Well, unfortunately, there IS an important change in the cars from 88-90.
And it's Volvo's nomenclature that is at fault in the resulting confusion.
A 1988 740GLE is a B230F engine (in the US). All standard model 740's were called "740GLE" up through 1988. The only other engine option then was the turbo, B230FT. The normal model, yours and mine, have 115hp engines. The turbo has 160 hp.
But just to be confusing, in 1989 Volvo introduced the 16-valve engine. This is called the B234F. It's the same block, with a twin-cam head on it. And yes, it makes 153 hp. That year, they installed the new engine in 740s, and called it a "740GLE". However, the standard model 740 (like yours) became simply "740" or with fancier trim and equipment, "740GL". The Turbo continued unchanged, although a "turbo plus" kit became available making 180+ hp.
In 1990 the front of the car changed, but the mechanicals were essentially identical. In 1991 the "GLE" was dropped, and the 740, 740GL, and 740 Turbo models continued.
All of which is kind of irrelevant to your little drag race.... your Volvo does indeed outweigh her Jetta by a couple hundred pounds I bet. (Ours weighs 3120 on the scale at work). But while the HP specs may be the same, I'd guess the 740 has a good deal more torque. And torque is responsible for acceleration. So the performance numbers are probably close to the same, as long as both have automatics or 5-speeds- just to compare apples and apples. A 5-speed Volvo is a much quicker car than the automatics... I expect the VW is likewise slower with an automatic. I imagine contemporary road test results can be found for these cars with a bit of searching. But I don't think I'd bet much on winning that race...
--
Rob Bareiss, New London CT ::: '87 244DL/M47- 220K, 87 244DL- 230K, 88 744GLE- 198K, 91 244 180K, 88 244GL 145K