We love big trucks around here and this monster from Volvo is no exception. Called the Iron Knight it is a modern hot rodded big rig built by the engineers at Volvo to showcase what kind of power levels that their trucks could handle but also to showcase the I-Drive and what it was capable of doing. Given very few restrictions, Volvo engineers built what may be the most un-Volvo truck ever. The Iron Knight has 2,400hp, is packing a Volvo D13 engine, and has some truly futuristic, bad ass looks. It is fast as well. It covered 500 meters in 13.71 seconds and it also beat the international record for a big rig covering 1,000 meters from a standing start. Those are cool accomplishments but they are by no means enough to claim that this truck is the world’s fastest.
There have been multiple big rigs that have smashed the 200mph barrier by a ton at the Bonneville Salt Flats and just by that fact alone it should give pause to anyone claiming to have the world’s fastest big rig. The weird thing here is that we love the looks and the performance of the Iron Knight and the fact that the I-Drive dual clutch transmission was bolted behing 2,400hp bone stock and it lived is a pretty good testament to its quality. The only thing we are annoyed with are the claims and the PR spin on the accomplishments of the truck.
Now, if they took it to Bonneville and ran it down the course where the Phoenix, the Joint Venture, the Endeavor, and others have hammered out big speeds, we’d be all over it. Hell, we’d be waiting at the end with a bottle of champagne to celebrate breaking the record with them.
Really cool? Heck yes. World’s fastest? Sorry, not a chance.
Yeah, that’s annoying…
Well truck me!
Speed…we need speed!!!!
That 12 speed auto mated to any hp in bobtail fashion is somewhat impressive that it lived. They want to prove that trans is any good roll out to Quebec and hook it to a lumber train (63.5 tonne gross) weight and pull that hill. I have driven many Volvo I-shift and the M-drive they build for Mack in BC and the North of Canada. I can say with absolute certainty those 12 speeds don’t live in the mountains pulling 63.5. If by chance you can drive it gingerly enough to keep it alive, you are only in the way.
“i-shift” ????? do I really? …
“you-shift”, “me-shift” or “we-shift” ??
.”i-drive”, “i-stop” i-see…..
why is it “i-everything” now??
remember when the industry’s wank-words were “-matic”, “-tronic” “-jet” and “-turbo”……..
Give me a i-tronic-turbo-matic-sky-jet-enviro-green-blu discoembobulator