The History of Volvo Penta

Volvo Penta, a prominent global supplier of power systems for marine and industrial applications, offers drives, propellers, auxiliary engines, accessories and complete engine systems. Although auto enthusiasts know the company as the co-developer of Volvo's first car, Volvo Penta's long history includes many marine innovations. Much of the company's history remains to be written, as Volvo Penta actively produces internal combustion engines for the modern era.

  1. Early History

    • In 1868, Volvo Penta began its life as Skofde Gjuteri och Mekaniska Verkstad in Skovde, Sweden. John G. Gronvall established the company as a mechanical shop and foundry. Throughout the first few decades of its existence, Skofde Gjuteri och Mekaniska Verkstad produced cast-iron goods, including agricultural implements, boilers, brewery equipment, pans, ploughs, pots, saw mill components and threshing machines.

    1900-1950

    • 1907 began Skofde Gjuteri's long history with engines. In collaboration with lngenjörsfirman Fritz Egnell designer Edvard Hubendick, the company produced the Penta B1, the world's first marine engine. By 1920, the company – renamed AB Pentaverken – offered two-, three- and four-cylinder variants of the Penta B1. In 1922, the company introduced the U2 outboard engine. In 1925, AB Volvo commissioned Pentaverken to design an engine for its new line of cars; the first Pentaverken-powered Volvo rolled off assembly lines in 1927. By 1935, Volvo had taken over the company and renamed it Volvo Pentaverken. Although World War II caused Volvo to shift away from consumer auto production, Volvo Pentaverken rebounded from the war by introducing the first in-line six-cylinder diesel engine in 1946. That same year, the company shortened its moniker to Volvo Penta.

    1951-2000

    • The postwar era saw a boom for Penta. In 1954, the company introduced the world's first series-produced turbo diesel, followed by the first charge air-cooled marine diesel in 1956, which in turn led to the world's smallest direct-injected diesel engine, the MD1. Volvo Penta introduced the Aquamatic, a revolutionary inboard-outboard marine engine. The Aquamatic brought Penta great success throughout the 1960s, until Japanese competition slowed sales in the early 1970s. In 1973, Volvo Penta – which had newly established branches in the United States and elsewhere – premiered the S-drive, a six-cylinder, direct-injected sailboat engine. The 1980s saw Penta focusing on industrial engines, leading into a renaissance of new engine development in the 1990s. Between 1994 and 1998, Volvo Penta introduced the 770-hp, 16-liter TAMD163, the high-performance TAMD122 and TAMD122 EDC, and the low-emission TAD740 and TWD740 marine engines.

    Modern Era

    • By 2000, Volvo Penta had become the Volvo group's most valuable financial performer. In the first decade of the 21st century, the company introduced the five- and seven-liter D5 and D7 industrial marine engines, the D4 and D6 leisure engines and new innovations such as the inboard performance system, joystick-powered docking and gasoline engines with catalytic converters. Beyond 2010, Volvo Penta began focusing on creating engines to meet 2011 emission standards, introducing new features such as catalytic reduction technology.