13x02 - 1963 Volvo PV544

[bunniefuu]

This time, I'm off to the best
combination of performance

and endurance that the 60's
and the Swedish had to offer.

Oh, it's talking to me!
The Volvo PV 544. Woohoo!

This unlikely hero dominated early
rallying thanks to its lively and pretty

much indestructible engine and its
super strong lightweight following.

What is that?!

They're rare, highly sought
after and prices are rising,

but with twin carbs that are
notoriously difficult to tune.

Previous owner had trouble
setting up the dual carburettors.

If my instincts are right and
Ed can get it breathing again...

It's not happy.

Then there's a profit to be made.

Result, well done.

Cool, let's do some work.

So Ed has thrown me a
little bit of a challenge. He's

asked me to find the perfect
blend of speed and durability.

Because those things usually
don't go hand in hand and I'd have

to work out which part of the
equation I'm going to compromise on.

But he's wrong because I know out
there is an Arabian stallion, trotting

wolf, cheetah, whatever it is,
insert your own endurance animal.

The point is I'm going to find it.

So I bet you're thinking,
so what is this car?

What is the perfect blend
of speed and durability?

What is the answer to this riddle?

Well I found it.

Believe it or not, it's a
Volvo PV 544 and I can't wait.

Prices go from a few thousand
dollars to the upper teens and

I've got a lead on a ten thousand
dollar example from 1963.

These are so rare at the
moment I heard about it

and had to get to the
seller as soon as possible.

The best Volvo you've probably
never heard of, the PV 544.

Truly it's a wolf in sheep's
clothing and the looks of

a stylish mid-century
cruiser but the soul of a racer.

Well it looks like you painted your
house to match the car. You must be Ray.

I'm Ray.

I'm Mike.

You are Mike. How do you do?

Nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you too, sir.

Professor Ray, this is the car.

This is the car.

This is my baby.

That looks fantastic.
Looks really good, doesn't it?

So what can you tell me about it?
How long you had it?

The car actually was first purchased in 62.

Yeah.

But it's a 63 model and I
purchased the car in 1968.

Wow. That's a long time ago.

And I bought it from my colleague who for
some reason or other had to sell it since

I'm very much in favour of Scandinavian
things, including my wife who's Scandinavian.

Oh, perfect.

And I've had it ever since.

Do you remember how
much you paid for it back then?

I think about $850.

So if I give you $900
that's a good deal, isn't it?

Well, we need to keep
the inflation factor in mind.

Oh, there she is, Ray. That
little B18 engine, four-cylinder,

twin carburetor. Fantastic.
Any problems with it?

The only problem with it is finding a
mechanic who understands twin carburetors.

Well, the good news is I
happen to know a mechanic who

knows how to tune and set
up a twin carburetor setup.

And once you do hit
that sweet spot, you do

end up with an engine
that really does work.

Oh, yeah.

Let's have a look inside.

Okay.

So it looks lovely inside.
So is it original?

The upholstery has been
changed in the front seat.

Now, the upholstery in
the back seat is original.

Well, it's nice to see a car
looking so original, a nice

period of dashboard. I mean,
some of it's looking a bit tired.

The steering wheel looks like it could
do with the tension, the dashboard,

the door carbs are a little bit
dirty and could do with clean up.

It's nice to see it's been well maintained.

Well, we've done our best,
and I have the complete

maintenance records
from when I bought the car.

Wow. For me, I'll be honest with
you, Ray, that's the gold right there.

And seeing a maintenance record
for an old car is really important.

It gives the car provenance,
and it means that the

car's really been cared
for and really looked after.

And that goes a long way
to make this car a better car.

I love that shape round the back. I
mean, it's uniquely a Volvo 544, isn't it?

Well, do you know what? It
was unique then, and it's still

unique now because cars
these days don't have character,

and this car is oozing
character from every

angle. It really is
distinctive, and I love that.

I mean, yeah, some of
the chrome work's looking

a bit tired now, and
I'm sure something...

Oh, no, I was going to
say I'm sure it looked tired

in the trunk, but
actually it looks fantastic.

And it's huge.

Yes.

Okay, well, I'm delighted
so far. All I need to

do now is to make sure
that the car drives okay.

So with your permission, is it
okay to take it for a test drive?

Oh, absolutely. Please do.

Thank you very much.

Now, you wouldn't believe it
to look at this car, but it looks

like the kind of thing that should
be driven to church on a Sunday.

By an old lady with a big hat on.

But actually, this car's got a great turn
of speed, durability, and pepperness.

In fact, this car was so
good that it went on to

dominate rallying in the 50s
and 60s all over the world.

Oh, it's talking to me.

I don't think this
car's been let loose for

years, and it's so happy
to be out on the road.

Now, this stretch of road is where
they filmed b*ll*ts with Steve McQueen.

He was in that Mustang 350
screaming around these roads.

I reckon old Stevie Boy would have looked
much cooler driving around in his Volvo.

Because if I had that Mustang here, I
reckon I could give it a run for his money.

Look how quick this thing is.

Woohoo!

Now, the thing that makes
these cars so fantastic is

that beating heart right
up front, that B18 engine.

That engine is so reliable, it's unreal.

In fact, one of those engines
went on to be in a Volvo P1800,

and it's done literally
millions and millions of miles.

I will say the carburetor,
it's a bit difficult in

these cars to set up
because it's a twin carburetor.

It feels ever so slightly
fluffy, but that's the kind

of thing that Ed loves
to get his hands dirty on.

Transmission-wise, the
gearbox, it feels good.

There's no nasty crunches.

Steering, it does wander on the
road ever so slightly, and the car does

feel a little bit tired when it comes
to the way that it sits on the road.

One thing that this car will need to have
done is something with the brakes, because

when I eat the brakes, we're not stopping
until we reach a different zip code.

All these things, though,
can be fixed, and it's important

I say that, because this is
already a really good car.

So why am I even looking at it?
And there's a really good reason.

This car is sitting in somebody's
garage, and they've stopped caring for it.

And nobody in this car's future, unless
we come along, is going to care for it.

It's all about saving this
car, giving this car a new

lease of life, and letting it
go on to fight another day.

Well, Professor, you're asking $10,000 for
this fine automobile, and do you know what?

My heart says I just
want to buy it off you and

drive it away, because
this car needs to live on.

But if I can just get it that little bit
cheaper, maybe around $8,500,

possibly $9,000, I think we may
have found ourselves a little treasure.

All right, so what do you think?

Wow, what a car. It really does
get down the road, doesn't it?

Oh, you bet. It really goes.

Do you know what? I can't believe just how
fast she is for a car from the early 1960s.

Yeah, well, that's Swedish engineering.

Yeah, it's got some
sweet engineering as well.

I really like it.

There's a few things, you know, the car
does feel a little bit tired on the road.

So if I was to buy it, I'm going to have to
spend quite a few thousand dollars on it.

This car, when it's in an excellent
condition, actually goes for $14,800.

So I thought, well, you know,
I know it needs some work.

And so I figured, well,
maybe $10,000 would be fair.

But I'm open to negotiation.

What's the best number
you could do for me then?

We could start
bringing it down a little

and, you know, maybe
they say, what, $9,500?

$9,500?

I'll come up a bit. I
could do $8,500 cash

and I'll take the thing
away. What do you say?

How about $9,000?

$9,000? I'll hold out your hand.

Okay.

Sir, you just saved
the car from retirement.

I'm very pleased.

And I've just bought
myself that cracking Volvo.

All right.

Thank you very much.

Come on. What is that?

I thought we'd agreed you
were going to go and get a

prime example of a combination
of speed and durability.

Welcome to the legend
that is the Volvo PV 544.

Legend?

Yeah, legend.

What is the ultimate test
of speed and durability?

Well, there's nothing kind of
harder than, I guess, rallying.

There you go. You got that one right.

This car dominated World
Rallying between 1957 and 1965.

That's really interesting
because I was reading

just the other day that


Now the reason this dominated
World Rallying is because of that.

That's a little four banger.

Previous owner had trouble
setting up the dual carburetors.

Okay, a little less used.
I don't see that being too difficult.

How about air conditioning?

So it'd be kind of nice to
somehow fit air conditioning in such

a way that we don't damage
any of the originality of the car.

I like that. Very good idea.

Okay, and obviously you
said that the engine goes

really well. What about
stopping? Is it drums all round?

Hydraulic drums and the brakes
feel like they stop in the early 1960s.

So the brakes could do with a
little bit of nursing, should I say.

Have a look inside.
I think you'll be pleased with it.

That's very tidy and original, isn't it?

Like it?

I like this a lot. I love the
speedo. That's fantastic.

Sort of horn buttons
are rather cool as well.

Yeah, it's quite nice in here.
Does everything work?

Everything seems to work on a dashboard.
The steering's a little bit tired.

The carpet is really tired.
We need to address that.

I notice actually on the passenger
seat you've got quite a service history.

The previous owner was pretty
fastidious about this car and

he should have been because
he was a professor of economics.

Oh dear. Okay, so how did the haggling go?

Well, because he knew all
about money, I think at one

point he wanted to throw
me in the boot of the car.

It's big, isn't it?

There's a lot of room in there.

And everything is there.
Yeah, I mean the guy, you know,

knew a lot about money
and there wasn't really a lot.

I could chip him on the car because
it's such a nice car and he knew that.

Okay, well I'm worried
that you didn't haggle

enough, so what kind of
money did you pay for it?

How does $9,000 sound?

Yeah, result. Well done.

Yeah, cool. Let's do some work.

And that work kicks off with tackling
the infamous twin SU carburetor system.

It's not happy.

Now, in typical salesman
style, Mike described this Volvo

PV 544 as the perfect
combination of speed and durability.

It turns out, for once, Mike
was actually telling the truth.

Now, I was rather skeptical at
first, and let's face it, who wouldn't

be when you're faced with what
looks like a granddad cruiser?

But one little trip around the block
and you will definitely be converted.

And that's all down to this
lovely 4.90 horsepower beauty.

Now, unfortunately, it was in
storage because the previous

owner couldn't actually get
these twin SUs tuned up properly.

So that is my next mission.

Phil, can you give us a hand?

There you go, sir.

We've got our SU carburetors.

Now, as many people know,
the SU stands for Skinner's Union.

There were two brothers that actually
started this enterprise way back in 1902.

But the SU was actually
a shortened version of

SSU, which stood for
Sausage Skinner's Union.

Yes, they were British pork butchers.

An original carburetor design was
actually inspired by a meat grinder.

I guess if you squint at this enough, you
can probably see some kind of resemblance.

With the help of some
plumbers, they ended up with

actually a very clever
and very simple carburetor.

Now, we know that the carburetor's job is
very important for a good running engine.

Basically, what it needs
to do is mix up fuel with

the air that's rushing in
the engine to be burned.

What I need to do now
is work out why these

carburetors weren't working
as best as they could.

So the first thing I'll do is
just take off the air filters.

Okay, so we can now see what's going
on inside our carburetor a bit better.

Now, one of the things
that makes this carburetor

unique, you can see this
little piston inside there.

Now, this carburetor is a constant
velocity or variable choke design.

Now, right now, obviously, a small
amount of air will be going through there,

but what this carburetor
does is actually keeps the

speed or the velocity of
that air at a constant rate.

So, as more air goes in, as that
volume increases, that piston raises up,

and of course, that orifice
or choke gets bigger.

Therefore, more volume can get
through, but the velocity stays the same.

Now, because they've
removed one of the variables,

it's much easier to
meter the exact amount of

fuel required by a
certain amount of volume.

Now, you still control
the throttle with your

little throttle cable
there on your foot,

but the carburetor does
all the complicated math,

so it's actually just like a
modern-day fuel management

system, but it's all
mechanical and very clever.

Now, it's only Achilles heel
is because it's measuring

the actual volume of
air rather than the mass.

If you happen to be driving around on
top of a mountain where the air is thinner,

then you will have to
adjust your carburetor.

Right, so to test this, I'm just going
to block off the secondary thing there.

So, this float works just
like the cistern float in a toilet.

So, what I should do now, if I blow,

that starts working perfectly.

So, basically, it shuts off the fuel
flow when there's enough in the bowl.

Very good.

Well, that's interesting.

You can see a little fuel line just here.

It's quite badly crimped on
both sides, so it's been damaged.

I'm just going to pop all these parts into
the bath, give it a really thorough clean,

and then actually replace all the gaskets
and put everything back together again.

I've given the carburetor
parts a really good clean,

so now I can start reassembling
with loads of new parts.

This carb rebuild kit costs only
$200 and a few hours to put in,

and it will greatly improve
our Volvo's performance.

Now that I've rebuilt both carbs,
it's time to tune and sync them

so our little Volvo's engine
lives up to its reputation.

I'm just now going to
set up the idle screws.

I'm just going to wind
that all the way out,

and wind it in until I see a little tiny
bit of movement, so I know it's touching.

Great, and then I have
to do one extra revolution.

That's half one.

Do the same on the other side.

So, everything we have to do here,

we have to do to both carburetors.

So, right, with the idle screws set,

we can now start the engine
and start to balance everything up.

So, I'm now going to
use the synchronometer,

which measures the amount
of air flowing through it,

to actually synchronise
the two carburetors.

So, we've got about 12 or so there.

On this side, whoa, we've got like 30-odd.

So, now I'm going to wind
this down, this idle screw,

trying to get the idle a bit more sensible.

It's not happy.

So, on this side, I'll try
and wind it back up again.

So, having got this engine to idle.

at pretty much the lowest revs I can,

the next thing I need to do
is to adjust the air-fuel mixture

by moving the jet up and
down in relation to the needle.

Now, as a nice little rule of thumb,
if I actually move the piston up,

probably about a millimetre or so,

then if I listen to the engine note,
if it kind of goes up and stays up,

then it's a little bit too rich.

If it goes down, almost
dies, then it's too lean.

But if it goes up and then
sort of settles down again,

then we're all good.

So, we'll just see where we're at.

So, it's a bit too rich right now.

So, I'm just going to wind it in.

So, it's getting better.

Now, did you hear that?

So, it went up slightly and
then dipped down again.

So, we're getting very close
to where that one's happy.

So, I'm now going to move to the other side

and try and get that to
do the same sort of thing.

So, one last adjustment,
I think we're there.

That is now pretty nice.

So, finally, we have some
beautifully tuned SU's.

That little Volvo is a great classic car,

but it could do with a couple of modern
touches to make it a bit more usable.

Now, I'm interested in
putting in air conditioning,

but is it possible to fit air conditioning
without ruining the look of the Volvo?

Oh, look at this.

You know, in a world
today where you can buy

anything online with
the click of your mouth,

apparently, everything I need to
get my Volvo feeling cold is here.

So, let's find out.

How you doing? I'm Mike.

Hello, Mike. I'm Ashley.

Good to meet you.

Ashley, nice to meet you too.

Apparently, you're the man who can help
me because I've got a 1963 Volvo PV 544.

Wow.

Problem is, it's living out
here in Baking lot, California.

So, I need to get it cool inside.

Yeah, we have several
different air conditioning units.

One in particular would work for your car.

Can we have a look?

Absolutely. It's this way.

Okay, Mike, do you have
a heater already in the car?

Yeah, it's got a nice heater in the car.

You're happy with it? It's working.

So, we just need to
go with air conditioning.

And this is what I was looking at.

It's a retrofit unit.

It fits underneath the dashboard.

It comes complete with
the controls already in.

So, it's relatively easy to fit.

And so, this is period correct?

Yes, absolutely, yeah.

Is it going to blow enough
cold air around the car?

They work the real icy cold.

Are they?

Yes, they are.

Okay, so one of them. What else do I need?

We need a compressor for the engine.

This is the only problem
I do envisage you having,

is having to make a
bracket to hold this in place.

Do you not have the bracket?

No, we don't.
We don't see those engines very often.

So, I do know a guy on the East Coast

that specializes in Volvo
engines in particular.

Okay.

I'm sure he can help.

Perfect. Okay, that's good.

Hoses?

Yeah, there's a universal hose kit
here with a number of different fittings.

They are bead lock fittings.

Now, the bead lock
fittings need to be crimped.

And you usually need a
special tool to do that crimping.

Do you know, I don't think we've got

a bead lock crimping tool in the workshop.

Well, I may have a solution.

Okay, this is a crimping
tool that you will need.

Wow, that is a serious
piece of kit, isn't it?

Yes, it is, yes.

And by all means, you're
quite welcome to borrow this.

To do the crimping.

Thank you very much.
I really do appreciate that.

So, all this stuff then, how
much is it all going to come to?

It'll be under a thousand dollars.

Just under a thousand dollars?

Yes.

Do you know, I think
that's an absolute bargain,

not only to have the Volvo
looking cool, but feeling cool.

Good.

It's a deal.

Thank you, Mike.

With the improved performance,
it's time to tackle the handling.

That's not good.

We were looking for a vehicle
that combines speed and endurance.

The Volvo PV 544.

Look how quick this thing is.

This impressive Swedish motor
presented a slight challenge

with its twin carburettors, but nothing
the car whisperer couldn't handle.

So finally, we have some
beautifully tuned SU's.

Now, although the PV 544 is
legendary for its performance,

driving this car, you'd
actually never know it.

I've had a really good look underneath,

and there's loads of things wrong with it.

These little check straps there on
the back that are completely shot.

Then you get things like
this clutch mechanism here.

The bush is completely gone.

Then there's another bush on
the bottom of the suspension.

I am down here.

I mean, there's a lot of movement.

That's not good.

And then if you look at
the idler arm up there,

the rock, the wheels, even slightly,
you can see a ton of movement.

Now, none of this stuff is any good.

It's all got to be fixed.

But the first thing I'm going
to work on is that idler arm.

Right.

Well, there's our little
idler arm just there.

Absolutely filthy, but not even
slightly rusty, which is good.

Definitely needs a bit of a clean.

Well, it's come up quite
nicely now it's been cleaned,

but let's see inside and see if we can work
out why it was flopping around so much.

Oh, wow.

So it just comes apart rather easily.

In fact, you can see inside,

looks like there could be bronze
or perhaps brass little bushes.

And I would imagine that over time,

they've actually just kind of worn down.

There isn't actually
any grease inside there,

which is not going to help,
obviously, maintaining the wear.

And in fact, if you re-grease it, it might
help a little bit with some of the slack,

but really the best job is to
replace them with brand new bushes.

So our old bushes are
now out of the pivot mount.

Now the new ones are going to have
to be pressed in, but also, so is the pin,

which is also going to be a
little bit worn on our idler arm.

So I might as well do it all together.

Well, that is much better, super tight.

With the idler arm sorted,
the next thing I want

to tackle is that
seriously worn front bush,

which has loads of slack.

Once I have everything out of the way,

I can quickly remove the bush and take a
closer look at what's causing the problem.

Right, well, this was our culprit.

You can see the
threads are actually quite

damaged when you
compare them to the new one.

You can see, of course, why
it was actually flopping around.

inside the bottom of the arm there.

So all I have to do is put
all this back together again,

make sure it's nicely greased
up, and we should be good to go.

With that bottom joint now sorted,

while I'm here, I might as well change
over the shock absorbers as well.

Now there should be a little plastic bush

between that shaft and that bracket.

It's the same problem on
the other end of the shaft.

Now, I'm hoping at this end at least,

what I can do is undo the two bolts
that hold the bracket onto the gearbox,

and that will give me some access.

This assembly connects the
clutch pedal to the transmission,

and without the two bushes,
the pedal has excessive play.

Soaking the bushes in hot
water helps to soften them,

which makes installation
into the bracket much easier.

These bushes can be very finicky to
install and take a tonne of Patience.

That's much better.

Now, on older cars like this,

the shock absorber is not designed

to limit the movement of the axle,

either down or up.

It would just damage the
seats and the seals inside it,

and of course it would
stop damping properly.

So instead of that,

this Volvo is actually
fitted with a bump stop

to limit the movement of the axle
going up, but also to limit going down.

It has this strap,
which is clearly past it.

And thankfully, it's not
actually that hard to change.

It's got a bolt at the top
and one at the bottom.

While these straps
certainly are old technology

and you'd never see
them on a modern car,

they work very well,

and it's worth a small
investment in time and money

to replace them to protect your shocks.

All of this suspension
work, including both the

front and rear shocks
that I'm now replacing,

has cost us only $334.

A real bargain.

After a lot of work,

all our Volvo now needs to get back
on the road is some nice new brakes.

Ed, you all right, son?

I'm all right, sir.

How you doing with all these boxes?

I've got plenty of other
stuff in the car as well.

You look busy.

You got those carbs done?

I've got the carbs done
and the suspension as well.

Fantastic.

So it should go well and it
should ride well as... Yeah.

Well, I've been thinking
about that Californian sunshine.

I don't mean topping up my tan.

I've been thinking about
making the Volvo cool inside.

So I've got us some vintage air.

You've got us some old air?

If you like, yeah.

Vintage air conditioning.

It's sort of age-appropriate for the car.

And it should make the
car nice and cool inside.

There's plenty of it.

There's fans, there's hoses,

there's these clips that
have got to be crimped on.

And I've got this really cool tool.

Look at this.

How nice is that?

I know that is a really cool tool,
but they're really expensive, mate.

Yeah, well, it's not yours
to keep, unfortunately.

I borrowed it off the guy who
sold me the air conditioning stuff.

$300, 200 pounds.

That's got to go back.

But all you've got to
do is use it to fit this

stuff in the car and
we'll have a nice cool car.

Yeah, simple as that.

Yeah, it is. It can't be that hard.

It's just a few clips and stuff.

Now, Mike wanted me to try and
improve the braking ability of our Volvo.

And his idea was to actually swap
out all of our drum brakes to disc brakes.

But I don't really like the
extreme nature of that.

And I've had a look around
and I think I've found a solution,

which means we get to
keep our drum braking system,

but actually get the braking so
good that it's nearly as good as discs.

Now, if you think way back
when the car came out of the

factory in 1963, the braking
compounds they were using then

had a coefficient of friction of about 0.2.

Now, on modern-day
aftermarket replacements,

you're looking at a bit
more than that, maybe 0.3.

But I've actually found a
Kevlar organic compound

has actually got about 30
different ingredients in it.

But this has a coefficient of
friction between 0.4 and 0.45.

So it's over twice as good

as what the car would have
come out of the factory with.

Now, the difference is so marked,

you can really feel it just by
dragging them down a metal table.

This new compound is
so much more frictionate

than a standard
compound that on the road,

you're definitely going to
be able to tell the difference.

It'll be very dramatic and that,
hopefully, will impress Mike.

Now, there is a downside to
this fantastic braking power

and that is the fact
that because it's working

more efficiently, it will
wear out more quickly.

But you know, on a car of this age and the
kind of driving you're likely to be doing,

I'd much rather change
the brakes slightly more

frequently for some
awesome stopping power.

And the best bit is we get to
keep the originality of the car.

The new brake shoes only cost $158,

way cheaper than doing
a disc brake conversion,

plus it also saved us 12 hours of work.

The hubs needed good
clean with brake cleaner

before rebuilding the system with the
old clean parts and new replacement parts.

Now, Mike was expecting disc brakes,

but let's see if he can tell
the difference between those

and these high-performance
shoes in our standard drums.

Well, the engine is now
tuned, the suspension is sorted,

but unfortunately, that engine bay
was still rather letting the side down.

So, the engine is out,
they've both been cleaned.

Before I do any detailing work,

it is the perfect time
to trial-fit all of that air

conditioning equipment that
Mike managed to source for us.

The first thing that I need to do is
remove the old thermostat and housing,

followed by the water pump
pulley and one of its mounting bolts.

Once all of that is out of the way,

I can install the first of two
new brackets for the AC.

Right, now, because this bracket is actually
bolting on to the thermostat housing,

I now have to just check
everything fits nicely,

because I have to be very careful
so the thermostat goes in nicely.

There's now a spacer of stainless
steel, so that's not going to rust.

There's also this little O-ring here,

and that just kind of balances on the top

until I get the thermostat
housing in place.

It would be very
easy for me to actually

pinch the O-ring, and
that would cause a leak.

So, I've just got to make triple sure that
it's OK before I think about doing it up.

Now that I'm satisfied with
the fit, I bolt down the housing.

The next thing I need to
do is remove the crankshaft

pulley so that I can
attach the second pulley,

which would drive the air
conditioner's compressor.

Once it's good and tight, it's time to
mount this lovely custom-made bracket

that might not, which
will hold the compressor.

Well, so it's now time to fit
our air conditioning compressor.

Just pop that in there
in a little bit of a fiddle.

And we'll just pop in some
bolts, just really to locate

the compressor in relation
to all the other pulleys.

Now, obviously, I've added
an extra pulley onto the crank.

Now, the standard pulley
is going to run the water

pump and, in fact, now
the alternator as before,

but now this extra pulley
on the crankshaft there,

if I just route this
round, a little bit of rope,

it gives me an idea of exactly
how long my V-belt needs to be.

Put a Mark on there.

And then we're done.

Cool.

Now, this is where all the other
work we've been doing culminates.

This is obviously our blowing
mechanism, but also the evaporator.

So this is going to cool down the air
inside the cab, make it nice and temperate.

So what I need to do now is work
out how I'm going to connect this

to all the plumbing inside the engine bay.

Now, when I'm doing something
on a car that can't easily be undone,

like crimping these new air
conditioning hoses to the fittings,

I always like to do a quick test fit first,

just to be sure that everything
is going to fit properly.

And these are good to go.

So the next thing I want
to do is just crimp them up

and then I can actually start sort of laying
everything out properly under the dash.

This beadlock crimper
that Mike borrowed is a

seriously cool tool
and does a fantastic job.

Doing it this way saves us a bunch of cash

versus the alternative of
outsourcing the job to the specialist.

Right, so I can now try and
roughly fit this into position.

This should sort of sit
something a little bit like that.

And then that way it's out of the
way of the gear stick, which is good.

Okay, yes, the passengers
get a little bit more cool air

than perhaps the driver does,
but that's just polite, I think.

So all I have to do
now, once I've secured

that into position, is
start joining the dots.

And then we'll be there.

Go!







And... 60!

I was after the Swedish endurance racer
that dominated the rally scene in the 1960s,

the Volvo BV 544.

Look how quick this thing is!

I found one that was well-loved,

but had been hidden away
in a garage for 12 years

due to the difficulties of
tuning those twin carbs.

Luckily, I have Ed.

There was no way the seller was
taking anything less than the asking price,

so keeping to a tight budget was a must.

But by tuning the carbs... So one
last adjustment, I think we're there.

Regaining control of the suspension.

Well, that is much better, super tight.

The braking problem sorted.

On the road, you're definitely
going to be able to tell the difference.

It'll be very dramatic.

And with a period correct
air conditioning solution,

we now have a pristine example.

for which I believe we
can charge top dollar.

But just how much did we spend?

Mr. Miller wouldn't take less than $9,000.

The carb rebuild and tune was $200.

Kevlar brakes, $158.

Aircon unit, all in, $1,950.

Not cheap.

Suspension rebuild was $334,

which leaves us a total of $11,642.

That's a little over 8,000
pounds and 28 man-hours.

Inside and out, our
Volvo feels like a new car.

But I think it's only
fair that we get to put

it to the test before
selling on this beauty.

Work on the Volvo is complete.

All she needs now is a proper test drive.

This place looks Swedish enough.

It's very Nordic.

It's beautiful, isn't it?

It's incredibly Nordic.

Just like our little Volvo.

Wow, Ed.

I mean, it looks like it's just broke
off the Swedish production line.

One thing I was worried
about, and a previous owner,

was those SU carbs.

So did you cure it?

Well, actually, so with a
bit of time, bit of Patience,

it's all sorted.

It also took the Liberty of tidying up the
engine bay and, of course, fitting the AC.

Ed, China, that looks brand new.

I've got such an exciting
day lined up for us.

We're going to go rally driving.

No, no, that is a really terrible idea,

especially after all the work and effort
I've put into making it look this good.

This is me showing that I've got confidence
in your work and the ability of the car.

You'll be reading the
pace notes, obviously,

so remember, a one is a tight turn,

six is flat out,

and if it's crest, then we're airborne.

Airborne?

Yeah, we need to get airborne,
otherwise we're not trying.

Come on, let's go.

Oh, man.

Well, actually, I'm just
going to sit in the back.

You're going to sit in the back?

Yeah, lovely.

So you're going to be
co-driving from the rear of the car,

which means you're going
to be a proper backseat driver.

Yeah.

This is going to be a miserable day.

Ten, nine, eight.

Can we have a start on three?

Okay, three, two, one.

Let's go.

LAUGHTER.

Five left.

Oh, listen to that.

That is brilliant.

Five right.

Flat out.

Flat out.

Well, I can feel that the
car wants to go a lot quicker.

The speed limit down here is 60,

so I'll just stick to that for now.

Okay.

Four right.

You are such a backseat
driver, it's unbelievable.

It's kind of a job.

I feel like a fast chauffeur.

I can't tell you.

I mean, when you're saying those instructions
and I'm pushing it into these corners,

it feels so much more
planted than ever before.

What have you done to the suspension?

First up, on the driver's
side, bottom suspension joint,

it was so past it, if you like.

It actually moved forwards
and backwards, about 30mm.

Of course, that actually changed the
caster by about maybe 15 degrees or so,

which is obviously a
nightmare for the handling.

Then, of course, we had
to change all of the rubber

mounts as well, all the
various joints on that point.

Then, of course, the
steering was also a problem.

On the steering, the idler
arm was actually quite shot.

I actually pushed out all the bushes,

pushed in some new bushes.

Now that's good.

Then once I changed all
that, the shocks were shot.

So I had to change all of those.

And then the last thing, of
course, on the differential itself,

the straps that stop
it from just dropping

out of the car, they
also had to be changed.

Is that it? We're tired then.

Yeah, I was exhausted after all that.

No, I meant the suspension. It was tired.

Yes, but it's brilliant now.

So now, on record,
we're ready for the next

part of the test, which
is a performance test.

No, no, no, no, easy tiger.

How about we do something
a bit more conservative,

but actually a bit more
useful, at 30 to 60mph?



Yeah, I'll get a stopwatch.

Let me just slow it down a little bit.

Get a count of 30mph.

I reckon it'll be in second gear.

There you go.

Right, you ready?

Yeah.

Three, two, one, go.



Full time.

OK.



I do love that speedo.

Yeah, it's great, isn't it?



Yeah.

And 60.

Nine seconds.

Nine seconds? Really?

Yeah.

Second part of the test.

Oh, easy tiger.

Well, I had to.

I had to see what the brakes were like.

It stands on its nose, this car.

I asked you to do a disc brake conversion.

I could see that you
pulled these brakes around.

Well, actually, I didn't do
the brake disc conversion.

I just kept the stock drum and used a really
cool high-performance braking compound.

Seriously?

Yeah, it's really amazing because
it stops so well, it also doesn't fade.

I mean, it's amazing stuff.

And not only that,

that means you've kept the
original feel and look of the brake.

Absolutely, yeah.

That is fantastic.

That's what the market wants right now.

Well done, Ed.

I'm absolutely falling in love
with this car all over again.

With all this excitement, it's
got me hot under the collar.

And now I can enjoy some
cool air thanks to air conditioning.

And I think you'll find it works a treat.

Oh, at last.

Cool air.

It's lovely.

Well, the thing is, of course,

that you couldn't actually buy
air conditioning as standard at all.

It wasn't even an option from Volvo.

So it did really well
getting hold of that

vintage-looking air
system, which is fantastic.

Of course, what we've
done now is really just

make the car way more
drivable for modern living.

It's cool inside, it's a cool car,

and this is a cool drive.

I concur.

I've loved today.

I've loved the drive.

I love the scenery.

I love the car.

I've decided we should keep it.

Mate, we can't keep any of
these cars because if we did,

if we kept every single car
we got passionate about,

we'd end up with a museum, a
veritable smorgasbord of classic cars.

I'll see what we've
done there, smorgasbord.

But we'd be so happy.

Look, theoretically, if
we were to sell the car,

the market's really strong
for this kind of motor right now.

It's European, air conditioning.

It's got a strong motor.

It's an everyday classic.

It would demand $15,000, around £10,000.

That would be good money.

But if anyone was to come
and buy this car from me,

I'd have to wrestle the keys at my end.

I do have a tool for that, though.

We want to keep this car.

There, I've said it.

Yep, we really do want to keep this car,

and who wouldn't?

Just look at it.

It's absolutely gorgeous, isn't it?

But we need to sell cars
to keep the business going.

So I advertised it out
there online for $16,000.

That's around £10,000.

And this father and son team behind me

have turned up from San
Diego to come and see the car.

Greg is the dad,

and we're going to see the car.

And Stephen is his son.

Now, he's looking to
buy his son a birthday

present, which is a
very nice thing to do.

They've taken it for a drive.

They like the way it drives.

They clearly like the way it looks, because
they've got big smiles on their faces.

I think I might be able to sell this car.

Wish me luck.

Right then, which one of you two.

am I going to be dealing with here?

It's my birthday.

He's a negotiator.

So I'm going to be dealing with Mr. Senior.

I'm on the hot seat.

OK, so Greg, this is a difficult one,

because this is a lovely
car, and it's his birthday.

So it comes down to how
much you love your son,

whether you want to buy the car.

But are you happy with it?

Do you like what you see?

Very much so.

Yeah, you guys have
done a nice job with it.

Well, thank you very much.

So it comes down to price.

As you know, I advertised it for $16,000.

I've had a lot of interest at that money.

You're here.

Well, that probably is a fair
price, but we're here with the cash.

So how about $14,000?

$14,000.

So you think you're worth $2,000 less.

I told you this was going to be difficult.

You know, he's been a
good kid, but not perfect.

Not that good.

OK.

$14,000 is not good
enough, sir, I'm afraid.

If I was to sell the car today,
reluctantly, as I say, I don't want to.

But $15,000, you got yourself
a deal, wouldn't you say?

How about $14,500?

I'll take your hand.

You just got a birthday present.

Happy birthday.

And you, sir?

Amazing.

Get the bill.

You get the bill.

I bought this car in San Francisco.

It's been great fun to
have in the workshop.

It's turned out absolutely brilliantly,

and both me and Ed have fallen
head over heels in love with it.

The thing is, I think I
learned a thing or two

off that professor of economics,
because it's delivered us a great return.

If you want to see more
cars like this being turned

around by me and Ed, join us
again soon on Wheel of Dealers.

Ta-la.