Volvo Trucks unveils new 13-litre engine platform with lower fuel consumption
Volvo Trucks has revealed a new combustion engine platform featuring two all-new 13-litre engines designed to deliver lower fuel consumption, reduced emissions and compatibility with a wider range of alternative fuels. The new Volvo Trucks engine platform includes the D13 diesel engine and G13 gas-powered version. Both are based on a newly developed in-house architecture and are intended to support the manufacturer's long-term strategy for lower-emission transport operations.
Volvo said the new engines can reduce fuel consumption by up to four per cent compared with the previous generation when combined with the company's latest efficiency technologies. The engines are also compatible with fuels including biodiesel, HVO, bio-LNG and future hydrogen applications. Combustion engines remain a major part of the long-haul truck market despite the industry's push towards electrification.
Mostly because hauling 44 tonnes across Europe still requires physics to cooperate, and physics remains annoyingly resistant to marketing presentations.
Alternative fuel compatibility
Volvo Trucks said the new platform has been designed to meet future emissions and noise legislation while also offering improved drivability and torque output. Jan Hjelmgren, head of product management at Volvo Trucks, said: "These all-new engines are not only our most fuel-efficient powertrains ever, but they will also take our combustion engine into the future." "The flexibility and readiness for all existing diesel and gas fuels, and also future hydrogen applications, means that we can offer efficient trucks with the possibility of net-zero emissions to all our customers globally."
The manufacturer said the new Volvo Trucks engine platform includes revised turbocharger and cylinder designs, improved engine braking performance and an updated version of the I-Shift transmission. Higher torque outputs will also be available across both diesel and gas variants. Many diesel versions will also support Volvo's I-Roll system with engine stop/start functionality, allowing the engine to shut down automatically while travelling downhill to improve fuel efficiency further.
New engines for FH, FM and FMX models
The D13 diesel engine will be available with outputs ranging from 380hp to 560hp and torque figures between 1,800Nm and 2,900Nm.
The G13 gas-powered engine will offer between 420hp and 500hp with torque outputs from 2,400Nm to 2,800Nm. The new engines will be offered across the Volvo FM, FMX, FH and FH Aero ranges. Volvo said the engines also meet Euro 6 emissions standards and comply with NNR3 noise regulations.
Volvo Trucks plans to begin sales during the third quarter of 2026, with Europe among the first launch markets alongside Morocco, Turkey and India. North and Latin America, Asia and Africa will follow later as the rollout expands globally. Production of the new Volvo Trucks engine platform will initially take place in Skovde, Sweden, while truck assembly will continue at Volvo facilities in Tuve, Sweden and Ghent, Belgium.
The manufacturer said the launch forms part of its wider three-path strategy towards net-zero emissions by 2040, combining battery-electric vehicles, fuel-cell technology and combustion engines running on renewable fuels.
More Information:
For more like this visit the Trucking Magazine website (https://truckingmag.co.uk), or subscribe to Trucking Magazine here (https://shop.kelsey.co.uk/trucking-magazine).