1981 Volvo 245 DL - Race Wagon

There's something über-cool about cars that aren't what they seem. They draw real car guys like moths to a flame. And this '81 Volvo 245 wagon is living proof that we all love something out of the ordinary. While most people would be scratching their heads and asking why you'd do this to a Volvo wagon, car guys nod in approval because it's a Volvo wagon!

Let us explain: anybody with enough money can make an M3 fast. But for some guys, it's too easy. And for others, it's too predictable. There's something perverse about taking a grocery-getter like the Volvo 245 and turning it into a track car in your father's garage, on a limited budget, in your spare time.

Living close to Stockholm, Sweden the 28 year-old auto mechanic Tobias Wasserman was indoctrinated early. His earliest memories are of his father's blue '84 Volvo 245 GLT. It was followed by more Volvos until the 15 year-old bought his first car; a '72 Volvo 142 DL.

In turn, this was followed by a '76 242 with a '84 front-end and B23 motor on dual Webers, then came a '83 360 GLS with the same B23 motor, followed by a '84 242 with another built motor.

Currently, Tobias owns a widebody '89 245 with a '04 T6 motor as well as a '80 244 that's getting a '98 S70 2.5T motor. And there's a turboed '89 245 used as a tow car. He even works at a Volvo dealership...

Front end is quickly removed to access Scania truck intercooler

The Race Wagon, as he refers to the 245 featured here, was bought in 2003 as a winter beater. "At the time I had a '92 BMW M535i, but it wasn't the best car on snow and ice. So I bought the wagon from a buddy in good condition for its age.

"The following year it passed the Swedish Vehicle Inspection with a 170hp 850 GLT motor as a "modified vehicle" for private use. Shortly after, I lost control and the car began to evolve... Unfortunately, my father hasn't been able to use his garage since, but he kindly extended it to give me more work space!"

The inspiration for the project was drawn both from the Group A Volvo 242 touring cars and the 850 wagon raced in the British Touring Car Championship. "Modified 240 sedans are quite popular in Sweden, but very few use the 240 wagon, especially on the track," Tobias explained. "I enjoy having something different and my plan was to build a 240 race wagon using a combination of 242 and 855 parts.

Power trip Having paid $800 for the 106hp, four-speed car, he bought the 2.3L GLT five-cylinder motor for $3300 from a friend who ran out of steam on his own project. "The inline five-cylinder engine is really nice to tune. It's fairly easy to get lots of power from them and they sound terrific!" Tobias confirmed.

As the power of his imagination grew, so did the power of his project. Tobias originally aimed for 300hp but ended up with far more. He started with a Chinese ST70 turbo mounted on a home-built exhaust manifold fabricated from 42mm steel tubing. He then machined a '93 Audi S2 wastegate, enlarging it to 40mm and used the lower half of a Scania truck intercooler, making 3'' pressure pipes for it and adding dual Bosch dump valves with return feeds.

"I enjoy finding OE parts that will work on my car. I'm experienced enough to know if a certain part can be used and it saves money for the aftermarket parts I really need," Tobias explained. "I used as many modified Volvo parts as possible, such as the 850 GLT cams, V70 coils, S60 intake, 3'' 960 throttle housing, shortened 960 oil pan, two V40 radiator fans and a 940 alternator with my own mounting.

"Then I got parts from other makes, such as an Audi wastegate, Saab fuel pump, Mercedes pressure pumps, Toyota oil pumps, etc. These generally had to be massaged to work. And in some cases, I made my own parts too such as the motor mounts, headers, pressure pipes, cam gears, side-exit exhaust, etc."

When OE parts weren't available, he turned to the aftermarket for items like the SPM connecting rods, Siemens 630cc injectors, Nuke fuel rail and KG Tuning oil filter adaptor and remote filter assembly.