The Volvo VN is a Conventional daycab, sleeper from Volvo, built from 1996, when airbags, anti-lock brakes and Japanese build quality became the world standard. Under the bonnet: Caterpillar Inc. 3406E.
The story
The Volvo VN (also known as the Volvo VNL) is a heavy-duty truck produced by the Swedish vehicle manufacturer Volvo Trucks. Initially developed in North America, it was introduced in 1996 as the second generation Volvo Class 8 tractor. For the 2000 model year, the VN was officially renamed VNL. Other models included the VNM (until 2017) and the VNR (from 2017). The "L" in VNL signifies a long bonnet, compared to the medium-bonneted VNM and the regional VNR.
Other parts of the model name (for example, VNL64T760) include the number of wheels and wheels driven ("64"), followed by a "T" for tractor, followed by a three-digit code for the cab style. The 300 cab is a day cab and the 400 is a short sleeper, with 640/660/740/760/780 representing various full sleeper cabs with flat or high roofs. It was the first Volvo commercial vehicle to be assembled in the United States after the discontinuation of the WhiteGMC brand (although Volvo did not purchase the remainder of General Motors' interests in truck tractors until 1997, rechristening its U.S. truck division from Volvo GM to Volvo Trucks North America). It is currently available exclusively for the North American market. In 2013 Volvo Trucks added the VNX, the highest model in the VN series.
What is underneath
Power comes from Caterpillar Inc. 3406E; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. It weighs 13,000–18,000 lbs.. It shifts through a Eaton Corporation Fuller Manual 9, 10, Super 10, 13, 18-speed, 10-speed AutoShift, Ultrashift PLUS, Advantage Automated Volvo I-Shift 12-speed. The wheelbase is 186"–243". These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Its place in the line
Its family tree is legible: it took over from the Volvo WIA; assembly was at Dublin, Virginia (New River Valley Plant), United States. Its contemporaries in the catalogue — the Porsche Boxster, the Škoda Auto Škoda Octavia, the Alfa Romeo 156 — show what else the money bought that year. Nearby in the Volvo catalogue sit the Volvo 144 and the Volvo 264 TE.