The overall safety of the driver and passengers in the event of a crash was greatly improved with very large front and rear end crumple zones.

In 1978, a facelift meant a redesigned rear end for sedans, with wraparound taillights and a trunk opening with a lower lip.

[9] 1981 also saw the dashboard altered significantly, which a much larger binnacle in order to bring the radio and clock within the driver's line of sight.

One of the major improvements was the introduction of the oxygen sensor in North America in late 1976 (1977 models), which Volvo called Lambda Sond and developed in conjunction with Bosch.

In late 1991, for the 1992 model year, it received 160 detail improvements including changes to the heater controls, heated rear view mirrors, and revised front seats.

A 1993 Volvo 240DL was driven by IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad, who stopped driving it when he was told the car was too dangerous due to outdated safety design two decades later.

[14] The last regular 200 series car produced was a blue station wagon built to Italian "Polar Italia" specifications, displayed at the Volvo World Museum.

This smaller twin-carb engine developed 90 PS (66 kW), and had considerably higher fuel consumption than even the turbocharged top version.

With the tightening emission regulations in the United States, the new OHC B21F with fuel injection and EGR system replaced B20F for the 1976 model year.

The B21F engine was revised with higher compression flat-top pistons in 1979 for increased output to 107 SAE hp or 80 kW (109 PS; 107 bhp).

Almost identical to the fuel-injected V6 B27E engine, it has an SU carburettor instead of fuel injection, and therefore it produces a lower output of 125 PS (92 kW).

Volvo increased engine displacement to 2.8 liters in 1980 with the introduction of the B28E and B28F, which were prone to top-end oiling troubles and premature camshaft wear.

Some export markets also received the lower output carburetted B28A engine with 129 PS (95 kW) at 5,250 rpm, capable of running on lower-octane fuel.

A Bosch mechanical injection system is used that requires constant electrical input so that the fuel supply can be cut off when the ignition key is removed.

[27] The D5 used the same four-speed manual transmission as the D6 but coupled to the lower-geared rear axle also used in 2-liter petrol cars; this meant that fuel consumption figures were only marginally better than those of the larger diesel while noise levels increased noticeably.

[27] In Finland, the price difference with the equal six-cylinder diesel was only just over two percent; owners expected to save money by being in much lower tax and insurance brackets.

[29] The 200-series cars were identified initially by badges on their trunk lid or rear hatch in a manner similar to the system used for previous models.

The 4 and 6 codes soon lost their original meaning as signifying the number of cylinders with the introduction of B17-engined four-cylinder Volvo 260s for export to Greece and Israel in the late 1970s.

[44] Volvo also produced a prototype in 1978 called the 242 GTC Turbo, which had roof pillars similar to that of a 262 C, and a body design of a 242 GT.

270 of these cars were retrofitted with the special equipment at Long Beach and further 240s were simultaneously fitted with the same kit on the East Coast at the Volvo Penta facility at Chesapeake Bay.

In Group A racing form, the 240T weighed 1,065 kg (2,348 lb), and its turbocharged 2.1-liter engine produced approximately 350 bhp (261 kW; 355 PS).

Although it was a big car and lacked the agility of some of its competitors, and despite its boxy, un-aerodynamic appearance, it was fast in a straight line (approximately 260 km/h (162 mph) on faster circuits such as Monza, Hockenheim and Bathurst) and proved to be reliable.

Late in the 1984 European Touring Car Championship, Swedish team Sportpromotion won the EG Trophy race at Zolder circuit and followed that with second in the 500 km del Mugello.

Eggenberger Motorsport, with team drivers Gianfranco Brancatelli and Thomas Lindström, won the 1985 ETCC outright, seeing off challenges from BMW (Schnitzer), and defending ETCC champions TWR who were running the V8-engined Rover Vitesse rather than the V12 Jaguar XJS that had dominated 1984 after Jaguar had decided to concentrate on sports car racing.

Eggenberger moved to race Ford Sierras in 1986 and Volvo contracted Belgian based team RAS Sport to be its factory "works" team in the ETCC, with defending champion Lindström being joined by ex-Formula One and Grand Prix motorcycle racer Johnny Cecotto, as well as Ulf Granberg and Anders Olofsson in the second car.

New Zealand business man and racer Mark Petch had purchased an ex GTM Team car directly from VMS 240T and with drivers Robbie Francevic and Michel Delcourt won the Wellington 500 street race in New Zealand in January 1985 after starting from the rear of the grid due to the car not arriving in time to qualify.

Francevic then went on to finish 5th in the 1985 Australian Touring Car Championship (the first ATCC to be run under Group A rules), taking out right wins at Symmons Plains and Oran Park.

Thomas Lindström joined Francevic to drive in the 1986 Wellington 500 and brought with him from Europe the latest engine and suspension upgrades for the car.

Volvo withdrew from the sport at the end of the 1986 season, partly because of the RAS team being found guilty of using non-approved race fuel, but primarily because the 240T had achieved what it set out to do.

In the United States, 240s regularly appear in low-budget endurance racing series such as 24 Hours of LeMons, where the 240 reliability, durability, and easy parts availability are appreciated.