How Fuel Efficiency in Wheel Loaders Impacts Your Bottom Line
When customers ask how to tell whether their wheel loader is truly efficient, the answer comes down to one thing: how much work the machine can accomplish per gallon of fuel. A more efficient loader moves more material, burns less fuel, and ultimately saves your operation thousands of dollars annually.
Productivity and fuel efficiency go hand in hand, and the newest comparison data from Volvo highlights just how much of an impact this really has on day-to-day operations. Volvo recently put two of its most popular wheel loaders, the L150H and L220H, up against comparable models from another brand. The results provide valuable insights for any fleet manager evaluating total cost of ownership.
Test Overview
Before looking at the numbers, it’s important to understand how the tests were structured. Volvo created a controlled, balanced setup to ensure the results were driven by machine performance alone.
They used:
- Two operators, each running both machines
- Short-cycle loading and load-and-carry tests
- Equal tires on both loaders
- Material kept consistent (gravel)
- Ultra-low-sulfur diesel
- Mettler Toledo scale equipment for accuracy
This test design eliminates operator bias and gives a true apples-to-apples comparison, something we always recommend customers ask about when evaluating equipment claims.
Key Takeaways From the L150H Comparison
Across both test types, the Volvo L150H consistently delivered:
- Higher fuel efficiency (up to 35%)
- Lower fuel consumption (up to 28%)
- Higher productivity (up to 20%)
- Shorter cycle times
What stands out is not only the percentage gains, but how quickly small improvements add up. Volvo’s example calculation shows that saving just $0.02 per ton can result in over $23,000 in annual savings based on typical production cycles.
And it isn’t only the drivetrain at work. Volvo’s bucket design, longer floor and convex sides, played a major role by improving stockpile penetration and reducing material loss. Lost material is lost money, and this is an area we see overlooked in equipment evaluations far too often.
What We Noticed in the L220H Results
For higher-capacity applications, the Volvo L220H delivered similarly strong results:
- Up to 30% higher fuel efficiency
- Up to 30% lower fuel consumption
- 10% higher productivity
- Faster cycle times
Volvo illustrates the impact well: an additional 20 tons per hour can translate into 38,400 more tons moved per year. For aggregate, quarry, and heavy production environments, those gains affect every part of the operation, from truck matching to scheduling to resale value.
What This Means for Your Operation
At Ascendum Machinery, we coach customers to look beyond gallons-per-hour. The real metric that drives profitability is: Fuel consumed + material moved + cycle time = true efficiency.
A loader that burns less fuel but moves less material is not more efficient. A loader that burns more fuel but cuts cycle times may still cost you less in the long run. Volvo’s side-by-side comparison reinforces this point clearly.
Want the Full Comparison?
These insights come directly from Volvo’s detailed study on wheel loader efficiency. You can read the complete breakdown, including all charts, percentages, and calculation examples, here: https://www.volvoce.com/united-states/en-us/resources/blog/2024/comparing-fuel-efficiency-in-front-end-wheel-loaders/
If you’d like help evaluating the efficiency of your own loaders, or want to understand how these findings translate to your specific material or application, our team is here to help.
