Volvo Launches VNX Vocational Truck with Remote-Control Features
Volvo Trucks North America unveiled the 540-hp VNX vocational truck, introducing remote steering and terrain braking to grow its share in the North American vocational market.
Volvo Trucks North America unveiled the all-new VNX vocational and heavy-haul truck on Wednesday. The 540-horsepower model targets a segment where Volvo seeks to expand its currently small sales share. Vocational work makes up about a quarter of the North American truck market.
Key features and capabilities
The VNX introduces Remote Steer, Terrain Brake, and a direction-change feature to improve precision and safety. Remote Steer allows operators to control the truck from outside the cab at speeds up to 5 miles per hour. This is aimed at precise work tasks with mixers, cranes, and vac units.
Terrain Brake holds the truck in place on steep, rocky ground immediately when the driver lifts off the accelerator. It stops forward or backward lurches faster than a driver could react manually. A direction-change feature lets drivers switch between forward and reverse without touching the brake, a function targeting dump truck drivers who shuttle back and forth.
Design, safety, and compliance
The VNX is built on a shared platform with Volvo's long-haul VNL and regional-haul VNR models. This results from a $3 billion investment in product development and manufacturing. The truck runs on Volvo’s D13 engine, rated up to 540 horsepower and 1,950 pound-feet of torque. Its 2027 engine brake is rated at 630 braking horsepower, exceeding the engine’s power output. The I-Shift transmission shifts 30% faster and is available in 13- and 14-speed versions with crawler gears.
Standard safety systems include forward pedestrian detection scanning from 23 to 230 feet, blind spot detection on both sides, and a 360-degree camera. The cab uses one-third more ultra-high-strength steel than Volvo’s legacy vocational trucks. Standard driver-side curtain airbags make the VNX the only OEM in North America to offer them on a vocational truck. The heat-treated steel frame rails are rated for 160,000 pounds gross vehicle weight.
Every VNX ships with a factory-installed 4G telematics gateway for remote diagnostics and over-the-air programming. All models comply with the EPA's 2027 nitrogen oxide emissions standards effective January 1, 2027. The truck is offered in several configurations:
| Cab Type | Sleeper Size | Available As |
|---|---|---|
| 300 day cab | - | Tractor or straight truck |
| 440 | 42-inch | Tractor or straight truck |
| 640 tractor | 62-inch midroof | Tractor or straight truck |
Production timeline and market goals
Volvo Trucks North America expects orders to open by the end of 2023. Production is scheduled to begin in mid-2027 at its Dublin, Virginia, plant. The company invested $500 million into that facility to support VNX production capacity.
This launch is part of Volvo's broader goal to capture 25% of the North American Class 8 truck market by 2030. The VNX is built for construction, agriculture, logging, and concrete hauling applications. Volvo will announce the official start of sales later this year.
