Spark
New member
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2019
- Location
- Grand Junction, CO
Hi,
Just purchased this '81 242 from an estate sale, the previous owner having cared for it over the last 30 years. While it appears to have been well loved by the owner, the sun has been less kind.
It's been 15+ years since I gave my trusty old 245 GL to a co-worker in need and I really hadn't thought about getting another 240 until this one popped up.
What makes this one a bit unique is it appears to have gotten the dealer Intercooler retrofit as I'm pretty sure it wasn't an option in 1981, the first year of the Turbo.
Another clever bit is an egg-timer-like 'turbo-saver/turbo-timer' which lets you leave the car running for a bit after you've taken the key out. I'm interested in giving it a closer look to see how it's wired in and find out if this was a dealer option, or something one of the previous owners concocted. It seems to work fairly well still.
Being in Western Colorado, I'll be setting it up to enjoy the countless windy mountain roads that surround us. Right now the suspension is about as firm as a bowl of Jello and while the turbo works, the lag is the only part that's epic. I'd like to keep the car looking stock-ish, but as a mechanical engineer, I probably won't be able to leave the inner workings alone.
I'd love to get some definitive answers on which tail-lights & headlights can be swapped without changing the hood, both ends need components replaced and I'll be doing some re-wiring regardless. I've heard the large euro E-code lights will fit, but I'm not sure which years or where to source them for a reasonable price? Likewise, the '86+ tail lights are much more common and look nearly identical?
I'm also wondering if the rear window can be swapped with a later year 4-door sedan rear window? The molding and rubber is pretty shot and I haven't found a good source. On my previous GL, I replaced the windshield with a ~92 model one which came with the nice, flush trim, I'm kind of hoping the same applies for the rear...
I'll try to update these posts with embedded photos instead of links at some point, but Google-photos doesn't appear to be forum-friendly right now.
Just purchased this '81 242 from an estate sale, the previous owner having cared for it over the last 30 years. While it appears to have been well loved by the owner, the sun has been less kind.
It's been 15+ years since I gave my trusty old 245 GL to a co-worker in need and I really hadn't thought about getting another 240 until this one popped up.
What makes this one a bit unique is it appears to have gotten the dealer Intercooler retrofit as I'm pretty sure it wasn't an option in 1981, the first year of the Turbo.
Another clever bit is an egg-timer-like 'turbo-saver/turbo-timer' which lets you leave the car running for a bit after you've taken the key out. I'm interested in giving it a closer look to see how it's wired in and find out if this was a dealer option, or something one of the previous owners concocted. It seems to work fairly well still.
Being in Western Colorado, I'll be setting it up to enjoy the countless windy mountain roads that surround us. Right now the suspension is about as firm as a bowl of Jello and while the turbo works, the lag is the only part that's epic. I'd like to keep the car looking stock-ish, but as a mechanical engineer, I probably won't be able to leave the inner workings alone.
I'd love to get some definitive answers on which tail-lights & headlights can be swapped without changing the hood, both ends need components replaced and I'll be doing some re-wiring regardless. I've heard the large euro E-code lights will fit, but I'm not sure which years or where to source them for a reasonable price? Likewise, the '86+ tail lights are much more common and look nearly identical?
I'm also wondering if the rear window can be swapped with a later year 4-door sedan rear window? The molding and rubber is pretty shot and I haven't found a good source. On my previous GL, I replaced the windshield with a ~92 model one which came with the nice, flush trim, I'm kind of hoping the same applies for the rear...
I'll try to update these posts with embedded photos instead of links at some point, but Google-photos doesn't appear to be forum-friendly right now.
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