Irv Gordon put 3 MILLION miles on his Volvo P1800, setting a Guinness World Record for the most driven non-commercial vehicle. In this exclusive first drive, Magnus Walker becomes the first person outside of Volvo to drive the car since Irv's passing in 2018 and goes on a very special ride with Irv's friend and mechanic Nino Gambino.
Hi my friend Irv !
I am sure your saw this, this drive is surely keeping the flame of your fame memory.
Your car is simply not only a record mileage 1800 it is the unique Irv's Gordon 1800S and we see you each time we see this car.
This is the new Volvo P1800 Cyan - a carbon bodied restomod using a 420hp touring car engine connected to a five speed manual gearbox with race car suspension and brakes! The P1800 Cyan weighs just 990kg and has no ABS or traction control for that old-school pure driving experience! Here is an in depth review and first road test drive by Mr JWW.
Cyan Racing and the Volvo P1800 Cyan, an interpretation of the iconic Volvo.
There is only one word used to describe how you feel when you drive it : you feel cool, highly cool!
Engine Aspiration: Turbocharged Size: 2000cc Number of cylinders: 4 Cylinder alignment: Inline Valves per cylinder: 4 Bore x stroke: 82x93.2 mm Compression ratio: 10.2:1 Maximum HP/kW: 420 hp/308 kW @ 7000 rpm Maximum torque: 455 Nm @ 6000 rpm Maximum boost: 2.7 bar Maximum RPM: 7700 rpm Fuel system: Direct injection Turbo: Borg Warner EFR, ceramic ball bearings, gamma-ti turbine wheel Exhaust: Dual tube stainless steel, twin catalytic converters
Transmission Drive wheels: RWD Gearbox type: Manual synchromesh helical cut dog leg Number of gears: 5 Clutch: 200 mm, organic disc Prop shaft: Carbon fibre Final drive: LSD with customizable ratio
Dimensions Wheelbase: 2446 mm Length: 4203 mm Width: 1748 mm Height: 1220 mm Track front: 1466 mm Track rear: 1489 mm Fuel tank capacity: 57 litres
Suspension and body Front: Double wishbone, adjustable camber, caster, toe and bumpsteer Rear: Double wishbone, adjustable camber and toe Dampers: Adjustable compression and rebound front and rear Anti-roll bars: Tubular anti-roll bars front and rear, adjustable rear stiffness Steering rack: Rack and pinion with adjustable ratio High-strength steel and carbon fibre body Roll cage made in titanium
Brakes Front: 4-piston caliper, 362x32 mm disc Rear: 4-piston caliper, 330x25.4 mm disc
Wheels Front tyre size: Pirelli P Zero 245/40-R18 Rear tyre size: Pirelli P Zero 265/35-R18 Front rim size: 8.5”x18” Rear rim size: 9.5”x18” Centerlock wheels
This car was spotted outside of Volvo Hällered car test track in Sweden and nobody is sure what to make of it.
"I pass the Volvo test circuit outside of Gothenburg when going to work and I often see various Volvo prototypes on the roads.
But a while ago I saw something out of the ordinary and I just had to turn the car around and get some photos of it!!
They
were not too happy when I got close at the gas station.... At first I
wasn't sure what to make out of it, but it sure does look like a modern
P1800? Restomod?
It seems it got the new white “polestar engineered” badge on the grille
"
It could be anything including a cover car for another brand.
Firstly, it apparently has wider fenders, in order to accommodate
bigger wheels and tires. Then there is the complete absence of exhaust
pipes poking out the back - it was suggested that this P1800 might be
some sort of factory restomod and EV conversion.
The Swedish car registration info system says it's a 11/03/1964 Volvo 18335 VD Red owned by a person in Kullavik outside of Gothenburg (car registration details translated)
Interesting is the fact that its previous owner was apparently Jonas
Christian Dahl, who owned Polestar back in 2004 and now is the man behind Cyan Racing.
This could mean this is, in fact, a Polestar project, not something
that Volvo is doing. Regardless, the P1800’s 60th anniversary is coming
up next year and this project could be Volvo’s way of celebrating the
iconic two-door.
The trend of automakers glorifying iconic classics by making them electric is actually more common than you might think. Aston Martin is doing it, as are Jaguar and Volkswagen, so all of the above seems quite plausible in this context.
