Inside the New Volvo VNR

TL;DR

The new Volvo VNR is a 90% redesigned regional truck delivering 10% better fuel efficiency and proprietary safety systems over its legacy predecessor.

Key Points

• 1.The VNR is approximately 90% new, built from a blank sheet for regional hauling. About a foot shorter than the long-haul VNL, it features a flatter grille, ground effects, chassis fairings, and wheel covers optimized for tight regional operating spaces.
• 2.Total fuel efficiency improves by roughly 10% over the legacy model. Aerodynamic changes including optional Camera Monitor System (CMS) contribute ~4.5%, while powertrain improvements deliver a guaranteed ~3% gain regardless of speed.
• 3.The Camera Monitor System replaces large mirrors with heated, zoomable, auto-panning cameras. It provides better night vision and wider field of view; the truck retains the legally required minimum-size mirrors, but customers can apply for exemptions to remove them entirely.
• 4.Volvo's proprietary Active Safety Platform debuts in North America with this truck generation. Previously only used in Europe for ~20 years, it fuses forward radar (object detection) with a windshield camera (object classification) to avoid false positives and control alert behavior in-house.
• 5.Blind spot radar covers both driver and passenger sides across the full trailer length. The system auto-detects the rearmost trailer corner to set the blind spot zone dynamically, covering even 53-foot trailers without manual input — an improvement over industry-standard passenger-side-only setups.
• 6.Passive safety uses ultra-high-strength steel more than twice as strong as the legacy cab. The cab passes the Swedish impact test — a 3,000 lb moose-simulating impact on the A-pillar, rear wall, and roof crush — and automatically calls 911 with GPS location after a crash event.
• 7.The D13 turbo compound engine recovers ~50 additional horsepower from exhaust energy via a secondary turbine. Available in configurations from 405–500 hp, it runs below 1,000 RPM at 65 mph with gear ratios like 2.15, and features a seven-wave piston, shorter rod, variable displacement oil pump, and two-speed coolant pump for maximum efficiency.
• 8.Volvo invested over $2 billion in this new truck platform and $500 million in its New River Valley, Virginia plant. The VNR started production weeks before this video; a new $700 million factory in Monterrey, Mexico is also ramping up, with ~17,000 VNL units already in customer hands.