What To Do With Your Worthless 1st Generation Volvo S40

It's that time of the year where things move at a slower pace in Malaysia. This is the month of Ramadan and most muslims (being the majority in this country) are too busy saving energy by not moving too much or thinking too hard during the day. At night, most are busy eating and going to the mosques to gain more 'pahala' in this holy month.

But in the world of motoring, things are moving as usual. It is only because Yours Truly over here has become a hibernating bear as usual and not do much stuff. Do not move and you do not burn any calories. Even typing can be a chore especially if you feel a little tired due to lack of sleep and lack of food & water. Typing can also be a chore after stuffing oneself silly during the breaking of fast. And I refuse to use the word 'iftar' as I am a Malay, not an Arab. We Malaysians have been using the words 'BUKA PUASA' for the last fifty or so years and why do we need to become more Arab? Being a Muslim does not mean I have to be an Arab. If you think about it being Arab if you're some other race is quite pointless. I could ramble on and on about this fasting month but it would be better if we discussed about the first generation Volvo S40.


Now the first generation Volvo S40 was built between 1995 to 2004. It was a Volvo that isn't exactly 100% Volvo. It was built in collaboration with Mitsubishi and was based on a common platform shared with the Mitsubishi Carisma. This basically meant a whole lot of parts sharing and even utilised a Mitsubishi 1.8 liter engine for its base model. The one we Malaysians got was the 2.0T or turbo variant. This was a Volvo based unit which meant 160bhp in light pressure guise and a higher 200bhp in T4 guise. So coupled with the Mitsu chassis input and a Volvo drivetrain, this meant slightly capable handling and performance. However I do remember that the Volvo S40 was slightly problematic in Malaysia and one owned by the wife of a friend of mine suffered from tons of faults until she got rid of it or was it problematic until they got divorced and that was the last I heard of it. I don't actually remember.

Anyway, what this basically means it that now that the first generation S40 can now be considered as a pensioned off car or a car for pensioners. Or a Volvo for Volvo fans that could not afford it brand new since it now only costs in the region of RM18,000-20,000 for an early model. This also means that the people who bought one at over RM150,000 brand new must feel like they've got a permanent heartburn if they wanted to get rid of it. Of course there are those that would feel that its time to mod the car silly as I have come across tired S40s that cannot even pull away from a basic Proton Wira 1.6 (most probably due to a worn out turbocharger making it worse than a 2.0liter normally aspirated car due to a turbo engine's lower compression ratio).

And since it IS based on the Mitsubishi Carisma, a car that Mitsubishi placed in between the Lancer and the Galant in Japan this means that a whole lot of Mitsu parts can be thrown into it with relative ease. In fact, since the Proton Waja IS based on the Carisma, which explains why the Waja has a longer wheelbase that the late 1990s Lancer and IS NOT actually a Lancer like what most WajaLUTION owners think. So do take note of this important fact people. And also note that this little bit of trivia means that some parts especially the suspension can actually be shared by the S40 and the Proton Waja, hence saving the cost of spare parts  if you intend to maintain a S40.

It could also mean shoving in the 4g63 engine from a Lancer Evolution IV-VI with relative ease. Like in the photograph below. Does this give any of you S40 owners any idea of what do to with your worthless hunk of Scandinavian metal now? An S40lution. Sad, but very true.