25 Countries, One Volvo: How Florian turned a €1,000 Volvo into the ultimate adventure machine

Florian bought the 1993 Volvo 240 GL about ten years ago for just over €1,000. He didn’t have any grand plans for it. It wasn’t meant to be a weekend cruiser or a tuning project. That job went to a Volvo 240 Turbo he built separately, but that’s a different story.

The GL was simply an old Volvo: boxy, honest and built with a kind of durability that seems almost unimaginable today.

From Daily Driver to Travel Companion

“Back then, we never would have thought that this car would one day take us all the way across Europe. Today, the Volvo has long since become much more than just a car. It’s a travel companion, a rally car, a camper van and, in a way, a member of the family too,” says Florian.

The odometer currently shows more than 400,000 kilometres, although the true figure is likely much higher. For over a decade, the speedometer and odometer simply didn’t work. Yet the old Brick continues to do exactly what it has always done: start, drive and carry its owners wherever they decide to go.

Adventures Across Europe

On social media, Florian, his wife Jennifer, his occasional travel companion Daniel, and the ruby red metallic Volvo 240 are known as ‘Team Thunderbrick’. And over the years, they collected an impressive list of adventures.

Among them are several adventure rallies organised by the Superlative Adventure Club, including the European 5000, Knights of the Island, Jupiter’s Flash and the Baltic Sea Circle Winter Edition.

These aren’t just casual weekend trips.

The European 5000 sends participants across roughly 5,000 kilometres of Europe without GPS and without motorways. Alpine passes, Mediterranean coastlines and the dry landscapes of Spain become part of the challenge.

The Knights of the Island covers approximately 3,800 kilometres through England, Wales and Scotland, again relying on paper maps and small country roads rather than modern navigation systems.

Then there is the Baltic Sea Circle Winter Edition, widely regarded as one of Europe’s toughest amateur rallies. More than 8,300 kilometres through ten countries, around the entire Baltic Sea, all the way to the Arctic Circle and the North Cape, in the middle of winter.

For Team Thunderbrick, these adventure rallies offer an opportunity to experience countries, meet people and truly understand both the road and the vehicle beneath them. A shared sense of adventure, a willingness to embrace the unexpected and a healthy dose of challenge are what make every journey memorable.

Built for the Long Road

Add countless holidays, road trips and spontaneous journeys, and it becomes clear that this Volvo has probably seen more of Europe than most modern SUVs ever will. Over the years, the Volvo has endured conditions that would test any vehicle.

It has crossed Spain in temperatures approaching 40 degrees Celsius and reached the North Cape in temperatures below minus 20. It has travelled through days of relentless Scandinavian rain, along remote gravel tracks, across icy roads in the middle of the night and over thousands of kilometres of motorway.

Through it all, the old Volvo has remained remarkably dependable. “And no matter how tough the conditions were, the Volvo never let us down,” says Florian.

“The only real breakdown we had was somewhere in Finland. The fuel pump suddenly stopped working. A firm strike with a hammer on the pump, and the Brick just carried on. It hasn’t given us any trouble since. Probably the most typical Volvo repair ever.”

That simplicity is exactly what makes the 240 so appealing for travelling. There is no complex electronics package, no endless array of sensors and no unnecessary systems. Everything feels as though Volvo designed it to function for decades. And decades later, it still does.

Turning a Volvo into a Home on Wheels

As the adventures grew in scale, the car gradually evolved too. Cruise control and heated seats were added, with the latter proving especially useful during long winter stages.

The boot was completely reorganised around travel requirements, with a custom-built drawer system providing dedicated space for tools, spare parts, camping equipment and cooking gear.

Everything now has its place. The result is a car that can be packed and ready for departure at almost any moment.

For the “Thunderbrickers,” accommodation isn’t a hotel room. Most nights on the road are spent in a rooftop tent mounted on top of the Volvo. Whether parked beside a remote Norwegian fjord, braving the Scottish rain or camped on a dusty car park somewhere in southern Europe, the Volvo serves as both a base camp and a home.

“In summer, an awning protects us from the sun when we’re camping by the sea or deep in the mountains. In winter, the auxiliary heater ensures we don’t have to crawl out of the roof tent completely frozen in the morning,” says Florian. All these modifications have turned the old estate into a surprisingly capable and comfortable overland vehicle.

The Adventure is Far from Over

Yet despite all the upgrades, the Volvo has never lost its original character. It remains exactly what it was on the day it was purchased: an old Volvo 240. A car that has nothing to prove. It is not fast. It is certainly not perfect. But it works.

And because it works, it creates opportunities for experiences that many people only dream about. So far, Team Thunderbrick has explored 25 countries with their Brick.

And they’ve got plenty of plans ahead: “Next year, we want to set off for the Balkans. In the long term, we even dream of driving that old Volvo much further still, perhaps all the way to Africa one day.”

This old Volvo is, for Team Thunderbrick, the travel companion that took them to the Arctic Circle, across Europe and through some of their best adventures. And thankfully, the journey is far from over.

Photography on this page © Daniel Firchau, Manuel Meier, Florian Steiner

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About the Superlative Adventure Club

Founded in Hamburg in 2010 by brothers Daniel and Sebastian Kaerger, the Superlative Adventure Club (SAC) has become one of Europe’s best-known organisers of adventure and charity rallies. What started as a passion project has grown into a community of thousands of participants who share a love for travel, classic cars and exploration.

SAC rallies are not about speed. Participants navigate using roadbooks, maps and compass, often without GPS and deliberately avoiding motorways. The routes lead through remote regions, spectacular landscapes and lesser-known roads across Europe and beyond. Adventure, teamwork and discovery are at the heart of every event.

Today, the club organises renowned events such as the Baltic Sea Circle, European 5000, Knights of the Island, Balkan Express and Jupiter’s Flash. Since its founding, more than 8,000 teams have taken part in SAC rallies, collectively raising over €7.5 million for charitable projects around the world.

https://superlative-adventure.com