(music) Volvo is a company known for safe, reliable,
boxy cars. That reputation was solidified in the public’s
mind with the Volvo 240. Built for the wild, winter conditions of Sweden,
this was a car designed to keep on going, no matter what. And go on it did, with a 19-year production run,
outliving its replacement, the Volvo 700 series. So, what’s the boxy Volvo got in common
with the DeLorean, and how did Volvo win the Touring Car championship without selling any
of the 500 type-specific cars it was supposed to? This is the Volvo 240 Story. (music) Volvo introduced the 140 series in 1966. Cars in the 60s were death traps compared
to today’s cars. In a frontal collision the engine would be
pushed into the main cockpit and if that didn’t injure you then the spear-like steering column
certainly would. The 140 series was an attempt to change this. It featured crumple zones at the front and
rear that would absorb some of the impact’s kinetic energy, the dashboard was designed
to be kinder to legs in a crash, and the steering column would split in two to prevent damage. It also used superior disc brakes both front
and rear with a dual circuit system that would allow the brakes to work even if one of the
circuits failed. With whiplash a real problem, the 140 introduced
headrests as standard in 1970. The car did well, selling 1.2M vehicles in
8 years. Seeing safety as a key selling point, Volvo
continued their research. With road deaths at or near record highs around
the world, they felt that customers would flock to something that protected the driver
and their loved ones. So, in 1968 they started a program to make
a quantum leap in vehicle safety with the P1560. 10 prototypes were produced over 2 years,
testing many technologies that would become standard on cars over the years. Rubber bumpers, reinforced doors to help with
side impacts, improved front and rear crumple zones and even airbags. The P1560 program was cancelled in 1971 due
to uncertainties about safety rules in countries like the USA, but these ideas morphed into
the VESC or Volvo Experimental Safety Car, a car that took another step in Volvo’s
quest for safety. With a long front and rear, the car’s crumple
zones allowed occupants to walk away from a 50mph frontal impact. The cars’ engine firewall would force the
engine below the passengers, something that’s now standard on all cars with an engine up
front. A spring would retract the steering column,
and the front seats had cushioning on the rear to protect rear passengers. The reinforced doors also introduced side
crumple zones. And passengers could survive the car falling
on its roof from 2.4 metres in height. The car also included ABS, a backup warning
signal, a motorsport-inspired roll cage, 3-point seatbelts that pulled tight in case of a crash,
automatic fuel shutoff from the centrally mounted fuel tank, door warning lights and
even a rear-view camera. The VESC was shown at the 1972 Geneva Motor
show. It was a much larger car, and although a lot
of the features weren’t ready for production the intention was to create a car this size
as a replacement for the Volvo 164, but the 1973 oil crisis put paid to all thoughts of
a large thirsty V8 car. With the P1560 cancelled, Volvo wanted a replacement
for the 140 series. But with limited resources they used the 144
as a starting point. The designer of this boxy car, Jan Wilsgaard er... sorry... Jan Wilsgaard was brought in to design it. Jan was integral in the design of many Volvo’s,
from the P179 in 1953 to the 700 series and 850 in the 1990s. The 240 used most of the 140’s body, reworking
the rear end and the front up to the bulkhead, and using the same rear suspension. But Volvo had learnt a lot from the VESC prototype,
and this allowed the 240 to be a much safer car than the 140. As far as styling went, it seems that Jan
Wilsgaard loved his ruler! The car was all straight lines, something
that would become something of a Volvo trait, eschewing fashion for their own unique boxy
style. And it also showed definite styling cues from
the VESC. But what counted was it was a well-proportioned
car in both saloon and estate variants. Volvo created a new 4-cylinder engine for
the car, as well as a V6 in conjunction with Peugeot and Renault. The same V6 was used to power Marty McFly
to 88mph in his DeLorean. The 4-cylinder would be a 2.1L, but Volvo
also produced 1.9L and even 1.7L versions to help sell the car in markets where tax
restrictions limited the engine size. Diesels were sourced from Volkswagen. The car would have a 4-speed manual or a 3-speed
automatic, and eventually a 5-speed manual. The 240 was unveiled in August 1974, just
a few months after their compatriots ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest with “Waterloo”,
and the 18-year old Bjorn Borg won his first Grand Slam title, the French Open. In 1974 all roads were leading to Sweden. Volvo’s marketing played heavily on 240’s
safety credentials. The headrests had a lattice-like structure
allowing the driver to see through them, giving better visibility and the larger bumpers provided
more protection. The Volvo 260 followed in October, although
the older 164 was available for another 2 years as Volvo eked out as much profitability
as they could from their old design, something that they would continue to do with other cars. OK – at this point we need to go over the Volvo 200 series numbering system. It’s really simple! Let’s take the 245DL. The two means, 2! The 4 means the number of cylinders in the
engine. 4 for 4-cylinders, and 6 for 6-cylinders. That is, except for when Volvo decided
to put 4-cylinder engines in a 260. And then diesel 240s had 5 or 6-cylinders, and sometimes Volvo sold high spec
6-cylinder cars as 240s. The third number is the number of doors. 2 for a 2-door car, 4 for a 4-door saloon,
and 5 for an estate. Then there was the 243, with one door on one
side and two on the other side. No one quite knows why they did that! Then in 1983 they just used 240 and 260 for
2 door, 4 door or 5 door cars with gay abandon. So, what’s that “DL” doing on the end
then, eh? Well, “DL” stood for the “Deluxe”
trim level, with “GL” for “Grand Luxe”, “GLE” for “Grand Luxe Executive”,
“GLT” for “Grand Luxe Touring”, "GT" of course being “Grand Tourer”,
“Turbo” for, “Turbo”, “TE” for “Top Executive”, “T” for “Transfer” and “C” for
“Coupé”. Then there were the following special edition
letters. And my favourite, the “Thor” edition was
released in the UK in the late 70’s. It probably came with its own special hammer
or something. All clear? Good! The 240 and 260 were an instant success, and
they were bought by anyone and everyone, from the man with 2.4 children and a dog, to lecturers,
to artistic bohemians. The Volvo’s alternate take on the car spoke
to people who wanted something “a little different". The V6 might not have been the most reliable,
but the 4-cylinder engine went on and on, giving the car bullet-proof reliability. Some loved its safety features and Volvo made
a point of celebrating customers who felt they’d survived a crash only because they
were in a 240. And with those large crumple zones, there
was lots of space to work on that easy-to-maintain engine on the rare occasion it did go wrong. In 1976 the 240 started offering catalytic
converters in California, giving a 90% reduction in air polluting gases. In 1978 the 240 was named the USA’s cleanest
car by the California Air Resources Board. Not only were lives being saved inside the
car, but outside it as well! A special edition 264TE limousine model was
introduced in 1976. Many were sold to the communist East
Germany to ferry around top politicians who wouldn’t be seen dead in cars from West
Germany. The following year the similar “T” version
was introduced. With three rows of seats it was used as a
taxi or rural school bus. In the mid-70s Volvo was visited by Ford executives,
rolling up in Lincoln Continental Mk IV’s. Although the meeting led to nothing, Volvo
thought of creating a 2-door coupé similar to the Lincoln that might do well in the American
market. Something with a little more presence on the
road than its current 2-door model. Without the resources to do it themselves
they approached the Bertone design house in Milan to see what they could do. In 1977 Volvo released the luxury car as the
262C. To give it a better stance on the road the
roof was lowered by 4”. Volvo briefly offered an open top variant
as the 262C Solaire but being ever concerned about safety it was withdrawn. The 2-door coupé was sold until 1981, and
all 2-door 240 & 260 production ended in 1984. 1978 brought a small facelift to the 240,
and the following year a diesel was added, co-developed with Volkswagen. Both 5 and 6-cylinder versions were available. They proved to be unpopular due to poor reliability,
but they can be made reliable as the engine’s foibles are now well understood. Although the diesel was one of the quickest
on the road, it did nothing to change the 240’s image as a slow, plodding, boring
car. Volvo intended to change that in 1981 with
the introduction of the 240 Turbo. They uprated the 4-cylinder 2.1L to 155hp. The higher power meant the car could now get
to 121mph with a 0-60 time of 9 seconds. Not fantastic, but enough to give the car
a boost in sales. In 1982 a new Touring Car Group A was introduced
which fit the Volvo down to a tee. Volvo produced a competition version
of the 240 Turbo developing 300hp, with a top speed of 162mph. 500 vehicles needed to be produced in competition
specification so in 1983 Volvo produced 505 “240 Turbo Evolution” cars, splitting
production between the US east and west coasts. The special components were shipped as a kit
in the boot and retrofitted when they arrived. However, once they were inspected by the motorsports
authorities all the special parts were removed and they were sold as normal cars! The rules didn’t state they had to be sold,
just produced; so technically they were within the rules, just not the spirit of the rules! Those 500 cars in the USA have flatter, more
aerodynamic hoods and are known as “flat hoods". Nevertheless, Volvo did go racing in 1984. Although the big boxy car was aerodynamically
lacking, it was fast and reliable and won the European Touring Car Championship in 1985. With the 240 being produced for 9 years, Volvo
introduced the 240’s successor, the 700 series in 1984. The new model was more upmarket, so commanded
a higher price. Volvo stopped producing the 260, but kept
selling the 240 to give customers a choice, and to get a little more revenue from their
existing production line. The Volvo 700 series was a success, with Jan
Wilsgaard producing a suitably boxy design. It was sold until 1992 with the launch of
the 850 and 900 series. But although the 700 was meant to replace
the 240, the 240 ended up outliving it. It was still being produced in 1993, 19 years
after it was initially launched! But production did eventually end, and Volvo
had the last laugh. The last 240 was a crazy shortened clown car,
meant as a joke to signify short lead times. I suppose it was a funnier joke when it was
proposed at the meeting… But with such a long production run, they
should have made it a stretch limo or something! The 240 sold an amazing 2.8M cars over 19
years. It’s about this time that I ask you to subscribe, so this time I thought I'd just sit here and play while you do it. Oh, and don’t forget to support me on Patreon
if you like these videos. I can do this all day!
Interesting watch. Nice one