5 things you should know about the 40-year-old Volvo 262C
Forty years ago, Volvo turned perceptions of what its brand stood for, upside down. The Volvo 262 Coupé (262C) left no-one unmoved and sold significantly better than expected.
What really turned the Volvo 262C into the iconic coupé it became could be found in the passenger compartment, where extravagant leather and hardwood abounded. The seats, headrests, door sides and even the curve handles were upholstered in leather.
The engine in the 262C was initially a 2.7-litre, 104 kW V6. It was shared with all the other body versions in the 260 series and had been developed together with Peugeot and Renault.
Also read: Car Review: The Volvo S90
The model year that stands out the most was also the 262C’s last. In 1981, the 200 series underwent a major update with new, more slender bumpers and a new headlight setup. The new colour combination was a two-tone paint job in gold and ‘nougat’.
The aim was to manufacture 800 units per year, but expectations for demand had been set far too low. Apart from in 1977 when production started late in the year, and the final model year, production figures were more than double the forecast. When the final cars were sold in 1981, they were already considered to be collectables. In total, 6 622 cars were built between 1977 and 1981.
It was only in 1985 that the successor to the 262C was presented, the Volvo 780. The collaboration with Bertone continued, but the 780 was both designed and built in Italy.
Five things you should know about the Volvo 262C:
- The 262C was not the first two-door model in the 260 series. From 1976-77, 3 329 262 GL models were manufactured exclusively for the North American market. They had a standard two-door body like the 242, but with a V6 engine and the far more exclusive front end from the 260 series.
- The 262C is the only Volvo ever to have been be delivered from the factory with vinyl over a steel roof.
- The unique prototype built by Coggiola is now part of the Volvo Museum collection in Gothenburg.
- The independent firm Solaire built a cabriolet edition of the 262C on behalf of Volvo Cars of North America. Only five units were ever produced.
- Volvo’s then-CEO Pehr G Gyllenhammar had a specially-made 262C as his company car. It was painted red and its entire interior was also red – even the headrests. It did not feature the usual V6 engine, which had been replaced by the four-cylinder B21ET turbo engine. The body frames and grille were in matt black, which heralded the high black grill that the GLT and Turbo would feature in 1984.
Source: QuickPic