While Volvo has been renowned as the producer of staid and conservative vehicles, it has also demonstrated the ability to produce some relatively sporting offerings. The 242GT was a perfect example of this philosophy because while it was based on a conservative platform, it provided its owners with pretty respectable levels of performance and handling. This 1979 model, which is located in Pleasant Valley, New York, has been listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding has reached $2,600, and with the reserve now met, the Volvo is set to head off to a new home.

Based on the garden-variety 242DL, the GT wore a few external features that helped to differentiate it. The most obvious was the distinctive black and red/orange stripes that ran down either side of the vehicle and then curved up onto the trunk lid. These are missing from this particular car, but they are pretty easy to find. The Mystic Silver paint is looking a bit tired, and the fact that so much of the black side trim has been removed would tend to suggest that someone might have commenced the process of treating the Volvo to a repaint. All of this missing trim is included with the car, while the original alloy wheels will be fitted to the car for sale, not the wheels that you see on the car at present. The Volvo appears to have been afflicted with minimal rust problems, which is no real surprise. I won’t claim that they are immune from rust, but they don’t seem to be as prone to these issues as many cars of this era were. It looks like there might be a spot appearing on the rear wheel arch lip on the passenger side, but anything else seems to be little more than surface corrosion. Importantly, the unique front spoiler, along with the grille with integral fog-lights, are present and in good condition.

The interior of a 242GT featured a few unique touches, and it appears that the majority of these items and features are still present. The seats wear unique black corduroy cloth upholstery, complete with the orange piping and a matching center stripe. This fabric is quite hard-wearing, but it is very prone to stretching. That fate has befallen all of the covers on this car, plus there is a small amount of edge wear present. It would be worth talking to an upholsterer about re-stretching the covers and fixing the wear issues because sourcing replacement covers might prove to be a difficult assignment. The door trims are missing their original speakers, but replacement speakers are one item that isn’t difficult to source. The vinyl of the door trims is also a bit wrinkled, but the same upholsterer who addresses the seat problems should be able to fix this. The dash pad has a crack in it, and I would be very inclined to have this repaired fairly quickly before it has a chance to deteriorate further. The reason for this is that finding a genuine 242GT dash pad can be a bit difficult. The remaining trim looks good, and apart from the aftermarket CD player and the speakers fitted to the rear parcel tray, it all appears to be original.

My father had a fairly eclectic taste in cars, although he did have a strong leaning towards almost anything with a Ford V8 under the hood. The last car that he owned was a 1979 242GT, and I couldn’t understand why he purchased this until I drove it for the first time. The 2,316cc 4-cylinder engine wears Bosch K-Jetronic fuel injection, and while the vehicle tips the scales at 2,910lbs, this 138hp unit endows the Volvo with surprising levels of performance. It isn’t lightning-fast, but a 242GT will out-perform its 6-cylinder brethren and is happy to cruise at 75mph on the open road all day. However, its greatest strength is seen when the car is launched into a bend. Heavier spring, shocks, and sway bars, make the 242GT an entertaining handler. The engine in this 242GT appears to be in good condition and is backed by a 4-speed manual transmission. The vehicle also features power steering and powerful 4-wheel disc brakes. The owner appears to be a Volvo enthusiast and says that the car runs and drives. However, it isn’t clear whether the car is actually roadworthy.

The Volvo 242GT is not a high-performance car, but its ability to devour the miles with ease makes it a true Grand Tourer. These are a car that has become more recognized by classic collectors outside the regular sphere of Volvo enthusiasts, and this has seen values increase in recent years. For the person who is searching for a comfortable and practical classic car, these really aren’t a bad alternative.