Posts Tagged ‘swedish’

Volvo Show, Part 1 – 1979 Volvo 242 GT

May 24, 2016

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.

20160521_120543

(more…)

Cool Box – 1979 Volvo 242 GT

May 11, 2016

Here’s another car that’s become interesting with time. In the 1970s and 1980s, and even the 1990s, Volvo’s 240-series cars were so ubiquitous, they were a cliche of the left-leaning family wagon. In that sense, they were the Subaru Legacy Outback of their time, and you wouldn’t even look twice if you saw one going down the road. And similarly, both are fairly unremarkable to drive, but both do quite well with aftermarket upgrades. And both have at times come with performance upgrades from the factory – witness the Legacy GT or the 240 Turbo. Let’s take a look at an earlier sporting Volvo 240 – this 1979 Volvo 242 GT for sale for $3300 in San Rafael, CA.

1979 Volvo 242 GT left side

(more…)

Swedish Army Knife – 1988 Saab 900 SPG

March 11, 2016

A popular saying goes “jack of all trades, master of none”, and there are many examples out there on the car market today. SUVs trying to be sports cars, sedans and wagons jacked up to go off-road, vehicles that cross-over to a land of poor driving dynamics, and more. In the 1980s, though, there was a car that was probably one of the best – let’s call it a “jack of all trades, master of most”. The Saab 900 had excellent handling and acceleration, great comfort, reasonable fuel consumption, and an amazing capacity for stuff. While the styling was divisive compared to its peers, anyone could argue its case in comparison to, say, a Porsche Cayenne or BMW X6. That said, up for consideration today is this 1988 Saab 900 SPG for sale for $2250 (or $2700 including a parts car and parts collection) somewhere in Cumberland County, ME.

1988 Saab 900 SPG right front

(more…)