Volvo 940 Turbo truck conversion

I spotted this just south of Salem, Oregon.  It's great to not only see a sedan-to-truck conversion, but it's doubly awesome that it is being put into good use.

Sorry for the tardy shutter.

Carspotting (48): Volvo PV544

Does anyone know what language has the word Polizi? The owner has a couple of other odd rides, including an AMC Eagle 4 wheel drive wagon and a 1970s Mustang with big exhaust pipes below the door sills, a la the Dodge Viper.

Today, of the dozens of old cars I saw in the time warp bizarro town, the most noteworthy were a bright yellow Saab 96, a Toyota Corona sedan, and two blocks away, a Toyota Corona Liftback!

Carspotting (47): Volvo 142S

While you digest the travesty that was the 2010 German GP (muchas gracias, Fernando), I give you the ultimate, stereotypical Berkeley car-- an old Volvo with leftist bumper stickers.

Here is a great write-up from TTAC.

IKEA and the Volvo PV445 Duett station wagon

Gillis Lundren was a carpenter in rural Sweden.  In 1956, he was delivering a table he had made to a client.  But he couldn't fit it in his Volvo Duett.  He was finally able to do so by taking the table's legs off.  His client's son was Ingvar Kamprad, the future head of IKEA.  Flat packing was born.

Marin Sonoma Concours parking lot cars photos

The Concours today was fantastic.  Even the cars in the parking lot got me excited.

Cool "Bring Alfa Back" sticker on Giulia.

There were literally dozens of 356s in the parking lot and on display in the Concours.

Ferrari 456.

Mercedes-Benz 500E.

Volvo and Ferrari.

La Carrera Panamericana Volvo.

Alfa Romeo Montreal.

Old Jag saloon.

Brave Aston owner.

Rally driving lights galore: Cibie, PIAA, Hella, and Viceroy!

If there is one thing I love more than vintage rally cars, it's the arrays of frisbee-sized driving lights up front.  These are from a guy named Ariel on Flickr.

Leif Mellberg Volvo cabrio convertible conversions

Famed Swedish Saab and Volvo customizer Leif Mellberg (of Saab EV-1 fame) created these two.

Volvo 740 cabrio convertible:

Volvo 760 cabrio convertible:

Volvo P1900 Sport: The Other Volvo Convertible

Wha...? That was my reaction this morning when I read about the P1900 in my Sunday paper.

It's a Volvo P1900. During a trip to America in 1953, the co-founder of Volvo was impressed with little roadsters with fiberglass tubs, like the Chevy Corvette. So he talked to the guys at Glasspar in Costa Mesa (a town just a few freeway exits away from the Mercedes Benz Classic Center) and asked them to design and build a body for Volvo.

What resulted was the P1900. Less than 70 were built in 1956 and 1957. Poor build quality and the lack of torsional rigidity were the culprits. Most ended up in Sweden or the States.

Most of the parts came from the PV444. A 3-speed was mated to a 1.4 liter engine capable of producing 70 hp.