My relationship with my new-to-me Volvo 142 continues and with every new nut-and-bolt task I tackle, I come to admire the old blunderbuss even more.
Task one was to actually clean the auld dear. Not sure how long it had been between washes, but it was definitely more than a couple of years. Fact is, the 142 responded brilliantly to a little TLC, the paint coming up really well and surprising me by actually being cream rather than the dull yellow I thought it was. Plenty of oxidisation came with the dirt, too, and the before and after pics tell the story. I’ll still get it buffed, but it’s a million times better already.
Next up was a tidy-up of the rims. And the first mystery encountered. Everything on the car points to it being a 1969 model. Except the wheels, which I noticed – once I started to clean them up – were date-coded 12/70. Huh? What gives? Apparently, the hot tip in the day was to swap the 4.5-inch standard rims with the five-inchers from the Deluxe model. And that’s precisely what’s happened here, it seems. So thanks to the (very helpful) online Volvo community for clearing that one up for me.
Paying attention to the rims also revealed that the tyres were absolutely stuffed. They were worn out and were so old, they had more cracks than a bum factory.standard fitment for a couple of reasons. First, I didn’t want to ruin the lovely ride quality, which a hoop with less sidewall could easily have done. Second, I didn’t want to shorten the overall gearing any more than it already is with a 1:1 top gear, making the 142 less relaxed at highway speeds. And thirdly, I already have a shed full of cars that go one-hundred-fast-an-hour, so I can afford the Volvo to be a car in which I can kick back and cruise. Yes, maybe I’m getting old.
