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Volvo 265 Service car by Editions Atlas

3/6/2018

The number eighty-one in the Volvo Collection by Editions Atlas is an ex Volvo 265 Ambulance from 1981/82 which has been transformed into a Volvo Serve car. This model is based on the Volvo 264 Ambulance which has been offered as model N° 56. This Volvo is not a fantasy model. It does exist in the Netherlands. The first owner was the red cross in Aalten in the east of the Netherlands. This car was one of the few cars originally sold in the Netherlands. The red cross had the car in use till the mid nineties. The Dutch Volvo dealerSchmidt-Gemert had an earlier Volvo 265 ambulance model in use as a service wagon which they used for about ten years. This specific model was completely painted Volvo blue. But that car needed a replacement. At the very same time the 265 Ambulance from the Dutch red cross came up for sale and Carlo Schmidt bought it as replacement for their other 265 ambulance. The ambulance from the red cross had at that time a moderate 112.000 Km on the clock. After having bought it Carlo Schmidt had no time and did not want to hurry preparing his new acquired 265. At this time the car was still painted white. Mr Schmidt put it for several years in his storage since he had no immediate use for it. About ten years ago a good friend of Carlo Schmidt and a Volvo 200 series adept asked him if he would sell the car to him so that he could prepare. it as it is now. He wanted to use it for club purposes. That was the moment where the car received his actual livery. The new owner lost interest after several years of use and he sold it last year. We don't know where the car is situated at the moment. Carlo Schmidt had intended to buy the car back but missed the new sale due to a lack of time as well as other commitments. Please let us know when you should know where the car is today.

Courtesy of Editions Atlas SA, Switzerland

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Volvo L3314 "Laplander" by Autocult Models

3/1/2018

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The rather new and small German model company AutoCult has released last year a miniature of the Volvo L3314. AutoCult is specialized in offering small batches of unusual and very often vehicles that that well known by the large public.
AutoCult offers this very boxy Volvo as a 1:43 scale model. The resin model seems to look pretty well detailed. It features a Swedish license plate. You can order your copy under item number 08007. This limited edition model of only 330 units is available for 89.95 €.

Quote from Autocult Models website:

The tough Scandinavian

In the late 1950s the Swedish military was looking for a special vehicle, which should be primarily used for the transportation of troops. The constructors of Volvo were charged to develop a four-wheel-driven cab over engine, which ensured mobility even in very rough terrain.

Under the direction of chief designer Nils-Magnus Hartelius the engineers of Volvo developed a solid ladder frame and installed a box-shaped driver’s cab, which merged into a tub-shaped rear end on it. This design was very stable and provided the possibility to install a variety of different rear structures. With measures of 8,90x16 inch the unusually large-dimensioned low-pressure tires dominated the visual appearance of the Volvo. These were also one of the few components, which were not taken from the shelves of series production. Generally the guideline applied to ensure a cost-efficient production and that is how it came that the engineers used many parts of the then-current passenger car range. This was also applicable to the 1.8-liter engine with a power of 75 hp. The mass production of the Volvo with the type designation L3314 – known in common usage as the “Laplander” – started in 1963. The exclusive customer was initially the Swedish military, whose wishes and guidelines were directly taken into account during production. Its generous chassis clearance, the extra wide tires, the short wheelbase and its large departure angle made it easy for the Volvo to climb high-lying areas, which were normally inaccessible for motorized vehicles.

Volvo produced overall 7,737 copies of the military version.

Source: autocult-models.de/models/autocult-08007

Sales flyer by Autocult Models:

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