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Volvo P1900

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Volvo Sport
1956 Volvo P1900 Sport Cabriolet
Overview
ManufacturerVolvo Personvagnar
Also calledVolvo P1900
Production
  • 1956–1957
  • 68 produced
AssemblyUnited States: Santa Ana, California (Glasspar)
Sweden: Lundby, Gothenburg
DesignerWilliam Tritt (body only)
Body and chassis
ClassSports car (S)
Body styleRoadster
LayoutFront-engine, rear-wheel drive
Powertrain
Engine1,414 cc (1.4 L) B14 I4
Transmission3-speed manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase94.5 in (2,400 mm)
Length166 in (4,216 mm)
Chronology
SuccessorVolvo P1800
Volvo P1900 driving adjacent to Volvo museum Gothenburg Sweden

The Volvo Sport (also known as P1900) is a Swedish fiberglass-bodied roadster produced from 1956 to 1957. A total of 68 units were built, with the first 19 assembled by the Glasspar Company in California, and later by Volvo Cars.

Assar Gabrielsson, Volvo's president and founder, got the idea for the car when he saw a Chevrolet Corvette in the United States and wanted to make something similar. He approached Bill Tritt of Glasspar, an American boatbuilder in Santa Ana, California, who were pioneers in building fiberglass auto bodies from 1951 to 1957. They were was tasked with designing and tooling a fibreglass/reinforced polyester body, producing molds, building the first prototype, as well as training Volvo’s staff in how to design and manufacture fiberglass bodies.[1]

Erik Quistgaard was appointed as development team leader. The car was built on a welded tubular-steel chassis[2] and used an upgraded version of the Volvo PV444's 1414 cc engine producing 70 hp (52 kW) at 5,500 rpm. The engines were fitted with twin SU carburetors, as well as a different camshaft, larger intake valves and. higher compression than the PV444.[3] Power was sent through a three-speed manual gearbox. Many other parts were taken also from the Volvo PV444.

Demand was low, and the build quality was not up to Volvo standards.[4] Gunnar Engellau, who replaced Gabrielsson as president in 1956, took one for a drive on a holiday weekend and was dissatisfied enough that on returning to his office the following week cancelled the remaining production. He reportedly either said "I thought it would fall apart!"[5] or "I thought the doors would fall off".[6] The Volvo chassis design was far too flexible to accommodate a fiberglass body, and Volvo resisted recommendations by Glasspar to alter the frame to address their concerns.

Volvo had planned to produce a run of 300 cars, but in the end, total production was 68 cars,[6][1] plus four or five prototypes. Forty-four were built in 1956, mostly for the Swedish market, and most still survive.[clarification needed] All but one of 1957's production went to Los Angeles, and fewer of these are still in existence. The last car to roll off the production line was chassis number 67, but later research showed that the chassis number 20 was given to two separate cars.[7]

The upgraded version of the engine used in the P1900 was later put into the PV444 when it entered the US market in 1957.[3]

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References

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  1. 1 2 McCourt, Mark J. (March 29, 2020). "1956–57 Volvo Sport Classic Roadster Feature". Hemmings. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Glasspar (Bill Tritt) Designed Fiberglass Volvo Sport – The Volvo P1900 | Undiscovered Classics". March 31, 2010. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Volvo Sport P1900. Originally intended for export but primarily sold on the Swedish market". Volvo Cars.
  4. ↑ Hunt, David R. (n.d.). "The Volvosport P1900". volvoadventures.com. Retrieved February 24, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Volvo P1800 – History & the World Record (1961–1973)". World of Volvo. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
  6. 1 2 Czap, Nick (February 19, 2010). "Unrequited Longing for the 67th Volvo". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
  7. ↑ "A rare Volvo convertible turns 60 years: the Volvo Sport". Volvo Press & Media. May 28, 2014.
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