There is a reason there is a 1972 142E in my garage. Unfortunately higher in the work queue is the 1973 1800ES. My girlfriend not long after these cars were new wanted a car like the one she learned to drive on. That lead to a 1968 144S that an acquaintance of mine wanted to sell at the time. Having had various pieces of American iron, I fell in love with how nimble that '68 was with Koni shocks and big ipd sway bars. No hot rod for sure, but I could surely out turn many a car. ... View more

Snow tires are the single biggest single determinant of either motive or stopping traction. ... View more

One tidbit about the Volvo 245 is that it's a "Swedish Cargo Carrier" as in slide the refrigerator right in. Did exactly that multiple times. And the cargo box on the roof *with* the bike carrier and four bicycles on the roof. ... View more

Hmmm... The "twin" to my '16 GMC Canyon diesel. I wonder which is the lower production version? Personally I think made a good choice in replacing my Dieselgate VW Jetta. I regularly get 32-34 mpg highway and 21-23 mph hauling my '72 & '73 collectables. ... View more

Thanks indeed be to Jeff Lane. And if you have not yet seen that Lane Museum collection, by all means do! I lived in Chattanooga for a while & ventured to the Lane. Persuaded my Mid-West race diver (who had to see Road Atlanta) to stop & peruse the collection and two things happened: a) Jeff Lane has to see what was in the Race Trailer b) The driver's spouse was enthralled by this unique vehicle collection ... View more

What no comment on Volvo's "Drive it like you hate it", which was both print and TV? I recall absolutely blasting past a pickup picking its way slowly past the many potholes on a 1-2 mile dirt road. That was my '73 Volvo 145 and well, there was a refrigerator in the back. Drive fast enough and your wheels don't drop into the potholes. Definitely a smoother ride. ... View more

Nope - It's a stupid upside down vehicle that I have absolutely zero interest in... ... View more

Personally, I was fighting with headlights to see by. Now this was a bit before LED headlight possibilities, but I ended up with a pair of HID H4 bulbs inserted into new Hella 7" replacement kits. I couldn't see with direct to battery 100W H4 bulbs. Unfortunately HID bulbs mandated a bit of drilling & mounting, but newer LED setups should avoid that issue. ... View more

VW gave me a generous amount of money for my Jetta Diesel. I immediately turned it around for a GMC Canyon Diesel. It's twin the Chevy Colorado. I wanted Red, i should have made them haul the Red 4 wheel drive one out of Florida, some 650 miles away. Per the EPA the fuel economy of this truck is identical to my VW GTI. The GMC is the usual long haul vehicle due to the Premium/Diesel price difference. Hauling my '72 & '73 cars from TN to PA, I was impressed. 21 mpg & 23 mpg. Now to get the camping trailer and live my dreams... ... View more

Personally, I'd go for a 1983 Volvo Flathood Turbo. Then the *real* question would be whether I should preserve the example as delivered, one of 500. Or strip the street car and move it towards the actual race car and take it racing. I'm not aware of any racing in the US although most of the delivered cars did come to the USA. ... View more

Trucks don't count, delete the Suburban.   I had multiple Swedish cargo carriers, either Volvo 145, 245 or 745,  they certainly hauled for me. Wife, two kids, camping gear and four bicycles was fairly common. A brother-in-law agreed his minivan couldn't take the same load. Mind you, this was both a bike rack *and* a clamshell on the roof.   At a Carlisle, PA meet I met a fellow with a massive pile of Mercedes part - I had to smile at the Volvo doing the hauling. I even brought home the 20 foot I-beam for the garage loft on the roof of a Volvo.   I ended up with the sexy one. Most people's reaction is that Volvo & sexy is an oxymoron. Then they see the 1973 Volvo 1800ES - then the camera's come out. ... View more