Italian-styled Volvo 262C turns 40

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Volvo 262C, the car originally conceived as a replacement for the iconic P1800 coupe which had been discontinued in 1973.

In hindsight it seems strange to think the luxurious 262C could ever have been a true successor to the Jensen-built P1800 which was made famous as Simon Templar's chosen transport in the first TV series of 'The Saint' starring Roger Moore.

But Volvo reasoned it didn’t need another sports car like the P1800, rather a more commodious luxury coupe. In fact inspiration came from coupe models wearing the badge of Ford’s North American luxury brand Lincoln.

A different sort of beginning
The 262C's genesis didn't follow the normal rules: Although Jan Wilsgaard, Volvo's chief designer at the time, had sketched up ideas for a new luxury coupe, no clay model of the 262C was ever built.

Rather, a 164 model (which had been used as a mule to try out interior designs) was sent to Italian designer Sergio Coggiola's studio in Turin where it was refashioned into the low-slung two-door coupe that became the 262C.

Coggiola’s team did more than just lower the roof by 60mm - the A-Pillars were angled back to produce a sleeker look which was accentuated by the thick C-Pillars. The work was so good the production car revealed later was virtually identical, apart from a few minor details such as the badging on the C-pillar.

Originally the engine was the all-alloy 104kW B27E 2.7-litre V6 developed in collaboration with Peugeot and Renault and shared between other 260 series Volvos, the Peugeot 604 and the Renault 25.

A Volvo made in Italy
The Volvo 262C was actually assembled in Italy from components shipped to the Turin facility of specialist limited-volume manufacturer Bertone. It was far plusher than the average 260 series, with lavish use of hardwood trim and sumptuous leather for the seats, headrests and door inner panels.

The surprise for Volvo arrived following launch of the 262C. The plan was to manufacture about 800 cars a year, but – despite a price tag almost double that of its sedan sibling - demand was so high the production number was more than doubled.

Continuing strong demand saw those increased production numbers continue throughout the model life of the Volvo 262C – a total of 6622 units were made between 1977 and 1981.

Five things you don’t know about the Volvo 262C
1. The 262C was not the first two-door model in the 260 series. In 1976-77, 3329 units of the 262 GL were manufactured exclusively for the North American market. They had a standard two-door body like a 242, but with a V6 engine and the far more exclusive front from the 260 series.

2. The 262C is the only Volvo to be delivered from the factory with vinyl over the steel roof.

3. The unique prototype built by Coggiola is now part of the Volvo Museum collection in Gothenburg, Sweden.

4. The independent firm Solaire built a cabriolet edition of the 262C on behalf of Volvo Cars of North America. Only five units were ever manufactured.

5. 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. Power came from the four-cylinder B21ET engine (replacing the usual V6). The body frames and grille were in matte black, which heralded the high black grille as seen in the 1984 GLT and Turbo models.