1972 Volvo 1800ES - RARE! Runs and Drives! Great Restoration Candidate

1972 Volvo 1800ES - RARE Sportwagon - only made in 1972 and 1973 - one of 8077! Starts. runs and drives! Very good oil pressure! Great restoration candidate! Needs obvious rust repair. Mileage indicates 91. 85 and while I can't prove that to be accurate it seems believable. Some background:Volvo introduced its final P1800 variant. the 1800ES. in 1972 as a two-door station wagon with a frameless. all-glass tailgate. The final design was chosen after two prototypes had been built by Sergio Coggiola and Pietro Frua. Frua's prototype. aketen ("the Rocket". on the right). is located in the Volvo Museum. Both Italian prototypes were considered too futuristic. and instead in-house designer Jan Wilsgaard's proposal was accepted. [5] The ES engine was downgraded to 125 bhp (92 kW) by reducing the compression ratio with a thicker head gasket (engine variant B20F); although maximum power was slightly down the engine was less "peaky" and the car's on-the-road performance was actually improved. The ES's rear backrest folded down to create a long flat loading area. As an alternative to the usual four-speed plus overdrive manual transmission. a Borg-Warner three-speed automatic was available in the 1800ES. [6] With stricter American safety and emissions standards looming for 1974. Volvo did not see fit to spend the considerable amount that would be necessary to redesign the small-volume 1800 ES. [5] Only 8. 77 examples of the ES were built in its two model years. [7]