History and buyer’s guide originally published in European Car in August 1993; republished by the author “What’s it like to own a $10,000 car?” Volvo asked the question in a magazine ad and answered it with “Find out for $3995” and a picture of the P1800 (along with a $12,500 for a Ferrari, a similarly […]
1983 Volvo Limited Edition 240 Turbo, the “Flat Hood”
History originally published in the Illustrated Volvo Buyer’s Guide, 1983, by John Matras; republished by the author The 1983 Volvo Limited Edition 240 Turbo is called the “Flat Hood” because it has a flat hood. If politics makes strange bedfellows – keep your prurient thoughts to yourself – then racing makes unusual variants available to […]
Volvo V70 Hunter Arctic Tested
Review/driving impressions originally published in Road & Track’s Open Road, Spring 1997; republished by the author There isn’t much Norway north or east of here. We are so close to the Russian border that we can see a Red Army observation post to the east. The Barents Sea lies to the north. If James Bond […]
1927 Volvo PV4: The first boxy Volvo
History/driving impressions originally published in AutoWeek April 1, 2002 Volvo’s first sedan was immediately disowned by Helmer MasOlle. The landscape and portrait painter – and car enthusiast – had indeed designed a prototype sedan and its touring car counterpart. He gladly took credit for the open torpedo-bodied ÖV4, bearing strong resemblance to a Voisin he […]
Volvos 480ES: The Immigrant that wasn’t
History originally published in Sport Compact Car, December 1997 Of all the “could’ve beens,” perhaps the saddest ever is the Volvo 480 Turbo. Volvo hadn’t built a sports car since the demise of the 1800ES after the 1973 model year. The five mph bumper rule that came into full effect in 1974 would have required […]
Volvo P1900 1956-1957: Volvo’s first sports car
History originally published is Illustrated Volvo Buyer’s Guide (1993) by John Matras It left as quickly as it had, leaving hardly a ripple to mark its passing. Yet for an exotic Volvo, one would be hard-pressed to find a better example than the 1900. The short story of the P1900 began in 1953 when Assar […]
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