There’s nothing better than accidentally happening upon a car show. Except when people attend a show with an interesting car they’re trying to sell. And that’s where this site comes in, though the Volvos only fulfill half the criteria the name suggests. Last weekend, ipd, a supplier of Volvo performance parts, hosted a garage sale and car show at their facilities near the Portland airport. There were some pretty fantastic cars there, including a nice selection of older Volvos with period performance parts, even a 122 sedan with a supercharged engine. With that, let’s take a look at one of the for-sale offerings, a 1979 Volvo 242 GT for sale for $4500 in Oregon.
That’s right, the location is rather vague, but it’s all that can be deduced from the seller’s phone number in the for sale sign. The car looks to be in very good condition, wearing glossy paint and the original striping. Trim is nearly new looking – it would be interesting to know if that’s a restored finish – and the original GT grill is present, though black instead of the silver you’d expect. These cars came from the factory with some suspension upgrades, but retained the original engine which came in under 110hp – actually fairly respectable for a late 1970s four-cylinder.
Forgive the picture quality – the owner was not around to open the car up, which also explains the lack of an engine shot. The interior was quite tidy, with the original GT seat upholstery, with which the only issue was perhaps somewhat loose fit. It’s nice to see the car is equipped with a manual transmission, and an overdrive unit at that.
Things look great from the rear as well – the car appears to have some sort of sports exhaust, and is wearing what appear to be wheels from a 740 Turbo. Again, the trim, which is usually faded at 37 years, appears to be in incredible shape – no damage or fading. On the car’s dashboard was a one-page list of all the work done, presumably in the seller’s tenure – it’s quite expansive, and includes attention to cooling, braking, engine, exhaust, and more.
The car is said to have had 4 owners so far, and to be very solid and reliable, needing very little at this point. If you’re a Volvo enthusiast, this looks like a prime example of the GT and is definitely worth a closer look. Offline listings can also sometimes be a source of a great deal – would you give this one a closer look? If you would, the seller’s contact information is in the picture below.
Rusty But Trusty 
May 25, 2016 at 5:52 am |
Apparently, they are kind of rare or desirable, but honestly, I’m not crazy about the grille with the additional driving lights. But I could certainly live with them on this little car. Very nice!
May 25, 2016 at 1:01 pm |
that would seem to be a good deal,,