07/11/2024
The New Volvo VNL: More efficient. Safer. Connected. Driver-focused. Aerodynamic.
By: Ron Dhaliwal
It’s 90% new and promises to save $20k per truck, per year.
In June, JGK Media Group, along with select media groups from across North America, was invited to Dublin, Virginia to experience the all-new Volvo VNL. Over a period of three days, we experienced the new VNL on screens, on paper, and on the road. The first impression of all the attendees was WOW – this is going to be a game changer.
Upon first look, the new VNL is clean, with a sleek aerodynamic design. The lines are much more fluid, and one part of the truck just blends into the next. It looks like motivation came from an aeroplane.
The inside of the cab is like your personal luxury vehicle. Owners will experience a similar ecosystem to their regular vehicles while driving the new VNL. Ultimate comfort, an impressive infotainment system, top notch technologies, and industry leading safety systems set the bar high for this category. It’s truly an amazing vehicle that was built by forward thinking designers and engineers.
And to make it easier to purchase, the all-new Volvo VNL is conveniently packaged into four exterior and interior trim levels — Core, Edge, Edge Black and Ultimate. And with six cab configurations, each is designed to fit customers' preferences, brand identity, and operational use. There is, of course, the option to mix and match some options. Thus, it’s now like purchasing a regular vehicle.
The Volvo Group has invested heavily in these new trucks, including new and upgraded, state-of-the-art facilities in River Valley, Virginia. The three-day trip to River Valley, Virginia was to explore and go behind the scenes at the production plants. The tour also gave us the chance to drive the new VNL on the new track, which included hills, descents, bumps and varying speed ranges. In simple terms, the new VNL drives more like a big regular vehicle vs a heavy truck. Almost every driver who climbed out of the VNL shared the same opinion – “this thing is so easy to drive that it doesn’t feel like a big truck.” Now those are words one wouldn’t expect to hear.
Volvo Trucks has spent a lot of money on making the new VNL more efficient and claims it’s the most fuel-efficient truck with 10% more fuel saving. This is possible with not only new engine designs, but an overall makeover of the entire truck. As we’ve said before, it’s about 90% new, and thus, the efficiencies are in all aspects of the truck. From a lower drag coefficient and fuel-efficient tires to reworked turbo systems and an all-new drivetrain, the VNL promises a combined $20K savings per truck, per year. And for any fleet, large or small, that’s important to their bottom line.
Driving Environment, Comfort & Safety: In the new VNL, just feel like you’re in your own personal vehicle when it comes to the luxury, working and living space, infotainment system, and functionality. The dash and driver area are geared towards making the journey easier and more enjoyable. Seating position and comfort are top notch, with adjustments to fit any size of driver. Every control is within reach and what’s more, almost everything is intuitive. When you need time to rest or do some work, the cab is open, full of amenities and the bed, well, to say it’s comfortable is an understatement.
In terms of safety, the advanced driver assistance safety systems keep the driver and those around them safe. Volvo was built upon the pillar of safety and with Collision Avoidance Technology, Lane Keep Assist, Lane Centering, and Side Pedestrian Detection, safety is never compromised.
What’s more, in the event of an accident, rollover or airbag deployment, the system makes an automated 911 call and shares location with an emergency services operator. These are systems that aren’t even available in all passenger cars.
The Most Connected Truck in the Industry: Volvo Connect has made it very simple to manage your day with a convenient interface connecting you to all of the critical aspects and digital services of your truck. This new connected truck derives better data from driver input and from the truck to increase productivity. And all of this is done in real-time, with diagnostics and information sent to Volvo to ensure over-the-air updates can be provided to the truck as fast as possible. This not only saves any extra headaches, but downtime is greatly reduced.
Volvo new MyTruck app connects the driver, and/or owner, to the truck to view and review status reports; from checking fluid levels to adjusting cab settings, so many things can now be controlled directly from the MyTruck app. If the truck is need of service, this can also be done directly through the app and is connected directly to the nearest dealer.
Drivers and owners are busy and to reduce the time for daily tasks, the new Volvo ASIST makes it easier to do so much more: now, you can monitor vehicle status, review estimates, issue purchase orders, and approve repairs right from the comfort of your computer, phone or other mobile device. This is truly a fully connected truck.
The new Volvo VNL is quite the game changer is so many ways. Trucks have come a long way in the past many years, but the new VNL takes trucking to a higher level.
The all-new VNL is not an evolution, it’s a revolution.
