1987 Volvo 240 GL Sedan

Description

Hugely successful and highly regarded, Volvo’s 240/242 series enhanced the Swedish carmaker’s reputation for building high quality, dependable and - above all - safe motor cars.  First seen in 1974, the 240/242 Volvos were beautifully engineered with a typically advanced specification, with disc brakes all round, rack and pinion steering and a sophisticated suspension set-up with MacPherson struts, coils springs and anti-roll bar at the front and a live axle with Panhard rod, coil springs and anti-roll bar at the rear.  Sold in sedan, station wagon and even two-door coupe versions (badged the 242 GT), the 240 range underwent numerous modification over the years and later cars benefited from a larger, fuel-injected version of the rugged four-cylinder engine.  Volvo’s 200-series became synonymous with safe drivers the world over, thanks to passive safety technology far ahead of most other car brands.  By way of contrast, the 240 also proved successful in touring car racing both on home turf in Europe and here in Australia – Robbie Francevic winning the 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship in a turbocharged Group A version.  By 1987 the Volvo range in Australia had been simplified to the GL Sedan and GL or GLE Wagons.  Standard equipment included air conditioning, power steering, a radio cassette player and cloth upholstery.  Volvo built over 2.8 million 200-series cars between 1974 and 1993 when production was finally discontinued and the boxy shape remains instantly identifiable with the Swedish brand today, almost two decades on.