1972 VOLVO 1800E COUPE - FULL GROUND UP NUT & BOLT RESTORATION - SURELY THE BEST

An incredible concours example that has undergone a complete and comprehensive nut and bolt restoration accompanied by a detailed photographic record. I have numerous documents for the car. including the original purchase receipt and letters from previous owners.

The DVLA shows only 62 of these cars are registered in the UK. Very rare and beautiful. The 125 hp engine gives plenty of power and the car can cruise at 80 mph all day long with the overdrive engaged. This is a comfortable. robust. and well designed classic which should never depreciate if maintained in its current condition.

This car was the the subject of a two year project and approximately 2500 hours of work have gone into this car to return it to as close to a factory fresh car as possible.

Thousands of parts were replaced. refinished. replated. and restored and the pictures below show only a fraction of the work. Everything was done to an incredibly high standard. Nuts have been properly torqued. all bolts were fitted with anti-seize and every fastener was replaced or replated like new.

To give you an idea of the process. first a part/fitting was removed. it was then cleaned. bead blasted. zinc plated and then if appropriate primered and painted or zinc powder coated and then powder coated. The suspension parts for instance are zinced. and then have two layers of powder coat on them. even if the powder coat chips you will never have rust!

History:
Included with the car is a receipt for £415. 37 dated 23/2/72 from Customs and excise for tax on importing this car. There is a letter from Customs and Excise on the same date acknowledging payment of customs charges relating to this car by the official importer.

A letter from the second owner dated 10/2/1995 explains the history of this Volvo. Owned from new by Mrs Hill the car stayed in Buckinghamshire for the first 24 years. It was always garaged. The car went into storage in 1987 at her house at which time it had 18. 00 miles. In 1995 the Volvo was recomissioned by Mr P Millhouse still with 18700 miles on her (24 years old at this point). Invoices from 1995-1997 show serious money was spent on the car replacing time worn items and completing the 30000 mile service. In 2001 a further £8525. 26 was spent on a bare metal respray and restoration along with piles of parts. The car was in the Cheshire area at this time.

There is a very thick stack of paperwork and documents included with the car to show its history literally from the day it was imported to the UK which is fascinating to review.

Some of the major work undertaken was as follows:

Exterior:
Full glass out paint job in original Volvo 100 Safari Yellow. New chrome trims. new chrome bumpers. window trims. rubber seals. all exterior rubber gaskets. ect. The window trims are the proper heavy brass items that then were chromed. The front grill was rechromed. the bumper supports powder coated. new mirrors. door handles are chromed. all the door fittings are replaced with the lock mechanism replated. new check straps and door seals. new door switches. full rebuilt door locks and all exterior lamp units rechromed. rewired. ect. Boot trim all replaced including all the boards in the boot. Boot latches. bonnet hinges and every other conceivable piece re-plated or replaced. Wheels were completely refinished as new with new chrome centre caps an d stainless polished wheel nuts. Wheel arches and underbody painted body colour with all the nasty black undercoating removed. There is NO RUST and you can see all the body work under the car. You cannot comprehend the number of parts that have been refinished with proper new plating and or new nuts bolts and brackets nor the amount of rubber seals. clips. ect that have been replaced (basically everything from little door handle and latch gaskets to the larger quarter light seals. rear window seals. and side scrapers).

Interior:
New carpets. all new interior panels provided by Specialist Upholstery who make the best quality interior OEM level fittings you can buy. The seat straps were replaced with new webbing. rear seat frame powder coated. new speakers. power antenna. and wiring installed in rear. seats had new foam and leather seats dyed. lower cushions front and rear have new bottoms. all interior gauges and switches and lighting work. New door sill plates. door “hockey sticks”. Retro Sound custom stereo with Ipod inputs. custom made retracting shoulder seat belts hidden under rear side trims by Safety Belt Systems using the original Volvo latches and buckles so it looks like a factory fit job (safety first when it comes to seatbelts!)

Mechanical:
All new rubber hoses. belts. fittings. Everything except the head and the block was stripped and replaced. Complete heater rebuilt. all new brake callipers. master brake cylinder. new pads. disks (the front disks on this car cost about 400. 00 to replace). all the levers and operating rods were refinished with powdercoat or paint including the brackets. new brake lines to the front. every part in engine bay refinished to a factory finish. The fuel injection system was stripped and refinished. all the fuel injectors have new seals and pintels and flow at the proper rate with a report to back this up. The entire D-Jetronic system is working perfectly. These are very robust systems and this one is set perfectly. Fuel pressure set to factory specs. new starter. alternator. fan clutch. fan powdercoated. radiator rebuilt. all relays stripped and fettled. from lighting units rebuilt and new wire harness built. new filters (oil and air). new plugs. new oil pressure and temp sensors. wiper unit serviced with new proper wipers and arms with new chrome bezels. Engine painted to the correct Volvo colour. intake manifold stripped. acid cleaned and bead blasted like new. Too much to list here!

Suspension:
Fully rebuilt suspension front (off the car) and rear. new bushings and gas shocks. new brake backing plates. completely new parking brake system with all cables and levers and seals replaced. all parts replated and powder coated as shown in pictures.

Boot:
The boot is fully boarded with new boards. the entire wiring harness redone. fresh jack in the correct colour. tool kit. even the ultra rare spare wheel strap is present to secure the spare which has the original Volvo cover on it.

The rear axle and transmission oil was changed and the overdrive (Yes it has overdrive) unit was serviced and Waxol was sprayed in every crack and crevice I could find. Tyres are still like new.



 

 

Also published at eBay.co.uk

Want to buy this car?