Volvo FH Electric

The Volvo FH Electric is the battery-electric version of the Volvo FH long-haul truck. Volvo gives it a model page and a specification table of its own, and that table names its own cabs, its own tractor and rigid axle layouts and its own weights, so nothing on this page is borrowed from the diesel Volvo FH. Volvo describes the truck as “a flexible heavy-duty truck with high payload capabilities”, and names city-to-city deliveries, construction site haulage and long-range assignments as work it suits.

Overview and generations

Volvo started series production of the heavy electric trio — FH, FM and FMX Electric — in September 2022. On 14 April 2026 Volvo announced a new dual-motor driveline for the same three models, and, in Volvo’s own words, the new trucks are to be “rolled out step by step to markets starting in 2026” rather than on a single date. Volvo presents the new trucks as the next-generation FH, FM and FMX Electric rather than under a new nameplate. The two generations differ in driveline.

Volvo’s own FH Electric specification table, as archived by the Wayback Machine on 15 March 2026 — before the April 2026 announcement reached the page — described a different truck: two or three electric motors driving through an I-Shift gearbox, rated at 330 to 490 kW of continuous power, a gross combination weight of up to 44 tonnes, a range of up to 300 km for a 4x2 tractor-trailer, and charging quoted as 9.5 hours on AC at 43 kW or 2.5 hours on DC at 250 kW. That archived table also listed four cabs — low sleeper, sleeper, Globetrotter and Globetrotter XL — two fewer than the six the current table lists. Every other figure on this page belongs to the driveline announced in April 2026, not to that earlier truck.

Volvo’s April 2026 release announced two heavy electric drivelines at once. This page is about the FH Electric. The far longer range Volvo announced in the same release belongs to the FH Aero Electric with extended range, a separate model with an e-axle driveline and its own battery and charging figures; none of those figures appear here. That model is described on its own page, Volvo FH Aero Electric.

Cab

The current specification table lists six cab variants: low day cab, day cab, low sleeper cab, sleeper cab, Globetrotter cab and Globetrotter XL cab. The low day cab and day cab are new against the driveline the March 2026 archived table described, which listed sleeper cabs only. Volvo publishes no dimensions — length, width, height or interior — for any of the six on this table.

Electric drive unit and power steps

Volvo describes the driveline in one line — “2 EM, 5 different levels” — and lists the five power steps: 300, 350, 400, 470 and 540 kW. The April 2026 release pairs the top step with 731 hp, and which horsepower a maker means when it writes one is the subject of reading truck power figures. Volvo heads the row “Performance” and publishes no continuous-and-peak pair for any of the five steps; the spec record carries all five as five figures rather than promoting one of them into a continuous or peak field.

The drive unit “integrates the driveline, power electronics, and transmission” in Volvo’s own words, pairing the two motors with the eight-speed powershift gearbox described below.

Transmission

The eight-speed powershift gearbox sits inside the same drive unit as the two motors rather than as a separate assembly. Volvo’s model page describes “a powerful and energy-efficient drive unit that integrates the driveline, power electronics, and transmission” fitted with “two electric motors and an eight speed transmission with powershift”. The April 2026 release describes the gearbox in two places with two different scopes: for all four new electric trucks announced in that release, it says they “are equipped with a gearbox optimized for electric transmission paired with dual motors”; for this model specifically, in the FH/FM/FMX facts box, it calls the new drivetrain’s gearbox “purpose-built … with eight gears to maximize electric torque”. The eight-speed count is this model’s own — the release separately notes the gearbox is “eight-speed on the new Volvo FH, FM and FMX Electric and six-speed on the FH Aero Electric with extended range”, distinguishing it from the gearbox on that other model. The truck this table described before the April 2026 announcement used an I-Shift gearbox behind two or three electric motors instead, per the archived table cited above.

Axles and suspension

Eight configurations are listed, separated by body type: as a tractor, 4x2, 6x2 and 6x4; as a rigid, 4x2, 6x2, 6x4, 8x2 and 8x4. Every axle is air suspended. What each layout is for is covered in axle configurations explained and is not repeated here. The April 2026 release adds that, for heavier loads and demanding topography, the truck “can be specified with twin-drive axles and low gearing for maximum flexibility” — an option layered onto the eight configurations above, not a ninth configuration of its own, since Volvo names no separate axle code for it. Volvo’s table gives no brake-system detail for this model — no service-brake type and no retarder or other endurance-brake option is named.

Weights

Gross combination weight is given as up to 65 tonnes, a ceiling for the whole range rather than the plate on any one truck — the distinction between a vehicle weight and a combination weight is set out in truck weights, GVW and GCW. The April 2026 release, which gives one set of figures for the FH, FM and FMX Electric together, quotes payload up to 23.8 tonnes for the 4x2 tractor. At the September 2022 series-production start, before the current driveline, Volvo said the same three heavy models could operate at a total weight of 44 tonnes, footnoted as gross combination weight — the same 44-tonne ceiling the March 2026 archived table still carried; the 65-tonne figure belongs only to the current driveline. Volvo publishes no kerb weight for the tractor, only the payload ceiling.

Battery and charging

Volvo gives two battery figures. Installed capacity is a range — 360 to 540 kWh, across four to six packs — while usable energy is given as up to 460 kWh. At the top of the range that is a difference of 80 kWh between installed capacity and usable energy. The subtraction is ours; Volvo publishes the two capacities and not the gap. How makers label the installed and usable figures is explained in installed vs usable battery capacity.

Volvo does not explain the difference. What Volvo does publish, in its own battery and charging FAQ, is the size of the packs it fits to heavy trucks: a cube pack of 90 kWh installed and an L-shaped pack of 98 kWh installed. Four and six cube packs come to exactly the 360 and 540 kWh ends of the published range — again our arithmetic, not Volvo’s. The L-shaped pack does not produce those two figures at the same pack counts, and Volvo does not state which pack the range is built from. The April 2026 release describes the battery configuration as flexible, “to optimize balance between range and payload”; it does not say how much payload each pack costs.

Volvo gives up to 470 km on a single charge, and the footnote attached to it in the April 2026 release says range depends “on external conditions such as the weather and wind resistance, as well as other factors such as total weight of the truck and the driver’s performance”. The bases on which makers declare electric-truck range are set out in how electric-truck range is declared.

Charging is quoted as CCS at up to 350 kW below 750 V, taking the pack from 20 to 80 per cent in around 65 minutes, which Volvo’s model page calls “great for depot charging or planned stops”. Charging power and charging times are covered in megawatt charging explained. The FH Electric specification table lists one charging entry, and it is CCS. Volvo’s charging FAQ does quote megawatt figures, but for the heavy-duty range as a whole, and on the model pages those figures are attached to the FH Aero Electric with extended range.

Safety and driver-assistance systems

Volvo’s model page groups four features under “advanced drivability features”: one-pedal driving, described as offering “stronger retardation power and the possibility to select a suitable retardation level for a smoother ride”; Auto Go, which keeps the vehicle moving at a set minimum speed and, at a standstill, moves off at 1.5 km/h when the brake pedal is released, aimed at tippers driving slowly; Change Direction, a faster and smoother transition between forward and reverse at speeds of up to 30 km/h, for manoeuvring on construction sites; and Active Grip Control, described as giving traction and startability on surfaces such as ice or building-site gravel. Volvo does not say on this table which, if any, of the four is standard rather than optional.

The energy storage system is paired with a battery monitoring system that Volvo says “gives accurate indications when the battery is low”.

Equipment and options

For bodied work, the specification table lists two power take-offs: an electrical one offered at three levels — 30, 60 or 90 kW — and a clutch-independent transmission PTO, which Volvo says can run while the truck is charging. Volvo names tipper bodies, refrigeration units, mixers that need to run constantly, and road-building sites where the vehicle is driven slowly while distributing gravel as applications for these outputs. The April 2026 release adds that the driver can drive the truck and power auxiliary equipment such as a concrete mixer, hook lift or refuse unit “without extra motors or add-ons”, crediting this to an integrated gearbox PTO with increased functionality that Volvo says enables use while driving. The same release separately describes “multiple configurations with several power take-off solutions — split motors or dual-motor output for cranes, hook lifts or tipper bodies”, adding that the truck and the body it carries “can be operated simultaneously”.

Source notes

Volvo publishes five power steps for the twin-motor drive unit — 300, 350, 400, 470 and 540 kW — under a heading that reads “Performance”, with no continuous-versus-peak split; the top step is also quoted as 731 hp. Installed energy is a range, 360–540 kWh across four to six packs, against usable energy of up to 460 kWh, a difference of 80 kWh at the top of the range — that subtraction is ours, not a Volvo figure. Volvo’s battery FAQ gives 90 kWh installed for the cube pack and 98 kWh for the L-shaped one, and four and six cube packs come to exactly the 360 and 540 kWh ends of the published range; that arithmetic is also ours, and Volvo does not state which pack the range is built from. Range and usable energy are both published as ceilings, “up to”, and the range figure carries a footnote: it depends on external conditions such as the weather and wind resistance, as well as other factors such as the total weight of the truck and the driver’s performance. CCS charging is quoted at up to 350 kW below 750 V, 20 to 80 per cent in around 65 minutes. Two power take-offs are offered: an electrical one at 30, 60 or 90 kW and a clutch-independent transmission PTO that can run while the truck is charging. The April 2026 release separately describes “multiple configurations with several power take-off solutions — split motors or dual-motor output for cranes, hook lifts or tipper bodies”, with the truck and body able to be “operated simultaneously”. The same release states the truck can be specified with twin-drive axles and low gearing “for maximum flexibility” on heavier loads and demanding topography, an option layered onto the eight listed axle configurations rather than a separate one. The 65 tonnes is a ceiling for the range rather than a plate on one truck. The April 2026 release, which gives one set of figures for the FH, FM and FMX Electric together, quotes payload up to 23.8 tonnes for the 4x2 tractor; at the September 2022 series-production start Volvo said the same three heavy models could operate at a total weight of 44 tonnes, footnoted as gross combination weight. On battery life the model page says the batteries are long-lasting, with a potential lifespan of up to ten years. The battery FAQ gives a two-year driveline guarantee, a Volvo Service Contract for electric trucks that “guarantees the battery function beyond” it and a Gold Service Contract that “ensures batteries throughout the contract period”; it gives no capacity-retention percentage and no warranted life in years or cycles. The dual-motor driveline was announced on 14 April 2026, and Volvo states that the new trucks will be rolled out step by step to markets starting in 2026. The current specification table lists six cab options — low day cab, day cab, low sleeper cab, sleeper cab, Globetrotter cab and Globetrotter XL cab. The table as archived by the Wayback Machine on 15 March 2026, before the April 2026 driveline announcement reached it, described the earlier truck: two or three electric motors driving through an I-Shift gearbox, rated at 330 to 490 kW of continuous power, a gross combination weight of up to 44 tonnes, a range of up to 300 km for a 4x2 tractor-trailer, AC charging at 43 kW taking 9.5 hours for a full charge, DC charging at 250 kW taking 2.5 hours, and four cabs (low sleeper, sleeper, Globetrotter, Globetrotter XL) rather than the current six. The current model page groups four drivability features as “advanced drivability features”: one-pedal driving; Auto Go, which moves the truck off at 1.5 km/h from a standstill when the brake pedal is released, aimed at tippers driving slowly; Change Direction, which allows forward-reverse transitions at up to 30 km/h; and Active Grip Control. None of the four is marked standard or optional on the table. The model page also describes a battery monitoring system that gives accurate indications when the battery is low. The specification table gives no brake-system detail, no cab dimensions and no kerb weight for this model.