"The Pearl”
- Our Volvo P 1800S
My fiancée and I bought the car from her brother who didn't have the time for it anymore, due to small children and similar... It has not been driven much in the 1990s, it was kept in a garage for most of that time. We really enjoyed driving and owning such a beautiful car. After a while a genuine interest in vintage sports and GT cars from the 50ies to the 70ies emerged, and especially for the Volvo P1800 of course! It is an 1800S from 1966 (chassis #19869) I have been looking around the net and the old Swedish Volvo P1800 club magazines, but this car has never been "published" before, I think. We know it has had 7 previous owners, and was taken into traffic in May 1966, which makes it a couple of months older than myself... Sometime, I would like to track down all previous owners and write its full history.
Upholstery etc
A non-original "rally" steering wheel was replaced by a genuine one Sadly, some previous owner has tried to "modernize" the car by painting dull black paint on the aluminium dash panels. That must be fixed in some way... A time-typical radio is also on the wish list. The clock doesn't work of course. The fuel meter/gauge could luckily be fixed (someone had poured glue into the tank sensor...) and that works properly now, which comes in handy of course...The leather seats are worn and dry, but some leather grease and maybe re-painting could be just the thing for them. For some reason, there is a separate start button under the dashboard. . You turn the key, and then you can start the engine by moving the key further or pushing the button, I guess this is for sparing the key? . The carpets are very dirty and sun bleached, but that can be washed and re-dyed.The goal is to bring the car into a good shape for being used every now and then, not to be a perfect piece for a museum.
Paint, rust,, etc
The car has definitely been repainted (in its original colour though) some 15 to 20 years ago perhaps.
Unfortunately I detected some small rust bubbles which had to be removed quickly (took me a whole weekend) but now all visible rust is gone, and I hope this will save the car for another 5 years or so....
Grille, wheels
The grill is from a model 1967 – 1969, probably has the original '66 grill in thin aluminium broken several years ago. The wheels are white with two tiny lines in red and blue.
Some minor details such as door reflex stickers, some rubber parts on the chassis, etc are missing, they were probably removed at the time for repainting? Anyway, it is pleasant work to replace that sort of things...
Engine
A classic B18B but low compression (piston rings) - the next big task is to replace such parts in the engine! /Currently, the crankcase ventilation is leaking lots of exhaust fumes while in operation, and those fumes enter the cabin via the gear shifter...) The condition of the camshaft, valves etc are not known to me as yet. Despite all this, the engine is very "alert" and easily started.Generator, carburettor, brakes, gear box
The Generator is replaced, as said before, one of the carburettors is not mounted (we have it in the garage, in need of some renovation...) the air intake details are as seen B20 style. Why one of the carburettors was removed, we have no idea. Of course shall it be refitted! The brake servo is also in need of repair or replacement, the brake power from it is zero - you literally have to STAND on the brake pedal to come to a complete stop when necessary! Gearbox synchronization on first gear could also be better. To put in the first gear, the car must be completely still. The Overdrive works perfectly, however!
Next to do...
Chrome list around windshield is missing, someone just informed me.. So that is the latest entry in my assembled list of action points, what do do with the car in a short as well as long term. The list is now almost 25 points long, but it includes everything found to be missing on in need of repair- big issues as well as missing single screws. I have also connected the spare and replacement parts need, as stated by that list, to a list of price comparisons between 6 different vendors, to guarantee good prices on the needed spare part as we move along the "what to do list".
New license plates
Some cars imported to Sweden might use a smaller license plate than the standard Swedish one. For some reason, this also includes the Volvo 1800 series. So I rapidly ordered new plates and mounted them as shown, I think this looks more like license plates did in the 60ies... And the ends of the rear plate do not touch the bumper chrome as before! .
The left fender chrome trim
This part was in quite bad shape, lots of bumps and some scratches. A local gold smith (!) could repair this Result as shown
Now lots of rubber details around lamps etc have to
be replaced due to ageing. I also consider getting winter tyres for the
car. Too bad to have it in the garage for 5 months during Swedish
winter without
proper tyres... The boot cannot be locked- no key fits. But that can also be fixed.
proper tyres... The boot cannot be locked- no key fits. But that can also be fixed.
It is a very nice car to own and repair, I think. I have never before been interested in car restoration, but I do have two brothers who literally live in the garage all of their free time, and now some of that interest has come to me as well... One thing to avoid is to stare too much on the "to do list" - that can easily discourage anyone, but instead focus on the small ahead... I am somewhat reluctant to dismount the car completely and do a full repair from the very fundamental level - that would take too much time and reqquiire a bigger garage than I currently have available. It would also mean that the car could not be used for years to come... Uppdated 2003-05-04
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