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Andy&LynneMarshall,Worcs
AndyandLynneMarshallbought theirfirstAmazon
27 yearsago;theyrana saloonandestateas
everydaycarsfora decadebeforerunning 240 and
74 0 estates.SaysAndy, ‘Afterthesewe rana PV4 44 whichwas
tooslowforeverydayuse, soI lookedforanotherAmazon.I
founda Ruddspeed-tuned122Ssaloonandbought anestate
fortheextrapracticality.They’reoureverydaycarsalongwith
a PV544.We’vetakenthesaloontouringinEuropeandtheUK;
bothAmazonshaveoverdriveanda B18engineontwinSUs.
Ona runtheycangive 35mpg,although25mpgis more typical.
‘Partsavailabilityis goodandthey’reeasy to workon;the
onlyspecialtoolthat’sneededis an£80hubpullerto work
ontherearbrakes.Theonlyrealweaknessis thefibre timing
gear, soI’veswitchedbothof ourAmazonsto steel.Eachof
thecars does about 3000 miles eachyear.I’vefittedRover
200 seatsintomy estatebecausethey’remore supportive
thantheoriginals– I alsopreferleathertrimto thefactory-fit
vinyl.WithbothcarsnowingoodorderI’d expectto spendno
morethan£200-£300peryearkeepingthemrunningnicely.’RicCostigan,Warks
‘Yearsago whenI wasat college,a friendhadan
Amazonthat heusedforrallying,andI fellinlove
withit.Thenin 2012 I bought a 1967 two-door
saloon.Forthefirstsixmonthseverythingwasfine, butthen
I decidedI wantedto improvethings.Thewholecarwas
strippedback,newwingswerefittedandtherearwheelarches
repaired.I swappedtheB18enginefora B20 whichI gotbored
outto2.2litresandI fitteda spiciercam.Thetransmissionand
brakingsystemswereoverhauled,anoverdrivegearboxwas
fittedandtheresultis a carthat’sperfectfortouring.
‘FittingAlfa Romeoseatsimprovedcomfort– they’re
muchmoresupportivethantheoriginals.I’vedoneabout
15, 000 miles init, includinga 10-daytripto Europe,andit
wasperfect.Thecaraveragesaround25mpgandsofarit has
beencompletelyreliable,butit’s not a hard carto workon;I
doalltheroutinemaintenancemyself.Partssupplyis superb
andmost thingsare veryreasonablypriced.I’minthevarious
UK-basedclubs andfollowquite a fewforums;there’sa lot of
expertiseoutthere that youcantapintoveryeasily.’DamonGreen,Lincs
‘In 2001 my fatherandI decidedto buya classic
carinwhichto go historicrallyingandhillclimbing.
WesignedupasmarshalswiththeHistoricRally
CarRegisterandnotedwhichcarsenjoyedthemostsuccess.
It wasalwaystheSunbeamRapiersandVolvoAmazons,so
welookedforbothandendedupwiththis 196 6 Amazon,
whichcompetesinthepost-historicclass becauseit featuresa
fast-roadB20 engine. Dyno’dat 150bhpandcapableof revving
to7000rpm,it’s a fabulousengine. Thecaralsohasa Quaife
limited-slipdifferentialandanoverdrivegearbox.
‘Mydaddidn’t taketo navigatingandI lovedoingthe
driving,sohe’s since bought hisownAmazonto racein.
Minealsogoes onEuropeanroadtrips, especiallyto theSpa
Classic.I stilldoquite a fewralliesandhillclimbs eachyear,but
maintainingthecaris not especiallydemanding. Theengine
cost£6 000 to buildanda bodyrestorationcostme£11,000,
butI struggleto spendmuchmore than£1000peryearon
tyres androutinemaintenance.Theseare verydurablecars;
minestillhastheBilsteinshockabsorbersfittedin2001,even
thoughit’snowcompeted– withquite a lot of success– in
dozensof sprints,hillclimbs andralliessince I bought it.’[OwningaVolvoAmazon]1966 VOLVOAMAZON- £23,995
Thiscarhasonlycovered18,000miles
sincenew. Thefirstowner,anelderly
gentleman,hadthecarfor40 yearsand
onlycovered11,500miles.
FinishedinGraphiteGreywithredtrim,theinterioris inas-new
conditionandit retainstheplasticcoveringonthereardoorcards
andB posts.Thebodyhasneverhadany weldingandis ina truly
time-warpcondition.Bestoneonthemarket!Seatssaggingwithage is
oneofthefewproblems
thatafflictinteriortrim,
andallpartsare available
atreasonablepricesWellrust-proofed
fromthefactory,
theAmazondoesn’t
normallysuffermajor
corrosionandmost
panelsare available.
Mostexteriortrim
apart fromthe
bumpersisstainless
st eeloranodised
aluminium,soit’salso
immunetocorrosionaluminium bushes. If the car is loaded up the arms can
crack; budget £200 per side to get this fixed.
The brakes tend to be problem-free, although the
remote Girling servo on the B16 and B18 can suffer
from a perished diaphragm, leading to the brake fluid
being sucked into the engine. A Girling rebuild costs
about £400 or a new Lockheed replacement is £216.
Before 1967 not all Amazons had a servo; if there isn’t
one fitted it’s worth installing one. The B20 got one as
standard along with dual-circuit brakes; earlier cars
featured a single-circuit design.
Trim The heavy, chrome-plated steel bumpers are
very expensive to repair or replace (up to £2000);
many owners opt for a set of stainless ones for around
£700. The rest of the brightwork doesn’t give any big
problems; even the Mazak parts don’t corrode much.
Interior trim lasts well, but the seats sag. Webbing
kits are available for £25 per seat and new foam is £160
per seat. Replacement front seat covers cost £300 each
(vinyl) or £500 (leather), a new headling is £200 and a
carpet set £350 (approximate prices from skandix.de).
The electrics give few problems, although the 30amp
fuse in the engine bay can fail and replacements aren’t
available, but repairs are possible.
Volvo Amazon [Buying Guide]