These Are Your Favorite Volvos

The Story

Everyone.

Volvo Add Jalopnik on Google: Preferred Source Google Discover Automotive enthusiasts can have wildly differing opinions when it comes to the types of cars they love, whether that’s the body styles and powertrains or being picky about brands and specific models. No one is gonna feel exactly the same way about everything, which is why it’s so fun (and definitely annoying) to get into arguments with your car friends. But if there’s one company that basically every enthusiast can agree on loving, it’s Volvo.

We love the Swedish brand for its beautiful designs and interiors, its history of safety and technology innovation, and even its performance, though for most people the word “performance” probably wouldn’t come to mind when they think of Volvo. That universal love is what brought me to my question from earlier this week: What’s your favorite Volvo?.

There are so many good ones to choose from, after all, and everyone’s got their own personal stories for why they love the brand or a particular car so much. As I hoped, our audience came up with a great variety of Volvos from every era of the brand, and I’ve cherry picked my favorite answers for your reading pleasure. If you’ve got a great Volvo story that hasn’t already been shared, please feel free to do so in the comments below.

And you’re welcome for picking the funniest automaker press photo ever for the lead of this story. One of my cousins drove a beautiful, red ‘65 or ‘66 P1800 – was fortunate to enjoy a few spirited rides innit so that makes it my favorite Volvo.

Volvo P1800, if I get to pick a year, 1968, when they still had the early interior but they got the bigger motor. Best of both worlds. 1800ES no question. Being mostly broke in the Past, I could never afford one. I’ve had 3 or 4 Amazons (122s) depending on how you count. One day I’ll get a 240 Wagon, its probably the most me car there is.

Randomizer’s was the very first comment to be posted, and deservedly so. A perfect vehicle. Volvo 95 850 T5-R Wagon, I own the 1:24 version from Tamiya :) , I did own a real 78 242, loved that one too.

There are several candidates, but I really think the true favorite of my heart is the 850 T-5R/850 R wagon. It just captures everything I love in one car: European luxury, Swedish weirdness, practicality, and fun driving. Plus, they took it racing!.

Volvo 850 wagon. My parents leased two of the light pressure turbo models back to back, and I got to drive the second one for a summer before it got turned in. I got pulled into the turbo life early because of those cars.

My dad’s 850 was a humble front-wheel-drive nonturbo model, so I was always jealous when we’d see an R. Volvo I am still, to this day, devastated when I think of the 1992 240 that our family lost in a hit and run in 2009 (Nobody human was harmed at least).

My dad had borrowed it that day because he needed to run some errands and his primary mode of transportation, his goldwing, didn’t exactly have enough storage. He was turning left, and as he the opposing lanes cleared and he started turning, a car suddenly came flying down the road 45-50 mph and slammed into him. Thankfully nobody human was harmed but the volvo was obliterated.

Why It Matters

My favorite Volvo was our mid-1970s maroon 244 four door, which was worth so little when it broke down on a road trip that the mechanic traded it for a hotel room for the night and bus tickets home, which was also our only Volvo for the reason I just said.

CarMotion Daily’s Take

Volvo was the next offering and it my first taste of that class of car beyond valet-parking it. Watch this space over the coming weeks. Markets rarely reward single announcements — execution over the next two to four quarters is what closes the gap between press release and customer. How this lands depends less on the announcement itself and more on the rollout, dealer support, and after-sales story behind it. Specifics on pricing, availability, and regional rollout will tell us whether this moves from headline to delivery. Independent verification and follow-up coverage from rival outlets tend to firm up the picture within days.