Volvo 480 GT - 1994

[GrantD5]

While working at Nissan & cycling to work I used to ride past this Volvo 480 pretty much daily depending on how late I was running. One day I stopped and it caught my attention, the fact the rear looks similar to a Honda Civiv Ef, the pop up headlight function and being a peeping tom I looked inside the windows and was surprised to see the rear seats were not a typical bench but 2 separate foldable seats. I got to work and looked online at adverts and found not much around and prices pretty high for what I could pay at that given time.

So the idea faded away, I then changed jobs and started to drive for Uber so I stopped seeing the 480.

I did pick up an E46 compact that had a planned diesel conversion but with the new ULEZ coming in to London it just made the project far more costly with diesels being attacked left, right and centre so that got moved on before I got in to deep.

A few weeks ago I left my car at my old work place and I had to ride there to take my bike to a friend for some work, and low and behold I rode past the Volvo 480 and there was a for sale sign. I had to make the call.

We had a chat about the cars history and why the car was being sold and spoke briefly about the S60 in my ownership driven by my Mum still going strong. An arrangement was made and I picked the car up for peanuts luckily in comparison to what is out there online.

So its a Volvo 480 GT coupe, 4 seater, 2.0 110bhp petrol, 5 speed manual, heated half leathers, electric windows, glass tailgate, pop up headlights, air con, the coolest OBC ever.

I only have some iPhone photos at the moment, will give the car a clean up and get my DSLR out.









My Mum brought the S60 down for an MOT so it was only right to get a side on shot of them parked together. Passed just needs lower arm bushes and track rods attending too soon.



The car had a load of paperwork included which I sorted through today, MOT certificates, parts invoices and a few garage labour invoices, some pages of common issues and fixing solutions which I will also look through. I will list some of the history.

1997

July - Oil & Filter - Spark Plugs - Handbrake Cable Boots

1998

July - Oil & Filter - Bulbs

2001

August - Oil & Filter - Spark Plugs - Brake Pads - Exhaust Mount

2002

August - Oil & Filter
October - Rear Silencer & Pipe - Coolant Drain & Refill

2003

August - Rear Shock - Oil & Filter
October - N/S Gaiter - Cambelt & Water Pump - Coolant Flush - Air Con Regas

2004

February - Front Discs & Pads - Rear Discs & Pads - Mirror Frame Replaced - Door Check Strap Replaced
March - Oil & Filter & Motor Flush - Handbrake Cables - Trim Clips

2005

September - Oil & Filter - Distributor Cap - Wipers

2006

October - Oil & Filter - Air Filter - Aux Belts
November - Rear Exhaust Silencer - Mudflap

2007

September - Oil & Filter - Spark Plugs - Coolant - Brake Fluid - Power Steering Fluid

2009

April - Oil & Filter - Spark Plugs - N/S/F ABS Sensor

2010

August - Clutch Cable - Rear Window Heater Elements Cleaned - Aux Belt - Oil & Filter - Fuel Filter

2011

June - O/S Door Mech (Second Hand) - Air Con Electric Cable Fault Repaired
October - Oil & Filter - Spark Plugs

2013

May - Cambelt (Water Pump Not Changed, Genuine Part In Box Supplied To Me Luckily)
June - O/S Headlight Motor (Second Hand)
September - Front Coil Springs
November - Front Discs & Pads - N/S Caliper (Second Hand)
December - Tail Light Seals (These Were Sourced In Europe & Cost A Bomb)

2014

May - Oil & Filter - Spark Plugs - Coolant Top Up - Brake Fluid Top Up - Engine Mount Replacement - Lower Arm Bushes
July - Speedometer Overhauled (Works Fine Except For Mileage Not Logging)
October - Rear Discs & Pads - Speedometer Cluster Circuit Fixed

2016

March - Tailgate Struts (Second Hand)
August - O/S Window Regulator - Seat Belt Hooks (Part Not Fitted But Supplied To Me) - Radiator Top Hose
September - Seat Belt Clips - Air Duct - Alternator

That brings the history up to date, there is a service book with stamps in also and it has supposedly been serviced recently but no paperwork so I will be doing that myself and doing all the fluids possible.

On inspection brakes feel pretty horrible, needs a new centre light cluster as cracked, interior needs cleaning & central locking needs looking in to.

Any advice on these please go ahead.

Hopefully some updates soon.

[dibblecorse]

Excellent, always loved these .. remember they were quite pricey at the time and I was still in 'hot hatch' mode so never got round to one,,,

[dandam]

Very nice, and very rare too - I can remember these being launched - they still have the traditional Volvo grille but it is below the bumper. A friends Mum had one for a while, she bought it because she always wanted a car with pop up headlights.

Great story too, some car purchases are just meant to be - look forward to more pictures and updates

[joefraser]

Cool purchase and good job with the write up, looking forward to seeing what you do with it.

I haven't seen one in years!

[to3m]

Always liked these, and I like the colour too. May it prove more reliable than a Rover SD1 and cheaper to run than a Ferrari 412.

[anomaly]

Love this! I had a Celebration model for a while as I had always loved the look of them. It was actually really reliable and just needed some cosmetics: if I remember correctly the tail lights and front indicator/sidelights fade easily and need replacing. Most of the ones you see have malfunctioning DRLs: only genuine Volvo bulbs will work correctly I recall. It was a very comfortable car and quirky though pretty underwhelming to drive if I'm honest. Good luck with it!

Here's mine

[Nickp82]

Looking forward to the better pics of this, my best mates Mum had a new one in grey when we were in the late stages of primary school and it seemed quite a cool car at the time, still seems pretty cool now.

[TR4man]

Bookmarked and looking forward to more updates.

I've always liked these and they seem to be so rare nowadays.

[Nickp82]

TR4man said:

Bookmarked and looking forward to more updates.

I've always liked these and they seem to be so rare nowadays.

Thought I would have a quick look on Autotrader (just incase I stumble upon a gem!), there are indeed none on there currently.

[Cambs_Stuart]

Back when i was 21 (20 odd years ago) I had a 480 turbo, and I've got a lot of happy memories of that car.
However, it leaked like a sieve, 2-3 inches in the footwells after a storm was not unusual. Probably related to the water in the cabin was the dodgy electronics, particularly the Speedo. When the car dried out it would come back to life, so I'd have to get it MOT'd before it rained again.
As I remember it had a great selection of lights. You could have fogs, drls, high beam, low beam and sidelights all on at the same time. The end result was visible from space. Turn up at a country pub at night at the locals would think they were about to be abducted by aliens.
Eventually it developed a misfire which couldn't be cleared despite significant cash spent so i had to get rid. Looking at the dvla website it never got back on the road.
Bookmarked! Good luck with yours. I'll be watching with interest.

[chris4652009]

I genuinely LOVE these, have never owned one though.

[chris4652009]

kapiteinlangzaam said:

Have never owned one.

Will never own one.

But love them.

Heartily approved.

Same

[BigMon]

Always liked these. Good buying, sir!

Yours looks lovely. The alloys really suit it.

[RC1807]

Good buying, OP!

I had a 1.7 ES of 88 or so vintage
F935 RHN
What a fking dog mine was!

When I moved to Lux in 98 and bought my 1st left hooker, I gave the 480 away for spares locally.

[S100HP]

chris4652009 said:

kapiteinlangzaam said:

Have never owned one.

Will never own one.

But love them.

Heartily approved.

Same

And me.

I genuinely get more excited reading about stuff like this than any supercar thread. Keep up the good work OP.

[Gary29]

S100HP said:

And me.

I genuinely get more excited reading about stuff like this than any supercar thread. Keep up the good work OP.

Me 3.

A bloke around the corner from me has a mint 480 AND a very cleanly modified C30 sitting on his drive, I get jealous every time I pass.

[chris4652009]

Gary29 said:

S100HP said:

And me.

I genuinely get more excited reading about stuff like this than any supercar thread. Keep up the good work OP.

Me 3.

A bloke around the corner from me has a mint 480 AND a very cleanly modified C30 sitting on his drive, I get jealous every time I pass.

yep, couldn't give a toss about some ball**g and his new ferrari ...this sort of thing is far more interesting

[ElectricSoup]

I am insanely envious. Congratulations, OP.

I owned a solid red 480 1.7ES many years ago, G359 WPD I think. I took it up to 175k miles, and it still pretty much drove like new. Until the day a careless binman drove his dustcart in to it. Beyond repair. Always wanted another one. Great fun car.

[SVX]

I had a 1994 'L' 480 Turbo in red (only car I've ever got a ticket in). Quirky as hell, and would make a decent turn of speed. I always wanted a run out model in that your colour, though most were auto. It wasn't without it's foibles, it ate two (expensive!!!) speedo head units - and the alternator seized cooking the battery loom with it. It also had the "standard" rear leaking glass boot panel.

There was a chap who shoehorned a Volvo S40 T4 lump into one, can't find a link... bet that was a hoot.

[RP1]

Brilliant!

Love these. I've had 4, my favourite being a Paris Blue 480 Turbo which I spent far too much on and had remapped up to about 175bhp -wonderful thing!

Enjoy!