The Volvo 260 was the luxury version of the Volvo 240 with more equipment and a six-cylinder V engine. It was available with two (both as sedan and coupe) as well as four and five doors (262, 264 and 265 respectively). The former version is very rare and was produced in 3,329 examples, mainly for the North American market. The four-door version was produced in a total of 132,390 examples, while the 265 was made in 35,061 examples.

 

Unlike the predecessor 164, the 264 had a largely identical body shape to the family car 244, thanks to the car having a V6 engine instead of a straight 6 like the predecessor 164. What separated the 240 and 260 series externally was a a slightly higher grill with an initially slightly different Volvo brand and bonnet and initially the headlights which were rectangular on the 260 and round on the 240. Before the 1979 model year, the Volvo 240 got square-shaped headlights and before the 1980 model year rectangular ditons. After that, only the hood and grill differed from the 240. When the 260 was discontinued, the more exclusive 240 models first got, and during the 1985 model year, all 240s got the same hood that the 260 had. The grill was different though. During the 1979-1982 model years, there was also the Volvo 240 GLT with the V6 engine from the 260. However, it was not a great success, as it differed quite a bit in power from the four-cylinder B23E, which was cheaper, more fuel-efficient and more reliable. The GLT 6 still sold significantly better than the 264 GLE because it was in a lower premium class, and was often extra-equipped at the same price and equipment level.