I myself was told countless times to shim my car over the span of the last couple years.
Bear with me this is my first post here.
Back when i bought the volvo(2004 s60r m66) in 2023 for roughly not a small amount over market value in a condition that didn’t match the price.
(With it being my first volvo i wasnt aware i got lightly weinered)
Shims were actually one of the first things I learned about modifying these cars before I even bought it
But upon studying the work of head removal and machine work i opted for different plans on a car i DAILY(only car at the time)
Side note: if i knew what i was in for i might’ve never bought this car i like power i like speed and i certainly dont mind it being easy as i came from bmw (downpipe tune syndrome) so all this volvo stuff is insanely different from what im used to. parts arent cheap they arent easy to source the aftermarket support is nothing compared to p1 chassis volvo or other platforms.
Lets jump a year and some pocket lint forward and now i have a car that is AS GOOD as it came from factory. It only took 2 parts cars to get the drivetrain and suspension put together along with a full ride scholarship to the children of fcp euro and ipd but i digress
now that ive done stage ZERO+ and the car is good, can modify
first came the tune. Love my tuner btw this has nothing to do with him and he was 100% the biggest advocate for me to shim asap.
i didnt heed his warning.
10k miles of tuned rough daily short drives and im pretty happy with how this is going
“all this stuff people said about cracking blocks at factory power level must be bs”
now we are two years and a missing wallet deep i bought some intake piping for it started looking into intake exhaust intercooler the normal fbo stuff and then i find a rare find browsing ebay an upgraded intake manifold like full custom smooth bores slightly opened up runners bigger plenum (much like a design a fellow member suggested would help) and a price that wasnt over 1.1k
yeah so i installed that manifold took it for a test drive got home and noticed smoke. So i revved up a bit and it got worse so i cut the car smelled that coolanty smoke parked the car.
At least i wont be bored this weekend
other side note: instead of buying shims to prevent the crack in advance i bought a second block in advance because i knew it would crack (lawjik)
Moral of the story:
Idk figure it out, I clearly couldnt.
-watercar