The first new Volvo FH has been delivered

The very first new Volvo FH takes to the roads this week. The owner, Jean-Pierre Ducournau, received the keys in a ceremony and happy smiles all around at the Volvo Truck Center in the French town of Roissy-en-France, just outside Paris.

"We're delighted and proud
to be the first haulage firm to get to drive the new truck," says Jean-Pierre Ducournau, who together with his sons runs Transports Ducournau. "The new Volvo FH is as attractive inside as it is on the outside. I was really surprised by its comfort and the impressive visibility from behind the wheel."

Jean-Pierre Ducournau has been waiting for his new truck since September, when he secured the winning bid of €150,000 (£130,000) via a Volvo Trucks charity auction on eBay.

"It's a really great truck, but then I wasn't expecting anything other than top quality," says Jean-Pierre Ducournau.

Above all he is impressed with the new Volvo FH's road-holding. "It's undoubtedly the very best available in a heavy commercial vehicle. Even though this is a truck, it has the same comfort as a limousine," he adds.

And Pierre knows what he is talking about. Almost all the trucks in the Transports Ducournau fleet are Volvos and over the years he has operated many different Volvo trucks - from an F89 purchased in 1974 to today's modern FH. Today his current fleet totals over 300 vehicles.

The new Volvo FH is something of a revolution for heavy vehicles and is the result of many years of hard work.

"I'm both happy and touched. This is the truck that the entire industry has been waiting for so eagerly, it represents the future for the truck industry," says Jean-Noel Thenault, President Volvo Trucks in France.

The new truck will primarily cover long-distance routes between Alpes-Maritimes and Var in southern France and haul cargo in the Paris region.

In March Jean-Pierre Ducournau will travel to South Africa to hand over the money from the auction to Star for Life. The organisation runs an educational programme whose aim is to stop the spread of HIV among young people.

Posted in: Alpes-Maritimes,eBay,HIV-AIDS,International,Jean-Noel Thenault,Jean-Pierre Ducournau,Paris,Roissy-en-France,South Africa,Transports Ducournau,Truck,Volvo,Volvo FH,Volvo Truck Center