Been using the forum’s vast knowledge for years now and realized I’ve never made an account, thread, or post, so I figured an introduction is in order.
My name’s Alexander. I grew up in the SF East Bay and still reside here. I currently have four Volvos — my first was a polar white 850 R wagon that I picked up six years ago and it’s pretty much stock aside from some Propus wheels and a redone headliner. It’s running strong with about 230k miles and might be my favorite car ever.
Since then, it seems like they just kept showing up. My first introduction to Swedish cars, however, was my 2000 SAAB Aero Wagon. Great car — was an absolute rocket and handled amazingly with lowering springs and B8s — but it had too many miles and it kept falling apart. Before that I had a `98 Buick Regal LS I learned to do the Scandinavian flick on a backroad in, and around the same time I was teaching myself how to drive manual on a `02 Passat 1.8T.
Been doing most of the work on my cars myself and went to the local community college to learn most of it.
In 2021 the Venetian Red C70 Coupe T5-M showed up through a friend to have some detailing done. It involved scraping an awfully deteriorated PPF from the hood and I ended up buying the car before realizing how special it was. I’ve made several modifications — B6 suspension, modified exhaust, poly torque mounts, iPD bars, do88 radiator, and a Hilton S1 Tune — but, I have quite a few more I’m hoping to add on like delrin subframe bushings, chassis braces, intercooler and RIP kit, refreshed turbo, retune etc.
That car is an absolute riot and I tend to beat the snot out of it on a daily basis. It could really use a sports seat on the driver’s side — I don’t fit with a helmet on and I’d like to do more track/autocross driving — a reskin on the front passenger side, and I’m thinking a Dolby processor because the three left front speakers are out (speakers, head unit, amp, and crossover are all good.) Other than that, the steering rack just started leaking out of the boot 
It’s up to 146k miles.
In April 2023, I was at a bar in town and was approached by a guy who liked the C70 and later asked if I wanna buy another Volvo for a thousand bucks. My girlfriend relucting, we went to check it out on the other side of town. A couple of days later, I was limping around in a 1991 940 SE — polar white, B230FT, fully independent suspension, leather, heated seats, sunroof, BT audio, and a really clean body — for just $700. It’s got some wheel spacers to adapt P80 wheels — which I’ve got a surplus of. It’s currently running some 15″ wheels.
Took a few months of light tinkering here and there to get it running good, and aside from the radio interference impression relay that failed last week it’s been a fun car. I might be doing the Nivomat conversion and new front suspension and brakes soon, but I’ve got a chassis brace and strut rod kit on order from iPD now to remedy the braking issues. I’ve got no clue about the mileage on this one and really couldn’t care. It’s just a fun little car to put around town in for next-to-nothing and it’s been with an elderly neighbor for several months because he can’t afford another car after totaling his old Buick.
Most recently, I picked up another C70 as a potential parts car for the T5-M and 850R for cheap from some shady dude up in the foothills. It had been sitting for about a decade and has 200k miles. It’s a compete car, but definitely showing its age. That said, I got it running after about 10-20 seconds of cranking with some fresh gas and a battery. I listed that one a few months back to see if anyone wanted to make it their next project and it’s still available, but I think I’m going to hold onto it as long as I have room unless someone wants to take it off my hands. The interior, aside from the driver’s seat, is in remarkable condition and has better functionality overall than my other coupe. It could use some front and rear bumpers, headlight wipers, and a whole bunch of TLC to get it up to par. For now, it’s mostly a yard ornament that I put a couple of hours a month into working on.
You can find me on Instagram and TikTok @a.r.broom, and on Twitter as @AlexanderRBroom
A bit of personal background: I’ve got a formal education in journalism and spent time during the pandemic working for about a dozen automotive brands until 2022 when I transitioned to the public sector in education and non-profit communications and marketing after some medical issues. I’d love to get back into covering motorsports and automotive storytelling. If anyone ever needs photos, videos, or words for events, marketing, or fun, I’d love to assist.
I’ll probably jump back in later with some photos if anyone’s interested. Thanks for reading, and I look forward to getting to know you all!