1992 Volvo 240: A 240 Like No Other

Let me preface this by saying that in my years of visiting the East Side of Providence, I have traveled by car and bike many of the streets, and have explored many of the hilly nooks and crannies that the East Side entails. Anyone who resides or has visited there would tell you that there are many side streets, most of which are very steep and narrow.

Anyways, on this particular point of the bike ride, I was traveling up the hill from a red Mercedes W123 estate I had photographed, and was on my way to try and find two different cars I had seen in the area prior to this voyage. They were a rusty VW T2 Bus and a different Volvo 240. I suppose you could call it luck, but I decided to spare myself time and my legs, I cut over a few streets, heading diagonally up the hill, using side streets and service roads as opposed to the normal side streets. 

I got to a Y-junction, and glanced up the hill, preparing myself for the last push to the top. My eyes rested on a boxy car, mostly concealed behind a stone wall, and I could only see the roofline. It appeared similar to that of a Chevy K-5 Blazer, which I thought would be cool to see around here. I pedaled up to the car, it slowly revealing itself when I got closer, and that's when I realized I had found something far more bizarre than what could've ever imagined or expected. 

I know I photograph lots of old Volvos, and this will not be the last one you see today, but sometimes there are exceptions. This is one of them. This Volvo 240 is like no other, and there will be no other 240 like this one. This could've been something regular, like a standard beige 240 or the Blazer I thought this was at first. I'm so glad its something more than that, because this car not only caused me to feel so much astonishment that something like this existed, but so much awe and mystery.

 I stood looking at this car for several minutes, I'm not kidding. I pondered why this existed in the way that it did, which led me to think about the owner and their inspiration to paint an old Volvo like a leopard. I wish I knew more, and I wish I had met the owner. Someday I may go back, as this car deserves so much instead of being overlooked. 

As you can see, this 240 has been painted inside and out. At first I thought the exterior had just been given a leopard paint job, but the interior itself has been given its own unique look. Drips of paint and bled through masking tape lines show that this 240 was rattle canned inside, which I can only imagine what that smelled like after sitting in the sun on a hot day. Who knows, maybe the fumes inspired this car! Looking closely at the front end of the car, specifically the hood, you can see that some of the black spots were painted over with brighter colors. Either the artist gave up painting the rest, or they ran out of paint.

Unfortunately, it looks like rust and maybe a front end impact got the best of this 240. The hood looks like it could use replacing, and the front fascia (headlights, grille, and bumper) looks like it hit something at a low speed, causing them to be pushed inward. While I do hope to get the story of this Volvo someday, I really hope the owner and artist keeps this car alive to a degree, even if it isn't driven. 

As you've seen, there's a lot of 240s out there! Seeing something as unique and amusing as this one was honestly really cool, especially for someone like myself who really isn't one for DIY customization and poor car mods. However, this car differs from most DIY car projects because it holds itself to a higher standard. I can see the creative thought that went into this car, and sure, while its not perfect by any standard, I can imagine that joy and fun that the artist may have experienced when painting this car. Of course, these are just assumptions, but a 240 is a car that brings a sense of happiness, and I hope it did the same for the artist.