PowerTorque’s European Correspondent, Will Shiers reckons the new FH16 Aero looks like a very different Volvo from the outside, but he gets the impression the R&D budget ran dry by the time the designers turned their attention to the interior.

Sitting in the cab trying to work out what’s new is a bit like one of those spot the difference competitions. With a bit of help from the demo driver in the passenger seat I was able to identify a couple of additional audio buttons on the steering wheel, and there are now six USB ports instead of four. The audio system has been enhanced (although still doesn’t include Apple CarPlay) and the central 23cm information screen now features an improved user interface.

Of course, the most obvious difference is the addition of the CMS screens, which are attached to the two A-pillars.

My test truck featured the new optional black interior, which does away with the familiar splash of coral (orange), and gives the truck a more sophisticated, grown-up feel. Together with the leather and soft-touch plastics, it lives up to the truck’s flagship status.

While this particular truck had the Globetrotter XL cab, Volvo will also be offering the Australian-developed XXL version, which boasts a 250mm extension at the rear of the cab.

Green credentials

If any Just Stop Oil protesters had witnessed my heavy right foot in Greece, they would likely have considered it their duty to glue themselves to my windscreen. Yes, I had some fun with Europe’s most powerful truck, but that clearly isn’t what the FH16 is designed for.

At the start of this story Bergman said electric trucks aren’t suited to all applications, and that’s exactly where the FH16 comes into its own. Perhaps the perfect example of one of those ‘unique situations’ is Australian road trains, to which the 780hp FH16 is perfectly suited.

It’s a similar story in Scandinavia, and some sensible European countries (not the UK), where FH16s are used to pull 60-tonne 25.25m combinations. Sweden has recently pushed the sustainability barrier one step further, introducing a 34.5m 74-tonne combination.

It will be a long time until such vehicles will be powered by zero-tailpipe-emission drivelines. Until then big combustion engines have a significant role to play, and Volvo’s decision to keep running in the horsepower race is in my view fully vindicated. Your move Scania…

I can see clearly

When Volvo launched its Camera Monitoring System, or CMS, it acknowledged that it wasn’t the first to market, but stressed that this was because it wanted to ensure that the system worked well.

In addition to all the familiar features, such as trailer tracking, night-time surveillance, and reference lines to help gauge distances, Volvo has also introduced an infra-red Night Mode. Although I didn’t get the chance to use it myself, Volvo says it provides class-leading vision in low-light conditions.

It certainly looks impressive in the pictures I was shown at the launch event. I am told that CMS is also unlikely to flicker in response to car LED headlamps, which is a common problem with some rival systems.