bowser:
hayday:
OzzyHugh:
Here’s what a well kept F88 looked like in 1973I’d drive that today, what a lovely motor! I fell in love with the Volvo’s when, as a 16 year old apprentice (never having properly even driven a car before - I had a Honda 50 moped) was an apprentice at Ferrymasters and was asked to bring an F86 tractor (I think it was CGV646T) into the paintshop as it had been sold and the buyer wanted the flags and stuff removing from the cab. It was a bit rusty and tired but I was mesmarised! I didn’t know where or what the handbrake was, range change lever - what did that do etc and I aptly drove it into the garage in 8th gear, scattering the idle sods lurking around the coffee machine. Fantastic memories and motors and I knew then I’d have to throw my spanners away and drive one. The only F88 I ever drove was owned by a haulier in Warrington called James Soens (I think it was a P reg with a Liverpool plate) and it had the noisiest brakes I’ve ever heard. The old adage of Volvo’s having crap brakes may have had something to do with the fact that if you tried to use them on this motor, you and half the street would have been deafened!
did the F88 smoke on cold start like my F89 did ? i would scare the bejesus out of them when i put the handbrake on then gas them for good measure when i started it …
I think all the old Volvos did and IIRC you got just as much in the cab when they were cold (didn’t there used to be a button you could depress to reduce the excessive smoke - didn’t seem to do much!) There was a driver at FM (from Ipswich I think) who drove an old F88 LHD (act it might have been an 89) I never knew his real name but everyone called him wonky donkey on the CB (I think he suffered with polio and it affected his legs.) He was a nice bloke and his motor looked the business.
