User:Useddenim/Van Hool

Van Hool NV is a family-owned Belgian coachbuilder and manufacturer of buses, trolleybuses and coaches, and chassis and tank trailers.

History
The company was founded in 1947 by Bernard Van Hool in Koningshooikt (near Lier), Belgium. In the early years, the company introduced serial production and exported their products all over Europe. Since the mid-1980s the company has also been active in the North American market, where it is now an important player.

On February 15, 1957 Van Hool signed a commercial agreement with Fiat. Van Hool would incorporate Fiat engines and other mechanical components (such as gearboxes, axles and steering) in its vehicles. It progressed from a coachbuilder to manufacturing integral buses and coaches, branded as Van Hool-Fiat. Besides these activities, the company continued as a notable coachbuilder, enabling further expansion.

The Van Hool-Fiat joint venture was an immediate success. By August 1958 the 100th Van Hool-Fiat had been delivered, and by July 1961 the total had exceeded 500. The cooperativen agreement with Fiat was terminated in 1981.

Most of the buses and coaches are built entirely by Van Hool, with engines and axles sourced from Caterpillar, Cummins, DAF and MAN; and gearboxes from ZF or Voith. Some production consists of building bus and coach bodies on chassis from manufacturers such as Volvo, Mercedes-Benz and Scania.

Van Hool employs 4,500 people worldwide, and manufactures over 1,700 buses and coaches (bodies and complete vehicles combined) and 5,000 trailers each year. It sells an average of 600 coaches annually in the United States.

Models
In Europe, Van Hool has the broadest range of coaches of all manufacturers on the market, though all designs share similar styling and are based on the same platform, the T9. The same philosophy is used for the A-series transit bus range. Many different versions are available, all sharing the same look. In recent years, the company has been focusing on new propulsion technologies, introducing fuel cell buses and diesel-electric hybrids.

In the U.S., Van Hool has four separate product lines for sale: the T21-series deluxe touring coaches, the C20-series touring coaches, the TD925 double-decker coach, and the A-series transit buses. Its exclusive American dealer is the ABC Companies.

Due to American Federal Safety requirements and other unique factors, only highway touring coaches were introduced in the US initially. Transit coaches by Van Hool were not introduced until 2002.

Model Numbering
Starting with the introduction of the T8-series coach in late 1970, Van Hool changed to a new naming system for its models. (Note that not every possible combination is or has been offered.) Prior to the introduction of the 8-series, the Fiat engine used was more commonly the designation of the coach, e.g. S308 or S315.

The standard length for the 3-series bus is 12 m.

From 1992 the design was updated with a more modern look using smaller headlights and grill, tinted windows, recessed taillights and rub rails on the sides.

Rarely will a coach have the maximum number of places rows of seats. For example a T915, which has a theoretical capacity of 60 (4 &times; 15 seats), will usually have 50 seats (or sometimes 52 or 54, and in France occasionally 58).

Since 2005 the TD925 (which replaced the TD924) has required a second staircase but has kept the same number of seats. The TD927 increased in length from 13.7 m to 14 m for the same reason.

In the Altano, the seats continue above the driver who is actually sitting on a lower deck.

The 12 m T8 Amaranths had a single rear axle, and the lower deck was one row shorter than the Astromega. Only a few were built.

The lower level is sometimes jokingly called “the aquarium” as everybody can see in there.

The 25-meter city buses as referred to by the GVU Utrecht deployed.

Transit Buses
The popularity of A3 series in Europe led Van Hool and ABC to partner with AC Transit (Alameda and Contra Costa counties, California) in 2002 to demonstrate the A3 series as a future transit alternative. The A330 and AG300 low floor transit coaches formally entered service in AC Transit fleet in June 2003. AC Transit now has over 330 Van Hool buses in its fleet.

In 2009 Van Hool built 16 Hydrogen Fuel Cell buses for the American market. These units are powered by fuel cells from UTC Power and lithium batteries from EnerDell. Twelve of the buses went to AC Transit and four to CT Transit (Hartford, Connecticut). This project is unusual in that the buses have been designed from the ground-up as fuel cell buses and are designed, built, and integrated by a single manufacturer.

The AG300 is an articulated 60-foot bus, while the A330 is a 40-foot bus.

In 2008, AC Transit took delivery of a fleet of new A300L buses. These buses are unique in the US market as they have their engines mounted between the axles, which makes their ride quality extremely smooth and stable. The new layout capitalizes on basic architectural design of the A300L's previously-released little brother, the 30-foot A300K. A recent survey of AC Transit riders overwhemingly approved of the design and quality of the new buses.

The Utah Transit Authority of Salt Lake City has purchased ten A300Ls for its Metropolitan Area Express BRT Line. These buses differ from AC Transit's A300Ls as they have three doors and are equipped for cold weather and high altitude operations. They have also recently placed an order for four more because of overwhelmingly positive support of the first ten buses and the MAX BRT service they operate.

York Region Transit (north of Toronto, Ontario) uses A330 and AG300 buses on its Viva York routes. The Reseau de transport de Longueuil (south of Montreal, Quebec) also uses the AG300, and was the first North American properyy to use Van Hool transits, purchasing 22 AG700s in 1989.

Washington, D.C.'s Circulator uses the A330 buses. These 29 buses were purchased from AC Transit in 2005. In addition to the A330 models, the Circulator now uses the new A300K buses, which first went into service in April 2009. The Circulater recently took delivery of 14 A300Ks to build out its route structure. The A300K was chosen because of its unique ability to do the work of forty-foot buses for nearly all operations in the smaller envelope and with the smaller engine of a midi bus.

FirstTransit took delivery of 12 A300Ls and four AG300s in early 2009, for use on the University of Minnesota Campus Connector.

AG280T
This model was built in 1987-1988, in conjunction with ACEC (Ateliers de Construction Electrique de Charleroi), which provided the electrical equipment. The AG280T is an 18 m three-axle articulated trolleybus. Only 20 units were built, all for line 3 of De Lijn (The Line) in the city of Ghent. This model heralded the return of trolleybuses to Belgium in 1989.

T8xx series
The T815 was first introduced to the US market in 1987. Later subsequent models are collectively known as the T8 series. The earliest use Cummins L10 diesels. Later versions use Cummins M11 diesels.

It was available as 30, 40 and 45 foot length versions.

T9xx series
T9 series are almost identical to the T8 series visually, and are largely identical mechanically as well, except for incremental updates. T9 series upgraded the suspension airbags to larger heavy-duty versions, as well as upgraded front axle to disc brakes instead of drum brakes. However, many of the earliest T9's indeed lack these upgrades. What's even more interesting, Van Hool's VIN consider T8 and T9 to be the same family.

It was available as 40-foot (T940) or extended 45-foot (T945) versions.

TD925 Astromega
The TD925 Astromega is a closed-top US-spec double decker motorcoach that is a variant of the TD925 Astromega coach available in Europe.

C20xx series
Introduced as a lower-cost coach intended for long-line duty, the C20 series, with similar European looks to the T21 series, was introduced in 2000 to the US market. C20 is available with Cummins M11 plus engine, Detroit Diesel series 60 engine, or the latest Caterpillar C13 ACERT "clean diesel" engine. Greyhound operates a fleet of C2045s along with its MCI buses in Michigan.

Available as extended 45-foot (C2045) version only. Current model is C2045E.

T21xx series
Introduced in 1996, the T21 series features an updated stream-line design and more engine choices. Whereas T8 and T9 series were almost exclusively powered by Cummins diesel engines, T21 are available with Cummins M11 plus engine, Detroit Diesel series 60 engine, or the latest Caterpillar C13 ACERT "clean diesel" engine. Most recent versions simplified the windshield into only two panes, replaced the headlight assemblies with individual projector lamps, and consolidated the driver's console.

Available as 40-foot (T2140) or extended 45-foot (T2145) versions.