Conflicting requirements for the largest possible space for cargo in the semi-trailer, for the most spacious and most comfortable cabin for the driver, who will spend hundreds of hours in it every month behind the wheel and while resting, and finally for the best possible aerodynamics for the lowest possible fuel consumption while maintaining the maximum the set length of 16.5 meters is an almost superhuman task.
As part of efforts to reduce emissions, however, the ice moved in 2019, and the European Union allowed even longer sets on its roads, if they met certain conditions, such as, in particular, the ability to turn in a circle with an outer radius of 12.5 m and an inner radius of 5.3 m. “Vehicles or combinations of vehicles, (…) (may) exceed maximum lengths (…) if their cabins show improved aerodynamic properties, higher energy efficiency and safety levels,” it is written in Article 9a of Directive 96/53/EC on dimensions and weights for national and international traffic.
Thanks to this, Volvo was able to start work on the further modernization of its flagship FH. It recently presented the result under the nickname Aero. He clearly says which is the winner here – all the news, which is mainly focused on the front of the cabin, aims to reduce air resistance and thereby improve diesel consumption, or electrical energy. Overcoming air resistance in a tractor with an internal combustion engine, whether diesel or natural gas, makes up a third of the consumption. For the electric version, it is half.
So what has changed? In terms of appearance, it’s pretty clear, but a few details are worth pointing out. The logo, which used to be under the windshield, moved to the lower part of the radiator grille. At the top we see the inscription “Volvo” and below it space for the logo of the company for which the truck will drive. According to the automaker, this was a customer request.
Rounded corners
Especially when viewed from the side, the mask’s overhang stands out compared to the previous FH. Specifically, the cabin is 24 cm longer just at the bow, and thanks to this, its corners can be much more rounded than before. Their rounding creates a vacuum behind them, on the sides of the cabin, which prevents the air flow from breaking away from the cabin; the sharper this corner, the more the air is separated. And the less it separates, the less aerodynamic drag results.
There are a number of other, smaller changes in the direction of reducing drag. These include, for example, better sealing of the joints in the bow, or tighter routing of the cooling air to the radiator and then further away outside the engine compartment, or larger aprons between the side covers of the tractor chassis and the front of the trailer. According to the automaker, these are especially effective in side winds.
How important is all this? For a truck with an electric drive, air resistance makes up about half of the energy consumption, for a truck with an internal combustion engine, it is about a third of the consumption of diesel. For haulage companies, consumption is of course absolutely key, so the reduction of up to 5% that Volvo promises for the new cab is huge.
But since every coin has two sides, I can’t help but wonder if the twenty-four-centimeter extension of the bow does not mean a worse overview of what is happening right in front of the car through the front mirror, and especially if cameras instead of classic mirrors will be rather annoying. This is exactly the kind of experience I hear from drivers of similarly equipped Mercedes.
Cameras? And you, Volvo?
It is the cameras instead of the rear-view mirrors that are perhaps the biggest – and also easily visible – innovation. Volvo Trucks is not the first brand to come up with them; a few years ago, the already mentioned Mercedes-Benz started with cameras, later, for example, DAF joined. Volvo supplies them as standard for the FH Aero, but it is possible to exchange them for classic mirrors on request. For the FH “classic”, as the original version was unofficially called, mirrors remain standard, but cameras can be paid extra.
The question I went to Gothenburg, Sweden to find an answer to, is whether the customer should want to do this, or in the case of aero, whether he should stay with them. Cameras instead of mirrors are a very controversial topic among truck drivers, because they have their disadvantages – it can be harder to see in the dark, a drop of water on the lens in the rain is a big problem, etc.
Of course, Volvo talks more about the benefits of the cameras, whether it’s a reduction in air resistance or a better view from the car. In other words, mirrors – let’s face it – obstruct the view even in a number of passenger cars, and in trucks, where they are several times larger, they stand in the way even more. A family waiting at a pedestrian crossing or perhaps a cyclist can easily hide behind them, and all this in addition to the A-pillars. The displays showing the output of the cameras are located on the A-pillars, i.e. in the driver’s already existing blind spot.
I’m starting with electricity
First, I climb into the cab of the electric version of the three-axle FM truck without a trailer. I still quite vividly remember my autumn experience with the electric Scania 25 P, and the Volvo FM is quite close in size, so I’m looking forward to a direct comparison. I quickly notice that the displays – the one on the left is 12″ diagonally, the one on the right is 15″ because it’s further away; both appear more or less the same size from behind the steering wheel – they don’t protrude much beyond the edges of the A-pillars they sit on.
I can go on with the good news. The upper, standard part of the mirror can display a line that shows the end of the trailer and two additional auxiliary lines at a projected distance of about 25 meters on the road. They are there to make it easier for the driver to estimate the distance from the car behind or perhaps its speed.
Also, this part of the display can rotate automatically according to the steering wheel. This is best demonstrated in a sharp turn on the roughly two-kilometer test circuit at the Volvo Trucks Experience Center polygon – as I turn the steering wheel, I can see further and further away from the car in the left display without the distortion offered by the extremely wide-angle display at the bottom of the display. It always remains static. And if I didn’t like the automatic rotation of the upper part of the display, it can be easily turned off with a button on the door panel, where the “mirror” – actually a cutout of the camera image – is also adjusted, similar to how it would be with standard mirrors.
According to Volvo, problems with the display in the rain or in other bad weather should be solved by heating the cover glass of the camera, which starts by itself at a temperature below 6 °C, or the driver can activate it manually at any time. In turn, problems with the display at night are solved by infrared illumination, which is activated by another button directly on the left display. The brightness can also be adjusted there, if the automatic does not adjust it correctly for the driver’s eyes.
However, we do not find out how the cameras and displays actually work at night. Each drive around the track within the polygon takes just under ten minutes, we don’t go outside the Volvo site, and the station, which involves real truck driving, is just one of five that we go around during the day as part of the news presentation. Unfortunately, there is no time or space for driving in the dark.
And the overview of the events just in front of the car? When I reach the line on the asphalt, I can see it with the front mirror just as well as if there was nothing extra.
Better electronics
The news from the outside is complemented by a few improvements in the field of electronics. The interior itself is the same as in the version introduced in 2020, but the infotainment received new software, based on Android and systemically similar to smartphones.
It offers options for personalizing individual screens. It has retained navigation from Sygic, which allows you to set what a person is carrying, how big and heavy it is; updating map data directly through the infotainment display is now easier.
The I-See system has also been improved, which is a de facto predictive cruise control that monitors the topography of the route and accordingly adjusts the car’s speed for the lowest possible consumption. It also now follows traffic signs and manages to slow down before sharper turns and roundabouts.
Diesel and semi-trailer
Electric trucks – both the FM without a trailer, which I try first, and the FH tractor, which I climb behind the wheel of later – have one big advantage, in addition to quiet operation. Their “engine brake” – actually regenerative braking by electric motors – starts working immediately after activation with the lever on the right under the steering wheel, although the three electric motors send their 490 kW (666 hp) to the wheels via a twelve-speed gearbox.
Deceleration from the steep hill that is part of the test circuit is so easy. In the diesel tractor I’m trying later, I have to think that the engine brake takes a while to work properly after being engaged; their gearbox has to downshift first. But that’s nothing new for seasoned truck drivers, I’m the only one who hasn’t sat behind the wheel of a truck with a non-electric drive since some Friday.
However, in all the cars, I manage to drive through the track on the test polygon without grinding the curb or hitting a road sign with the semi-trailer. My only regret is that I didn’t have time for the FMX “eight-wheeler”, because less than an hour of rides went by unexpectedly quickly.
I discovered with her that cameras instead of mirrors can work very well. Of course, watching the display instead of a mirror will take some getting used to, and there is still the question of how it will work at night, but the view diagonally forward, unrestricted by physical mirrors, is of course very pleasant. And since the consoles with the camera are not visible from behind the steering wheel, they do not pull me in with their gaze through the window, as happens with the Audi e-tron, for example.
What about the consumption?
The only thing the short drives couldn’t answer is whether the fuel consumption really dropped by that five percent compared to the FH “classic”. Something like this would need to be driven at least several hundred kilometers, and preferably on the same route with the same load with both cabin versions.
Nevertheless, I don’t get on the plane back to Prague without an important piece of knowledge – the Volvo has really done well with cameras instead of mirrors. There are fewer blind spots diagonally forward, and since the view from the vehicle is a key element of active safety, at least here the mission was accomplished.
2024-02-17 07:00:00
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