scoobyh123 wrote:It could for example be suggested that as Triumph sold the engine to Saab, they had finished with it so the T-Series would be the nearest "in-house" 2.0 16 valve engine available - certainly in 2.0, 4 cylinder format.
I've heard that the O series was being considered and tested for fitment to both the MGB and TR7 as it was so much cheaper to produce than the B or slant 4, more reliable and with no performance penalty. Which would validate your claim that both engines are a natural progression. But only the slant 4 was actually fitted to the TR, so the Saab engine "triumphs" for me.
scoobyh123 wrote:These were the last of the "Red Block" Volvo engines, the subsequent T-5 engines were all Ford influenced "White Block" engines and as such don't have the lineage to even think of conjuring up a reasoned argument for saying they are a natural progression.
I think we've had this discussion face to face.
The Volvo Modular Engine, otherwise known as white block was conceived and in production nearly 10 years before Fomoco got their cost cutting claws into Volvo. The pre ford versions were pretty much unkillable, but post 2000 the ford effect became became apparent. Worse, some versions started being made in Bridgend rather than Skovde complete with engineered-in ford faults like iffy timing gear and weak head gaskets.
Geely are now investing billions of dollars to undo volvo's reliance on ford components and reinstate Volvo's reputation for highly engineered quality vehicles. Having had a look around the new XC90, it seems to be overengineered to 7/900 series levels.
Tom.
'97 Vitesse Coupe
'03 XC90 D5