Volvo B4B engine
Volvo's second engine design after the
OHV engine of the 1930s and 1940s was the
straight-4 B4B of 1944 and its descendants, the
B14A and
B16. These were cast iron
pushrod engines like their predecessor, and used just three main bearings.
Introduced in 1944, the
B4B displaced 1.4 L (1414 cc/86 in³) and powered the
Volvo PV444. It was departure for Volvo who had not produced an automobile with a four-cylinder engine in nearly 20 years. The B4B was equipped with a single down-draught
carburettor. Suppliers of ancilliaries included
Autolite (ignition distributors and generators),
Zenith and
Carter (
carburettors), and
Bosch (ignition distributors, generators and starter motors.)
The
B14A was essentially a twin
carb version of the
B4B Volvo engine. These two engines were nearly identical, except for the induction systems. The B14A carb system was supplied by the British
SU carburetor concern and the carbs used were designated HS2. These dimunitive carbs familiar to any English sports car fan improved the acceleration and overall performance of the B4B which in turn accomplished Volvo's corporate desire to make the
PV444 cars powered by these engines more attractive to the
American audience whose attention Volvo hoped to gain.
While B14A engines are considered rare in the US setting, they were even rarer in
Europe. The production run lasted for one year. Some of the earliest
P1900 roadsters were built with B14s but many of the short production of 67 of these open fiberglass cars received the replacement for the B14 — the B16.
The
B16A and B16B (single carb and twin carbs respectively) were a 1.6 L (1583 cc/96 in³) development of the B14A which in turn was sired by the B4B. These engines were fitted to the
PV444 in its final two years (1957 and 1958), the
Volvo PV544 in its 1958 introduction, as well as the companion estate and van versions known as
Volvo P445,
Volvo P210, and
Volvo Duett. A new Volvo automobile introduced in 1956, known in some markets as the
Volvo Amazon or
Volvo 122 was the first production Volvo to sport this engine in any significant number although some of the later examples of the short-lived
Volvo P1900 were also fitted with them. Other applications of this engine found use in marine, industrial and agricultural settings. The
Volvo BM T425 tractor is one such example of a non-automotive use for the B16.
The appearance of the B16 was not unlike its predecessor, the B14. The block and cylinder heads bore no particular difference at a glance. The B16B sported twin
SU HS4 carbs, notably larger in size than the B14A's HS2 carbs. Also the remote oil filter attached next to the water pump on the ignition distributor side of the engine on the B14 had been relocated to a housing under the intake and exhaust manifold side on the B16. The exhaust manifold which dumped centrally on the B14 now was made to exit towards the rear of the B16 manifold.
In automotive applications the B16 was featured from
1957 to
1961 model years although in marine and industrial applications it was used for a number of years after. It was replaced in
1962 model year cars by the 5 main-bearing
B18 engine of 1.8 liters which had been first seen by the automotive public in the 1961
Volvo P1800 sports car. With the discontinuation of the B16 also came the end of 6 volt electrical systems in Volvo cars.
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List of Volvo engines*
