Classic pearls of the future - Volvo 480 ES
10/03/2014
If the film "The Saint" - in this country it was shown under the title "The Man with No Name" - with Val Kilmer had been filmed ten years earlier, the adventurer Simon Templar would probably have found himself behind the wheel of a Volvo 480 ES and not in a gold-colored Volvo C70. This would have brought him much closer to the role model from the TV series of the same name, played by Roger Moore, because the "real" Simon Templar drove a Volvo P 1800, which in turn looked much more like the Volvo 480 ES first shown in 1985 than the larger and more luxurious C70 Coupé.
The 480 ES was the result of a truly galactic initiative by the car manufacturer from Sweden, in which the successors to the then current model generations were developed.
The unusual sports car with the steep rear end, which was reminiscent of the estate version of the Volvo P 1800 known as the "Snow White Coffin", was officially presented at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1986, although the first pictures had already been shown in October 1985. The new car was designed by Dutchman John De Vries. The technology was revolutionary by Volvo standards, as the 480 ES was the first Volvo with front-wheel drive. In order to make this transition, Lotus support was obtained and the transverse-mounted front engine was purchased from Renault.
The Volvo 480 ES was not cheap, but it was not overpriced either. It was just a little underpowered with its 109 hp, which was even reduced to 95 hp in the catalytic converter version. For this reason, a turbo version of the 1.7-liter was added in 1988, which still delivered 121 hp to the front wheels despite the catalytic converter. A two-liter was added later.
The Volvo 480 ES was equipped with extensive electronic and electrical aids, which did not always lead to the expected high level of reliability. Nevertheless, the car can be considered a success, as 76,375 units left the assembly line by September 7, 1995. Today, they have largely disappeared from the roads and the survival rate is probably not too high, so that they will soon be seen again as classics at classic car events ...
Other more or less controversial classic pearls can be found in the special themed channel on Zwischengas.
