Though Volvo has long been successful as a heavy truck manufacturer, its position globally in the middleweight – say 6 to 26 tonnes gvw – segment has never come close to challenging that of its main commercial vehicle industry rival, Daimler. Even with the addition of the Renault range, which came under Volvo control in 2001, the Swedish group’s FE, FL and Midlum chassis are outsold by Mercedes-Benz’s Atego as well as by Iveco’s EuroCargo and Stralis models.
Claes Nilsson, president of Volvo Trucks’ European division, recently asserted his determination to rectify matters, signalling a new marketing boost for the FE and FL chassis built at the group’s Ghent plant in Belgium. Though he was speaking only on behalf of the Volvo marque, his colleagues at Renault Trucks are undoubtedly imbued with a corresponding resolve.
Though Volvo has long been successful as a heavy truck manufacturer, its position globally in the middleweight – say 6 to 26 tonnes gvw – segment has never come close to challenging that of its main commercial vehicle industry rival, Daimler.
It is no coincidence that Nilsson’s pronouncement has come at a time when more has emerged regarding Volvo’s mid-range powertrain strategy. At present, the six-cylinder 7.2-litre diesel engine which powers all FE/FL chassis and heavier Midlum models, and its four-cylinder 4.8-litre stablemate which goes into the lightest Midlums, are outsourced from the German engine maker Deutz.
But Volvo has said that, from next year, the same vertical integration policy which has always applied to its heavy trucks will be extended down range. The Deutz engines will be replaced by an all new family of diesels, of similar swept volume, developed and produced in-house.
More specifically, they will be manufactured in Japan by UD Trucks at its Ageo engine plant. UD, formerly Nissan Diesel, came under full Volvo control in 2007. Designated GH5 and GH7, the new four- and six-cylinder mid-range diesels, with a capacity of 1.17 litres per cylinder, went into production in July. They are said to feature a “newly-developed common-rail fuel system”, though Volvo is not yet prepared to release further technical details. But a high specific output – or “power density” – is expected, with the GH5 developing up to 212hp.
From a marketing standpoint, a switch from outsourced to in-house engines for Volvo and Renault middleweight trucks, while incurring a high initial R&D cost, should eventually enable the group to be more competitive on price.
The GH5/7 engines will make their first appearance in Japanese-built UD truck and bus models, but they are expected to make their European debut a few months later. As well as going into 6 to 26 tonne Volvo and Renault truck chassis, the group’s new power units are destined for lighter-duty bus and coach applications. The smaller GH5 engine is set to replace today’s four-cylinder Deutz-built diesel in Volvo’s B5L parallel hybrid double-deck bus model.
From a marketing standpoint, a switch from outsourced to in-house engines for Volvo and Renault middleweight trucks, while incurring a high initial R&D cost, should eventually enable the group to be more competitive on price. The cost attractions for the Volvo group go further than merely the boost in added value that will come from the switch to in-house engine sourcing: profit on sales of middleweight Volvos and Renaults, which is today effectively shared with Deutz, will in future be wholly the Volvo group’s.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of Automotive World Ltd.
Alan Bunting has a background in engineering, and has been writing on commercial vehicle and powertrain related topics since the 1960s. He has been an Automotive World contributor since 1996.
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