Volvo first with Air Bag for trucks.

GREENSBORO, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 18, 1995--Volvo Truck Corp. became the undeniable leader in truck safety last month when it introduced the world's first Air Bag for Class 8 trucks.

The Supplemental Restraint System will be available in December as an option on Volvo FH models, which are sold in a number of countries throughout the world.

Based in Gothenburg, Sweden, Volvo Truck Corp. and its North American subsidiary company Volvo GM Heavy Truck Corp. in Greensboro, are committed to developing and using innovative technologies such as the Air Bag in their joint efforts to further enhance the safety of the world's commercial vehicles.

Volvo GM Heavy Truck was the first U.S.-based truck manufacturer to standardize on three-point seat belts in 1987 and daytime running lights in 1995. Volvo GM Heavy Truck has previously stated its intent to be the first North American truck manufacturer to introduce an Air Bag in its Class 8 trucks operated in the U.S. and Canada. Due to the differences in vehicle configurations found in North America and other countries of the world, however, Volvo GM Heavy Truck must first ensure the Air Bag performs as designed in vehicles built for North American markets.

Safety Breakthrough

The breakthrough in heavy-truck safety was pioneered by Volvo Truck Corp. in just over two years. Similar to the injury-reducing properties of supplemental restraint systems in passenger cars, Volvo's Air Bag for heavy trucks, when used in conjunction with three-point seat belts, will greatly reduce the severity of injuries sustained by drivers.

Data collected by the Volvo Accident Investigation Team in Sweden, a group of Volvo researchers and engineers who have studied more than 1,200 collisions involving heavy trucks since 1969, show an Air Bag Supplemental Restraint System in a truck can make a decidedly positive improvement in a driver's likelihood of surviving a crash. Air Bags in heavy trucks are likely to reduce the severity of injuries suffered by drivers by 20 percent. That figure assumes drivers are using three-point seat belts.

Volvo's Accident Investigation Team conducted a detailed analysis of 94 representative accidents to arrive at the conclusion that an Air Bag would greatly reduce the severity of injuries suffered by a driver of a heavy truck. The analyses were based on the Air Bag being located in the center of the steering wheel and released through means of the reliable technique used in Volvo cars. Surveys conducted by other companies to evaluate the mitigating effects of the Air Bag when installed in passenger cars showed a similar injury-reducing effect from 5 to 30 percent, which validates the accuracy of the Volvo Truck Corp. studies.

For drivers not using three-point seat belts, the injury-reducing effect of an Air Bag is estimated to be much lower. The Accident Investigation Team's survey shows it to be only 8 percent, which is lower than for car accidents. The primary reason for this is that truck accidents typically have several accident sequences and very often the vehicle rolls over, throwing the driver from the seat. Twelve percent of drivers in the analysis were thrown out of the cab after the collision.

The most important conclusion to be drawn from the research conducted by Volvo's Accident Investigation Team is that a seat belt must always be worn to maximize the benefit of the Air Bag. The seat belt guarantees the driver will remain in the seat. Together with the seat belt, the Air Bag reduces the risk of injury and provides optimal protection.

Deployment of the Air Bag is accomplished through a highly advanced electronic system. It features a sensor that registers retardation at the moment of impact, and when the slowing forces are greater than a prescribed limit, an electronic signal actuates the Air Bag. The Air Bag itself is made of nylon and is located in the center of the steering wheel. The cover of the Air Bag consists of two halves which open and fold away when the Air Bag is released. It fills up instantly--in 30 milliseconds--with nitrogen gas which is generated through a controlled chemical reaction.

Tougher Testing Enhances Crashworthiness 

As a part of Volvo Truck Corp.'s extensive research and development efforts to bring the Volvo Air Bag to market, the company devised a new test to further assess the crashworthiness of its truck cabs. The Offset Test enabled Volvo Truck Corp. engineers to develop and adapt the sensor that generates the electronic signal required to actuate the Air Bag. The new procedure has been incorporated in testing of all Volvo cabs, which also includes a crash-barrier test.

The Offset Test more accurately simulates the actual types of destructive forces generated during head-on and rear-end collisions between trucks. During the test, a truck is propelled into a stationary truck at a speed of 31 MPH (50 KPH). The energy arising from the collision is directed to 50 percent of the frontal section. This means that the Offset Test is much tougher than other collision tests.

Volvo GM Heavy Truck Corp., headquartered in Greensboro, is a leader in the development of truck safety features and quality manufacturing practices for the heavy truck industry. In 1995, it became the first U.S. heavy-truck manufacturer to make daytime running lights standard on all products. In addition, the company's assembly plants in Orrville, Ohio, and Dublin, Va., earned ISO 9001 Certification, making it the first truck manufacturer in the U.S. to have two plants certified.

NOTE: Photograph is available upon request. Please contact Chris Baldwin at 216/623-1511 or Phil Romba at 910/393-3080.

CONTACT: Volvo GM Heavy Truck Corp., Greensboro

Phil Romba, 910/393-3080

or

Poppe Tyson Public Relations, Cleveland

Chris Baldwin, 216/623-1511