Irv Gordon's Classic Volvo

amazon

Well, I'd call it dumb luck. Also, that Timo cam was truly awesome. The car had relatively good torque low down and would rev 'til 6.5K in all gears.

andys120

"the Swedish Karmann-Ghia" (it wasn't a compliment).

jrosasmc

Why is that, Andy?

By the way, it seems as if the '60s Volvos (even the P1800) were the most practical of all European cars at the time. They could hold much more cargo in their trunks than Healeys, Renaults, and even VWs.

Mr_Shiftright

Well, no one bought Healeys for practicality, as they were true sports cars, and the P1800 was expensive compared to cheap Renaults and VWs. In most respects, the P1800 was not a good value for what you paid, because while you got a good solid car you didn't get a car that did any one thing particulary well.

Also, it was not considered attractive at the time, and many people (me included) still think the early ones are pretty homely.

I rather like the E model sport wagons, though--I mean, I like the looks of them, not the way they drive.

Maybe I'll go for a spin in one again and see if I've changed my mind. It's been a while.

jrosasmc

So the P1800 didn't get a lot of respect from sports car enthusiasts even when new?

Mr_Shiftright

I think it mostly went unnoticed, or was regarded as a curiosity. Appearing in the "Saint" TV series helped it along I think. But with cars like E-Type Jaguars, Mercedes SLs, Healeys (til 1967), TR6, Karmann Ghia--there was a lot of competition in the sports car market, and odd-looking little green coupes from Sweden weren't exactly sexy in comparison. Probably mechanically though it was better than any of them.

speedshift

Yes, being Simon Templar's personal wheels helped it greatly with me but since I wasn't old enough to buy a car then and wouldn't have bought one of them furrin cars if I had been a buyer, I guess I was a whiff from Volvo's ad agency's point of view.

At least where I lived then, only eccentrics and masochists bought foreign cars. That was the perception then and it may well have been the reality too.

Mr_Shiftright

I think in the 50s and early 60s that was definitely true. And any man over 21 who rode a bicycle was a weirdo, too.

FREDERICK

This is Maxwell Smart and I never met a funny looking car that I didn't like. So you're lurking in a new realm of mostly non-classic cars I see.

Personally I liked James Bond's car better because it had that cool ejection seat. I had a Korgy Model of that one that I absolutly loved as a child but I think my nephews have thoroughly destroyed it by now. (Warning: never leave anything worthwile from your childhood in your parents garage once you go off to college.)

Now that was one cool Volvo.

lancerfixer

James Bond's car was an Aston Martin DB5...

Mr_Shiftright

He's thinking of "The Saint" who drove a (chuckle, chuckle, ) Volvo P1800 on his spy missions. I'm surprised he got any girls but you know, you never know.

speedshift

What did Maxwell Smart drive? The subway?

lancerfixer

At least Val Kilmer got a C70 when he was Simon Templar. Not a bad upgrade.

Mr_Shiftright

I can just see it on Fox

"Soccer Mom PI" and she drives a Volvo X-country wagon!

speedshift

Or an Audi Allroad. Chic yet rugged.

fd3s

Mr_Shiftright

spy on a tiny budget?

jrosasmc

Have you ever met Irv Gordon himself personally? Being a major car enthusiast, maybe you might have had some sort of contact with him.

speedshift

I met him at a book signing. I thought he was taller.

lancerfixer

I doubt he'd have put up with a P1800 for 2,000,000 miles.

speedshift

Here's Irv...

http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Downs/5329/irv.htm

...back at 1.5M.

fd3s

hope the link should work

my NEW 1973 volvo 142 turbo

Mr_Shiftright

Looks like you've been putting some serious effort into that car!

speedshift---hahahaha.......

lokki

Maxwell Smart drove a Sunbeam Tiger, and later, apparently, an Karman Ghia, and then an Opel GT. He should have stayed with the Tiger.

As for the Saint not getting any girls, well, hey, he's a Saint, right?

I had a friend who Looooooved his P1800, but it was always a mystery to me as to why. Maybe if you stuffed a small block V-8 in one..

Mr_Shiftright

I never "got" the P1800, try as I may. The later 1800E sport wagons, if they were "massaged", I could warm up to, as they were prettier than the old P1800s. Still though, you had to deal with the driving position. I can't recall if they ever got power steering, since they steered like trucks...no, worse than trucks.

jrosasmc

According to what I've been told and what I've researched, none of the P1800s ever came with power steering.

speedshift

I saw a P1800 parked on a street and gave it a quick lookover to see if I could spot why Irv fell so hard. You sit low and look over a broad long hood, at least relative to the size of the car. Irv's of only average height and maybe to him the hood goes on forever.

jrosasmc

I spotted a '64 or '65 PV544 on the highway this afternoon on the way to the mall. It was decent-looking, but nothing I'd call 100% perfect. But this car is one of the most fascinating Volvos I've ever encountered; since it was the first 544 I saw, I think it looks cool and cute because of its turtle-like rear. Wouldn't you agree, Mr. Shiftright?

Mr_Shiftright

I like the 544s a lot. They are fun to drive, handle quite well and are easy to fix. I wouldn't mind having one again.

jrosasmc

I may have the opportunity to sit inside a P1800 that my neighbor is restoring (he recently got this one). What can I expect from sitting in the driver's seat?

lancerfixer

You can expect to be seated.

Mr_Shiftright

You tell us.

jrosasmc

Well, I got to sit in that P1800 last night while my neighbor was working on it. To me, the driving position is kind of funky. It's like sitting in a new Audi TT- my shoulders barely reach the top of the door, and the hood seems to reach out forever.

speedshift

I thought so. That's what hooked Irv--that hood.

jrosasmc

Okay, I've read a couple of articles on the Web that update Irv's travels with his car. Today, he is scheduled to leave for Europe to take a five-week vacation. His first stop is Sweden, where he'll attend a 75th anniversary celebration at Volvo's headquarters in Gothenburg. Next he'll go to Germany, Luxenbourg, Holland, and finally to the UK. He is scheduled to return to the U.S. by mid-September. His current mileage? About 2,030,000. Go, Irv!

jrosasmc

According to another article I read just a few moments ago, Irv has put yet another paint job on the Volvo. Isn't this too much to ask from a well-used 36-year-old car?

amazon

Well, he's keeping his car in mint condition...

Mr_Shiftright

Restorations "go off" pretty fast if you use the car. Nicks and scratches are inevitable, as is wear and tear from entry and exit.

amazon

Yes, that's probably why he's had a few paint jobs already...

speedshift

Maybe that's what's holding the car together.

amazon

Old habit is holding this car together.

Mr_Shiftright

Seriously, I do hope he occasionally has vital parts of the car magnaflux for stress cracks. I remember when my Saab hit around 235,000 we found cracking A arms, etc.

jrosasmc

What is magnaflux?

Mr_Shiftright

Coating a part with a tracking substance and then reading it in a special light to look for cracks.

carnut4

Now that's a scary one. My old Dodge van was approaching 200,000 miles, and I was on a winding mountain road [7-8 years ago when I was squeezing one more camping trip out of it]. All of a sudden, as I was rounding a curve to the right [with a 100 foot cliff on the left] the left A arm snapped, and I'm skidding on the left front frame with no steering control, heading straight for the cliff. The left wheel was up inside the wheel well sideways. White knuckled and petrified, I finally steered the thing to a stop, just a few feet from the cliff. Talk about scary! I was 97 miles from home, and AAA plus [100 miles free towing] saved the day. Anyway, yes-cracking A arms are definitely something to think about [along with brake hoses] in older cars.

speedshift

Somewhere way in the beginning of this thread I mentioned metal fatigue. What else could go? Axles, spindles, wheels...if any of those failed it could be end of Irv's drive to destiny.

Mr_Shiftright

Don't make me think bad things.

amazon

It's, more specifically, actually a method then you use magnetic powder in UV light to detect cracks. We do this on our steering arms.

Mr_Shiftright

I've mostly used it for cylinder heads. It can be a very handy tool. Certainly if you bought say an old sports car or old racer that you wanted to take out on the track, you'd consider doing this to vital original parts.

speedshift

Can you magnaflux aluminum parts? Say a set of pistons? I've heard of it used mostly for rods and cranks.