Well, Mercedeses were handled by Studebaker dealerships in the U.S. for awhile, so why not this in Sweden! Closest to us is a ’61 Lancer, then a ’60 Valiant, then a ’62 Valiant. They’re all de luxe models; the Lancer a 770 and the Valiants V-200. Don’t know just what we’re expecting the driver to be able to see in those small wing mirrors way up at the front there on the ’61 and ’60, but I guess it’s at least marginally more than can be seen in the nonexistent mirrors of the ’62. That aside, which to pick? Aw, hell; I’ll take all three!
Update: I’ve just learnt there’s a bigger connection here: Saab built the Valiant-Lancer-Dart cars for the Swedish market from CKD kits!
Neat .
-Nate
Very sad for Saab, one of the most secure vehicles (much more than germans).
Would like to have the SAAB sign out front of the shop.
So many Ford dealerships started as repair shops. But once they got the franchise, they were minting money. Lots of family squabbles over who would run the store as the years progressed. Ample intrigue!!
Language note: på svenska the ‘BEG. BILAR’ sign is a common abbreviation for ‘begagnade bilar’ which in English means ‘used cars.’
Used cars yes, but on the wall is written Chrysler Plymouth Dodge, so they probably stocked parts.
Once had an acquaintance who was continuously praising the glories of SAAB to the point of exhaustion 😩. Finally, one day as he started, I asked Is This Another SAAB Story? 😉
When my parents bought our European delivery Volvo in 1964, it had those mirrors (dual) mounted way out on the fenders which wasn’t uncommon in the UK and Japan, so perhaps a Swedish thing also. Though our 1960 Volvo, also picked up in Europe, had a single They required a wrench to loosen and adjust, which was a moot point because we never bothered adjusting them. Hard to see, hard to clean, but actually provided a pretty good field of view. We visited Sweden on that trip and I vaguely remember a few American cars in the midst of all the VW’s, Volvo’s, Saabs and Opels, but mostly older.
I do find the first gen Valiant looks more attractive with blackwall tires. The visual restraint helps offset, the over-the-top styling.
As in Sweden, mudguards were a thing for decades, in Canada. Not sure of their long term effectiveness, preventing paint damage from stone chips, or rust. Many owners swore by them, getting them installed by the dealer, on new cars. From my anecdotal observations, they protected rocker panels and lower front doors, forward of roughly halfway the length of the wheelbase. Rear of rocker panels and upwards, still collected plenty of paint chips, and rust, with the accompanying salt/slush buildup. Same applied to lower quarter panels. The quarter panel rear edge, and inside rear bumpers, still developed plenty of rust. From salty slush buildup.
Mudguards are meant to prevent a haze of water during rain and to protect people outside the car from mud, rain etc. to my knowledge. Not primarily to protest the car itself.
I suspect most people in Canada who had mudguards installed, did it with the intent of protecting their paint finish. That was their primary rationale.
I believe you are correct. Protect the paint from chips, and you protect the sheet-metal from rust.
At least until 1966, mudguards were obliged in the Netherlands.
Multi make dealerships are quite new here especially with disparate brands like this, Iwent last week to a Citroen/Nissan dealership for an airfilter for my car having got the wrong one already it was quite painless, certainly sir we can have that for you tomorow there are 4 in the country, nobody does aftermarket for this car or I’d have bought a K&N washable filter element like the 2.0 HDI engine uses, anyway I got a phone call 8am the following day collected and fitted my filter and beginning to realise just how rare this particular car is here, no 2.2 diesel Mondeos were imported new but Jaguars and Landrovers have this particular engine and the C6 four has this engine but with twin turbos, road tests say my car will do 138mph you need another turbo for what?
When I picked up my ’67 Volvo from the factory in Gothenburg in April of that year, Valiants were being used as police cars there.
Such as this ’66:
Two of the cars have those “fender mounted, mirrors”. One has no outside mirror I can see. Would be intersting to know the car colors in the pic.
No idea SAAB assembled Mopars! Thanks for that.
In late 1971 I somehow got hold of a Swedish car magazine. It said that in Sweden the Dodge Dart was known as “the American Volvo.” There was also an article on the 1972 American cars, including the statement, “Never have the American cars been bigger and heavier.”
Sweden had left lane driving until 1967. But the majority of cars up until that time in Sweden were LHD. Perhap the fender mirrors help somehow when driving a LHD vehicle in the left lane?
The clamshell doors on the building give a welcoming feel, and the left one seems to carry a rack of brochures?
Older garages opened that way, but most were overhead by the ’50s. Clamshell doors are difficult in snow. Judging by the look of the pavement, the dealer was a careful shoveler, so no problem.