VOLVO AMAZON
Volvo Amazon, 1968
The Amazon was 58 years old when it reached our workshop in Łódź. We stripped it to a bare shell, painted it, went through the mechanics and sewed a new interior in toffee leather.
The car
Jan Wilsgaard was 26 when he drew the Amazon, his first production car for Volvo. Volvo built it from 1956 to 1970 and made more than 660,000 in Sweden, Belgium and Canada.
In 1959 the Amazon became one of the first cars with three-point front seat belts as standard. Its body changed little in 14 years. Stand beside a good one and you see a single line running from the grille to the rear lights.
The brief
The car came to us in decent condition. We set the bar higher: it had to look the way it did on its first day.
We agreed on the direction before we undid a single bolt. The shape, the chrome and the dashboard layout stay as Volvo drew them. We changed the ride height, the wheels and the leather.
Down to the bare body
We took everything off the shell: glass, chrome, trim, the interior and the running gear. Open a door and you see the frame painted to the same standard as the outer panels.
We started with the places few people look at, because they give a weak restoration away first.
Paint
We painted the body dark blue. Under our studio lamps each light sits in the panels as a sharp, clean reflection.
Mechanics
We went through the mechanics part by part before the car went back together. It now sits low on polished wheels, with the tyres tucked under the original wings.
Interior
Our upholstery shop in Łódź made the interior from scratch in toffee leather. Toffee sits well against the dark blue paint and keeps the cabin warm.
The seats have perforated centres and smooth bolsters. The rear bench repeats the pattern of the front seats.
The door panels use the same leather and the same stitching as the seats. A light headliner keeps the cabin bright.
Beyond the factory
Volvo used leather in fewer places than we did. We covered the steering wheel and the dashboard, then the trim parts that left the factory bare.
The steering wheel rim carries a cross stitch. On the dashboard we stitched the leather in ribs, so your eye moves from the door panels to the dash without a change of material.
Back together
Before we hand a car back, we check the panel gaps, the fit of the trim, the finish of the seams and how the result matches the direction we agreed at the start.
On 18 October 2026 we rolled the Amazon into our studio in Łódź for a photo session. The pictures on this page come from that day.
