Volvosport No. 18

Hunt custodian of America’s first P1900

By David Hunt

David Hunt bought his 1956 P1900 Volvo, chassis number 18, in 1959 from a used car dealer in Anaheim, California, as transportation for travel to and from school.

   At the time no one seemed to know or care about the significance or the history of this special little car.   It was the first production P1900 brought to America and is one of only sixty-eight (68) ever produced.

missing; all stainless steel trim was dented; all chrome parts were rusted, dented and badly needed re-chroming; clutch was worn out; and so the list goes on and on.

   Although very embarrassed about the condition of his car, David was talked into limping his very humble P1900 to the 1996 Buena Park Volvosport of America concourse.

     It turned out that his P1900 was one of the most photographed Volvos there.  Volvo enthusiasts from Australia to Canada to Brazil photographed this somber looking classic.  His P1900 also received the "Oldest Volvo" award at the show.  

      P1900 #18 was first used as a test car at the ABVolvo proving grounds in Göteborg, Sweden, where it was road tested on an oval track and received an engine upgrade  from a B14A to a B16B.  It was then shipped to the New York Auto Expo in April. It was then

   Serious restoration was started after the 1996 Volvo Meet.  Without even a picture of a P1900 to go by, the restoration became a very creative and ambitious project.

     The quest for information now became a prime necessity. 

driven across the United States to Los Angeles, California, on a promotional tour and then sold.

   Bill Tritt (CEO of Glasspar Boats in Costa Mesa, California) designed and built four prototype P1900s in 1954, and later the first ten production bodies.  ABVolvo built the remaining bodies in Sweden.

    There were forty-five 1956 models produced of which chassis’s No. 18 and No. 25 were shipped to the United States.  There were twenty-three 1957 models produced, of which all but No. 49 were shipped to the United States.  Chassis number 49 was owned by Volvo’s CEO and it now resides in a Swedish Volvo Museum.  A total of twenty-four P1900s were shipped to the United States.

   The last P1900 (chassis No. 67) was shipped to California in March 1957 (old Volvo delivery records established that Volvo assigned chassis No. 20 to two different P1900’s making a total of sixty-eight P1900 units produced).

    David and his brother Tom drove Volvosport No. 18 for about sixteen years.  The car was then abandoned in storage for ten years until room had to be made for other antiques.

     David’s P1900 came out of storage in 1996.  In August of that year, just six weeks prior to the West Coast VSA Volvo Meet held in Buena Park, California, restoration was started.  Thus began the long and tedious quest for its history, identifying of parts, and completing the numerous repairs needed for its restoration.  Making the car drivable was the first priority.

   Brake and fuel systems were clogged with gunk; brake shoes shot; canvas top unusable; windows broken; fiberglass body had cracks; interior was in shambles; tires were bad; spare tire and jack 

David’s crusade began by visiting a swap meet  where he found an old "Illustrated Volvo Buyer's Guide" that had a picture of David Woods’ P1900.

   Next, he subscribed to SEES, Rolling, PV Entusiasten, and to Bill Webb’s VSA Western States.  He then searched for articles written about the P1900 in back issues.

   David then made many phone calls and wrote many letters all over the world requesting information on parts and on the history of the P1900.  Some magazine articles were written in German and Swedish that needed to be translated.  The restoration is nearly complete now--is a restoration ever complete?

    David and his P1900 have participated in many parades and Volvo activities since the 1996 Volvo Meet.  His P1900 does not sit idle, it is driven about 3,000 miles a year to various Volvo related functions.

   Some of his adventures include an 800-mile mountain and desert-crossing journey that started in California and ended in Arizona for the First Annual All Volvo Day event on April 4, 1998 then successfully returning home (No. 18 also attended the 2^nd & 3^rd annual event in Arizona); and a 1200-mile trip to the VCOA meet in Santa Rosa, California in 1999; and another 1000-mile trek to the VSA Concourse in Sacramento, California, in 2000.

      No. 18 has been featured in many United States and European magazines and in the Motor section of Sweden’s largest newspaper.

   There are only eight of the original twenty-four P1900s known to still exist in the United States.  Some have been sold to European owners.  The US P1900s are currently located in Florida, Maine, New Mexico, Washington, and four in California.  So far fifty-one have been accounted for worldwide.