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White 940 2.5TDI wagon

I know that VW knows how to build the small diesels..... while they are nearly everywhere in Europa, we don't see them that much in the States.

OK, sounds like your modern 2.5TDI will "bolt right up" to the M90.... I thought the diesel engines that Volvo used in RWD vehicles had a custom bell housing pattern; I didn't realize they copied the original Volvo petrol engine pattern. Very interesting!

Good luck with the final drive axle assembly.... sounds like a solid choice using a proven professional source. That work is tricky all around.... I've done several of them and it is definitely an iterative procedure to get the R&P pattern just right whilst also establishing pre-load on the carrier bearings. One needs special tools, a press for carrier bearings/shims "on and off and on and off" to get things right.

I'll be following your progress on your diesel Vaggen..... I think my German friends called them a KOMBI. :-)
 
DET17 said:
I know that VW knows how to build the small diesels..... while they are nearly everywhere in Europa, we don't see them that much in the States.

OK, sounds like your modern 2.5TDI will "bolt right up" to the M90.... I thought the diesel engines that Volvo used in RWD vehicles had a custom bell housing pattern; I didn't realize they copied the original Volvo petrol engine pattern. Very interesting!

Good luck with the final drive axle assembly.... sounds like a solid choice using a proven professional source. That work is tricky all around.... I've done several of them and it is definitely an iterative procedure to get the R&P pattern just right whilst also establishing pre-load on the carrier bearings. One needs special tools, a press for carrier bearings/shims "on and off and on and off" to get things right.

I'll be following your progress on your diesel Vaggen..... I think my German friends called them a KOMBI. :-)
Click to expand...

To be honest I don't get it why little diesel economical cars were not pushed in the States. Have you heard about the Lupo 3L?

About the bellhousings, your previous assumption is correct that diesel RWDs have a custom bellhousing pattern, different than the redblock or whiteblock. It is the Audi/VW earlier 5/6cylinder petrol and diesel engine bellhousing. The 2.5TDI uses this too. Thats why the diesel M90 is rare aswell. I have a little secret desire to put an Audi S2 engine into a Volvo. :ninja:

If i had the time and plans to do more than just one r&p install, I'd actually invest in the tooling and would gladly learn it too. The real tricky ones are the FWD Audi gearboxes!

Kombi haha, well, we also use this word for cars like this. :)
 
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Hooray, after almost a year, the 740 Dana 30 axle got the 3,08 ring&pinion 🥹

Ratio install was not as straightforward as it seemed:
- Pinion is not a crush sleeve type
- Volvo metric flange nut did not fit as this has an imperial thread
- Differential carrier break is no joke - Volvo only used the 3,73&up design in all the factory axles. 1031 uses this exact carrier all the way down to 3,31, if i'm not mistaken. Well, this r&p being a true Dana30 3,08, it uses the 3,54&down design, which design in fact offsets the ring gear to the left about ~3,5mm. This meant the carrier had to be turned to shift it to the left. 2mm was removed.

Carrier_on_lathe by Péter Gede, on Flickr

Fortunately there is still no clearance issue here:
Clearance2 by Péter Gede, on Flickr

And the set up, finished art. I'm really glad i let a professional do the job:
Dana30_3,08_Installed by Péter Gede, on Flickr

Now i only need some time to test fit the halfshafts (hopefully no modification needed on the left side), set the speed sensor depth, seal the axle up and install. Can't wait to break it in! :-D
 
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Now that's some determination to get a 3.08 final ratio into a 740! Well done, your pro clearly knows what he's doing.

The lowest (numerically) ratio I've heard of in the States would have been used in the diesel 7 series..... and those are fairly rare here! Our best chance for a "desert gear" here is to find an early 960 which has something near the 3.31 I believe.
 
Finally had a free weekend to install the long ratio axle.:dance:
Firstly i needed to check if the shifted diff carrier required a shorter axle on the left side or not. Well, half shaft with the bearing kit, hit the diff cross shaft, so i just marked the free part of the shaft which came out from the side gear. It is approx 4-5mm, i did not measure it.
20250405_193407 by Péter Gede, on Flickr
Then checked if the splines are free to slide into the side gear. Checked the depth again, then removed the wheel bearing outer ring, slid the shaft in. This time it seemingly went 2-3mm deeper, which i found just enough for clearances.

Checked the speed sensor placement:
20250405_193354 by Péter Gede, on Flickr
Looked okay for me, the depth aswell. Then cleaned the diff cover, applied sealant and bolted it on.

Out the 3,54 came:
20250405_221135 by Péter Gede, on Flickr

In the 3,08 went:
20250406_010403 by Péter Gede, on Flickr
Then i went to sleep.

On the next day, i needed to change the oil seals, do the final cleaning and repacking of the wheelbearings, and install them.
20250406_125037 by Péter Gede, on Flickr

Then all i needed to do was install the parts back on, lower it back on the ground, fill with gear oil, double check all the nuts and bolts:
20250406_202625 by Péter Gede, on Flickr
20250406_202709 by Péter Gede, on Flickr
20250406_202648 by Péter Gede, on Flickr
I did not see the 1030 mark when the axle was rusty. 😄

Then it was time to test drive it. Fortunately it presents no weird noises, it is just doing its job. I'm still just gradually increasing load on it, as i want to normally break it in. 400km already in :love:
Now the whole driveshaft rumble behaviour changed as expected. It starts around 90kmh, and does it until 120kmh. I won't get it balanced yet as I have the M90 set ready.
130kmh is at least pretty much silent, and the engine is operating in a much better range there. I think i will keep it :-D
 
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DET17 said:
Now that's some determination to get a 3.08 final ratio into a 740! Well done, your pro clearly knows what he's doing.

The lowest (numerically) ratio I've heard of in the States would have been used in the diesel 7 series..... and those are fairly rare here! Our best chance for a "desert gear" here is to find an early 960 which has something near the 3.31 I believe.
Click to expand...
We got a 3.15 in the diesels, Bakaxel.se still sells this ratio for the Volvo carriers.
 
Really cool project! As someone that loves Volvos and VAG diesels, it doesn't get cooler than this. The 2.5 TDI is an excellent engine, I really wish they had sold it here in North America. We did get the 5.0 V10 TDI which is in some sense, essentially two of them merged together, which is awesome but absurdly impractical.

I'm curious why you decided to go with a fully mechanical injection pump? After owning a lot of both old and new VAG diesels, I've gradually come around to preferring a computer controlled injection system where you can have a lot more control over the engine- more power, less smoke, and easier to diagnose issues with VCDS.

The 3.0 V6 TDI (which I have in my Touareg) is a great engine also, that we did get here, but I'm not sure it would physically fit into a Volvo engine bay, as it is extremely wide. However, I think it also uses the same bellhousing as the D24.

Word on the street is that the Porsche 996/986 cars also use the same D24 bellhousing, I think it would be fun/insane to build a TDI Porsche 911 or Boxster.
 
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petiww said:
I only seen that it is available when i already had all the parts and axle was being refurbrished. Plus even this little difference is a difference. 😅
Click to expand...

Yeah you're right!

And can you tell us for exemple, what kind of rpm you reach at 130 km/h in 5th gear?
 
casioqv said:
Word on the street is that the Porsche 996/986 cars also use the same D24 bellhousing, I think it would be fun/insane to build a TDI Porsche 911 or Boxster.
Click to expand...

My understanding is that early 986 Boxster at least (not sure on the others) used the same 012 5-speed transmission that was found in a FWD B5 Audi A4 or VW Passat. Not sure on the 996 but since it used a larger version of the Boxster water-cooled engine it would not surprise me if it shared the bell pattern for the rear engine trans too.

If that is the VAG V6/V8 bell pattern then sure, easy enough to swap in any of those VAG V-engines. I think that V bell pattern is very close to the old 5cyl/6cyl pattern too as found on the D24 and 2.5TDI 5cyl. One bolt hole different and you can do without it is what I remember.

I saw a picture one time years ago of a Boxster with the 2.5L V6 TDI swapped in. Since the 012 trans (at least in a VW or Audi car) is dual-drilled for both the vee engine and 4cyl bell patterns, that would suggest you could also bolt in a 4-banger TDI if you could make it fit. I think height would be the issue. 5cyl TDI probably too big in both length and height.

Looks like the 2.7TT V6 swap in Boxsters is pretty common so that suggests no challenge getting a TDI V6 in there. Match it up to a TDI-geared Passat trans. It would be great!
 
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