I had been wanting to change up the look of the front of my 240, beyond the amber Volvo truck turn signal lenses (purchased here), while maintaining Volvo authenticity. My current grille had a chip on one corner, and it's also a prominent part of the front end, so I figured it was ripe for switching out.

Discouragingly, I don't have a lot of grille options here in the States. Most '86-'93 240s have a chrome slotted grille. Some cars from the final years, I think from 1992 and 1993, did get an all-black version of the chrome grille, and I've heard that there were some done completely with chrome, though I can't recall seeing any.

A friend had a later 240 with an all-black grille, so I had been scheming to switch our grilles. However, her car was handed off to her brother and she got a mid-'80s BMW 325e instead.

I checked online to see if there were other variations on the grille and I discovered that a 1983-1989 740 Turbo Eggcrate grille could fit in a 240. Thanks to Dave Barton, I recently came to be in possession of one of those very grilles.

So, after a false start earlier this week, I finally got things together to get the grille installed. I mostly followed the instructions here, with only a few deviations from that parts list and plan. I spent about $3 at Lowe's getting the assorted nuts, bolts, and washers.

The end result is above. The grille is pretty snug, though it can still move a little. However, it is not in any danger of falling out. The driver's side bottom is a little farther back than the other side, and if everything weren't in so tightly I might try to readjust it. Right now, I'm going to leave things--there are some heavy duty bolts in that front end. I hope my mechanic never has to take the grille out unexpectedly.

Since there was excellent weather this afternoon, I took the opportunity to take several other "glamor" shots, in addition to those above. When I get them resized and uploaded I'll post a link to a page containing the pictures, for those of you who like looking at old Bricks!
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'89 244 GL -- 105,411 miles (see profile for info on car)

Looks really good. I think the eggcrate grilles are the only grille Volvo should have made. Except the GT grille of course.
If you're feeling more adventurous, the 93 Classics have the outside edge of the grille painted the same color as the body. Same grille that you used to have, just the part that was chrome on yours is painted the same as the body. The insert is still vertical black lines or chrome. I think that would look sweet with the eggcrate insert instead. Something to think about.
The SEM bumpercoater is a pretty good product. I used it on my mirrors (you should) and bumper trim, though not the bumpers. I also used it to paint the chrome on my grille and headlight doors (81) black. I did a pretty poor job of prepping it, so it started flaking after 1000miles or so of 70mph freeway drives in winter. I have since redone it, properly prepped and sanded, but this time using a satin black epoxy paint.
Your car looks really good. I normally hate the amber turn signals, but I don't mind them on your car for some reason.
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1981 242 GLTi 1967.5 122S
Seattle, WA

Logan - any tips on securing a Bertone interior? Was everything a direct swap?

whoa, that is nice! I am coming to love that volvo blue! btw, I also have an '89 240, but I do not have the amber corners. mine came with the clear corners with a strip of orange.

Ditch the fender nameplates and install side markers, paint the lower body/door trim and the front spoiler with SEM Matte black. Makes for a unified look from bumper to bumper.

I like the amber turn signals and the grille looks sweet.

I saw a 240 the other day where the guy had painted the mid level trim with OEM paint and it seemed to blend in nicely. His was same met. blue.

I totally debadged mine, if they want to know what it is-they have to catch me!

At some point I definitely plan to install some amber side markers. It doesn't seem to be a tough install, and for $50 or $60, it's not expensive to buy a set.

That's an interesting suggestion about the lower trim. I'm guessing it was originally supposed to be black but has since faded. I've actually got a can of bumper paint to use to replace the cracked black rubber trim underneath the windows --I'll check to see if that could be used on the (plastic?) trim. What exactly is "SEM Matte black"?

I've debadged my car, at least in the rear. When it got repainted the morons at Maaco just stuck the badges back on in the same general location, and so I got them to remove the badges when they touched up the trunk later on. Though I had asked for the badges back, just not on the car, they had to go pull them out of the trashcan since they had thrown them away. I have them now, but they're inside the trunk.
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'89 244 GL -- 105,411 miles (see profile for info on car)

That 740T grill looks great!
Here is an idea what the car looks like with the spoiler and lower trim painted.




The trim is easy to paint on the car, just take some file folders and stick them behind the trim and tape them to the car to mask it off. Clean well with SEM plastic prep' and spray away. This job was done a couple of years before the pic and it is still holding up well with only a few rock chips. I unbolted the spoiler to properly clean and prep' it. Comet cleanser was used on all pieces before the SEM prep' to remove all traces of wax/dirt.

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Dave Shannon
Spring Valley, California
'84-245T 190K+
'88-240 190K+
'65 1800S ????K
'73 1800ES 117K
'92 745Ti 150K
Jeep Wrangler Sahara 10K
my pages

>>What exactly is "SEM Matte black"?<<

SEM is one of the better automotive paint suppliers. Their products are available at most auto paint retailers. Goodspeed Motoring is just one of many that carry their line. I have had great results with their Trim Black and Color Coat products.

BTW, The grill looks great!

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

maaco? how did that go? did they paint the engine compartment? inside trunk? im looking to paint soon, but dont want to go with something too cheap. grill looks great. im going to the yard tomorrow to try to find one =)

You can read all about my repainting here.

Maaco went pretty well, for a budget paint job. I paid about $520 (after $100 coupon) and I think I got at least that amount's worth. They did not paint the engine compartment, inside trunk, or doors, but as I was keeping pretty much the same color, I was okay with that.

I wish they had done something with the cracked rubber trim under the windows, but instead they masked over it. As a result, I've gotten black spraypaint that I will use to respray the original-color paint underneath the trim that I will remove. I'll let everyone here know how that goes.
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'89 244 GL -- 105,XXX miles (see profile for info on car)

One more option for the late grille is the black surround with the chrome insert. I've seen a few in the 92 equivalent of a GL. These cars had a leather interior, the same alloys as a 91 SE or a 93 Classic, black side trim, and the black/ chrome grille. I finally bought one of the grilles on ebay to put in my 91, but the tabs were broken off. I swapped the back insert from my 91 grille in until I repair the chrome one.
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1991 245, 61k miles, looking for a 5 speed 92-93 245 cheap.