The Volvo PV36, popularly known as Carioca stands out of all the other Volvo cars in terms of looks as well as features. The Carioca is very famous in the auto industry considering there were very few models built and Volvo being a small manufacturer makes it even more special.

This year the Carioca completes its 75th year. There have been quite a few allegations of this car being a copy of Airflow by Chrysler, let us make this clear, this isn’t the case. The debate over these two cars has been going on for ages and although Chrysler was the first to launch its model, it doesn’t necessarily mean Volvo copied its style. It is perhaps the timing of the launch as Volvo launched it a year after.

During the early 1930s most of the Volvo cars were conventional and offered very little in terms of variety and this had an effect on the sales figures too. Most of these cars were designed by Helmer MasOlle. The Volvo PV36 however had no contribution whatsoever from the artist and the entire styling was done by Ivan Ornberg, with very little to no interference from anyone else, including the founders. This car was launched in 1935.

The Carioca featured the latest six cylinder engine and it was quite a powerhouse. The standout feature of this car were the headlights which very traditional yet classy. This car was definitely a refreshing change for many as it managed to divert from the traditional design of Volvo.

The Volvo Amazon was manufactured from 1956 to 1970 and was a mid-size car produced by Volvo cars. A total of 667,323 Amazons were built during that time. Unlike its predecessor, the PV, the Amazon was available in a variety of body styles and was a modern car. Amazon has the distinction of having three point seat belts and was the first car which had seat belt as standard equipment. The Volvo Amazon though had the wheelbase, the tall posture and the High H-Point seating of the PV.

The car which was initially introduced as the Amason had its name changed to Amazon in the year 1961. The style and the design of the car was inspired from the American cars of the 50s and bore a strong resemblance to the Chrysler 300C hardtop Coupe and the Chrysler New Yorker sedan. The 1962 Stockholm Auto Show saw the estate version of the Amazon being introduced. The first Amazon had a 49kW engine and 66bhp. The 122S which was launched in 1958 had dual carburetor 63kW engine. The car had a new B16 engine, a 3-speed gearbox which was manual and a rear wheel drive.

The year 1962 saw a new two door version with B18 engine which was a five door wagon. The car also came with M31 gearbox which was available only for one year and that was 1961. 1964 saw a four door and a two door being available in Borg-Warner BW35 three speed automatic transmissions. The mechanics and modified floorpan of the Amazon were also used in the Volvo P1800 sports car.