1995 940 Wagon, B230FD 8-Valve Engine, 240k miles.

This remains my wife's daily driver. We've had it for 6+ years now. Put a lot of miles on it and I'm not planning on letting it go short of a serious accident. My wife's chief complaint (aside from some wear parts causing drivability issues) is that the engine has no get-up-and-go.

Driving it myself, I agree. Not much left for passing gear - especially on the highway.


So last weekend, a guy listed a lower-mileage 1995 940 Turbo for sale. Cheap. Aside from the fact that the guy was a smoker, had trashed the interior, and had a peeling cheapo black paint job (over teal), I was going to buy the car for the engine, but hesitated due to being in uncharted territory. I missed out, but I expect another donor to come along any day now...

I do realize that the B230FD is a different beast from a B230FT, but I've never heard anyone describe switching out a non-turbo B230FD engine for a Turbocharged B230FT.

I generally avoid the turbos due to the issues with cheap oil and rapid failure, but my 98 c70 is turbo and drives damn fast if i want it to. I've also found some good sources for turbo rebuilds, so I'm no longer afraid of trying one.

So... has anyone here created a Turbo 900? What sorts of problems and challenges await should I find another likely donor car? Any especially good reason *not* to do a swap like this?

Recall that I am the guy who installed a 1971 1800E Engine, FI, axle, and drive train into a 1967 122S. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty. However, I can't weld. so all my upgrade have to be bolt-on or require only very specific welding jobs that I can contract out.

Am I crazy?