A coworker let me have her old Rolling Stones magazine (Issue #920, April 17, 2002, with Lisa Marie Presley on the cover) to read. If you're at a library, book store, etc., check out page 72. Here's the article:

Section: "Your Pick -> Cool Classic"

Title: Beat-up Volvo Station Wagon
Subtitle: It's fast, it's durable, and it's the perfect vehicle for mooning.
By: Jacob Ditkoff

After years of ridicule, it turns out that frost-haired soccer moms were onto something solid: Piece of sh*t Eighties Volvo station wagons rule the roadways. Americans are trading in their 2002 Audi Quattros for $5,000 Ronald Reagon-era Volvos that look and drive like new. For three grand, drivers can get a wagon that looks like hell, but that's all the better. The Swedish wonders are as fast as Porsche 944s and can take a pounding, too (two Canadians drove a Volvo wagon around the Earth in seventy-four days). But the junker's chief asset is the "way-back seat," something SUVs and minivans have done away with - it faces the cars behind you, leaving wasted buddies free to press ham or twelve-year-olds to give tailgaters the finger. It's what Volvo owner Kurt Cobain knew ten years ago but the rest of us are only discovering today: Safety, style and a big "f*ck you" is a combination that will always rock hard.

The picture shows a blue 1975-1980 wagon, with the caption "Boxy, beat-up, and beautiful."

Just thought I'd share...
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Regards,
Eric Staufer,
'89 244DL 119k
My 240 Page

After reading about this I popped over to the Rolling Stone website and typed "Volvo" into the search engine. It seems that there are quite a few songs about Volvos, especially in the indie/alternative genre.

God Plays Dirty - "Volvo for Life"
Torn Elements - "I H8 Volvos" :-(
Juliana Hatfield - "Girl in Old Blue Volvo Disowns Self"
Coco Culbertson - "Volvo"
and of course, Everclear's "Volvo Driving Soccer Mom"

--
don hodgdon '89 744ti, '81 242t, '71 D-35

Since my daily driver is a very nice looking, well maintained 1980 DL wagon (which my younger daughter drove for a couple of years with more than a few protests about how it certainly was not the car of her dreams) I just had to copy that extract and send it to both children. I have had no comment to the e-mail so far! While I most certainly do not question RS's judgement about the car being cool, when they talk about it being fas, I wonder whether the writer has ever been behind the wheel of one!

Question:

How much pot does one have to smoke before coming to the conclusion that a 240 wagon is:

"as fast as Porsche 944s..."

??????????????????

Hey,

Having owned a 944S(non-turbo) I can say that it was a slug, and my B23E-equipped GLT is faster.

BTW - Kurt Kobain was on to something 10 years ago... SHIT!!! I guess that made me on to something 17 years ago...

Richard

87 245 DL 350,000 km
82 242 GLT 121,000 km

http://members.cardomain.com/richink

Note: your car is a 242, not a 245, and it has the GLT package.

But my main question: How on earth did you get a B23E motor? Bring it back from Europe or something? I'm stuck with the B23F in my 245. I know the B30E had a lot more horsepower than the American version. Is the same true of the B23E?

They were sold in Canada. You can get one from there and put it in. The B23E
with the H or K cam had from 136 to 140 hp.

Dave 82 242ti

You make me regret that GLT 1982 4 door with B23E/auto-trans. I drove to the bone yard last november.

It was rusted and needed new brakes and harness but the engine was still running pretty good. I took apart all the FI components but left the bare engine there.

Too bad I could not store it somewhere.

Hello,

Yes, I it is a Canadian-spec 242 GLT with the K-cammed B23E. They also had a much higher compression ratio, pulsair injection and no catalytic converters. It's a shame they never sold them in the US, they are faster than the original non-intercooled turbos and they get fantastic fuel economy.

Richard.

P.S. Full resto project starting soon and pics to be posted up on cardomain.

Not 2002... Sorry!
--
Regards,
Eric Staufer,
'89 244DL 119k
My 240 Page

From my travels around the country, I believe the 245 has become the modern day
equivalent to the 60's VW Micro Bus. I know I'll always have one ....

Jay
84 245 223k