With the biggest ever launch of heavy buses in India, including global introductions, Volvo introduced new buses in India.
Volvo launched a new range of buses, comprising city bus and coaches. The new products will not only raise the standards in the segment where Volvo Buses has a presence, but is now all ready to bring in a new coach aimed at the second tier of routes & cities in India. Present at the launch were Hakan Karlsson, President, Volvo Bus Corporation and Akash Passey, Managing Director & CEO, Volvo Buses in South Asia.
The expanded range of Volvo Buses in India now includes three new models that are the first-of- its kind in the country and takes the company’s bus range to 10 different products. All of these actions take place just three months after Volvo Buses announced its ambition to be a USD 1 billion company in the coming years.
Volvo has also taken unilateral step of raising safety standards by introducing enhanced Front Under-run Protection (FUP) & Frontal Impact Protection (FIP) systems across all its coaches.
Akash Passey, Managing Director & CEO, Volvo Buses in South Asia, said, “Today, in one single step we are bringing in products equal to that what we did in the last decade. We now have the local competence & experience to raise the momentum of change manifold. This is just as we expand our market access and raise standards & expectations.
We are on our way to reaching our vision of a 1 billion dollar company with 5,000 buses produced each year. Importantly, with every new product we are touching areas of national and human value – improved fuel efficiency, reduced emissions, attractive public transport, safer & comfortable travel. We are ensuring that, with Volvo, our customers are No.1 in their own business, while more & more passengers in the country experience bus travel – the way the world moves.”
India’s First Multi-axle coach at 14.5m and with steered axle
Luxury Coaches have a new Standard with the Volvo 9400PX
Just when one would wonder what more can be achieved in luxury, travel comfort, safety & transport economy in coaches, here is the answer – the Volvo 9400PX. It is longer, more spacious, more high-performing and comes with a host of new features to make travel even more comfortable. At 14.5m the Volvo 9400PX is the longest intercity coach yet in India. Step inside the coach and discover the finest of interiors with the most luxurious environment.
The Volvo 9400PX is built on the new light-weight Volvo PX platform, which provides even better grade ability and acceleration as well as enhanced stability & larger luggage space. The new coach also packs a performance like never before with the new Volvo 11-litre engine with 370hp. A key feature is the steerable tag-axle for better road handling and manoeuvrability.
Another key feature of the Volvo 9400PX is the Volvo I-Shift gearbox. This automatic gear changing system provides high drive & ride comfort, better fuel economy and offers high braking power of 400 to 600 kW.
The Volvo 9400PX spacious interiors offer a range of opportunities for customers to incorporate a range of passenger conveniences from pantry, toilets, VOD and a range of other features – for smooth long-distance travel.
The bus offer an all-new dimension of comfort in road travel from the most well-built bus as you glide on for miles. It is a coach in its own class and an inspiration to travel, like never before.
Volvo 9400PX has the unique distinction of being a global introduction, starting from India. The first product of its type in the Volvo Product range too.
India’s First Multi-axle City bus, with steered axle
How to offer 55% more occupancy and reduce emissions, fuel and space up to 30%?
Volvo 7400XL is India’s first multi-axle bus with a steered axle. At 14.5m, it is India’s first city bus ready to support efficient mass bus-based transport systems to move more people, with fewer buses, quicker & with less resource utilisation. Volvo 7400XL will take the Volvo City Bus Concept to a new level.
If the Volvo 7400 helped move people away from their personal vehicles and save fuel, emissions, road space – the Volvo 7400XL will do this with even greater intensity. The reason is straightforward; the Volvo 7400XL can carry almost 55% more people and as a result improve upon fuel, emissions and road space consumption by as much as 30%. Imagine what this can do for growing cities, high occupancy routes and for de-congestion? The savings are profound.
Most importantly, this new City Bus from Volvo comes after 10-years of deep understanding of high-performing bus applications in India. Manoeuvrability in the city is gracefully tackled by the steered tag-axle allowing the bus to take on tight roads and turns of a city.
A Global Product. Built for Asia. From Asia.
Volvo enters the second tier of routes in India with the Volvo 9100 Coach
The Volvo 9100 coach is a Global introduction for Asia, from Asia. This new coach is an integral part of Volvo Buses’ ambition to drive quality of transport across the country to more & more cities and routes. The Volvo 9100 embodies the Volvo values for safety, quality and care for environment.
The engine is optimized for a range of driving conditions and is backed by Volvo’s rich experience of 10 years in high performing bus applications on Indian roads. The new Volvo coach is designed to meet medium haulage applications and has been designed to take the Volvo experience to millions of new passengers.
For the bus operators the Volvo 9100 presents an unbeatable business proposition in transport economy – offering excellent value in fuel efficiency, maintainability and overall operating costs. The Volvo 9100 highlights the organization’s local product development competencies.
The Volvo 9100 is a global introduction, developed in Asia, starting from India. It takes Volvo buses into new market segments in the country, thereby expanding the market potential significantly.
The world’s first commercially viable hybrid – Volvo 7700 Hybrid. On display at the Auto Expo 2012
The Volvo 7700 Hybrid is a commercially-produced hybrid bus model. It has been on the market for some years already and both fuel savings and reliability have been proven in commercial operation. The Volvo hybrid technology is probably the most versatile driveline solution there is when it comes to combining environmental improvement with performance, economy and uptime.
Proven in widespread commercial operation
New lighter body design
Increased passenger capacity
Up to 37% fuel savings
40-50% lower exhaust emissions
Quiet and emission-free at bus stops
Optimised for both inner city and suburban traffic conditions
Backed by a comprehensive business solutions package
Now…India’s widest range of High-Performing Buses.
Customers now have the Power of Choice in high-performing buses like never before. The Volvo bus range in India now will include:
Volvo 9400PX Multi-axle at 14.5m, PX platform & 11-litre engine
Volvo 9400XL Multi-axle at 13.7m with 9 litre engine
Volvo 9400 with 9-litre configuration
Volvo 9400 with 7 litre configuration
Volvo 9100
Volvo 7400XL City Bus
Volvo 7400 City Bus
Volvo 7400CNG City Bus
Volvo 7400Semi-Low Floor City Bus
Volvo 8400 Commuter City Bus
Added to these are of course variants of these products.
Enhanced Front Under-run Protection & Frontal Impact protection across all coaches
Volvo Buses has led the way by introducing the first-of-its-kind safety features by any bus manufacturer. As part of its stated value of safety, Volvo has introduced the Front Impact Protection (FIP) and Front Under-run Protection (FUP) systems. Set to exceed global standards and tested by ARAI in India, even as the country regulations have not set any demands on this front.
The FIP is a frontal collision protection system, which effectively spreads the force of an impact into the frontal structure. Full-scale tests show that FIP considerably cuts the risk of serious personal injury.
The FUP system significantly minimises the risk of injury in the event of a frontal collisions between buses and cars. It consists of a steel structure behind the bumper that prevents the oncoming passenger car from becoming wedged under the bus while at the same time offering excellent protection for those components that are fitted at the lower front part of the coach.
Both, these enhancements apply to every Volvo Coach in India.
