folvo head question

[rurouni20xx]

ill be posting this in the turbo section as well since this is usually a turbo type upgrade but ill ask here as well. im looking for a lil more balls out of my 2.3, i found a few unmodified volvo heads, these heads are supposed to breath better and open up the motor some more. my plan is to get one mod it and recondition it, then swap on my 2.3, but of course i have questions: what mods are required to install? what timing belt is used? is the stock cam setup fine or is it recommended to find performance cams if any are avail? is the swap worth it in an n/a app? does the volvo head use 8 plugs like my current head or am i going to have to mod the ignition system, and if i do how do i go about doing this? thanks for any and all replies.

 

[rurouni20xx]

folvo head questions

i know this is usually a turbo engine upgrade but im looking to do this on an n/a setup, i fig there was more experience w/ this upgrade here so im posting it here as well as in the older 4 banger threads...im looking for a lil more balls out of my 2.3, i found a few unmodified volvo heads, these heads are supposed to breath better and open up the motor some more. my plan is to get one mod it and recondition it, then swap on my 2.3, but of course i have questions: what mods are required to install? what timing belt is used? is the stock cam setup fine or is it recommended to find performance cams if any are avail? is the swap worth it in an n/a app? does the volvo head use 8 plugs like my current head or am i going to have to mod the ignition system, and if i do how do i go about doing this? thanks for any and all replies.

 

[Sevensecondsuv]

Look at www.turboford.net This swap has been discussed in much detail. There was even a guy selling modified, reconditioned heads for less than $1000 I think. But there are easier/cheaper ways to get more power out a 2.3 than a folvo head swap.

 

[Sevensecondsuv]

Wait, when did you get a 2.3? I thought you were the guy planning a 3.3 turbo? No?

 

[rurouni20xx]

i have the 3.0 still and yes the 3.3 turbo is still in planning, i bought this trk not too long ago as my daily driver since the 3.0 was my dd and took crap on me. im going to redo the 3.0 eventually and happened across a 92 2.3 ext cab m50d for 400 bux w/ a busted tranny. got it going need to do some body work and change the timing belt then ill start focusing on the 3.0/3.3 again. i was having probs after changing the plugs and wires in it and fixed the vacuum leaks, started running rich as hell etc, had a plugged exhaust, but still shows some of the symptoms. in the 2.3 forum i posted and apparently got moved here in the same thread hence the double post...but anyway somebody in the other forum was having the same probs described as mine and somebody mentioned worn valve seats and guides causing his issues. i dont plan on going that far into it to find the problem, but since theres 61k miles on it (thats all the odometer reads, 5 digit odometer) that im sure has rolled over and looks like the 2 prev owners beat the shit out of it, im willing to believe anything. it runs good and all, but if i could get a folvo head and increase my performance a good bit plus fix my running issues id consider doing it. what are other cheaper ways to increase power? ive looked at cams but not sure which grind i should go w/ and dont plan on tearing the head off to port it since its my dd (previous recommendations), if im doing anything head wise id get another one port and recondition it then just swap them in a wknd for as little downtime as possible. i asked about a larger throttlebody but nobody has really answered me, its already catless (which could be part of my probs), i put two fart cans inline on it as a temp fix for the exhaust and the intake baffle had a crinkle in it causing a vacuum leak so i put a conical filter in its place (yes i moved the maf). it wouldnt surprise me if the warm air its injesting is part of my prob as well but i had the filter laying around and didnt have the money for a strait tube, quick fix to say the least...ive looked at some headers but not really sure if they are worth the money and aggravation to put on, but something ive pondered to say the least. thanx for the reply and all input is greatly appreciated. its def underpowered for a 2300cc engine to say the least, my integra w/ a b18a1 (1800cc 1.8L) had a lot more balls than thing does, then again 9.5:1 compression and 16 valves vs 9.2:1 and 8 valves prob has a lot to do w/ it. i just cant believe i at 60/65 mph i have to downshift to 4th to climb a decent hill, and i dislike that w/ a passion to say the least.

 

[Sevensecondsuv]

If you're going to leave it naturally aspirated, don't mess with porting, head swaps and aggressive cams. These all just move the power band up in the RPMs, albeit with more peak power, but will feel like less power in a daily driver. The only way you'll feel the extra power is with your foot on the floor at 5000 RPMs. If you want more out of it w/o a turbo, I would recommend having the head milled to get the compression up to about 10:1. While this might result in a need for premium fuel, it will definately give you the little boost in daily driving performance you are looking for.

 

[Davis]

porting wont hurt low end as long as it is conservative. if you port too much it will drop intake velocity, killing low end, but if you just clean it up and smooth out the flow, it will help out a lot.
also, mild cam wont hurt low end too much, but won't help top end very much either.

 

[rurouni20xx]

the reason i considered the folvo head was an attempt to achieve better flow and also mill it a hair to increase compression somewhere around 11:1 to if possible, 10 to 1 you can run midgrade no prob but when you start talking 11 or 12 to 1 then you need premium, above 12.5 your talking race fuel, this is generally speaking to be clear on this statement. i just cant believe for such a large displacement it has 0 balls. i also noticed when im running 60/65 and im losing power going uphill giving it throttle has no effect unless dropping gears, like its bogging down, but when i reach 70 all i have to do is bump the throttle some and runs strait to 75. that makes no sense to me, its almost like i only have power around 3k rpm (im guessing at the rpms no tach). i realize that it only really produces power around this band but is there a way to accent the curve thruout the band w/o gutting the motor or boosting? its obvious higher flow doesnt help crap since ive already opened up the intake and exhaust, ive considered porting the intake one wknd but not sure if that will help any. i appreciate your help guys and pardon my frustration, i have a feeling thats why most of you decided to throw on a turbo in the first place...

 

[dieselboy740]

ive posted a bunch of links somewhere on here.....let me search or you can do it too

 

[Davis]

It's just a LOT of work and $$$ for moderate gains.

If you just want a little more power, your cheapest easiest route is to go with the turbo setup from an 88 t-bird. I'm sure someone will want to jump on my back for saying this and spout off the usual crap like "It's his truck, let him do what he wants".

It's just simple truth with this motor that turboing is the cheapest way to decent power.

 

[rurouni20xx]

i understand where your coming from and bang for the buck the turbo would be the best bet, just a lot of fabrication and since i have little exp w/ installing/picking turbos, plus the fact i lack fabrication skills/tooling, tuning equipment (no dynos for miles..), and this is my dd so downtime must be kept to a minimum i figured modding other parts to make them bolt ons and swaps would help. looks like im going to be doing some forced induction work prematurely, here comes the research again! i appreciate all the help thus far, and if anybody finds something cheaper or almost as effective let me kno.

 

[Davis]

The volvo head (even non turbo) will require far more fabrication and engine tuning than a simple turbo swap ever would. When I did my first turbo swap, there was almost no fabrication, and no tuning involved.

If you do a little reading on the volvo swap you'll quickly see that it is neither easy nor cheap. It is something that is possible, and because there are matching bolt patterns, some will say it is a bolt-on. Back here in the real world, it's far less of a bolt on than taking some t-bird parts and bolting them on to your ranger.

Just a few examples of fabrication on the volvo head swap: Intake manifold, timing belt tensioners, cam gear adapters, head bolt bushings, extending of volvo head (or modification of ford block), distributor block off plug, to name a few...

fabrication I did on my first turbo swap: Oil drain adapter, drill and tap oil pan, downpipe (had an exhaust shop do that)

There were a lot of modifications that came later, but that definitely netted me at least 60 more hp.

 

[Davis]

Oh, btw, what year is your 2.3?

 

[rurouni20xx]

92 the trk is factory, eec4 edis naturally. i see where your coming from as far as working to do the volvo swap, basically i seen one modded to simply bolt on and fig i could do that fairly easily, now that you mention all the extra work that isnt going to be an option, for now at least. basically im just looking for simple headache free mods for more pulling power and better cruising ability, for such a large displacement on a 4 banger i have a feeling it has some balls hiding, just have to grab them and squeeze somehow.

Edit: okay so i looked at the fab required to do the head swap on dieselboys links, verdict: thats entirely too much fabrication going on, especially since i dont know how to weld in the first place much less have half of the tools required to do any of that. as far as piston mods, dont have anything nor want to mess w/ the pistons, and obviously that is not a bolt on mod if you have to go into the block.

 

[skyy_4life]

no one ever said it would be a "easy" bolt on.... but in any big power gain theres going to be some . if i was you i would look more into engine swaps or get a stroker crank for it out of a 2.5L. or lean into forced induction 2.3L. its easy to get big power out of a 2.3 but it takes some time money and work skills.