Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr Twisty
The last Volvo I drove was in the 90's, it was SO soft! But went thru steer tires like candy.
From a drivers perspective, it needs a cup holder, that Volvo ride, and dependability that keeps you on the road, not in a shop. There are still a lot of drivers that put looks high on the list.
Owners perspective, that's where it gets tough... Give me a sleeper model and I'll write you weekly reports on how it's doing 
Short list is weight, dependability, service and parts availability.
Here's a note for your structural engineers: Figure out how to make the visibility line of the A-pillars smaller, or change the mirrors to be less intrusive to forward visibility, or both. Between the two, you can hide a dually pickup from the drivers forward left view, the way they are now.
I'd rather have smaller A-pillars than a high roof..... but that's just me. |
Opinions are always welcome! While I've never driven a truck for a living. I have been a President or Vice President of several large Flat Bed Carriers. I spec'd all of my equipment tractors & trailers and purchased a lot Volvo's (Originally White Motor Company) during my career.
A lot has changed at Volvo since the 90's. I agree some there was some excessive tire wear on some of the Volvo's. But I found that it was related more to the tire manufacturer and model of the tire. I found that the Michelin XZA-2 or Bridgestone R-299 gave me the best mileage on steering tires.
As far as uptime we now have an Uptime Center in Greensboro, NC that is fully staffed 365/24. We offer free remote diagnostics free for the first 2 years. If a CEL comes up in DID we see it at the same time the driver does. Our Uptime Center immediately goes into action by calling the nearest dealership to the truck making sure they have the parts and bay time available to get the truck in and out as quickly as possible. Then we contact the customer and ask them if they can route the truck in for repair? On average this process is saving about a day and a half in down time for our customers.
Improvements in A-Pillar visibility have been made. But remember the Volvo cab is the only cab that passes the Swedish Crash Test. We swing a 2,000lb barrel into the A-Pillar then 2,000lb barrel into the B-Pillar. The door must not open during impact and must open by the door handle without any assistance. It is the safest cab on the market.
With all of the vertical integration by OEM's we are now at 93% Volvo engines and 7% Cummins engines. Of all Volvo trucks built in the United States 87% are now being built with our Volvo I-Shift Transmission. Which is an automated manual.
If you haven't driven a Volvo lately maybe it's time for a test drive!