Volvo restoration

A New Grill – 1987 Volvo 240GL

Our 1987 Volvo 240GL has been in the care of classic car technician Jon over the last few days.

During this time, Jon has built, cleaned, polished, and fitted the new front grill. This has made a big impact on how the front of this classic car looks. With its new badges and wheel stickers, the new front grill brings our 240GL one step closer to being ready to leave us fully restored.

As well as his work on the grill, Jon also secured the boot trims too.

After the more cosmetic-related jobs had been completed, Jon turned his attention to the brakes. Specifically, the front brake back plates. These have now been painted and re-fitted to the car. The brakes have also been bled and a road test has been carried out. Jon was very happy with how our classic Volvo drove when he took it out for a short drive so it’s definitely almost ready to get back out on the road again.

As you can see from the photos below, our 1987 Volvo 240GL is looking very good and has come a long way since it first arrived in the workshop.

Mud Flaps Repair And Paint

Our workshop team think about every part of the vehicle they are restoring. For example, classic car technician Alan has been giving his attention to the mud flaps of our 1987 Volvo 240GL.

Alan repaired the mud flaps before painting them in textured satin black.

Our classic Volvo has come a long way since it first arrived at the Bridge Classic Car workshop and progress continues to be made.

Being Put Back Together

Our 1987 Volvo 240GL is being gradually put back together as each task is completed.

Recently, the bumpers and the headlamps were cleaned before being refitted to the car.

As everything is being reassembled and refitted, this classic car is starting to look as good as we knew it would.

Inner Wheel Arch Work

Work has been completed on the inner wheel arch of our 1987 Volvo 240GL. This involved using seam sealant and adding an additional coating to the arch for added durability and toughness.

Our 240GL continues to move through its restoration journey and this work, along with its fresh coat of paint, has it looking almost brand new again already.

Getting Ready For Painting

Our 1987 Volvo 240GL has been spending some time being prepared for painting.

It will ultimately be painted its original white colour. This will make it look almost identical to how it would have looked when it left the factory back in 1987.

Restoring a classic car like this, so it ends up looking brand new again, is something that our classic car technicians are highly skilled at. With this in mind, it shouldn’t be too long until this classic car is looking like it’s just been driven out of the factory for the very first time.

Sympathetic – Metal Work on the 1987 Volvo 240GL

The 1987 Volvo 240GL has been in the Bridge Classic Cars fabrication shop to have its bodywork and underpinnings repaired.

The team have worked on removing any of the corrosion from the bottom of the classic Volvo. The car had several areas which required the team to cut out pieces and make new replacement panels to weld in. The lower sills and wheel arches were cut out and the new pieces welded in carefully, inch by inch.

Each of the areas are fully inspected and checked before being cut back to the point the corrosion began. After the area is cut back and cleaned, it was treated to make sure the corrosion would not spread any further. The sills were capped off and ground back smooth.

After this, the team will hand over the classic Volvo to our body and paint team.

First Steps – 1987 Volvo 240GL at Pettistree to Begin Work

The amazing all-original 1987 Volvo 240GL has been brought over from The Hangar to our restoration workshop for the teams to begin work on.

The classic Volvo will be handed over to the paint and body team to have some issues taken care of and then be repainted in its original white. Preserving the originality of the car for many years to come.

Keep a look out on the Bridge Classic Cars news page very soon for more updates on the 1987 Volvo 240GL.

Refit – Putting the 1973 Volvo 1800ES Back Together and Fitting the New Foglights

The 1973 Volvo 1800ES has been moved from the Bridge Classic Cars in-house Paintshop into the restoration workshop.

After being painted, the team have got a few jobs to do on the classic Volvo. The first is the fitment of new aftermarket Fog Lights to the front of the 1800ES. Our technician Scott worked on getting these in the right place and securely fitted to the underside of the front bumpers and wired in.

Next, the team could begin to get the rest of the bumpers, chromework and trims installed back onto the car and secured into place.

Green Blue – 1973 Volvo 1800ES Painted

The 1973 Volvo 1800ES has been into the Bridge Classic Cars in-house paint booth recently to be refinished in its signature ”Green Blue” finish.

The team have worked hard on getting the classic Volvo prepared and ready to go into the booth with several hours of sanding, minimal filler work and a few welds needed here and there to get each panel absolutely perfect ahead of its date with the paint booth.

Once the whole car had been flattened back, bare areas primed and the whole car cleaned off, our in-house painter Alan could begin the process of laying down the deep, glossy paintwork which gives the 1970s Volvos that incredible look.

The Finer Points – Rust and Wing Mirror Repairs on the 1973 Volvo 1800ES

The paint and bodywork team at the Bridge Classic Cars Suffolk HQ have been working several jobs on the 1973 Volvo 1800ES.

The team found several small rust holes around the body which were carefully sanded back, plug welded and finished flat, along with that the team plug welded some wing mirror holes which were no longer needed.

The bodywork team then worked on finishing the panels to be perfectly smooth and then took the car into our in-house paint booth to primer the specific areas and be paint matched.