Wow sport mode actually helps.

[thevolvoguy]

Well I have owned my Volvo 850 for about 2 years now. I have played with it enough to know it from the inside out. I was on this stretch of road last night... no other cars, completely flat, no turns... just smooth straight road. So I popped the little button in "Sport" mode for the first time in a while. I was going about 60mph and it jsut went... I have never felt an automatic tranny down shift that fast and smooth, turbo lag was there but a lot less noticealbe in "Sport". The engine screamed right over its 6500rpm redline and it just kept on pulling. I did not know my car was that fast.

I think I read somewhere that the transmission for the 850 Turbo, T-5, and R models was designed by the same company that porsche and ferrari uses.

The car has 225 hp standard. I have a few minor mods that all adds up to 238hp as tested on the Dyno. Im guessing 0-60 times around 5.8 (6.1 stock).

[v85097]

Porsche helped in the original design of the 850 5 cylinder Turbo engine, (aka white motor) and transmission for the cars that were used in the BTCC. The original motor design for the most part went into the production Turbo, T5, T5R and R variants. With exhaust mods on the Turbo cars they begin to take on the sound of a Porsche when under heavy acceleration, especially from a stand still, try it. You should leave the transmission in sport mode, it changes the power\torque curve and makes the car a lot more fun to drive. If you're interested in an inexpensive mod that will enhance your driving experience further, look into a manual boost controller. It will eliminate turbo lag, make full boost available instantly at any rpm and allow you to set the max boost pressure, then go drive in sport mode.

[4DSC]

Wow, a "Sport Mode" that actually does more than just downshift easier!

I've always liked the previous generation Volvos for some reason. Some are incredibly fast and I find the boxy styling "clean"...... Kinda like my car.