Volvo Powertrains and Their Variations
Some know the Volvo Group as a maker of luxury cars; others know Volvo as a maker of heavy-duty vehicles. What you might not know is that in their heavy-duty trucks, they mostly use powertrains they have built in-house. As of right now, these are the components of Volvo diesel powertrains that are produced.
Engines
Volvo D11
The D11 is the smallest diesel engine Volvo offers. It exchanges raw power for improved fuel economy. Volvo prides itself on the D11’s low weight, putting near the front of its brochure how the latest version of D11 engines is 17 pounds lighter than the previous one.
This engine has nine types. They range from 325-425 horsepower and 1250-1550 pound-feet of torque at the optimal RPM of about 1000. Of the nine, two are considered “Eco-Torque” and two are labeled “XE”.
Eco-Torque engines have two drive modes that the engine will shift between depending on power demand. If the engine sees that it needs to shift into High Torque mode to get up a hill or pull heavier cargo, it will do so. However, it will mostly stay in Low Torque mode for greater fuel efficiency, reducing emissions and fuel expenses.
XE engines offer a single torque mode but lock the driver out of the highest gear except in very specific cases. Like Eco-Torque, this feature also helps the driver save on fuel.
Warranties from Volvo vary based on trucks and components. Their website insists that you contact the closest Volvo truck dealer for more information.
Specifications
- Base Engine Configuration: 4 cycle/Inline Six
- Emissions: Selective Catalytic Reduction
- Aspiration: Sliding Nozzle Variable Geometry Turbocharger
- Cam/Valve Configuration: SOHC/4 Valves per Cylinder
- Cylinder Head: One Piece Rigid Deck Cylinder Head
- Injection System: Common Rail
- Maximum Fuel Injection Pressure (psi):35,000
- Rating Uprateability: Software Only, Throughout Range
- Displacement (liters): 10.8
- Compression Ratio: 17:1
- Bore & Stroke (inches): 4.84 x 5.98
- Cylinder Spacing (inches): 6.06
- Full Dress Dry Weight (pounds): 2259
- Fuel Specification: Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel, 15 parts per million
- Fuel Filters: Primary plus Secondary
- Total Lube Oil Capacity (quarts): 38
- Oil Filtration: Two Full Flow, One Bypass
- Drain Interval, Normal Service (miles): 55,000
- Oil Specification: Volvo VDS-4.5, SAE 10W-30
- FLOCS Oil Drain Kit: Optional
- Air Compressor (CFM): Two Cylinder, 31.8
- Retarder: Volvo Engine Brake
- Engine Brake Rating (2200 RPM): 420 Horsepower
- Engine Brake Rating (1500 RPM): 266 Horsepower
- Brake Weight (pounds): 25
- PTO Port for Live Rear PTO Pump or Shaft: Standard on VHD model
- Preheater (electrical): Optional
For more details on the D11 engine, check out its brochure.
Volvo D13
If you thought the D11 had a lot of variations at nine total, the D13 engine has twenty-two. They vary in horsepower from 375-500 and torque from 1450-1850 pound-feet at 1000 RPM.
Beyond six basic D13s, four Eco-Torques, and nine XEs, the D13 has a new group with three engines: “Super Direct.”
Super Direct has no overdrive, only direct drive. This engine variation is designed to stay in the engine’s “sweet-spot.” This ensures the highest fuel savings and engine life. The horsepower on Super Direct engines maxes out at 450 compared to 500.
Specifications
- Base Engine Configuration: 4 cycle/Inline Six
- Emissions: Selective Catalytic Reduction
- Aspiration: Sliding Nozzle Variable Geometry Turbocharger
- Cam/Valve Configuration: SOHC/4 Valves per Cylinder
- Cylinder Head: One Piece Rigid Deck Cylinder Head
- Injection System: Common Rail
- Maximum Fuel Injection Pressure (psi): 35,000
- Rating Uprateability: Software Only, Throughout Range
- Displacement (liters): 12.8
- Compression Ratio: 17:1
- Bore & Stroke (inches): 5.16 x 6.22
- Cylinder Spacing (inches): 6.61
- Full Dress Dry Weight (pounds): 2605
- Fuel Specification: Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel, 15 ppm
- Fuel Filters: Primary plus Secondary
- Total Lube Oil Capacity (quarts): 38
- Oil Filtration: Two Full Flow, One Bypass
- Drain Interval, Normal Service (miles): 55,000
- Oil Specification: Volvo VDS-4.5, SAE 10W-30
- FLOCS Oil Drain Kit: Optional
- Air Compressor (CFM): Two Cylinder, 31.8
- Retarder: Volvo Engine Brake
- Engine Brake Rating (2200 RPM): 500 Horsepower
- Engine Brake Rating (1500 RPM): 350 Horsepower
- Brake Weight (pounds): 25
- PTO Port for Live Rear PTO Pump or Shaft: Standard on VHD Model
- Preheater (electrical): Optional
For more details, check out the D13 specification sheet.
Volvo D13TC
The TC at the end of this engine name stands for “Turbo Compounding.” TC captures energy from the exhaust gas and returns it to the drive train, resulting in 6% less fuel consumption.
Horsepower ranges from 405-455, and the engines have up to 1850 pound-feet of torque. The brochure states that there are thirty-six different variations. There are nine different ratings in four different configurations: High Torque, Economy, Adaptive Gearing (XE), and Super Direct.
Finally, Volvo advertises the D13TC engine as half of all engines having a life of 1.2 million miles before requiring a complete overhaul. The D13TC is available in all five VNL Volvo semi-trucks.
Specifications
- Base Engine Configuration: 6, Inline
- Displacement (liters): 13
- Compression Ratio: 16:1
- Bore & Stroke (inches): 5.16 x 6.22
- Full Dress Dry Weight (pounds): 2635
- Engine Brake Rating (2200 RPM): 500 Horsepower
Transmission
I-Shift
Volvo makes one transmission with four different versions based on the bells and whistles that are included.
Volvo says the latest models of the I-Shift include state of the art hardware and software, as well as a new countershift brake for smoother and faster shifting. The I-Shift is an Automated Manual Transmission (AMT), meaning that the computer does most of the gear changing while also allowing the driver to make adjustments as necessary.
Maintenance on all models is as simple as changing the oil every 500,000 miles. The warranty is 5 years / 750,000 miles on the transmission and 3 years / 300,000 miles on the clutch.
If your truck use is severe-duty and requires work in an uneven terrain environment such as a quarry, the “I-Shift for Severe Duty” features hardened gears and other hardware to help extend longevity during such vocational use.
When hauling the heaviest of cargo and for when precision counts, one variation of the I-Shift comes with crawler gears. These are one or two lower gears with extremely high ratios. Most noteworthy, with component compatibility approval from Volvo, a crawler gear I-Shift can haul up to 220,000 pounds.
Finally, there is I-See, which takes the base I-Shift transmission and adds in intelligent cruise control and “Eco-Roll” to use downhill roads to increase fuel economy.
See more at the product guide.
Conclusion
Details about Volvo’s truck powertrains tends to be fairly sparse on their website. Most web pages and brochures instruct the reader to contact a local dealer to answer any questions he or she may have. We can infer however from how Volvo markets their engines that they place a much higher priority on cost savings than they do on power, advertising all of the different features the engines have to reduce fuel consumption and extend engine lifespan. Whether or not that is a good trade-off for weaker performance is ultimately up to you.
If power is still needed for your long hauls, you can opt to have an Economy Torque, which will grant the vehicle extra strength when needed. In any case, if you want your truck or your fleet to maintain a steady speed to reduce costs, Volvo is a manufacturer whose powertrains are worth looking into. You can find their powertrains in various Volvo VNR, VNL, VNX, VHD, and VAH trucks.
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