Volvo Museum, Gothenburg, Sweden
From January 18, 2023
Motor vehicles made a huge difference in 20th century society, and often revolutionized the action of public services. Police cars have made it possible to diversify patrols and intervene quickly, fire trucks have radically improved the ability to extinguish fires, buses have opened up new opportunities to work or study further away from home, ambulances have saved lives by quickly transporting the sick or injured to a hospital.
For almost 100 years, as a national manufacturer, Volvo has been providing vehicles adapted to municipal and government services. It is a selection of these specific vehicles this exhibition presents: police cars, post cars, ambulances, fire trucks, military vehicles …
The exhibition is spread over 2 levels, heavy vehicles are in the entrance area of the museum, and lighter cars on the 2nd floor. Many of these vehicles have been loaned by individuals and companies and have never been exhibited in this theme before. Among the cars on display was the 1968 Volvo P210 Duett “Post Office”, painted in the traditional colours of the postal service. Used until 1980, it was restored in the late 1990s and belongs to the postal museum.
The Volvo TP21 is a four-wheel drive version of the PV800 series, with a modified body and shortened chassis. Dating from the 1950s, the last examples were used by the Swedish army until the 1980s. This example is on loan from the Swedish Museum of Defence Vehicles “Arsenalen” in Strängnäs.
Heavier and older, the 1934 Volvo LV70 fire truck was the first produced specifically without using parts from production cars. This fire truck has been part of the Volvo collections since 1959.
The photos on this page belong to the Volvo Museum, no right of reproduction without the express permission of the museum.