Volvo Celebrates 50 Years of Its First Smash Hit, the 140 Series

What you’re looking at is the first Volvo to sell over one million examples throughout its production cycle. Manufactured in places such as Sweden, Belgium, Canada, Australia, and Malaysia from 1966 to 1974, the Volvo 140 Series sold 1.25 million units. For that era and for a small manufacturer such as Volvo, the tally is mighty impressive even by today’s standards.

The predecessor of the S60 sedan and V60 estate and the successor of the iconic Amazon is a car of many firsts for Volvo. First and foremost, Volvo’s engineers started working on the 140 Series with several different chassis versions from the get-go.

Secondly, the 140 Series introduced a naming scheme in which the first digit designates the model series, the second digit the number of cylinders, and the third digit the number of doors. As such, the model lineup comprises of the Volvo 142 two-door sedan, Volvo 144 four-door sedan, and the Volvo 145 five-door wagon.

Other goodies which can be classified as forward-thinking for the 1960s include the crumple zones, protective roll cage, the split steering column and dashboard with a collision-protected frame, as well as the reducing valves of the braking system. The latter bits and bobs were designed to prevent the wheels from locking under braking.

And that’s that, basically. Almost half a century after the advent of the Volvo 140 Series, the Swedish manufacturer now works on successors of the old fellow celebrated in this story. In 2017, Volvo has promised that it will launch the first member of the all-new 60 Series. Also in the near future, the rejuvenated  Volvo 40 Series will spawn a compact executive-sized sedan in the form of the all-new S40.