Volvo Amazon (120 Series) History

The Amazon (internally the 120 Series) was launched in 1956 as Volvo's first modern four-door family car. Styled cleanly and built on a separate body-on-frame construction (later updated), it was equipped with a dual-circuit braking system and, from 1959, standard three-point front seatbelts — one of the first production cars to do so, a safety landmark.

Available as a two-door, four-door, and five-door wagon, the Amazon was Volvo's export workhorse throughout the 1960s and was particularly popular in Sweden, the US, and Germany. Production ended in July 1970 after 667,791 units across all body styles.