Welcome to Down On The Street, where we admire old vehicles found parked on the streets of the Island That Rust Forgot: Alameda, California. 1960s Volvos haven't played a large role in this series; so far we've seen this '66 Amazon, this '69 144, and this '69 P1800. Now we're going to add a rare 1800ES wagon, which I found parked along Alameda's San Francisco Bay shoreline (not far from the '68 GMC pickup).
The 1800ES wagon was only made for two years, 1972 and 1973. This '73 listed new at $5,150, or $793 more than a new Olds Vista Cruiser. Actually, the Chevy Vega Kammback wagon was closer in size and styling- though not in build quality- and its $2,323 price tag was less than half that of the Volvo. Perhaps the Datsun 610 wagon was a more effective Volvo sales-stealer back in '73; its price tag was $3,195.
This example looks pretty solid for a 35-year-old driver; I haven't seen it since, so I suspect its owner was just making a beach trip for the day.
DISCUSSION
That's an amazingly straight P1800. I'm always amazed at the complexity of the nose on these cars. Look at the Cobra-esque grill and double arcs of the headlamp and running light mounts, then realize that the entire nose has been welded together with all the seams filled and smoothed. Beautiful, but I'd hate to have to pay to have a fender replaced.
This car's in such nice shape that the patina on the bumper tops and wheels stands out even more. Somebody ought to get this owner a can of silver Krylon and some steel wool pads.