Sold for $92,400 at 2018 Bonhams : Quail Lodge.
The Volvo P1800 Sports Coupe was introduced in 1960 and was made popular by the television series, The Saint. It was based on the 121 saloon and was built by Jensen Motors until production was transferred to Sweden in 1963. The engine was equipped with twin carburetors and helped the car achieve over 100 miles per hour. Fuel injection became standard in 1969, and power rose to 130 bhp, with four-wheel disc brakes arriving at the same time. As the 1960s came to a close, the design was looking dated, but the introduction of the 1800 ES sports estate helped extend the vehicles production into the early 1970s.

This 1972 P1800 ES has sport wagon coachwork, small bumpers, and frameless all-glass tailgate. It came equipped with special options of electric overdrive and air conditioning. It was owned by a Volvo collector in the Mid-West before coming into the care of a marque devote who cared for it until he stopped driving in his 80s. In 2017, the car entered the care of its current owner, who began a sympathetic restoration, including re-dressed it in its original color of light blue metallic.

Currently, the car has 56,000 original miles on its odometer. The engine is a 1,986cc overhead valve four-cylinder unit fitted with Bosch fuel injection and offering 124 bhp. There is a four-speed manual transmission with overdrive and four-wheel disc brakes.

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2018