V8-Powered Volvo 780 Is a NHRA Monster, Looks Like a Wonderful Abomination

Just look at it. This isn't your average grocery-getter. You would never drive this up to Ikea to get your fix of meatballs. And your mom wouldn't even think of driving it, at least if her name wasn't Shirley Muldowney.

You don't have to be an expert to tell that this abomination was built to go fast: the huge scoop on the hood, the huge Mickey Thompson tires, the rear wing, the wheelie bar, and the chute all point in the same direction. This 780 fits into Dominic Toretto's philosophy: "I live my life a quarter-mile at a time, and for those 10 seconds or less, I'm free".

There isn't much Volvo left inside this thing, and that becomes even more obvious once you look under the hood. The biggest unit ever fitted by the Swedes under the hood of the 780 was a 2.8-liter V6. But you can't do 10-second passes with that around.

And building it up to spec will most likely be unreasonably expensive. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. So, if you're going to build a car for drag-racing, American Muscle is what you need. Right now, this 780 is equipped with a Chevrolet 522 ci (8.55-liters) V8 engine.

The seller hasn't provided a dyno sheet for this vehicle, but one can assume, judging by the NHRA Chassis Certification, that this car can probably do sub-9-second runs all day long. The engine is paired to a 10-clutch Powerglide two-speed automatic transmission and it seems that the last NHRA inspection was performed in June of 2019.

Reportedly, this Volvo 780 hasn't raced since then, and you can't help but wonder why that is. It's not like you can go around the neighborhood for a test drive in this thing, at least not without waking everyone up and getting pulled over in an instant.

The good part about buying a car like this is that you can skip all the hard work and just go out and have fun with it. But you should always be cautious when buying someone else's project vehicle, as it may have hidden flaws that won't pop up until you hit the drag strip.

The car is currently located in Staten Island, New York and you've got 5 more days to bid on it. The highest bid at this time is $4,000, which either means no one is keen on getting a project car these days, or that everyone is waiting for the last possible moment so that they can get it as cheap as possible.