1968 Volvo project Pure Volvocity by 68EFIvert

13 minute(s) of a 519 minute read

I'm starting to see some progress on my bodywork. It started at the rear of the car to do repairs and modifications. It looks like the planet this point is to widen the rear sheet-metal by approximately 4 to 5 inches. That should give us A closer look to the rendering of the VOX rendering. The fins will be reduced in size while the quarter panel is having the taper from the wheel well to the rear valanced reduced. 

We are currently evaluating our options for a rear diffuser and it looks like I will need to make custom taillights to get the look I want. There is not much to see at this point but it's a start and you can see the general idea of where we're going.

1-28-2015

I have a minor update on the car. I did some measuring and it looks like the rear will be about 6" wider than stock. This will make it the same width as the front (outside of headlights) and 5" narrower than at the doors. It will still retain general flow of the car but will be closer to the Vox renderings visually. 

When I first ordered my wheels I was a little conservative and could have gone with a larger backspacing on the rear. It has driven me crazy and this past few weeks I narrowed the 8.8 Ford to fit the way I want. In the process I converted the rear end to have 9" ford ends thus eliminating the C-clip axles. I think the fixed caliper Wilwood brakes will work better and I feel a whole lot better with that setup. The narrowing really wasn't that hard to do. I purchased a jig on Ebay and went to town. I forgot to take any picutes but it looks about the same as it did before. The tires fit right inside the fenders now and will reduce any kind of flare that may have been needed. Now a simple fender lip like stock will work fine.

4-1-2015

Sorry for the late reply and update. I have been reworking some of the rear suspension. We took some of the bulk out of the crossmember and boxed them even more for additional strength. 

I also added a rear sway bar. The bar mounts are pretty simple. I used 2.5" angle iron and welded nuts on the back side. I boxed them in on the ends to create additional rigidity. I then had my bodyshop weld them in place. I wish I had at home for that part but it was a pretty simple job. 

The bar is 37.5" long and is.188" wall hollow tube. I will likely pick up a .250" wall swaybar to swap out for track or autocross events. 

I have started working with Ultimate Performance for some new JRI shocks and tuning advice. I met the owner JJ last summer when he helped me with some shocks for my Mustang last summer when he worked for JRI. 

As I mentioned before, the car will be a few inches wider than stock in the rear. We've started to rework the fin in the back. They will be slightly reduced in the height as illustrated by the tape lines. It should look very close to the rendering when we're done. 

The shop has also repaired the horrible fender overlap on the passenger front fender. It must've been a repair from 25+ years ago.

As far as the rear valence goes it will likely take a little trial and error. Weplan on ordering a few rear valances from Newark cars. The body shop likes that idea because they'll be able to return any we don't want or don't think will work. We plan on using as much of the original panel as we can but by adding metal to widen it to fit the car. One thing that will be nice by widening the panel is that the Corvette rear bumpers should fit better and will not need narrowing. I will keep you posted as that begins to develop. They should be starting on that this week or next week.

I plan on having some chrome trim on the top of the fin like the original but it will be custom made from brass and then chrome plated. On the top of the quarter panel we will have a 7/16" wide flat area to mount the trim to.

4-8-2015

You are not alone Pete. There are a few of us crazy guys around here. LOL!

There is a bit more progress to report this past week. They continued working on the rear quarter panels. As you can see the fun is still there but just a bit smaller. We will make some trim to fit on the flat piece on the top of the quarter panel. They have started working out the plan of how to reattach the original rear but making it about 6" wider. I am pleased with how the shape is starting to take. It should look very much like the Vox rendering. There will be some variation on the rendering on the front and rear valance. You have to have some personalization don't you?

4-7-2015

I had to move the firewall back about 5". It is basically where the back of the battery area is. You will also need to redo the transmission tunnel as well as the driveshaft tunnel. It is all pretty easy if you are decent with a Mig welder. The mini tub wasn't that bad either. I basically cut the wheel housing down the middle and added about 1-1.5" of metal in the middle. The wheel house is now at the frame rail. I don't have my car here but you can take that measurement on your car to yield the distance. 

I think I am going to relocate the lower rear link to inside the frame rail to give me a little more room. Right now I have a 265 tire and don't think I would have to do anything to the outside of the body if you wanted a stock look. By relocating the lower link I think you would have enough room for a 295 or 305 tire. I know that Robert has done this mod and he is running a 315 tire but he notched his frame rail about 3/8". You can also fit a 275 tire on the front of the car with the use of his suspension.

I know that Robert has had some problems prividing suspension parts to people for the last year or so but in the last week has partnered with another complany to produce, ship and track all the orders. Basically eliminating him from that side of the equation. I hope that takes care of some of the problems he has had in the past.

6-3-2015

Thanks for the compliment. It sounds like you have a pretty fun project you are working on.

Progress has been a little slower this past month. We had to wait for some new trunk drop down panels from Wolf to be made. They were insulted and now they have started working on the rear panel now. That is off to a pretty good start and is coming into shape .

We are still taking about tail lights and I am exploring a few options right now. I think I have a plan there but I am waiting to hear back from a guy that may be able to make what I want. Fingers crossed.

I decided I wanted to add a little touch of Volvo history to the car. Instead of advertising the wheel brand on my center caps I had new caps made. They incorporate the prancing moose logo. They came out pretty cool!

6-18-2015

I keep forgetting to take pictures when I go over there. The rear panel in pretty much done. They are finishing up the gaps on the trunk to make sure everything is the same. That involves a lot of cutting and welding to make it just right. When that is done they will have to finish off around the exhaust holes. I will also need to mount the Corvette rear bumper on there. Once that is fitted we can work on the diffuser. I guess we are quite a ways from done now that I think about it.

The tail lights I decided to use are from a Lotus Elise S1 and were shipped over from the UK. I got them in 2 days! I went for a set of aftermarket lights that were full LED and will give it a great look. The lights will be slightly frenched into the rear panel and I will have trim made to simulate the original bezels that came with the car. I will post some pictures when I get some. 

I also go the new tires in. My plan is to have two sets of tires/wheels for the car. The existing set will be for street use and the new set will be for more track or autoX use. The new tires are 315/30/18 BFG Rival S and it doesn't look like much will be needed to make them fit! Between the mini-tub and body modifications I think I can get them to slide in there with about a 1.5" fender lip. I don't think I want the look of a flare so I will end up relocating the outter link bar to the inside and I will have all the real estate I need at that time. With all the modifications I actually thingk I could get a 335 under there without too much drama. I won't do that since that would create too much of a difference in width between front and rear tires. From what I have read and experienced you want to keep the tires no more than 40-50 mm different in width. (315-275=40mm) 

The front tires will be 275/35/18 but they are still on backorder. I hope to have them in a few weeks which is in plenty of time before they will start working on the front fender modifications. The tires should fit without any major mods but I want to raise the wheel arches up an inch or two to acheive the look I am after.

6-20-2015

Here are the new tires in their place. I will move the back spacing out by about 1/4" to allow the new wheels to all all the extra width to the inside thus allowing the old and new wheels to look exactly the same. No need for wheel spacers. The only change is to relocate the lower link to the inside.

7-13-2015

I was at the body shop today to discus ride height. It looks like the diameter of the tires I am using is the same as the original tires from what I can see. It looks like the car had 185/70 15's as an available tire. If someone can confirm that I would appreciate it. I would like to have some assistance with on thing. I would like to know what the original ride height is from the bottom of the rocker to the ground. If anyone can help me with that measurement I would be in debt to you.

I want the car a little lower than stock but not obnoxiously low that I can't drive it. Thanks!!!!!!!!

On a side note, the Amazon wheel arches will cover the 315/30 18 rear tires perfectly. No need for a flare other than the stock lip of the fender! I am so happy I mini-tubbed the car! After I relocate the the outter link bar to the inside everything should clear just fine.

I have all the components for the sound system. A little early but I hate to wait for parts when I do need them. The head unit is a navigation unit from Pioneer and appears to have all the bells and whistles my new cars have including a backup camera. Should be a decent sounding system.