Greetings again, FWD/AWD forum members-
I know this first part probably belongs in the intro section, but since there seems to be very little traffic there, I'll just put it here really quick :) My name is Jon Belmont, and I'll be joining you all shortly from the RWD forum. I'm completely addicted to volvos, and up until a few months ago was a "780 or nothin!" guy. I've owned 3 volvos... an '85 740, an '89 780, and a '91 780 which I still have and am selling soon. My wife and I test drove and absolutely loved the C70, so I'm going to give this FWD thing a try. I'm no stranger to what lies under the hood of a car, but I'm a little sketchy on everything being mounted transversely and consequently (I suspect) much more difficult to get to/work on. I suppose I will get used to it.

Enough about me, here's a bit about the car. It's a Black '99 C70 Coupe, with High-pressure turbocharged 2.3L and a 5 speed manual. It's got 37K on the clock. I got it for $27,000, which I feel is pretty good considering it was optioned out with the super-nice sound system, premium leather interior, rubber floor mats, and 17" canisto's. Also, it's already got IPD lowering springs, sway bars and 2.5" cat-back exhaust, an Ohlins strut tower brace and road holding kit, HID high beams, side marker lights (were those stock? they look an awful lot like the ones IPD sells), and a nosemask/bra. I will be the second owner; it comes with a 50K warranty and a 45K prepaid service. A good deal, yes?

Of course, my insatiable desire to tinker will be not repressed for long. I've already got a huge list of "to-dos," but at the forefront of my mind is the possibility of an AWD conversion. I'm sure that with the S70 and V70 platforms offering AWD varieties, that this question has been asked before. However, if someone could give me a brief synopsis of general opinion on the subject (i.e. easy as pie, downright impossible, this guy did it so go ask him, etc etc...) I would appreciate it.

On the off chance that the AWD conversion is feasible (and because there's still a warranty on the vehicle), I'll stick to small mods right now like HID-ing the low beams, e-code lenses, boost gauge, a/f & egt meters, hardwired laser/radar detector jammers, etc... I'm guessing that an AWD conversion could affect engine/exhaust/brake configurations so I won't mess with them for now lest I have to do upgrades twice.

Anyways, thanks for indulging my pipe dream, and I look forward to correspondence with you all in the future.

-Jon
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1LT Jonathan T. Belmont-- '91 Coupe 166K 'Gustaf'