Cup Holders and Coin Tray

A Cult Car

This is a blog on refurbishing a Volvo 240 Wagon-- a cult car that is legendary for its durability. The 5 speeds manual transmission in particular gets great fuel economy, 32.5 mpg is attainable at speeds of 60 mph. Both the sedan and the wagon have plenty of rear leg and head room, even for tall people. Additionally, a tall person can sleep in the back--it is 77" long if the rear seat bottom is removed.

Thick sheet metal make it durable--so is the motor. Volvo took a V8 truck engine cut in half, to make this 4 cylinder engine. It has bearings and rods are designed for much heavy loads and this makes the engine nearly impossible to kill. People can get literally a million miles between rebuilds with regular oil changes and normal preventative maintenance.

The 5 speeds cars are fun to drive. Their durability means it is a smart economic choice to put money into them--they will last indefinitely if maintained. Parts are cheap. They are easy and simple to work on. Police just don't ever pull them over. It is because they like to stay at legal freeway speeds and purr along at 60 mph--so police expect them to be driven slowly. Finally, they are safe--built around a full roll cage. These are the reasons why there are so many are still on the road today.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Cup Holders and Coin Tray

I wanted a better cup holder. There is really no good cup holder in this car. I found a Ford part and decided to put it in the DIN opening normally used for what is called the lower radio mounting location. The Turbo Volvo's have a radio here, and all other 240's have the radio in the upper location. The turbo's have three gauges where the upper radio is mounted. I upgraded the radio on top, with a takeout radio from the sedan. So that left an opening on the bottom and I installed this coin tray and cup holder combo in that spot. I also removed the Volvo power amp that goes with the stock cassette radio.

The cup holder works ok for 12 ox cans, and smaller paper cup.

The change holder is wonderful. I use it every day, and also keep small parts like nuts and screws in there.