GOTEBORG, Sweden, Sept. 02, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Volvo Trucks (Nasdaq:VOLVY) (Other OTC:VOLVF) (Other OTC:VOLAFK) today unveils a new medium truck model. The Volvo VM has been developed specifically for the South American market. Investment in the new model totals 35 million U.S. dollars and the aim is to secure ten percent of the market for medium trucks within just one year.
The new Volvo VM is the company's first medium truck model to be developed and produced outside Europe. The Volvo NH, Volvo FH and Volvo FM have already been in production at the factory in Curitiba, Brazil, for a number of years.
The Volvo VM has been developed to meet the South American customers' demand for a medium truck for regional distribution and urban operations. The new Volvo VM is delivered with a fully-built body directly from the factory in Curitiba. About 75-80 percent of the components in the new model are made locally in Brazil. The Volvo VM comes with a choice of two engines producing 210 and 240 horsepower respectively.
With the new truck come the concrete synergy benefits of the company's global streamlining process. Some components in the new model come from Renault's medium-range model, the Midlum.
The company expects to sell 1,500 Volvo VM trucks already next year, corresponding to about ten percent of the market for medium trucks in South America.
For further information, please contact: Claes Claeson, Media Relations, Volvo Truck Corporation +46 31-66 39 08 or +46 708-36 39 08
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