1982 Volvo 244 DL: A Street Parked Classic

I spent a morning in Providence to work on a photography project for school. The weather was much nicer than it had been and I had some time to kill in the morning, so I figured I'd take advantage of that. I parked my Saab and walked out to the street corner to photograph the Providence Biltmore, now known as The Graduate. When I got to the corner, I noticed a small white, boxy sedan which was the unmistakable figure of the Volvo 240. Filled with excitement, I approached the car, to the discovery that it was an early '80s model, a rare sight. 

This is a 1982 Volvo 244 sedan and nothing short of a great car. We photograph a lot of 240s on this blog, as well as Old New England Cars, but they're mostly late model versions of the car. If you ask anyone, the 240 is revered for its reliability, durability, and safety. It's the reason why owners of these cars still drive them daily today. The 240 was just as popular back during its production run as it is today. It became Volvo's first ever "million model seller," selling over 2.8 million cars from its nearly 20 year long production from 1974 to 1993. 

However, for such a vanilla looking car, it might be surprising to some that this was such a popular car. The 240 wasn't striking like a BMW 5-Series, or aerodynamic like its Swedish counterpart Saab 900, and it may not offer a sporty driving experience like most cars today or even of its time. When you strip away the modern ideologies of what an economy car is required to be today, you will begin to see the point of a Volvo 240. These were cars meant to be driven and used forever. Yes, it's slow and it doesn't offer much in the looks department, but what the 240 does offer is honesty and dependability in an era where those vehicular qualities aren't favored by auto makers.

If you recall from Mid Winter Finds '23, I talked about the Volvo 940 as a metaphor for change in one's life. I'd like to think of the Volvo 240 as simpler times before change. The 240 represented the glory days of classic Volvo. It wasn't the first boxy car to be produced by the Swedish company, as the Volvo 140 series would precede the 240, from '66 to '74. The 240 improved where the 140 went wrong, and ushered Volvo into the peak of their golden years. 

When I saw this old Volvo among the modern cars with aggressive headlights and angular, forward styling, I saw something simple in a world full of car designs that have become aggressive and angry looking. When I saw that, I was reminded of simpler times in my life. The 240 represents middle school, times when I really didn't have to worry about issues like money, education, and life as a whole.  

Maybe I'm just remembering the good aspects because my life is so damn complicated today, that I wish I could recapture my world full of Legos and Hot Wheels cars. Sure, I had bad days, just as everyone does, but when you look beyond the bad, like when you strip away the plain aspects of a Volvo 240 and see the truth they hold, it becomes easy to forget the negatives.

The 240 would pass the baton to the 940 in 1993, but the 940 always carried that simple, boxy personality of the 240 with it. I suppose change forces you to leave a time in your life that you wish you could stay in, but you can always bring a piece of that with you, just like the Volvo 940 did with the 240. 

Small Car, Small City