Need some help for a 480 article

Here you can talk about the joy owning a Volvo 480 brings. Non-technical discussions take place here, like what is the difference between an ES and a S version.

Moderators: jifflemon, coyote1980, Rachel

Post Reply
zapcity
Knows an Aerodeck isn't a 480
Posts: 251
Joined: Wed Nov 09, 2016 4:01 pm
Location: Ipswich, Suffolk

Need some help for a 480 article

Post by zapcity » Thu Apr 15, 2021 9:28 am

Hi all,

Firstly, apologies for not contributing to the forum much recently. Covid, lockdown, life, work etc. just seemed to get in the way. My last real outing in my 480 was Sylvia's Lincolnshire mini meet back in October '19. Since then the 480 has been hiding in the garage. MOT etc in a few weeks though prompted by the Elvington 600 event, so should be having a summer of 480 fun! :D

Image

Anyway, I'm writing an article on 480's and owners and need some facts, so wondered if you could all assist. My query is a about the lack of spares for the 480 and how this came about. I've heard it said that Ford binned all the 480 spares due to a tax issue when they sold Volvo to Geely in 2010, however I've no facts to back this up.

As the 480 was in production until the mid 90's and I though Volvo had to suport cars for at least 10 years after production stopped (again I've no evidence to support this statement), I'm assuming there was a large pile of spares for the 480 at the time of the Volvo/Geely sale. What happened to them?

If anyone can shed some light on this I'd be grateful.

Thanks, Marc.
1994 480GT - arrived!!
XC60 and XC70 for the daily grind.
C70 Coupé Convertible for the sunny days. Should sell it but can't!

User avatar
brinkie
480 Connoisseur
Posts: 857
Joined: Mon Apr 21, 2014 11:20 am
Location: The Netherlands
Contact:

Re: Need some help for a 480 article

Post by brinkie » Thu Apr 15, 2021 10:56 am

Ah, the infamous "obsolete parts" warehouse in Maastricht, which got cleared in 2007. I have tried to verify this story with the actual Volvo people involved and they had a simple explanation. Those were parts that were very slow to sell (though there were some nice parts, like Vesa wheels) so after the obligatory period to stock everything 10 years after Volvo 400 production ended and as a means to cut costs, Ford decided to get rid of them. This was before the sale to Geely in 2010.

Things that REALLY mattered like rear bumper supports, front and rear light clusters and several rare Turbo parts became unobtainium long after the warehouse was cleared and have never been stocked there. Those parts were partly stocked at Volvo dealers, partly in a central Volvo warehouse per country, because people actually needed them. So the reason there are no more parts is just because they have all been used, not because Ford has thrown them away.
Robert.

Present cars: 1994 Volvo 480 GT 2.0i, 1999 Volvo S70 2.5 Europa, 2010 Volvo V70 2.0F Momentum

zapcity
Knows an Aerodeck isn't a 480
Posts: 251
Joined: Wed Nov 09, 2016 4:01 pm
Location: Ipswich, Suffolk

Re: Need some help for a 480 article

Post by zapcity » Thu Apr 15, 2021 12:03 pm

Thanks Rob. Great info. as usual. :D
1994 480GT - arrived!!
XC60 and XC70 for the daily grind.
C70 Coupé Convertible for the sunny days. Should sell it but can't!

Post Reply