How to lift a Volvo 940 by 125mm!

Volvo never made an XC or off-road version of the Volvo 940. All the more reason for LucaCarMods to build one themselves.

As you may know, LucaCarMods.com supplies BC-Racing coilovers for the Volvo 940, but until recently, no “Volvo 940 Lift Kits”. As a winter project, we looked into how it would be possible to relatively easily raise a Volvo 940 by approximately 10-15 centimeters and give the 940 a rugged off-road look.

Click here to go to the Volvo 940 Lift kit product page

How are we going to lift the Volvo 940?

When lifting a car, there are three common methods:

1. Body lift/subframe lift
   With a body lift, you place spacers between the cabin and the car's frame. You often see this with pick-up trucks or other vehicles with a ladder frame. A subframe lift is possible with many more cars. Here, you place spacers between the front and rear subframe and the car. This lowers the suspension relative to the chassis. Both methods do not provide additional suspension travel. You only raise the car.
2. Long travel suspension
   These are kits you often find on rally cars and better off-road vehicles. The shock absorbers and springs of these kits are much longer and provide longer suspension travel. Lifting the car this way actually improves handling in off-road use.
3. Larger tires, Strut extension/spring spacers
   The simplest and most budget-friendly way to lift a Volvo 940 is to place spacers at the rear springs, extend the front struts, and mount larger tires for better looks and extra height.

Volvo 940 – 235/75/15 off-road tires, front struts extended by 75mm, and spring spacers installed

Large Toyo Open Country A/T 235/75/15 tires!

Let's start at the beginning. The Volvo 940 usually has tire sizes 195/65/15 or 205/60/15, which are fine for normal use. However, since we are significantly raising the Volvo 940, larger All-Terrain tires from Toyo will be fitted. Specifically, the 235/75/15 Toyo Open Country A/T; these have a very sporty look, but the tread is relatively quiet on the highway and provides sufficient grip.

Larger tires fill the wheel arches better and already gain the first few centimeters of extra ground clearance.

The image below clearly shows the difference in tire size. The 235/75/15 tires are about 10cm taller overall than the original tire size. This results in a gain of 5cm extra ground clearance.

Now you might think; 5cm, that's easily gained, I'll just mount larger tires. Because the tires are many times larger than original (and we want to raise the Volvo 940 even higher), space will have to be created in the wheel wells so that the Toyo Open Country A/T tires do not rub.

Raise front by 75mm

To achieve a total lift of approximately 125mm and ensure that the tires do not rub, the front struts will need to be extended by 60 to 75mm. At this height, the tires do not rub against the spring perches.

After disassembling the struts, the coil spring and shock absorber must be removed.

After removing the spring, you will find a retaining ring that holds the shock absorber in place. Spray it generously with WD-40 or another penetrating oil of your choice, let it soak for about 10 minutes before attempting to tap (bash) the ring loose. The ring can be extremely tight, so using a good sledgehammer is recommended.

Once the shock absorber has been removed from the strut, the grinding/sawing can begin. This is "the point of no return". We cut the strut exactly 27 cm from the hub, measured from the hub, this distance gives you enough space to weld without the spring perch getting in the way. An additional advantage is; the higher you cut and weld, the less the material will warp over the entire length.

After marking the 27cm distance, a long line can be drawn perpendicular to this marking so that the position of the spring perch remains exactly the same relative to the hub. Double-check all measurements. Then place a hose clamp around the strut to ensure that the saw cut will be as close to 100% straight as possible.

After cutting the strut, we thoroughly clean the strut in the welding area and, as you can see below, also create a V-groove at the part that will be welded. This is an absolute MUST!! This ensures that the weld achieves 100% penetration with the correct settings on the welding machine. If you don't do this, the weld will be ON the material, which is many times weaker than a weld that is 100% through.

With a fitting bush, we ensure that all parts are perfectly aligned during the tacking of the 75mm additional length that will be added to this strut.

A 75mm strut tube section has been added between the cut parts. This provides the 75mm of extra ride height for the Volvo 940. With the fitting bush, all parts are properly aligned and can be tacked. Pay attention to ensuring that the position of the spring perch and hub remain the same relative to each other; this can be easily checked using the markings made on both parts.

Here you can clearly see that there is a deep V-groove, allowing the weld to flow deeply into the material. First, we secure everything with 4 tack welds, and at the same time, check if the fitting sleeve can still move smoothly through the entire strut. If so, the entire unit can be welded.

After welding, it can happen that you have achieved very good penetration and the weld on the inside has become slightly too thick, preventing the shock absorber from fitting. This can be easily smoothed out with a rotary burr.

Because the shock absorber tube has become 75mm longer, a 75mm bush will also need to be placed under the tube to support the shock absorber. If you do not do this, there will be no damping whatsoever for the first 75mm.

See below for the final result of the 75mm extended Volvo 940 struts.

Raising the rear with spacers

The rear of a Volvo 940 is very easy to lift with the LCM Volvo 940 3 inch lift spacers! These are spacers that need to be mounted between the springs and the chassis. You mount them by placing a jack under the axle so that when the shock absorber and spring are removed, there will be no unnecessary stress on the brake hoses.

After loosening the lower shock absorber bolt and removing the spring, the LCM Volvo 940 3 inch lift spacer can be installed. You screw it into the same spot where the spring was previously attached to the chassis. Then place the spring back and bolt it onto the spacer. Note: always ensure that the tension on the brake hoses is minimal.

With the Volvo 940 lift kit, you use the original shock absorbers to ensure that the rear axle cannot extend further than standard. The maximum extension of the rear axle with standard shock absorbers provides a safe margin for the brake hoses. Installing longer shock absorbers can lead to brake hose rupture! Always use the original ones and check if there is enough play in the brake hose.

Below is a photo of the design of the 75mm/3 inch spacers supplied in the kit.

When creating this post, a test spacer was used, purely for sizing and testing the kit.

Stabilizer Bar Spacers

Because we want to continue using all original components of the Volvo 940, the original stabilizer bar will also need to be lowered using a spacer.

Adjust bumpers and paint sills

Lifting the Volvo 940 is basically done now. However, there are a few things we do to give the Volvo an even tougher look! First of all, you gain a lot in terms of looks and height by removing the front bumper lip and painting the front bumper black. We painted the front bumper with a stone chip coating, which looks very tough and makes the Volvo 940 appear much higher.

On this 940, the sills have some spots or dents here and there. We also applied a stone chip coating to these so that they look neat again and the car appears higher.

Finally, the decision was made to cut the rear bumper in half to make the back look much higher. This is optional, of course, but we think the result is very successful. The Volvo 940 really looks like an Off-Road vehicle.

The end result