Welcome to the spring issue -- finally. Despite everything I've tried, we were only able to publish four Web issues in the last 12 months instead of the usual six, so I'm making it official. Until circumstances change, look for new issues on line quarterly.

Naked commercial plug dept: Our print edition will continue to be published bi-monthly, and such material as is shared between the two versions will usually come out months earlier in print. If you're in a hurry for articles, you know what to do. On the other hand, the Web version continues to get almost-daily updates to its Classified Ads, and we've added a new Events section which will also be updated continually, neither of which is physically possible in print. And as it has been, some material will be published exclusively in one or the other edition.

This isn't because we're greedy or lazy, I assure you. We're now entering our fifth year of publishing these at a financial loss, so that's not the point -- we wouldn't (and couldn't) do it for the money. There's only so much a few very busy enthusiasts can do in small amounts of spare time. If you have Volvo-related tips or stories, we'd love to consider them for publication (that helps everybody), and if you're having problems with, or questions about, your Volvo, we're certainly willing to try to assist you one-on-one. That's how this works, and has from the start.

Volvo events season is looming. For Marsha and me personally, it'll kick off with the IPD Garage Sale in May. Lee "VolvoGirl" Holman will be coming from Maine and staying with us here in Vancouver USA, and will give a Tech Session at the sale. We'll be sharing a booth with Bob Moreno (The Works) and with Tom Swartz (Volvo Partz). After that we're off on a tour of the East Coast to visit family and friends, ending up at Watkins Glen, NY, the first weekend in June for the meet and (especially) the racing there. Then comes the Zupan's Historics in Portland, OR, in July, and the VCBC meet in Vancouver, Canada, in August... and whatever else we can manage to get to along the way. I'm looking forward particularly to finally meeting some East Coast enthusiasts.

Improvements to our own cars are also under way. Shayne Green now has our 122S stripped down to just about nothing, and we'll trailer it to The Works for a full restoration almost immediately. After 35 years of daily driving (17 by me), it deserves it! I'm also building an "all Swedish" street performance motor for our 1800S, which you can start reading about in this issue.

We'll be reporting on all this, you bet. Until next time, enjoy this issue, drive smart, and have a great few months!

Phil, editor@vclassics.com