The elderly lady from Kiruna and her potent T-Röd — a Volvo 850 R — were well-known in the Lapland town. Together they covered just 60,000 kilometers, making it an exceptionally rare and low-mileage example of the rocket from Hisingen.
There’s a saying in American car culture: “The little old lady from Pasadena.” It refers to an elderly woman who drives a high-performance car, one she only takes to church on Sundays — hence it remains in pristine condition.
Here we have the Swedish equivalent — though we might have to question the part about the church trips.
When the 850 R was launched in the fall of 1995, its 250 horsepower made it the most powerful production Volvo ever. “I want one of those,” thought Marianne from Kiruna, and ordered a four-door automatic sedan from Eriksson Bil — naturally in the launch color Bright Red.
She paid 400,000 kronor. In cash. With banknotes.
When the car stood at Eriksson Bil waiting to be delivered, it became a magnet for the town’s car-enthusiastic youth. One of them was Daniel — more on him later.
Marianne and her T-Röd lived a calm life together. The car was never driven farther south than Överkalix. It was regularly serviced, never modified, and remained in the exact condition it had when it left the showroom.
In 2015, Marianne passed away, and her T-Röd was inherited by a relative who hardly drove it at all.
Now back to Daniel — one of those young men who had admired the car in the delivery hall. He had lived next door to Marianne and followed the car over the years, dreaming of one day owning it. He kept in touch with the heir, and finally, last year, he got the chance to buy his dream car. Yet despite that, he has now decided to sell it — after being struck by a bout of low-mileage anxiety.
It’s said to be very rare to find an untouched 850 R with such low mileage for sale in Sweden. Only 944 red automatic sedans were ever produced, which already makes it exclusive.
Marianne’s T-Röd is now valued between 290,000 and 320,000 kronor. The auction ends on October 23.
To the auction: https://bilwebauctions.se/en/oktoberauktion-4-2025/volvo-850-r-t-roed-54485
