One of Sweden’s most beautiful PV544 Sport shines in Cherry Red on Bilwebs Auction´s last auction in June. Hardly driven after an extremely thorough nut-and-bolt restoration, it offers an opportunity to relive the Sixties.
A PV Sport was at the time the equivalent to the Golf GTI in the late Seventies - a performance version of a smaller family car and a dream for a lot of youngsters. The B18D in the sportier version produced 90 horsepower, 15 more than standard, and with twin SU carburetors creating wonderful music.
The PV544 Sport now up for bidding at Bilweb Auctions is an ”F”, telling the Volvo PV connoisseurs that it is a 1965 model, the second last PV544 model year. It rolled out of the Lundby factory in Gothenburg 21 January 1965 in the color most Sport customers wanted: Cherry Red.
As late as in September 2021, it was a restoration object in need of rust repairs and a total mechanical rebuild. But the original engine was there, meaning ”matching numbers” - important for classic cars.
Two very experienced gentlemen, both with most of their professional lives spent at Volvo, then decided to do the perfect restoration. One of them was even part of the team that built the last PV544 in October 1965. Up until May this year they spent around 6 hours every day working with this PV Sport. Everything was restored or replaced and the list over what has been done covers three pages.
The engine received a power increase up to around 135 horsepower with the help of a ”K” camshaft, a sports exhaust and a few other tricks. The gearbox and rear axle was restored by veteran experts from the Volvo transmission factory in Koping. Front- and rear suspension, all things electric, brakes, interior and body was recreated in detail, with both restored and remanufactured parts. A donor car from rust free California contributed with doors and fenders.
For practical reasons the high/low beam switch was moved from the floor to the steering column and inertia belt mounted for the front seats. In May it got its MOT and OA18821 - the original Gothenburg registration - was given a modern registration plate. Since then, it has been driven around 500 kilometers to make sure everything works like it is supposed to.
And the circle is complete: the first owner in 1965 lived just a few 100 meters from the garage where it stands today. And close to the Volvo factory, of course.
The car has been given an estimated value of 400 000 and 500 000 SEK.
22 JUNI 07:51 MATHIAS BJÖRKMAN
A cherry red dream on Bilweb Auctions: a meticulously restored Volvo PV544 Sport from 1965
One of Sweden’s most beautiful PV544 Sport shines in Cherry Red on Bilwebs Auction´s last auction in June. Hardly driven after an extremely thorough nut-and-bolt restoration, it offers an opportunity to relive the Sixties.
