side bumper roughly trimmed also, amazingly I got them EVEN, PROPORTIONED, and LEVEL, so it appears it may work out.. I will make some mounting brackets, and then order some new bumpers to re-cut... These bumpers have a bit of rust, and I am thinking it may be better to start all over fresh. I had ordered these from Ebay just to see if they would work.. Nothing like double labor.. ha ha I also put a black out where the exhaust will probably be coming through, the shape is not exactly what I am looking for, because I am going to be looking for an exhaust housing and tips that are hopefully already manufactured. If anyone knows a good source for them, I would appreciate the heads up.

 

Yes you are..... But actually I really do dig the idea. Cool old car with good lines. American V8 power, and it looks like you got some skills and are serious about what your doing.

I say we give this one a "cool" pass.

 

in a word, yes. wrong kind of car and build for this site, perhaps you should go read about this site on the home page. the volvo p1800 is a cool car and i think you have a great idea for it. i had one a few years back, i thought the front end was kind of cobra-ish. but this site is for traditional rods and customs. good luck with your car though.

 

Its a trad hotrod board, so you are rather.
Pity - I´d like to see this one.

 

Well I am working on the slanted headlamps, and to have a conventional sized headlamp with a sloped lense, there is alot of added surface area. I have trie to find later model composite headlamps that will work, but they are all mis-shapen to the fenders they are made to fit.

So here is where I am at... I am worried the light is way over-sized for the car right now, but it does appear that way in the rendition.. I am thinking that once I get the metal work completed where the only thing showing is the actual lense, it will dramatically shrink up the oversized appearance. Atleast that is what I am hoping.. ha ha Right now, turning back isnt really an option. It really does give the car that over-sized European Headlamp look from the 60's-70'.

The way this headlamp system works, I can actually finish weld the ring to complete the fender, then blend it all in. The ring is the main part of the bucket system, so the mechanics of the light will attach to the back side of the headlamp ring. I believe I will only have to add a couple of support braces to the rear of the bucket for extras support.. Here are some updated pictures.. I will say that the light appears to be much bigger in the pictures for some reason, I guess it is the chrome ring blending into the lense.

 

I am feeling kind of unsure about what I think of the parts for this mod, so I am going to assume the critisisms will start flying... ha ha... I really think (Really Hope) the ring being made part of the fender to finish it out, and the lens being the only stand alone part, will shrink the overwhelming appearance...

The new headlight ring is actually only a 1/4 inch wider, and 3/4 inch taller that the factory bezel and headlamp assembly. Once the ring becomes part of the fender work and is painted, the width of the light is actually a 1/2 narrower and a 1/4 inch shorter.... So by the measurement, I am actually installing a smaller assembly, but it sure doesnt look like it...
Here are a few comparisons of Factory and Modded...











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Yes. Even so, I am in love with your project. I have been wanting to build one for the past few years.

Try hitting up www.goodguysforum.com

 

does'nt seem to be slowing you down

 

LMAO!!!
Every one of us saying the same thing... Wrong site, but cool car

Real1, keep on posting. I'm diggin' it. The inset headlights are kickin'! You got mad skills

I do have a question for you tho. You say the company you work for does custom glass. Tell me more please. Much more.

If your company can do all the custm glass you showed in your photoshoped version of the car, I'll bet there are a lot of folks on here who would be interested in custom glass for their choped cars, or the ones with windows made of un-obtanium.

 

for sure nothing about this is hamb friendly. i do respect your build and skills though. heck i can even dig on the car a little bit-my wife drives a nicely restored 1800es as her daily.

even still, this thread won't last long.

 

I like the car, I like the vision you have and where you are taking the car. However, its not HAMB material and I dont come to the HAMB to see these kind of builds.

 

Ok guys... here is the next thing I am trying to tackle.. I am working on the front suspension, and I plan on using an upgraded Mustang II style with tubular control arms and Coil over shocks. The problem I am running into is, there is really no easy application for this, and I am wanting a bolt in cross-member/Suspension. I ordered a Mustang II crossmember kit from Paul Horton's Welder Series, and I am going to make the Volvo crossmember mounting harware work with it.. I dont want to weld the crossmember in for a few reasons, even though I know it will add to handling by stiffening the car. I just have my thing about easy component changing, due to service or damage.

I have a factory Mustang II crossmember coming to me, so I can rob the factory control arms and spindles off of it.. I am thinking I need to start with base reference, so I can determine if I need the shorter tubular control arms to get the correct track width and ride hieght for what I need. I have never built a crossmember, so this is a learning experience for sure.. Any suggestions as to what to look for or tricks would be greatly appreciated for sure..

Here Is what I am starting out with.. I have removed the mounting brackets and am going to stiffen them up by boxing them in and cleaning them up a bit.. Once they are done, it should be an fluid blend into the new crossmember.. My real trick is going to be attaching the Upper control arm attachments and the Coil over mounts to the crossmember instead of the body.. The U shaped hole in the body work of the Volvo is not wide enough to accomodate the full upper control arm, but I think there is more than enough room for it to be contained in the wheel house (Atleast I hope).

Please keep in mind, I only have the crossmember tacked in place right now.. There isnt any rhyme or reason to where it is other than center to the body and height set to the engines position at this point. Until I get the stock components to put on it, there will be no brace work or dial in being done...













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