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In Memoriam: Irv Gordon, The Man Who Loved Only One Car Ever


In Memoriam: Irv Gordon, The Man Who Loved Only One Car Ever

Many of us go through many cars throughout our lifetimes. I have, Brian has, Chad has. We get bored or disgusted with some. Others we never developed a connection towards and let them move along to someone who might really want them. Others we have to let go because the situation is out of our hands…we might have to pay a bill or scare up some funds for a need more important at the time. We may not want to do it, but we don’t have a choice. That’s the worst of all. How long have you managed to hold onto a car you cherished?

Irv Gordon was well-known for one thing: his 1966 Volvo P1800. He purchased the car after having a string of bad luck with Corvairs, and from the moment he took it off of the lot until the moment he passed on, the two were inseparable. The Volvo had attained over three and a quarter million miles on the clock with Gordon insisting that he drive it everywhere after an incident with an auto transporter while the car was being hauled to SEMA one year. The engine was rebuilt twice…once because Gordon wanted the job done, another time because the engine was genuinely losing power and finally showing the strain about ten years ago. Otherwise it was basic maintenance and a continual adding of miles on the clock. Irv Gordon was a man who did what many might consider impossible: he found a car he liked and stuck with it until the end. It might sound like a marraige, but it was certainly a match made in heaven.

Rest easy, good sir.


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5 thoughts on “In Memoriam: Irv Gordon, The Man Who Loved Only One Car Ever

  1. Tom P

    That is admirable. He chose a good car. I’m not a Volvoute but my late uncle bought a 64 P1800 new and that was my earliest memories of a cool car. I sold it for him in the early 80’s and got to drive it then, wonderful road manners. I have worked on several others over the years and can appreciate their quality.
    Over three million miles is amazing!
    Rest in Peace

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