Okay, this isn't what we expected when Volvo sent a teaser for this video our way. We knew a 4-year-old girl that's as cute as a button was going to somehow drive a truck. But we expected something along the lines of that hamster stunt, where they proved trucks are now really easy to drive.
Instead, little Sophie shows us the Volvo FMX truck is really easy to crash, not drive, as she manages to perform stunts that border on terrifying. Could she be the next Evil Knievel?
Because kids have no notion of money and its value, little Sophie cannot fathom that she is playing with a truck worth roughly €150,000 and weighing 18 tonnes. And so she treats it as one of her toys, carelessly crashing into obstacles.
The first glimpse of the carnage to come arrives when the truck is hit by a crate full of concrete bricks. Fortunately, the front end is made from 3mm steel plate and can take a beating.
And because little Sophie is a bad truck driver, she then scrapes the entire right suspension along a concrete block for a few tens of meters. It's as excruciating as nails on a chalkboard, but the FMX can take it.
As if that weren't enough, the amateur Volvo driver is distracted by the drone behind her and accidentally… flips the truck over. It's not a problem for the FMX, and neither is ramming a concrete building at full speed.
"The test demonstrates beyond question the ability of the truck to cope with the most extreme environments. To help it do so, it has functions such as the new, Automatic Traction Control, keeping it going even on severely sloping and soft surfaces. They also demonstrate its total strength with an unbeatable cabin design with sturdy front corners and a reinforced sub-frame," says Gunnar Eliasson, Launch Manager at Volvo Trucks.
The FMX is available with either the D11K engine (11-liter diesel with 330, 370, 410, 450 hp) or the D13K (13-liter with 420, 460, 500, 540 hp). Beneath the robust exterior is the revolutionary Volvo steering system that takes the weight off the driver's shoulders. We saw that being demonstrated in the hamster stunt, which you should check out if your appetite for trucks has been whetted.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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