Volvo does not build many cars like the Volvo B10M: a Single-decker bus / Single-decker articulated bus / Single-decker intercity bus / Double-decker bus with 9.6-litre horizontally mid-mounted I-6, built from 1978 to 2003 as the oil crises and the first emissions rules rewired the industry.
The story
The Volvo B10M is a mid-engine city bus and coach chassis manufactured by Volvo between 1978 and 2003. It succeeded the B58 and was equipped with the same 9.6-litre horizontally mounted Volvo diesel engine mounted under the floor behind the front axle. An articulated bus version under the model name Volvo B10MA was also offered, as was a semi-integral version known as the C10M, with the engine in the middle of the chassis.
What is underneath
Under the skin sits 9.6-litre horizontally mid-mounted I-6; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. The gearbox is a SCG Pneumocyclic (B10MD) / Voith DIWA 381.4 / Voith DIWA 851.2 / Voith DIWA 863.3 / ZF 4HP 500 / ZF 4HP 590 / ZF 5HP 500 / ZF 5HP 560. The wheelbase is 4.60, 5.00, 5.50, 6.00, 6.25, 6.50, 7.00 metres. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Its place in the line
Where it sits in Volvo's history is not in doubt: the Volvo B58 came before it; the Volvo B12M followed it; it was built at Sweden. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the Mazda RX-7, the GM (General Motors) Saab 900, the Toyota Supra. Nearby in the Volvo catalogue sit the Volvo 144 and the Volvo 264 TE.
The money
MotorJury scores cars on the United States complaint and recall record, and the Volvo B10M has none: too old, too rare, or never sold there. Its value today is a collector's question, decided by provenance and condition rather than by a class average.