The two-door Volvo 240 Turbo is a somewhat a forgotten car, especially in the United States, but its story is a brief and fascinating one that includes top-level international racing intrigue and a genuine hom*ologation special whose history is steeped in mystery. But thanks to Bonhams’ forthcoming Quail Motorcar Auction, the silver 242 you’re looking at now may just make history.Indeed, this 1983 Volvo might be the first 240-series car to cross the block of a prestigious auction house during (what would normally be) the Pebble Beach Concours/Monterey Car Week when it does so on Friday, August 14. We can’t think of a more appropriate variant to receive this honor.
What Volvo itself calls a “240 Turbo Evolution” -and is known to hardcore enthusiasts as a “Flat Hood”– this flying brick is one of 500 specially equipped model year 1983 two-door Turbos that were assembled in Volvo’s Ghent, Belgium, plant for sale in the U.S. market. Those Evolution cars were built to hom*ologate the 242 Turbo for international Group A competition, following rules that debuted in 1982 and called for race cars taken directly from the factory, and prepared with minimal modifications.
As Volvo Cars Heritage wrote,
The regulations also required at least 500 so-called evolution cars to be built – which was why the 240 Turbo Evolution was created. In July 1983 the 500 cars were lined up for an inspection to ensure they were uniform – split across two fields in the USA, one on the West Coast and one on the East Coast. The cars had bigger turbos, modified engine control systems and Water Turbo Traction – which involved water injection into the intake, an invention developed and patented by Volvo.
The 242 Turbo would provehugely successful in its racing campaign, having started racing in earnest in 1984 with private entries posting European Touring Car (Zolder, Belgium) and Deutsche Touringwagen Meisterschaft (a.k.a. DTM- Norisring, Nürnberg, Germany) wins. In 1985, Volvo fielded two factory teams, with Italian racer Gianfranco Brancatelli and Swedish racer ThomasLindström emerging as overall winners of that year’s European Touring Car Championship.
America’s 1983 Evolution cars were set apart visually by the use of a slanted, silver-finished egg-crate grille, flush with the headlamp trim, and a 1970s-style concave hood, neither of which stood proud like those on regular production 1983 Volvos. Under the skin, they were equipped with “GT” suspension components and a factory-fitted intercooler (this item, initially available in kit form, would become standard on all turbocharged Volvos for 1984; it was noted by a special badge on the trunklid). Reportedly, a unique turbocharger and intake manifold were installed, and an unmounted, wing-profile rear deck spoiler was included in each car.
These 240 Turbos were built with both “M46” four-speed plus electric overdrive manual and “AW71” four-speed automatic transmissions, came in multiple paint colors, and had either plush cloth or leather upholstery. It seems a sliding steel sunroof was standard equipment. The variations in specifications are quite interesting, and the “Performance/Handling Package” (23/21-mm front/rear anti-roll bars, heavy-duty gas shocks, front air dam, vented front brake rotors, 195/60R15 tires on 15 x 6 “Virgo” alloy wheels, 370-mm sport steering wheel, auxiliary engine oil cooler, and a bank ofaccessory gauges) and “Intercooler and Trim Package” added $995 (the inflation-adjusted equivalent of $2,575) to the car. When fitted with leather upholstery (an additional $590), a Flat Hood Turbo cost upwards of $18,000, or roughly $46,600 today.
While the new intercooler and uprated suspension parts remained, the 1983 “Flat Hood” models sold to the public were said not to include the special turbocharger/intake/engine management, and the rear spoiler was likewise pulled. Still, the addition of the “Intercooler Boost System” pushed the 2.1-liter four-cylinder’s horsepower from 127 to (some say an underrated) 161.
This silver Flat Hood to be auctioned is believed to be a lifelong California “blue plate” car, coming from the collection of Volvo Club of America director and proprietor ofiRoll Motors, Mike Dudek. It’s been verified to be a genuine Evolution model by its VIN and build codes, is claimed free of corrosion (even in the trunk’s rust-prone spare tire wells) and sports the characteristic two foil heat reflector strips on the underside of the hood, above the turbocharger. Equipped with an automatic transmission, the 242 has been driven nearly 180,000 miles, but it’s said to have been carefully maintained, with recent major services on the engine and air conditioning system, and the OEM stereo and power antenna still work. The presale estimate is$20,000-$25,000; we’ll be following it closely to see where the hammer falls.
