Here’s a rather extraordinary combo, a PV444 and PV544, found by John Lloyd at the Cohort. When’s the last time you remember seeing a Volvo of this age on the streets, let alone two? Admittedly, I won’t remember the last time, but I do very well remember my first.
How do you go from quaint to attention-grabbing? One way is with time and its passage. Add to that rarity, as numbers inevitably dwindle. In my case both factors played a role, when at my tender 5, I developed an immediate crush on the model one afternoon in San Salvador.
To most who grew around these Volvos, their lines were rather old-fashioned and homely; with more than a passing semblance to a late ’40s Ford. That in the ’60s. Quaintness in the age of sexy machines? Sturdy and dependable as they were, few thought of them as stylish, much less sexy.
Not that I knew any of that on the day my parents went to purchase a Toyota 1000 (Publica) in 1976. While they dithered on which color they wished their Toyota to be, I was let loose out of their sight. Right by the dealer’s main office, near the maintenance area, a burgundy PV544 was parked. Its paint was a thick lacquer, with lots of luster. Against the Japanese cars common in the nation, the shape of the Volvo looked like nothing else; it was a magnet to my childhood eyes, with its round rump looking fast and sharp. I remember quite vividly circling around it, looking with fascination over every detail of its round forms and thick chrome detailing.
And in these shots, we have found ourselves a street side museum of sort. One could take a walk around this pair and study the details that separate them; if one wished to do so. Dumb rubber chicken hanging from the rear bumper or not, these two seem to be the hot versions. The 444 with twin tailpipes, and the 544 clearly identified by its Sport label (for more on both, there’s CC’s comprehensive PV444 and PV544 entry). I know there are quite a few admirers of these old Volvos at CC, and you can count me as one.
That these were rare and gone has much to do with my childhood impressions. Yes, I admit that against a 1963 LeSabre they had to look absolutely quaint and stodgy; but how would I’ve known that in 1976? Yet, enough time has passed to put those comparisons aside, and this pair looks incredibly endearing today. In what moment does an object go from being a common item to something prized?
In my own case, my 1968 Beetle has gone from being the cheapskate’s ride of my youth (my reason of purchase in ’94), to its present state; with people pointing and smiling at its sight during my brief outings in the car. It’s an odd feeling, and slightly disturbing. I’m still trying to get used to it.
That said, is such a transition guaranteed? Maybe, with due time. I can’t think of a ’90s Contour as desirable, but who knows? They’re pretty rare now, and in recent months, I’ve caught myself looking over my shoulder once or twice whenever I come across one.
Further reading:
Curbside Classics: Volvo PV444 And PV544 – I Roll, Starting Here
Yes. You are correct. One of the first thing we lose when viewing classic rides, is the contemporary competition that directly effected it. These cars look good today. They looked obsolete then.
There’s a lot to know about having these cars road worthy and how to use them on the road that makes these Volvos challenging. They’re simply primitive. You need to go without air conditioning, fuel injection, even an automatic choke.
My father’s cousins in Colorado had a burgundy Volvo as their college commuting car. As kids, we loved it. Bigger than my dad’s Beetles, it was fun to ride around in that PV544. I would really love to relive those memories. I’d like to find and study one today.
I just saw a 544 yesterday! Unfortunately, I couldn’t stop for a picture because I was driving a car in a local organized car cruise for charity, but I did shout “I like your Volvo” out the window to the owner. 🙂 It’s not the kind of car you commonly see in a Michigan driveway, but I’d love to own one myself.
I saw one of these as a child and had no idea what to make of it. We had a neighbor across the street who worked for Dana Corporation in Fort Wayne. He would occasionally bring home what he called “test cars”, and a 544 was one of them. My dad and I walked across the street to have a look and he took us for a ride. My first (very) uneducated guess as a 4 or 5 year old kid was that this must have been what VWs had once looked like. Then he told us it was a Volvo, so I can definitely state when I first heard of Volvo. These have appealed to me on a very basic level since that day.
Makes some sense, JP. I’m pretty sure these had Dana 27 rear axles/differentials from the factory.
As a kid, my dad had a ’61 Austin 850 (Mini), which he’d have serviced at one of the ubiquitous “Foreign & Sports Cars” establishments of the time.
Among the loaners they’d give him, I only recall an MG 1100 & Volvo 544. I’d sit in the drivers seat, and marvel over the world of differences between these & American cars.
The Volvo’s 2-ft. long shifter was topped by a huge black knob, reminiscent of the one in our school bus. The entire proportions were of another era, and my dad said they were like his old ’48 Ford.
(I’d never seen a ’48 Ford because by the early ’60’s, you’d be hard pressed to find anything of that vintage on the road.)
That was the closest I’ve been to a 544.
It does suggest a 42-48 Ford but I think the style works better for me in a smaller car like the Volvo than in the bigger Ford. My only ride in a 544 was given me in grad school by a classmate in his Volvo.
Thanks for sharing that childhood memory. Just as vividly do I remember that October 1972 Saturday when my parents took delivery of our Volvo 144. I thought it was the coolest car in the universe. In fact I still do, for all Volvo’s of the 70ies.
I had a lot of time on a 544 that my brother’s friend once owned. Very distinctive sounds, sights and smells.
My 96 year-old mother has a Contour sitting in her driveway in Iowa. It hasn’t been driven in a couple of years, and it’s about to be hauled off. Shall I tell her you’re interested? 🙂
Hauled off! That’s a rare car now. Why ever would your 96 year old mother not advertise it on Craigslist and FB marketplace and entertain a bunch of seriously interested people willing to pay top dollar? I’m sure if she holds out she can get at least $800 instead of the scrapper getting $150 for it. 🙂
She’s in the Bay Area. Stephanie’s sister is going out there to deal with some of the stuff at her house, including the car. I’m not sure of her actual plans, but would suggest that too. It was running when parked…and it quite likely would start right up; probably just needs a jumper cable. She pampered it since it was new, although sitting outside in Iowa all these years wasn’t quite ideal.
Maybe you or Ed Snitkoff is interested; another CC project car? Fly out and drive it home?
Not me, thanks, but surely someone on CC who always laments apparently well-maintained cars ending up in the junkyard would want it!
What year, what engine?
Don’t know. Four cylinder, automatic. Low miles. Not driven in the snow, so probably not really much rust.
That PV444 has to be the same car I saw back in October of last year when I stumbled upon a get-together of the local Swedish car club. Dig that crazy backwards-opening hood!
These cars travel together. I’ve seen them around Shoreline (suburb of Seattle). I have several photos of these same cars taken at a McDonald’s parking lot in 2017.
Here’s an article I wrote about that club back in 2014.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/road-trip/road-trip-outtake-panama-to-alaska-swedish-style/
I bought a used 1965 544 as a student in 1969 and it was retro enough to be very cool by then, in my eyes at least.
Its mechanical qualities and driving characteristics were the icing on the cake. Or, more accurately, the cake under the icing. 🙂
Another thought that comes to mind is my renewed appreciation (due mostly to Paul’s writings) of early 1950’s Chrysler products.
As a child in the late 50s, those cars seemed embarrassingly old-fashioned. Perhaps my infatuation with the 544 was a subliminal nod to those no-nonsense fixtures of my childhood. Maybe it was only a matter of time before I looked at them again with the respect they deserved.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1951-plymouth-cranbrook-automotive-immortality/
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/cc-cohort/cohort-pick-of-the-day-1950-plodge-wagon-found-in-mexico-city/
In 1968 I was also a student and looked at buying a 544, but ended up with an Austin. Probably made the wrong decision, but for the same money the Austin was 3 years old, compared to 10 for the Volvo. Another factor was that my mother said the Volvo was ugly and that if I bought it I could not park it in the driveway, which was a problem as I was still living with her.
“quaint and stodgy” is a Volvo specialty.
It’s perplexing to me that Volvo made these in one form or another until 1969. Which was less than decade before the considerably more modern 245 that I have. Which in turn ran almost 20 years, overlapping a (somewhat) more modern model; except Volvo could sell the archaic model just fine to loyal buyers where more archaic = more better.
Anyway, Volvo may be unique in its weirdness about hanging on to old designs after their time had passed and they in fact had newer offerings.
I’d gladly drive a Duett wagon. I still see these around from time to time. And they have a dedicated owner community.
It’s perplexing to me that Volvo made these in one form or another until 1969.
Really? VW built the Beetle for decades after numerous newer cars were introduced, including very close to its price range.
There are numerous similar examples in Europe I can think of.
GM did the same thing repeatedly with their “Classic” versions after a newer successor was introduced. Ram just did it with their pickups.
it’s not so much about “loyal customers” as it is about the economics, as the older car was of course long amortized, and the newer car intrinsically was more expensive to build, because of its amortization as well as almost invariably having new technology/features/etc. Continuing to build the older versions was/is very attractive for its profitability.
And of course the newer models had a higher price than the old one, so it wasn’t direct competition. The difference could be critical for many buyers.
There was a brief period when the Duett, the 122 wagon, and the 145 were in production simultaneously.
I don’t think I have ever seen a 444 on the road but I often see my neighbour’s 544. It stays in the garage for the winter, but the rest of the time it is almost a daily driver. What a treat.
Old Volvos make me chuckle–444s and 544s do, I think, look like ’48 Fords.
I had a dead 122 sitting in my field and a couple of guys came by wanting to buy my “54 Chevy” (they could only see it from the rear).
Not sold here I think so veryvery rare
Circa 2009 or 2010, I worked at a British car repair shop, and there was a 1957 PV444 hanging around there (they specialized in British stuff, but worked on others too). At the time, I thought it to be reasonably likable, but hopelessly old hat for 1957… my frame of reference was mainly American cars at that point. I’m surprised at how much my tastes have changed in thirteen-ish years; I could easily see myself driving one of these, and loving it. The black suits them perfectly.
I like the split front and rear glass, as well as the detailing on the 1953… I don’t believe I’ve ever seen one that early on the road. The squinty tail lamps and B-pillar mounted turn signals look neat, but are awfully dainty… bet you could completely block their output with a single strip of masking tape!
I still see a 544 every couple of years or so. And a 444 about half that often. There’s a guy with a 544 a few blocks away, I’ve seen it at the annual car show in the little burg I live in and talked with the guy. Nice guy, very friendly, said to stop by and say hello. But the garage is always closed and I’m not sure which house it is. I asked him and he wasn’t even sure what the difference between a 544 and a 444 was. Neither am I for that matter, but I don’t own either one.