Volvo X (1967 Pro-Touring Amazon) by Iamtheonlyreal1

11 minute(s) of a 758 minute read

Here are some pics of some of the new motor set in, and with some of the finish welding on the firewall body, and all looks pretty good. I cant get good shots of the headers that will show the clearances, but there is plenty off room.. The passenger side pictures looks like the headers are right on the body, but they arent, and they drop in from the top with no issue. There is plenty of room for engine torque, along with servicing.

You can see that there is plenty of accessory room in the front of the motor, along with plenty of room behind, so you can reach all the bellhousing bolts along with other needs like wire routing.

11/20/2012

Here are some pictures of how the steering shaft works with the Swedish Ops headers, and it all lays out quite well.. I still have to mount the firewall bearing/stabilizer, and this actually passes the steering shaft through the firewall, while stabilizing the whole shaft.. This actually keeps you from having to make a huge hole, and then come up with some sort of rubber boot, so it should simplify things greatly. For all of you that might notice there isnt any rubber dampening in the steering shaft, there is an option for that, but I didnt order it yet.

I dont know why I cant get pictures that show the proper cleanances with this camera, but there is plenty of room between the headers, steering shaft, and body, which should be noticed in the various angle pictures.. Also, the motor mount/stands are only the mock up, so they are not very clean. I just wanted to make sure that all was good with accessorie clearance, before I locked in the production models.. The final production headers will not have the welded joint you see pictured, and this kit is only this way, because they wanted to make sure the shape of the pipe was good before locking the tubing jig in place.

You may also notice a pretty tight tolerance between the Altenator and Rack and Pinion, but there is more room than it appears in the pics also.. I am working on a couple of more things to get a bit more clearance, because I like the F-Body/Camaro accessory setup better.. The Corvette setup mounts the Altenator high on the motor, and way over to the side, so it is much more bulky looking at the top.. The torque from forward load on the motor, will actually pull the altenator up and away, while the reverse torque will bring it toward the rack. Luckily there are way more instances for heavy forward engine torque, so I dont think I will have any issue.

I tell you what, Pull Ties are about one of the greatest inventions for mockup, because I can hang and map everything witout any wasted fab work or material. Here are a few pictures of how I see the exhaust system laying out.. I am waiting on some mandrel bent pieces, so I can build it all, but this is where the key components are going to be placed.

I tried to get some pictures that would show how tight it all is, but I am apprently not a photographer, so this is what you get instead. There is clearly not enough room in the floor pan for the exhaust to totally disappear, but it rides high and tight, so there wont be any ground clearance issues. With all the placements pictured, I can get my fingers between the X-pipe and mufflers, and those are the bulkiest pieces.

11/23/2012

I have the offsets of the wheels sorted out, and I should have them real so, and then I can get this car on the ground. I can see where the Wheel Mate tool really comes in handy, because it would have been nothing but a bunch of confusion and guessing, when trying to get proper wheel offset. I have the car set at about ride height at this point, and I think it will look pretty good.. I have about a 6.5in bottom of the rocker ground clearance, and a 6in pinch weld clearance, and I think that will be about what I am looking for.

I need the body guy to show back up to get a bit further on the body work, but I am still going to drive this thing regardless if the bodywork is done, so it wont be a hang up for testing. As soon as the wheels get here, and I finish up on just a couple of more things, it should be ready to move under its own power, but I was hoping most of the body would be sorted first. No time to wait, because I have too many other projects waiting on results, so it might be running down the track in all its multi-color glory.. LOL

11/25/2012

I am really debating on having this guy make the seats and interior panels for Volvo X, because I think Machine/Industrial look would go great with the build style I am trying to achieve, and the workmanship is off the wall. The only questions I have for him at this point is, can he make them a bit more complete looking around the bottom skirting and the side bolsters? 

I think these would look great, if there was a bit more dimension to the sides, along with a taller back rest/head rest area.. If the sides were a two panels sort of boxing, that would offer a bit more bulk/dimension to the outer profile of the seat, and would make them look more like a conventional seat body. And if there was some way to make the back taller, and then incorporate some sort of headrest (perhaps Adjustable Headrest), that would put these things over the top, because they would appear to be a more functional seat. 

For drivability, there can be some snap on pads like pictured in the first seats, and then for the shows, the pads can be removed.. He also makes some kick ass door/interior panels, along with custom matching consoles.

I really like the skirting on this couch he makes, so I am wondering if he can do something similar to the bottom of the bucket seats, rather than just have them end at the bottom

11/28/2012

Here is a layout of how I see the exhaust working out. Of course I didnt order enough of certain bends that I needed, and had too many of some I didnt, but I atleast had enough to complete one side. I am waiting on the electric exhaust dump to come in, so I can see if I can blend into the system, so it would run the muffled and open exhaust through the same side tips. I would like the option of open exhaust at times, but dont want the exhaust system to look like a complete mess trying to achieve that.. I am thinking I can add the Exhaust Dump Y pipe right before the muffler Inlet, and then add a directional Y just before the tip.. 

After I get all the exhaust run where and how I want it, I will then determine where the bolted joints will be, that way it can be disassembled/installed easily. Eventhough this is all stainless steel, I will more than likely send it out for some sort of coating..