Volvo Stacks Four Trucks On Top Of Each Other In New Ad

I don't know why, but Volvo Trucks enjoys putting its presidents in precarious situations for the sake of advertising. Remember Volvo's "The Hook," where then Volvo Trucks president Claes Nilsson stood on the front of the Volvo FMX as it was suspended by a crane dozens of feet in the air? Well, Volvo is back at again, putting current Volvo Trucks president Roger Alm on top of a Volvo Truck that's on top of three other Volvo semis. It's a quadruple-stacked semi sandwich.

The new ad that went live on YouTube today shows off four redesigned Volvo Trucks models – Volvo FH, Volvo FH16, Volvo FM, and Volvo FMX – ahead of their official launch. According to the automaker, this is the company's biggest launch ever with those four models accounting for about two-thirds of Volvo Trucks' deliveries.

Imagine being in the meeting where someone suggested stacking four Volvo semis on top of one another and then plopping the president on top like a human cherry. The truck tower, which is real, stands 15 meters (49 feet) tall and weighs 58 metric tons (127,868 pounds). Most of the commercial's special effects, including the truck tower and Alm on top, were real. The ad took about a month to design before it was shot in late 2019 at a testing ground outside Volvo's hometown of Gothenburg, Sweden.

"I'm used to be on top of things, but for me, shooting the truck tower was definitely an unusual day at work. And let's just say I have a certain respect for heights. I'm a down to earth guy," said Alm.

Volvo Trucks has a unique way of making commercials that go beyond what you'd expect from a commercial vehicle company. Back in 2013, Volvo Trucks, demonstrating Volvo Dynamic Steering, had actor Jean-Claude Van Damme doing the splits atop the side-view mirrors of two Volvo FM trucks. What's next for Volvo Trucks? A commercial on the moon?