The Nutty Professor Who Loved Amazons

SANDY: In Paris, Sven drove a marvelous 1965 Volvo Amazon of a gorgeous Bordeaux color, with leather interior, cream-colored, and a dashboard that spoke of old glory. Customized, for fans of old cars. He sold the Amazon when we moved to America. That was a very sad day. That car was spectacular and always turned heads.


SVEN: Last week we had a guest who is also an old Volvo fanatic. His car is a 1968 Amazon wagon called Gannett (pictured above). It looks just like the one I owned in 1985. I understand Geoff's passion and the fact that he gave the car a name. I had a wonderful Amazon in Paris. Actually, it was my second. Let me tell you about my first. I have always been interested in history, so it’s logical that I enjoy renovating old cars. When I was a young man, I moved up to a small mining city in the north of Sweden, above the Arctic Circle, a place called Kiruna, which has become famous thanks to the Ice Hotel. Some people say I’m an adventurer but perhaps I simply seek out new horizons? In any case, the high school in Kiruna also offered technical education. I could find everything I needed to restore old cars in their workshop. After my religion class, every Wednesday, I used to go down to the school basement and do welding. One Wednesday I was under the old Volvo and saw a lot of feet around me. I rolled out and there was my religion class, laughing at seeing their teacher dressed as a car mechanic. After a year of restoration, the car was finished. It had become very beautiful: shiny chrome, cream color, original steering wheel and restored seats. A friend of mine had helped me build a house in Stromstad, on the southwestern coast of Sweden. We worked terribly hard and I didn’t have the money to pay for his month of work, not what it was worth anyway because he was an excellent carpenter, who had studied in Japan, among other places. Once he walked through our parking lot before coming to dinner. He said, "Who on earth owns that beautifully restored Volvo outside?" I said, "You do!" He said, “What do you mean?” I said, “I couldn’t pay for the marvelous job you did in Stromstad, so please take the car.” His name is Yngve. He has been here, visiting Cape Cod, with his lovely wife Anne and their daughter Mia, and remains a close friend. I was glad I could give him my wonderful Amazon. I still dream of restoring old cars, but, these days, I find pleasure restoring our old house here at Chez Sven instead!