Hannover will be entirely focused on road freight transport in the coming days. From September 15th to 20th, IAA TRANSPORTATION 2026 will take place. Alongside numerous world premieres and technical novelties, this year’s fair aims to place the people who travel daily with these vehicles at the center of attention.
Special emphasis is placed on September 19th and 20th, when IAA invites drivers and families for a weekend event. At the same time, there are more opportunities than ever before during the so-called IAA Experience Test Drives to personally test current commercial vehicles.
Those who can get accredited for IAA will receive a significant amount of electronic mail in advance. I myself have received numerous pieces of information, announcements, and press releases about IAA TRANSPORTATION 2026 over the past few weeks. However, it is now time to form my own impression.
I am currently on-site in Hannover and have set some personal goals for my first day at the fair. Of course, I will also visit many other manufacturers and exhibitors, but certain appointments are at the very top of my list.
One of my first stops leads me to BYD in Hall 21, Stand B11. This is due to several reasons for me. After having exchanged my Ford Kuga for a BYD Seal U DM-i, the brand has naturally become personally interesting to me as well. However, I find the commercial vehicle division of BYD even more exciting. Therefore, I want to take a closer look at which vehicles BYD is presenting in the commercial vehicle sector and how the manufacturer intends to approach this market in Europe. In addition, today will be my first long-distance test drive with my new passenger car.
Scania in Hall 12, Stand C60/D71, is also at the very top of my list. I have been driving Scania myself for seven years now – accordingly great is my interest in what the manufacturer currently and for the future has to offer. I am particularly looking forward to the electric vehicles and the further development of the E-sector. At the same time, I want to examine the new engine concepts more closely. A possible five-cylinder engine for the 14-tonne class could be interesting if it comes to making smaller and medium-weight vehicles more efficient.
At SuperPanther in Hall 12, Stand D46, it is also about electromobility for me. The brand is particularly interesting because the electric trucks for the European market are manufactured at the former Steyr plant in Austria. I want to take a closer look at the manufacturer’s top model in particular and find out what lies behind the concept and how seriously SuperPanther is taking the European market for electric commercial vehicles.
And then there are two manufacturers whose professional daily life dictates a fairly clear direction: LOGLIFT and PALFINGER.
As a wood hauler, I am naturally interested in everything that has to do with loading cranes and work around wood transport. Therefore, at LOGLIFT, I want to look at the latest developments and innovations regarding wood loading cranes. Also at PALFINGER, the Austrian manufacturer for crane and lifting technology, the current development in this area is central to me.
What interests me is not only which new functions and technical solutions are presented at the trade fair stands. Much more exciting for me is the question: What of that actually benefits us drivers? What makes daily work easier, safer, or more efficient – and what looks perhaps more impressive on the trade fair stand than it turns out to be in the working life later?
Of course, many other manufacturers and exhibitors are also on my program. These are, however, my personal main goals for today’s fair day.
On Saturday, I will go to the IAA again – this time fittingly for the driver and family weekend. I will also keep my eyes and ears open then.
Because that is exactly what my reporting from the IAA should be about: Not simply repeating the manufacturers’ press releases, but looking at the vehicles and technology myself, talking with people on-site, and viewing everything once again from the perspective of a professional driver.
What stands out to me, which novelties convince me, and where I might also look more critically, you will naturally find out here in the blog.
84 Vehicles Ready for Test Drives
Those who want not only to look at commercial vehicles at the trade fair stand but to experience them themselves will have a particularly large selection this year. In total, 84 vehicles from 17 exhibitors are available for test drives. Thus, the offer has been expanded by around 40 percent compared to IAA 2024.
The interest of the manufacturers is apparently enormous: The existing capacities for the test drives are already fully booked. Among the participating manufacturers are DAF, Daimler Truck, Ford, MAN, Renault Trucks, Scania, Tesla, Volkswagen, and Volvo Trucks.
It is no longer exclusively about classic diesel trucks. The focus lies on the drives and technologies that are supposed to change road freight transport in the coming years. A large part of the test vehicles is electric; additionally, visitors can try out hydrogen vehicles and modern, lower-emission diesel vehicles.
Interesting is also the look at the different concepts. For example, the Volvo FH Aero Electric with a range of up to 700 kilometers as well as the FH Aero with hydrogen combustion engine can be tested. Vehicles such as the electric DAF XG Electric also belong to the test offer.
Automated Driving Will Also Be Experiencable
In addition to classic test drives, automated and autonomous driving is also taking center stage. Five exhibitors are showcasing a total of six vehicles as part of ADAS and telematics demonstrations.
Visitors can experience as passengers how far the development of modern assistance and automation systems has progressed. For the first time, so-called driverless Robo Vans without a driver’s cab will also be presented.
This makes the IAA not only an exhibition for new vehicles, but increasingly a place where one can actually test out where the commercial vehicle sector is heading.
Drivers and Their Families at the Center of Attention
Over the weekend of September 19th and 20th, the focus will shift from technical data to the people behind the transport.
The Driver and Family Weekend is explicitly aimed at professional drivers, truck fans, and families. The program includes live music, a large inflatable castle, a go-kart track, giant air hockey, and a forklift course where children can even obtain their own forklift license. In the competition “Kids vs. Trucker,” children will compete against professional drivers.
Truck fans will also find the IAA Experience Area interesting. There, four racing trucks will be on display. Additionally, a convoy of around 30 functional mini-trucks will drive across the exhibition grounds together with a drum marching band.
Drivers themselves will also have their own area. In the Driver Area, the VDA, together with BGL, the PROFI initiative, and DocStop, aim to create space for information, exchange, and recognition of the driver profession.
More Than Just a Tech Show
What is interesting here is the combination of both areas. On one hand, the IAA shows how rapidly commercial vehicle technology is changing – from battery-electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles to automated driving systems.
On the other hand, with the Driver and Family Weekend, it places those who ultimately operate these vehicles and ensure that goods are on the road every day at the center of attention.
However, whether the new technologies are truly suitable for everyday use will not be decided solely at the exhibition grounds. Issues such as charging and hydrogen infrastructure, sufficient power grids, suitable rest and parking facilities, and of course the working conditions of drivers remain decisive factors.
That is precisely why IAA TRANSPORTATION 2026 will also be interesting for professional drivers: You can not only see what manufacturers promise for the future, but actually experience some of the vehicles and technologies yourself.
And over the weekend, with the family event, truck show, and Driver Area, the human side of the transport business will not be neglected.
