How the Volvo 740/760 SAVED Debt-ridden Volvo
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 3 фев 2020
- It’s the mid-70s and Volvo is heavily in debt. The new 200 series is unreliable, they have 43,000 gas guzzling large family cars waiting to be sold at a time when the world is swarming to small fuel economical cars. Volvo’s trying every trick in the book to stay afloat, and at the same time must spend money to develop a new car to sell in the 1980s, if it makes it to the 1980s. But the investment paid off. The 700 series would be the car that saved Volvo and would go on to sell almost 2M cars.
To get early ad-free access to new videos, or your name at the end of my videos, please consider supporting me using Patreon from just $1 or 80p a month at / bigcar
Support me using PayPal: www.paypal.com/paypalme/bigcartv
Big Car Merch (t-shirts, mugs): teespring.com/stores/bigcartv
Twitter: / bigcartv
My second channel - Little Car: / littlecar
#volvo740 #volvo760 #volvo940 
Авто/Мото
I mention the 240 was unreliable - in the first 1-2 years of manufacture. After that they solved the reliability problems.
Yeah. Volvo manufactures some of the most reliable vehicles in human history.
What's funny is, most are afraid of purchasing a mid mileage used Volvo. (1-200K miles) Afraid of what Volvo dealers will charge them to change a freaking sparkplug.
Long story short: Our used car lot commonly purchases mid mileage Volvos at auction for anywhere from $375 to 3K and resell them for 3-10 times purchase price. With very few coming back with mechanical issues. The same can't be said for Fords, Chevys, Cadillacs, Pontiacs Dodge Chrysler Lincoln Mercury HumVee/Chevy....ya gotta get an old Mercedes or BMW to hang with used Volvos. Or just get a 1987 Jeep Cherokee 4.0 and put 1/2 million miles on it going places monster trucks couldn't even go.
Anyway, love your content @Big Car. Huge thumbs up again.
Of course Toyota Honda duh.
@B Brunson
Yeah. Or '70 Plymouth Barracuda. Lol 340 6 pack.
Big Car why is your name big car ?
@@a-manlordsoftime755 Good question! I picked a generic name that was easy to remember and matched the icon I chose. When I started my channel I didn't even think I'd do car videos exclusively.
@@a-manlordsoftime755
Because tiny car was taken. And tests showed that ugly car wouldn't be so popular. Not to mention big fat car.
Still a common car In Sweden. Manny young driver started in a 740. The serviceability keep them on the road.
Manufacturers don't want their cars to be _so much_ reliable.
DuesenbergJ
most men left, Sweden is too liberal, cheap crap cars, way to big, fuel!!!!!!!!
Denmark people do understand!
Old volvos, saabs, mercedes and toyotas are almost only 80s cars you still see on road every day here in finland, they are so reliable cars
Still see many here in Austria too, I want one too
Similar thing in australia with the ford falcons, they are everywhere
Ive bought in 1987 a brand new white 740GL..with a typical blue interior. Drove it for 390.000 km, sold it in 2000 in favor of a new S80 2.4 170hp. That was a huge mistake....the old 740 let me never down..the S80, pffff
And stranly enough..the S80 is scrapped already several years..the 740 still running around and hit nearly 700.000km. ( FIRST engine!!!) Legendary stuff
Jeah, volvos after 2000 are a bit strange, and thats why i still drive 1996 850 2.4 10v and xc 70 from 1999 2.5 turbo, and i kept my first car witch was 740 2.3 turbo/intercooler from 1985, and i am so happy that i didnt sell it, i kept it in a garage and restored it in about 7 years, soon it will be back on a road.
The Mechanic
we did 760 lambazon Turbo in the 1986?? years, the lower models are crap, way toooo heavy!
You do have Renault engine, cheap injection engine, slow.....NOT Legendary!!!! heavy weirdo crap cars!!!!
Only the US Turbo models are still good now!
They all need way toooooo many service, you have weirdo hobby?
@@lucasrem ,
Euh....ive owend a 740Gl redblock 2.3L 113hp. Slow....naaa ok, not the fastest thing in the world ,agree with that. But it just needed the basic maintenance...to go for ever.
Never said...the 740 and the 760's been rockets. Surely the 760 PRV V6 engine was a real bummer....even in the Alpine 310.
i own a bycicle and its gone further thatn either of u
I've had the opposite situation. I had a '90 760 with the 4 cylinder turbo. It was getting very expensive to repair and I replaced it with a 2002 s80 turbo 6. The 760 was replaced at 122,000 miles with a ton of problems and expensive repairs while the s80 has surprisingly few problems. The most expensive was a fuel pump needing replacement at around 150,000 miles. It's going strong now at around 160,000 miles.
Just love that they went snowdrifting with three 740s in a commercial! In Sweden it's still the most popular car as winterbeaters.
Volvo is the most reliable car in the winter and sweden have alot of snow. Volvo does have its downsides such as being whatever but its still a good first car and it will start as long as you keep a normal maintence up.
@iLoveEbola yes
I used to drive a 744 and 745T in Canada. They are great.
One caution though, you need very good winter tires for a RWD car. Preferably studded Nokians.
@@lokelaufeyson9931 FR layout still works well enough in snow?
cant forget about saab being just as good of a winter car as volvo. volvo is just more popular
I daily a 1990 780 Bertone and it is such a smooth ride that receives a ton of compliments! It really showcases Volvo’s good build quality back in the day.
How long did the paint finish last?
I own a Volvo 940 Turbo (Stationvagon) It's been in my family since my father bought it in 2000. (Built in 1998) My father used to be a mechanic for Volvo and this was his baby. It doesn't have a singe particle of rust witch very unusual in my country due to all of the salt on the roads. We buy original parts for it threw Volvo. 20 years in my family, I hope (and think) we're going to get another 20 years.
ahr332 Ram Vepsen
We love that 760 Polar Turbo in 1986 years!!!!!
only the Turbo Volvo cars were good, rest are too heavy crap!
My father kept the old 260 Turbo Polar, able to buy in the 1990 ish years!
We still have it
Still have two old 740 2.3 litre turbo estates, high miles (200k) on both but the engines are perfect and are started every week and run for a few miles, sadly the fuel economy means they are going to the scrap yard, now driving a couple of older V70 D5 models which are good cars until the steering rack leaks when they have to be scrapped due to repair costs but I would still buy another D5, good economy from a reasonable large engine and great reliability which the 2.3 petrol turbo did not have.
Do you still have it?
I don't need a new car. I own a 940 turbo and that's all I need.
same here
I miss my 760T! Damn fine piece of auto engineering.
big crap car, fuel!!!!!!!
I just sold my 960 3 litre, only sold it because it does 22mpg and I have a 2 hour commute eachday for my new job, should have lef the job and not the car.
@@themightydash1714 I regretted letting mine go, despite the fuel economy.
As a Volvo owner I can confirm I have also been thoroughly confused by the lineup in the early nineties. Thanks for another great feature!
I was confused to, but figured all those models must be selling.
weird, it is very easy. 740/940/240 for the real people. 460/850 for the dumb motherfuckers
This video got me thinking about my relationship with Volvos.
My dad was shopping for cars in the mid-80's and we came so close to buying a silver 244GLE sedan (with dark blue velour interior - beautiful car). 3 test drives, multiple drive-bys of the dealership...But he passed on that. Then in 1987, I came home from school to find a beautiful soft metallic green 760GLE in the driveway (with really light tan leather interior). A stunner. That car went everywhere. It was even the car that my bride arrived in on the big day in Dec '93! That car was just such an awesome driver, just a bit heavy on the fuel bill! When I moved to Canada, we bought a 2002 S40 which I loved. An amazing highway car, especially in winter heading to the mountains. I loved the mystery "winter" button which slowed the revs to the drive, so you wouldn't spin the tyres from a standing start. Sadly, I had to sell her (to a buddy) when I moved provinces in 2010 and she was later written off in an accident (T-boned in an intersection but thankfully his wife was OK - good old Volvo engineering & safety!).
I may have to look into continuing the family history with Volvo!
Thanks for this video. Some good memories rekindled.
So what did your Dad buy instead of the Volvo 240 GLE? Do you remember?
My parents bought a brand new Volvo sedan every 3 years from 1978 - 2015 in Australia here. Saab simply never held up under our harsh sun & their resale value was inferior.
Worked at the Gothenburg Volvo factory when 760:s production started
Christopher Jonasson that’s great! Do you drive one of the new ones?
Christopher Jonasson
Thanks you, you did build our 760 turbo we enjoyed in my family kid days!
We, in Amsterdam, family people all loved the Polar models as kids!
Family race car!!!!!!!!!!!!
@@hr9592 Naa, not so new we have a 2010 V70 d5 (polestar) and an old S70 (1997 ) with 350000 km on the odometer, still use it everyday
Nice! So did my Dad Stefan Philipsen from 1980 to 2014 at "bandet" and "på plan"
Really appreciate your work! I'm 940 driver from South Korea. If you worked on 760s, does that mean you worked as a team car builder, but not on production line? I heard volvo had unique way of production back in 80s.
Fun fact: The early 240s manufactured in 1975 are sought after in Sweden today! They we're not affected by the tougher emission regulations introduced in 1976,
therefor the engine can be swapped for a turbo charged one from another model or even a V8.
Great channel! Keep up the good work!
I loved my 850 wagon. It saved my life on a dark rainy night when it ran into a ditch that flipped round three or four times into a farmer’s field.
As I remember it had an in-line five cylinder engine.
It did had a 5-cyl engine 😊 Every 850 and even V70 from 97 to 08 was 5-cyl only 😁
Were you injured in that accident? If yes, what was the injury? Car was totaled?
@jason9022 kind of fast, and yes it handles like shit haha. Still love it though, and talk to it every time I get in and get out.
I had a 940 SE, I loved that car more than I have ever loved any car. I relocated to the other side of the world and had to sell it. Mine was one of the very last ever made, it was assembled in Bangkok as an export CKD and sold brand new in 1999.. ironically for a car made/sold in Thailand it still had heated mirrors. The engine was B230 FK which had the low pressure turbo. It was very very expensive, more than double the UK price, and it had the softer suspension as fitted to US cars and softer leather seats than the UK models. I upgraded the suspension. One it had done 120,000 km changed it to LPG before putting another 100,000 km on it, the engine still ran like new. To this day a hotel called The Dynasty Inn in Bangkok has two identical cars from the same batch, same spec, same colour, that are still used as courtesy cars. Both have over a million km each on them, one is on the original engine and the other has a replacement engine. Both run on LPG. I feel the 940's were amongst the best cars in their class ever made.
I had an early 940 in 1990. It had serious problems adapting to unleaded fuel and was very sluggish until at the third attempt the Servicing Dealer checked the throttle linkage and discovered I was only getting about 60%! I did do about 90,000 miles in the two years I had it. As for quality and reliability in mid 1991 the UK importer refused to accept anymore imports until the quality and reliability improved. It must have worked as I had a second in 1992 which was a different car in all respects.
Among?! THE BEST cars ever made ! (and also the most beautiful ones!)
Bought a 1988 740GLE in spring of 1989. Used with maybe 12,000 miles. 5 speed manual with most of the options.
Kept it until January 2007 after 368,000 trouble free miles. Reliable like a hammer. She was rather boxy, but loved that car. Well done Volvo, really love your brand.
Boxy but good! lol
I love the Volvo 700 Series. I've owned a 1990 740 SE estate since 2003, and it's been a wonderful car :)
turbo?
you never owned a new Volvo?
@@lucasrem The newest one I've so far owned was a 1997 V70.
They really did an excellent job of this car. In the 80s and 90 there was almost a class of people who would own a Volvo.
I remember being told to watch out for the Volvos on the UK roads at the time. And it was true, encountering one coming the other way on a dual carriageway and having another push me through a busy London intersection when my old car stalled at the lights. Volvo 7x0 owners seemed to have stories of when they crashed and how they drove home afterwards with all the other cars needing to be towed away.
My first car was a 760 turbo. For a 1989 vehicle it really did have a sharp interior, lots of options, and nice handling.
I like Roy Axe’s comment: “It will look great - once they take it out of the packing crate”
😂
Bit harsh considering some his best efforts include..... Talbot Tagora, Talbot Horizon et al
Try recreating the ad with modern cars, it would break after the first bump
nah it wouldnt break, it would just go into a crash mode locking itself down to 30kmh and requiring you to go to the nearest certified service
@@sixunity1171 And a $150 service fee just to diagnose the problem!
these cars were absolute beasts. Saw them on the roads up till about 10 years ago. Very safe, very reliable, very good sheet metal.
Mostly galvanized or 'Zincrometal' was used on them from '87 on.
The only two cars I ever really regretted moving on; a 960 with the lovely 3 litre straight six, and later a V70 2.5 turbo. Both were fantastic cars in their own right, and both unbeatable for covering long distance.
I believe it. I pick through junkyards and when poking through the Volvos you can see the proper interiors with complete insulation unlike other cars
I really miss my S80 V8
2:36 ah yes, the cybertruck
The cyberminivan
Elon musk: write that down
I love these Volvo 700/900-series cars. The air conditioners were the weak point of these cars, but they were superb in every other aspect. Rock solid build quality. Supreme comfort and safety. Powertrains that easily lasted 200k+ miles, with nary a fluid leak. Repairs were extremely easy. I miss these cars so much. I am one of those strange people who actually loves the boxy style. Quite handsome, especially the wagon version and the later 940/960 sedan. I personally owned a '94 940 Turbo sedan. My mother owned an '89 740 Turbo wagon and a '95 940 sedan. All 3 were extremely reliable, comfortable, with very little in the way of repair costs. The only real annoyance was the fuel economy. The non-turbo version could only manage 25mpg on the interstate and both of our turbo cars could only manage 21mpg interstate. Very thirsty, even for their time. The requirement of premium gas for the turbo made it worse.
Air conditioners? What is that? we need a car that have a big heaters and can take a elk impact....
@ JR. Elk is going through the windshield and won’t end up good for elk or driver.
I live in Northern Canada and believe me I need air conditioning as much as heat.
You are not alone, i really like the way my 940 estate looks.
@@Bartonovich52 I lived in Georgia, USA at the time and air conditioning was mandatory for survival.
@@Bartonovich52 Isn't any part of Canada "Northern"? lol
At least Volvo didn’t lie when they compare their car to Porsche 944.
BANDVIT Romania ios
Ford brought the Automobile Craiova plant, did they produced 944 too?
Family cars...Sad....
Actually Porsche did. The 944 never came with four doors.
You don't see so many of these around anymore (they were EVERYWHERE in the early 90s) but the ones that remain always look in decent condition - a testament to their superior build quality and simplicity of maintenance. Not something I expect many modern cars can replicate...modern Volvos included!
Volvo 850's weren't as well built as they used a Belgian factory that took a government grant to get up & running. The Dutch 360GLT was bad too & the 480 worse.
@BB-xx3dv Yep, they have where I live. Just mine is left!
1:00 that's Elon Musk's Cybertruck damn it.
raulio81 No its the other way around. Swedish engineering is the mother of everything😌
👍🏻
My stepfather bought a fully loaded blue 760 brand new in 1984. He handed down to me in '91 and by the time I stopped driving it in '98 it had almost 300,000 miles of rust-free, dependable service in the Texas heat. It had a quick turbocharged 4 cylinder engine and manual transmission with push-button overdrive, and black leather interior. Although we had to fix the sunroof and a few interior components after the first few years, overall it was a beautiful and solid car that I still miss driving even to this day.
Thank you for this in depth content! i really like your style and ammount of information you put in it! Keep up the good work mate!
Proud owner of my 2nd 740 wagon. 1989 lasted me for many happy years. And, recently resarrected a 1991 wagon, after it sat for almost 4 years. Love these cars. Not fast but very reliable, if taken care of properly.
JT
Orlando, Fl
I found your channel a couple days ago and I am so glad that I did! I Love how much historical value and knowledge you share in them. I am hopeful that you will continue to expand and share about other brands and models I care about :)
Welcome aboard!
Thank you for another excellent video , always liked Volvo and this was a fascinating chapter in their history.
Really look forward to your videos , nice to come home tonight and find it waiting their foe me. (:
I have to say my mum and dad had volvos when I was growing up. We had several 200 series and they were unbelievably reliable. We, as a family, often reflect back on our yellow 245 wagon with so much fondness we joke about it should have been gold plated and mounted on a wall…. It was well regarded by us all. Fantastic cars. Not the most inspirational of designs but functional and effective.
Great video. We had a 1989 740 Turbo Intercooler. It was magnificent.
I love these videos! Please continue the Volvo story into the '00, especially the estate cars. Had a XC70 2003 for 14 years and loved it.
Very likely. I also had an XC70 around the same time in green. It was a great car!
Another fantastic review..
I thoroughly enjoy your reviews on Little and Big Car.
In all honesty - seeing a boxy Volvo on the road in 2020 raises a smile from myself and everyone I know. It's iconic styling and, if you ask me, has aged really well. At least in the sense that they look entirely different to anything on the road today, and stand out a mile when they're seen.
I miss boxy cars. Last box I owned was a Citroen AX. Never had much of an eye for new Volvos, but as a lover of retro cars I adore an old Volvo. I've unfortunately never owned one, though that will change some day.
8:45 The first and only time that the A.I.D.S. epidemic was used in marketing a car. 😊
yes sir
Yeah, but it was from a comedy movie.
@@Stefan- That explains a lot, it certainly looked pretty clumsy if you didn't know that!
@@The1trueDave It even says there on the screen "From the 1990 film "Crazy people" with Dudley Moore" but i knew that anyway since i have seen the film a couple of times at least and thought it was pretty funny. It was quite a while ago that i watched it though, but i remember that fake commercial very well and im a Volvo owner (and a Swede) myself.
@@Stefan- Fair enough, I didn't spot that as I was busy reading the text!
1990 seems a bit late given that (a) they phased it out in '91 and (b) the narrator was talking about 1982 a moment previously, but maybe it was too good a reference to leave out? :-)
RIGHT! THAT'S IT!! I'M BECOMING A PATREON!!! Definitely the best video yet. The 850 video is practically within touching distance!! I haven't been this excited in years haha.
It's great to have you Karl! And your persistence may have been why I decided to go back and do this Volvo...
@@BigCar2 What a lovely comment. Thank you!! :D
They made the 740 as a 2.3 litre car, or a 2 litre car for markets where tax conditions greatly favoured cars up to 2 litres. The UK had tax conditions that greatly favoured cars up to 2 litres, but Volvo used the 2.3 litre engine for the UK market. I never worked out why, but it must have really hurt UK fleet sales.
There were 740s in UK showrooms in the fall of 1984. I bought a 740GL in the middle of 1985. Its serial number was something like 3000, and its manufacturing date was just a few weeks before my purchase. I was shocked when I saw such a low serial number. The production ramp must have been very slow. The car was early enough to still have a silly teething problem, that had to wait for a fix from the factory. A rather hard to miss tendency for the engine to stop when bringing the car to rest with more than fairly light braking. After that problem was sorted out (which was a serious nuisance, as it took several trips to the dealer), the car needed nothing more than regular service, tyres, battery and an exhaust over the 7 years I had it.
I was amused by the colour name for my car. It was a deep lustrous red, that looked really good, and fooled many people into thinking it was a high end type of finish. Mundane car paints usually have wonderfully exotic names, but this lovely finish was simply called "deep red".
That color is also known as wine red here in Sweden
My top pick for the 90s was the 97 965. With the premium sound system of course! As a kid, the stuff I pulled off in that car, there aren't words! As for the 05 V70R 6speed........ Almost got locked up, almost lost my license and now the 2018 V90, guess I'm all grown up now, but I hate the computer in the dashboard, I wish it was like the 960S
Changes in production runs were usually done during the industrial holiday season when the entire country went on a collective vacation.
So, the 940/960 was phased in during the summer of 1990 as MY91, while the 760 was phased out and the 740 was continued for another two years. The 850 was presented in 1991and phased in production during that summer as MY92.
The oddballs here are the 740 and the 240, with a two year overlap for the 740 being phased out during the summer of 1992 and the 240 being phased out almost a year later during the spring of 1993. In essence the 240 survived its replacement with almost a whole year, overlapping production for an entire generation of cars.
Fun thing is, this isn't the first time Volvo had such an overlap. In 1968 they had a triplet of estates in production with an overlap of the Duett, the Amazon, and the 145 estates. The 145 was presented in the summer of 1968 as MY69, the Duett was phased out during the winter of 68/69, while the Amazon Estate was phased out during the summer of 1969. Production of Amazon sedans continued another year until the summer of 1970.
Loved my '89 760 wagon. One of the best cars I've ever driven.
Thanks for the very interesting video. I have driven 745 and 945 for 15 years, they were indeed very robust, simple cars, a dream to maintain. There were only few flaws, one being the overdrive gear in the early 740 models. The rear wheel drive was a lot of fun on snowy roads, however it was a pain in winter when you had to go uphills.
But the space, oh the space. There were very, very few station wagons with this amount of space.
Maybe the most outstanding factor was the ridiculously small turning radius for a car almost 5 meters in length. It was so much fun to maneuver in cities, especially in parking garages and on ferries.
The 740 and 760 were stylish spacious practical and comfortable with room for 5 adults, a good amount of boot space for shopping or luggage, decent economy and a pleasant driving experience.
I've always wanted a "turbo stick brick", or a 740 turbo station wagon with the 5 speed manual transmission.
Tyler hoovie got one has a few videos on it ,,hoovies garage
i got a 744 turbo with 5 speed (overdrive). its awesome but it makes alot of problems, like most old cars
@@davidpistek6241 I think his ex has it now! lol
I love the boxy look of these cars. I loved them so much I bought a VW Fox because I couldn't afford a Volvo, but i wanted as much of the look as I could get. . Yeah, that was a mistake, but I was 20 and it was our first car.
When I grew up, my parents had a 1967 Volvo 144S in "King Blue" with matching vinyl interior. We LOVED it.
I worked for Hertz Rent-a-Car in Copenhagen Airport with the Volvo 760 GLE was launched.
It was (and still is) an impressive car, stylish and aristocratic in its looks inside and out as well as riding.
Nothing beats the 1st generation 760 GLE. Wish my parents could have afford it back then, when their 144S "died" in 1985.
The 740 series came across as a cheaper version in any way.
The 7 series were great cars ,in the early 2000s I looked after a 740 estate 2.4td for a few years for a Swedish lady in the uk ,she brought it from new on a j plate in 1991 so was the face lift,after 350k we replaced the engine with a brand new unit and turbo and up till i left it I saw the lady in 2007 and it was over 700k miles and still in immaculate condition solid as a rock,fantastic car built to last ,I remember when the 850 came out I soooooo wanted a t5 and 850r but I was only 22 so it was just a dream lol,great video ,more great happy memories 👍😉
I've owned 5 various 740 turbos in manuals and automatics. Currently driving another 740 turbo. I've got to say, these cars are fantastic lol
My wife had a 760 turbo when we met. Few cars match its seats in my experience. You forgot about the 400 series that came out in 1988
You did the right thing to marry her if she owned a 760 turbo when you first met!
@@Zedifier she must have had kids, needing Volvo!
I worked at a Volvo dealership when the 740 was launched in 1984. It was considered as the "Poor man's 760" at the time. The owner of the dealership drove a 760 and the Managing Director drove a 740. Salesmen went home in 340s LOL
Awesome and humourous editing at 11:30! Keep up the good work! Go Volvo, the best cars in the world!
Fun fact: the 1982-1984 760's and 740's were such incredible rustbuckets they started galvanizing them in '85
Fun Fact: All big Volvos were fully galvanised since 1962. The Bertone made ones were the only ecceptions from that rule, them being the 262C and 780. Get your "fun facts" straight…
@@zweispurmopped these early 740's must be an exemption to this rule then, have seen plenty of them. Get your "fun facts" straight...
@Henry Discipline I highly doubt it
Yes, on Finnish Volvo site they said, that galvanizing started in mid 1980's (lower part of body). Full 740 galvanizing started perhaps 1989-1990.
Better to use stainless steel.
One of my favorite owned cars, along with a Miata that complements it very, very well... Thanks for the nice video.
It is the second video of this channel that I watch today. I have registrated and liked.
I already know that "Big Car", together with Davide Cironi's "Drive experience", will become one of my favourite channels !!
Very good and, most important, serious work bro!!!
Out of the 700 series, the 740 turbo intercooler estate was the best and most economical. Still drive one today.
I'm on the lookout for a 700 series. Lovely classics...👌
I have 2 great cars
I swear big car makes these because he likes saying the Volvo designer's name
You've found me out.
@@BigCar2 it is a fun name though admittedly.
Excellent video on an excellent car. Minor gripe: multi-link suspension in mass-produced cars dates back longer than you made it seam to be (12:21 time). E.g. the Mercedes W201 from 1982 had it, as had the W124 soon after. But it's minor, really. The 740/760 was such a hit back then, and so much different from the Audi 100 and Mercedes W124! Truly a modern classic. Keep up the good work!
Another great and informative piece of work! … well done!
Please, please do the 850/S, V, C 70 with a focus on the 5 cyl white block. Love your work.
I probably will.
I had a 1994 850 GLT with a 5-speed (a rarity in the US), had to look hard for one with the desired equipment level. I LOVED that car, it was my favorite car out of all those that I've owned. I liked the way it looked, I liked the way it drove, it was comfortable and reasonably efficient, and it was generally very reliable as long as it was taken care of. Finally parted ways with it in 2010 with over 250,000 miles on the clock. Only the AC and and some dashboard lights had stopped working at that time (admittedly, the AC would have been expensive to fix.) Engine and original clutch were still strong!
Can't say I was as excited about the 940/960 series, perhaps because rear wheel drive is a bit of an impediment in the snow belt where I live, but the familiar Volvo looks are a source of comfort and reassurance to my eyes. I don't look at Volvos quite the same way today, although the current S90 is quite the looker!
AC often is cheap to fix - the clutch wears out and you have to remove some shims to make it work again. Relatively easy to work on these cars. If you are inclined to do some stuff yourself: perfect cars!
@jason9022 mine didn't. But then, I did some maintenance now and then.
jason9022 I think the ‘94s were better! :) Seriously, Volvo made quite a lot of adjustments after only one model year, although I doubt there were major changes to the engine. My 5-cylinder engine was wonderful, despite the Hoover-like sounds characteristic of this motor. No oil leaks. Ever.
So interesting, a video so well done! Thank you!
My grandad used to have a white Volvo 740 GLE saloon, I remember sitting in the back, loved that car, went all the way to 300,000 miles, they have a 2004 Volvo S40 2.4 now, still chugging along despite not being driven much
Another great video & the Volvo 850 R was the beautiful!
Can confirm. My red 850R still has people coming up to me in the street to talk about it, which I always happily do. Not bad for a 24 year old Volvo.
Karl Hamilton the 850R in flame red is divine & thee in a red one in Maidstone with the number plate. VRN THE 850R what a belter 😊
Family car, beautiful?????
Old boomers!!!!!
lucas rem I loved the design & it was the most attractive estate car there was 👍
Still drivning my Volvo 940, daily!
Nice. Whats the mileage and have you gotten any trouble with it？Thinking of.getting a 4speed manual one
@@mattmatt9971 Have had it four years, has about 34 000 Kilometers on it now. No trouble other than normal wear (have replaced shock absorbers and ball joints etc.).
Only thing that happens once a year is the waste gate arm jumping out of its place on the turbo making it charge zero. It´s an easy 15 minutes fix though.
Only negative thing a have to say about the car is the fuel consumption, but it is nothing spectacular.
As a 544, 740, 240 owner i absolutely love these videos. Thank you.
First car I ever drove was a 1985 Volvo 240GL when I was 16. 16 years later, am the proud owner of a 940 Turbo and 940GL LPT.
Love to watch a video of Saab 9000, Alfa Romeo 164, Fiat Croma and Lancia Thema:
I'll most likely do one at some point.
4:58 What is Rodney doing there? Otherwise, great series, respect to your work 👊🏾
I’m a huge Volvo fan and on my 11th (2006 V70) so really enjoyed thjs video. My grandad bought a brand new 740 estate in 1990. I’ve had three 740s, a newer V40, V50 T5, XC60 SE D5, etc. It’s an awesome brand.
Great video as always!
Still driving my 1989 760 Estate - had 145 - 245 - GLT - all great!
I thought I’d recognised the stock photo used for the Volvo petrol station! Now a small housing estate in Larkfield, Kent
I just love your car stories. Compliments :-)
I had a 1989 Volvo 780 coupe turbo with the 2.3, so they did find enough room for the turbo. The 780 had the rear self leveling suspension too.
I'd love me a tidy 780 as an everyday driver today. And I'm an S60 driver...
S60 is still produced now, wow, 3th gen
same car as 20 years ago, the next 240 DL?
Its a damn shame they couldn’t put out that fastback variant as well
it exsisted for the 240 series. i think there is one in a volvo museum in australia. and i have read that only 2 were made
My first car was a 1989 760 Turbo, I loved it so much. It was a absolute tank!!!
I had a 1985 740GL until about 4 years ago, and if the front suspension repair it ended up requiring hadn't been deemed to be more more expensive than the car was worth, I'd probably still be driving it today. At 30 years of age, it still looked like a new car, drove really nicely and was the most reliable vehicle I ever owned.
I wonder if they really tried to hide the origins from the market testers. Hellen Keller could tell that was a Volvo (or at least Volvo design) from 100yds.
They are still around !
My dad owned a white pre-facelift 740 when I was around 10 years old. I loved that car.
I remember 1988, being 12 and fascinated and humbled by this imposing car that was parked in a road nearby our house: a bordeaux red Volvo 760. Sometimes I still recall those feelings when I see it
Next up, the P1800, the 480 and the C30
3:50 LOL they nearly invented the Chevy Celebrity!
Wow I loved 740/760s, they were true luxurious land yachts!
Forgot to mention that 1991 was an even more confusing model year because Volvo also had the 300 series (340/360) being sold concurrently with it's replacement, the 400 series (440/460/480) - at least in Europe since those cars never made it to the U.S.
I would love to have one of those coupes though..
the 3 doors versions were the basic models, they did sell it as Polar estate too
"We need money and we need to make a new car."
"Why don't we just build a tank that runs on hopes and dreams?"
"Great idea, do it!"
And they did :)
Many Swedish Volvo 740 was positioned to be "drafted" in case of war, and be handed over to the "homegard" (second-line units) as military transports. Who want to ride into battel in a Toyota then you have a Volvo ; )
ISIS ? Besides that look TOYOTA WARS at Google. Old school TOYOTAS are equally reliable and easy serviceable as a Volvo. Back in the 90's TOYOTA assembled Volvo cars for JDM
Once again a excellent video bravo
Thank u for your outstanding work.
Looks like Big Car watches Hoovies Garage!
Again GREAT. I loved my 960E...but the idiots in Orange AU could not fix it...so I bought a Toyota. I still love the "Mighty Volvo" as the kids called it.
they must be really bad if they couldn't fix a car that simple
@@sannyfolkesson2226 Yes mate they are that bad - thank you for the reply. This is part of a long list of incompetencies that is causing me to look for a new location. When my youngest finished High school, I am going.
@@robertwestinghouse4098 sorry for such a belated question, but is there something wrong with the mechanics there or are they just wilfully ignorant?
@@alfredsedgewick2184 Once one leaves the capital cities, the experience falls away. Unless you have a Toyota you are screwed. I am in Broken Hill and it is about 85% Toyota. They love their HiLux. I now have a 1990 240GL Wagon and they are OK with this.
Very nice episode! Love my 1993 940 Turbo.
surprisingly great videos, subscribing
You never touched on the Dutch DAF tie up that saw a rebadged DAF become the 300 series which was followed by the truly horrid ‘nedcars’ the 400s.
they miss the fact that the 360 glt was one of the best handing small cars on the market i had 3 of them , but volvo could have sold more if they had fitted the 2.3 motor instead of the 2.0 , yes the 400 series was crap
jason9022 no
I have far more interest in these bricks over any new model
Excellent video on the 740 range, I owned two estates one the best car i ever had the other the very worse, The good one just kept on going, so reliable and yes i do my own maintenance and it was easy to work on , it was a comfortable car and reasonably economical, I have owned many cars but the 740 stands out as one of the best, the least said about the later model one the better ! Happy memories, i should never have let it go ! I remember on the 20th MOT the examiner called me over and told me to look underneath the car, expecting problems, he simply said its in far better condition than cars at 3 years old. its like new ! That is testament to Volvo build quality.
My dad had an 86 760 turbo. I remember going with him and brother on weekend morning driving my brothers paper route. After we finished, he liked to open it up on the way home. Good times