Volvo reviews or opinions

Thinking the funny part is you wasted all that time posting about a truck engine combination that has NEVER been built, nor will be. Seriously, what was the point of this response?

 

Its obvious. To say volvo engine is better than cat.

 

I just love when I read posts with fuel mileage 10 mpg average.

 

Thats because many people are hauling air with semi-empty boxes behind the truck. Also they never seen Wyoming with ongoing gusts 50+ mph like yesterday.

 

well, my average with a 1999 Volvo was 8,2 mpg, coming from a P&L file. Regarding the wind... you'd better look where I'm living, so I think I know what means winter time. I went into Western Canada with the two trucks and I can tell you that CAT pulling an empty box is 2 mpg per gallon less then Volvo loaded at 35k lbs. these ACERTs are somehow crazy. As soon as they are felling a breeze the are building up a lot of boost. I need to mention that my ECM shows less then 1% cruise control.
I can understand your point of view. The only thing that I cannot understand is why you are posting about CAT on a topic about Volvo!!??? Do you think the world will collapse without your opinion or what? why do you want to promote an engine who failed two times in a row in trucking industry? See ACERT and Maxforce! I bought a truck with CAT influenced by guys like you, who have nothing better to do then browsing the internet looking for a fight. Keep your bulldozer engine on the highway. Me, I want an engine designed for long haul.

 

I liked my 3406E, but my trucks pulled end dumps locally.
As for Volvo, I ran OTR in a 2007 VNL730 which had been bought new in 2010, and this was 2011 when I was driving it. It had the D16 engine, Eaton-Fuller 18913A, and 3.58s... all in all, not a bad setup, and that engine could really power through hills with those 3.58s. From my understanding, that's low gearing by current standards, but you have to keep in mind that I'd never run anything geared lower than 3.90s before then (even when I owned two trucks, which had 3.55 and 3.70 rears, I didn't actually drive them).
I got lucky as far as the D16 goes... plenty of horror stories about that one. I had to have a starter replaced, and there were a couple times the fuse which controlled the engine brake blew out... tracing wires in a Volvo is not fun, rest assured of that.
The guy who ran it after me didn't fare so well... he had to have injector cups replaced, a ton of sensors, etc, and they became recurring problems. Looks like I picked a good time to get out of Dodge.
I liked the truck, but if I were to own one, the D16 would not be my powerplant of choice. Also, I'd see if it were possible to maybe put a 730 cab on an 880 chassis in order to make it more accommodating for open deck work. The 730 as is was a little tight in that regard.

 

First of all, my apologize, but I wouldn't take a truck who has been for 4 years into the dealer's yard, even if it is offered for free. I'm talking here about any brand of a highway tractor. If you had hard times to track wires in a Volvo, you should give a try to a Columbia. All the wires are yellow or white and coded with so small letters.

 

I agree. I'd be wary of a truck which had been sitting at a dealership for that long. But I'm not the one who bought the truck.

Oh... I do have one thing to add which I'm not thrilled about with Volvo (and also because Kenworth does it on some models now).... their use of a hydraulic clutch, rather than a linkage.

 

10mpg is not hard to get in a pre-dpf truck. I also think the mileage will vary depending upon where one is driving. If I were driving in the Virginia hill area, this would not happen at all. Hauling a trailer load of air is normal when you are going to pickup a load several hundreds of miles away. Also, I think 10mpg is possible across parts of I-10, I-40, I-70, I80 and I-90. I'm not saying these numbers are always true. I am saying that I have gotten these numbers when going from certain points to another. (No, not down hill)

When I first bought the truck, I drove from Salt Lake City UT to the boarder of Nevada (towards CA) and I got about 13mpg.

I really nursed this puppy to get this mpg. I drove about 60mph, and kept my foot out of the turbo.

After that, I change my air filter, 3 box fluid change all synthetic. I am running Super Single tires and governed my truck at 68mph. If I am driving to keep up with traffic, these number are totally blown out of the water. Bobtailing is about 12, empty trailer is about 8 and loaded is around 6.25. Pushing 68 the whole time. Hard to get the high numbers, but can be done. I don't think I could do this for a year. Hard to not want to keep up with traffic.

 

BTW - Driving in the weather mentioned above is really fun. floating across the highway when least expected.

LOL..

Naaa. This means time to find a safe place to park if possible.