The 340-series soon became very popular in a number of countries in Europe. To further widen its appeal to many customers and markets demanding at least four doors, a 5-door version was introduced in the autumn of 1979, as the 1980 model year.
When the Volvo 343 was presented in the winter of 1976, it was the first totally new car from the Dutch company Volvo Car BV. The Volvo 343 entered a very important segment for the European markets - the compact segment.
The Volvo 262 was a rare version in the Volvo 260 family. It was based on the same 2-door body used for the 242, but it naturally had the 260-series components and frontal appearance.
In August 1974, Volvo presented a new generation of cars called the 240 and 260 Series. These new models had been developed from the 140 series and were very similar to their predecessors.
In 1972, Volvo purchased one-third of DAF Car BV in the Netherlands and thus established itself in the small-car segment where it had not previously been represented.