SWEET SWEDE

DAVE GOES ALL SCANDIE AND FINDS A HAPPY STASH

- DAVE MORLEY

Having spilled my guts last issue, I figured it was time for show and tell with my latest brain-fart purchase. Yep, here’s the 69 Volvo 142S I was yaffling about and, as you can see, it’s a real sweetie of an old girl. What you’re seeing here is exactly how I hauled it out of my mate’s shed…cobwebs and all. No wonder I couldn’t say no. Not saying it’s perfect, but it’s a whole hell of a lot better than most Volvos of this age still blazing around the ’burbs.

Actually, that’s an interesting point: It’s amazing how tough these buggers are and how disinclined they are to chuck in the towel. Sensible, sturdy Scandie engineering at its best. Anybody who has had anything to do with these B-Series engines will soon tell you that they beat Toyota to the punch when it comes to bomb-proof four-cylinder power. Oh, and apparently, they love boost. Just sayin’.

So, let’s talk tech. They might look similarly boxy (like a fridge lying on its back if you want the truth) but unlike the later 240 series of Ovlovs, the 140 series was a bit more primitive in engineering terms. Where the later car got rack-and-pinion steering and a single overhead camshaft, the 140 was the last passenger Volvo to stick with worm-and-peg steering and pushrod valve actuation.