Volvo Buses ( Volvo Bus Corporation; formal name: Volvo Bussar AB), stylized as VOLVO, is a subsidiary and a business area of the Swedish vehicle maker Volvo, which became an independent division in 1968. It is based in Gothenburg.
It is one of the world's largest bus manufacturers, with a complete range of heavy buses for passenger transportation. The product range includes complete buses and coaches as well as chassis combined with a comprehensive range of services.
The bus operation has a global presence, with production in Europe, North and South America, Asia and Australia. In India it set up its production facility in Bangalore. A former production facility was located in Irvine, Scotland (closed in 2000).
Products
Chassis
Codes in parentheses are VIN codes for the chassis models.
Historical
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1930s/40s: B10, B12
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1950s: B627
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1950s–1960s: B615/B616/B617
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1950s–1960s: B635/B638
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1950s–1960s: B705
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1950s–1960s: B725/B727
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1951–1963: B655 (mid-engine)/B656/B657/B658
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1960s: B715
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1963–1965: B755
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1960s–1980s: B57 & BB57
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1965–1982: B58
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1966–1971: B54
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1970–1980: B59
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1973–1985: Ailsa B55
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1978–2001: B10M/B10MA/B10MD (1M) – the double deck city bus version B10MD, built from 1982 to 1993, was also known as Citybus
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1983–1996? B9M (9M) – low-budget version of the B10M
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1988–1991 B10C (1C) – special Australian coach version of the B10M
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1978–1991: B10R (1R)
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1978–1987?: B6F/B6FA (6A)
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198?–198?: B6M (6M) – for Asia Pacific
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1990–2002: B10B (R1)
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1991–2011: B12 (R2) – known as B12R, later B380R/B420R in Brazil
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1991–1998: B6/B6LE (R3)
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1992–2000: Volvo Olympian (YN) – modified from Leyland Olympian
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1992–2004: B10BLE (R4)
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1993-2000s: B10L/B10LA (R5)
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1999–2006: B7L/B7LA (R7)
2002-2014: Volvo B7RLE (R7) - Replacement for the B7L, superseded by The B8RLE chassis.
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1998–2002: B6BLE (R3)
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1997–2011: B12B (R8)
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2001–2011: B12BLE/B12BLEA (R8) – articulated version was introduced in 2005
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1998–2004: Super Olympian (S1) – also known as B10TL
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1999–2006: B7TL (S2)
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2000–2003: B10R (S3) – for Brazil
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2002–2018: B9TL (S4) – low-floor double-decker, once known as Olympian in Volvo official website
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2010?–2013: B9RLE (S5)
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2012–2021: B5TL (T9) – low-floor double-decker
Current
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1997–: B7R (R6) – known as B290R in Brazil since 2011
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1999–: B12M/B12MA (R9) – known as B340M in Brazil since 2011 (bi-articulated version was introduced in 2002)
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2003–: B9R (S5) – known as B340R/B380R in Brazil 2011–2012
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2002–: B9S (S6) – bi-articulated version was introduced in 2006, known as B360S in Brazil since 2011
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2005–: B9L/B9LA (S7) – low-floor
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2008–: B5LH (T1) – low-floor hybrid-electric bus
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2009–: Volvo BXXR (T2)
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2009–: B13R – 12.8-litre engine
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2011–: B11R – 10.8-litre engine, known as B340R/B380R/B420R/B450R in Brazil
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2011–: B270F (T5) – front-engined
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2012–: B5RH/B5RLEH (T8) – step-entrance/low-entry hybrid-electric bus, known as B215RH/B215LH in Brazil
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2013–: B8R (T7)
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2013–: B8RLE/B8RLEA (T7) – low-entry version of the B8R
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2015–: BE (U1)
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2016–: B8L (U2) – low-floor double-decker
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2021–: Volvo BZL – low-floor single/double-decker
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2024–: Volvo BZR – flexible electric chassis
Complete buses
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C10M (built in 1980s)
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5000/7500 low-floor bus transit bus (B10L/B7L/B9S Articulated chassis)
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7000/7700 low-floor citybus (B10L/B7L/B9L chassis)
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7250/7350 coach (Volvo/Drögmöller B10-400/B7R chassis) – for Mexico
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7400 – for India
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7400XL – for India
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7450/7550 coach
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7700A articulated low-floor citybus (B7LA/B9LA chassis)
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7700 Hybrid low-floor citybus (B5LH chassis)
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7800 articulated BRT bus (B9S Articulated chassis) – for China
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7900 low-floor citybus
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7900 Hybrid low-floor citybus (B5LH chassis)
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7900A Hybrid articulated low-floor citybus (B5LAH chassis)
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8300 Intercity bus (B9R chassis) – for Mexico
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8400 citybus (B7RLE chassis) – for India
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8500 TX intercity (B7R/B12M chassis)
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8500A articulated intercity (B12MA chassis)
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8500LE citybus (B10BLE/B7RLE/B12BLE/B9S Articulated chassis)
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8600 (B8R chassis) – for Europe, built in India
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8700 TX intercity (B7R/B12B/B12M chassis)
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8700LE citybus (B7RLE/B12BLE chassis)
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8700LEA articulated citybus (B12BLEA chassis)
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8900 intercity (B7R/B9R/B8R chassis)
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8900LE citybus (B7RLE/B9RLE/B8RLE chassis)
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9100 coach – for Asia, built in India
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9300 coach (B9R chassis) – for Mexico
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9400 intercity (B7R/B8R/B9R chassis) – for India
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9400XL(6X2) intercity (B9R chassis) – for India
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9400PX coach (B11R chassis) – for India
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9500 coach (B9R/B8R chassis)
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9600 coach (B9R chassis) – for China
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9600 coach (B8R chassis) – for India
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9700 TX intercity/coach (B12B/B12M/B7R/B9R/B13R/B11R/B8R chassis)
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9800 coach (B12M chassis) – for China
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9800 coach (B13R chassis) – for Mexico
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9800 Double Decker coach (B13R chassis) – for Mexico
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9900 coach (B12B/B13R/B11R chassis)
Acquired companies
Bus makers owned/acquired by Volvo:
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Säffle Karosseri AB, Säffle, Sweden (1981, known as Volvo Bussar Säffle AB from 2004, plant closed in 2013)
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Leyland Bus, United Kingdom (1988, all Leyland products ceased production by July 1993)
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Steyr Bus GmbH, Steyr, Austria (75% in 1990,
[ Brief History Overview Volvo Buses (Archived 28 January 1997)] plant closed in the 1990s)
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Aabenraa Karrosseri A/S, Aabenraa, Denmark (1994, plant closed in 2004)
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Drögmöller Karosserien GmbH & Co. KG, Heilbronn, Germany (1994, later known as Volvo Busse Industries (Deutschland) GmbH, plant closed in 2005)
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Prevost Coaches, Quebec, Canada (1995), now known as Prevost Car
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Merkavim, Israel (1996), jointly owned by Volvo Bus Corporation & Mayer Cars & Trucks Ltd., importer of HONDA cars & bikes in Israel
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Volvo Polska Sp. z o.o., Wrocław, Poland (1996), the largest Volvo Buses factory in Europe
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Carrus Oy, Finland (January 1998,
[ Carrus Carrus (Archived 2 March 2000)] known as Volvo Bus Finland Oy from 2004)
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Carrus Oy Delta, Lieto, known as Volvo Bus Finland Oy Turku Factory from 2004, became independent in 2008 and renamed Carrus Delta Oy
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Carrus Oy Ajokki, Tampere, known as Volvo Bus Finland Oy Tampere Factory from 2004, plant closed in 2008
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Carrus Oy Wiima, Vantaa, plant closed in 2001
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Nova Bus, St-Eustache, Quebec, Canada (1998)
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Mexicana de Autobuses SA (MASA), Tultitlán, Mexico (1998), renamed Volvo Buses de México
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Alfa Busz Kft, Székesfehérvár, Hungary, (2002)
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EUROBUS, Zagreb, Croatia (1994.-1999.) on chassis B10, B12
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Proterra (2023)
Production sites
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Sainte-Claire, Quebec, Canada
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Saint-Eustache, Quebec, Canada
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Borås, Sweden
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Hoskote, India
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Curitiba, Brazil
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Wrocław, Poland
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Tultitlán, Mexico
==Gallery==
action of 1945]]
-bodied Volvo B10M single-deck coach]]
for First Greater Manchester]]
, 2007]]
, 2023]]
, 2025]]
External links
