Hello All,
Tired of scraping my mudflaps on the tight corners. :P Just wanted to see if anyone had any suggestions on suspension. I don't want a race car, just better handling. I'm sure that my car has needed shocks and springs since I've had it(8 years), so I don't know weather stock is good, or if I should upgrade since the parts all seem to cost around the same...............

Best bang for the buck handling wise is to replace the swaybars. The stock was 19 mm front and rear on sedans. The 21 mm front bar from the 1993 240 really improves the handling, next up the scale the 23 mm front 21 mm rear from the 240 turbo sedans. IPD make 25mm front 22 mm rear which will cost a bit more.
The stock springs should not need replacing with normal use - unless they are damaged or rusted badly. You can replace them with stiffer front springs originally fitted to the 240GTs - FCP groton supply these as "Turbo springs" but if you do that you should add the chassis braces from the GT as well - IPD sell these. Lowered springs are available if you want to go that route.
Shocks are really a personal thing - the standard ones are Boge/Sachs. Boge, Bilstein and Koni all make better quality replacements - just dependent what you like and how bad the roads are around you.

thanks for the great info. never even thought about the swaybars. is it possible that the sway bar bushings just need replacing?? would that make a difference? this car REALLY leans in the turns. the car is a california car, so has no rust anywhere(springs LOOK good), but the rubber may need work..........

either way, sway bar bushings or not, you will need to replace the struts/springs/shocks. the reason being, you've driven it like that for 8 yrs. save up and do it all at the same time. now, since you said you didn't want a race car feel, go for stock settings. aftermarket or factory, it's your choice, but replace them anyway. aftermarket tends to be on the firmer side and will usually, and I stress usually, last longer in feel and then degrade faster than factory which will peter out gradually until one day when it scrapes its mudflaps again. aftermarket will always be a little more expensive than stock but the feel is better. personal choice always wins out. personally, I prefer a firmer ride over a more luxury, softer ride. just my preference. keep us posted and good hunting.

Is this a wagon or a sedan? The wagons tend to roll more that the sedans. I doubt that it's the swaybar mounting rubbers but check to see if the swaybar endlinks are O.K. as these occasionally break. I doubt this because you would hear some clunking because of this.
If it's a wagon, the standard swaybars are 19 mm front 16 mm rear while the turbo wagons had 23 mm front and 19 mm rear. I run 23 mm front 21 mm rear on my wagon but the 23/19 may give better balance. If it's a wagon, I wouldn't fit the 21 mm front bar unless you went with the stiffer GT front springs.

I have a wagon. I think I'll do the shocks/struts/springs all at once, then check it out. I'll think about sway bars if it's still too loose. I haven't "driven it like I stole it" since I lived in San Diego. I used to go to Palomar Mountain and try to keep up with the crotch rockets. I decided the best way to do that was to get one. Since then, I take it easy when I'm on 4 wheels. Thanks for your suggestions and your information!!!
-Chris

...replace ALL your rear suspension bushings, add a 21mm rear sway and you will eliminate that excessive lean...and eliminate some of the understeer...

...just adding rear sways w/o getting rid of that old mushy suspension rubber won't get you what you want...rubber may look good, but after 16 yrs it isn't....

...then you need to look at your tires/wheels...steel rims w/ high aspect tire = comfy ride but mushy cornering...

...prolly something like a Sachs/Boge Turbo Gas shock would work well on your [heavier] wagon...

...everything works togeather, you cant' just change a part of the system and expect to get full results...you also have to think about what you want to do with th front end when you make these choices...

Yea, I was looking at the bushings online. They are cheap. No reason no to replace. I'll also be inspecting all the front end stuff as well. Recently replaced the front end on a 71 Buick Electra, so this should be pretty straight forward. Also pretty cheap(but a pain to replace). I like the volvo turbo wheels, but they cost too much to worry about at this time. For the most part, I'm an all, or none kinda guy. If I start throwing money into the suspension, then I'll be upgrading engine components, then I'll want a turbo, blah blah blah. For all the money I would spend in the end, it would be cheaper to just buy a 240 turbo that someone else already did the upgrades to. Besides, This volvo is going to be my daily driver in the pot-holed DC/Baltimore region. There are cobblestone streets here that eat sport suspensions for breakfast. In 10 years, when the kids start leaving home, and I'm rich :P , then maybe I can start having fun with the upgrades..........

unless................ I do all this work, and it's still scraping the mudflaps................

I agree you should replace your shocks and struts as a set but I don't see the point in replacing the springs unless they are damaged. From what you've told us, you'll need the standard springs to cope with the bad roads so if they aren't broken why replace them? FYI if you fit the 23mm front sway bar from a 240 Turbo it will make a phenomenal difference to the handling with no loss of comfort. My one cost $15 from a Pullapart yard and it takes less than an hour to fit it. Far less than 4 new springs....