ELKHART, Ind. Glaval Bus, one of the nations largest makers of cutaway and body-on-chassis buses, plans to introduce a 38-foot, rear-engine model aimed at the tour-and-charter bus market, one of Glavals top dealers has confirmed.

The Glaval Synergy will be built on a Freightliner XB-75, stacked-rail chassis, featuring front-and-rear air-ride suspension, Cummins ISB engine, restroom, and seating for 36 passengers. It will be 102 inches wide.

"We are currently taking orders for the Synergy, with delivery in the fall of 2006," said Eugene Hotard, general manager of the New Orleans branch of Bus Group Inc., a commercial bus sales organization with locations in Georgia, Mississippi and Louisiana. Bus Group has been a strong advocate of development of the bus by Glaval.

"We will market this coach to the tour-and-charter market," said Hotard.

"This unit is being developed for a market that we think has a need for a midsize coach with many of the large-coach features, ride quality and luggage capacity," said Hotard.

"Many of our customers are telling us that their end-user customers want a smaller bus as the tour and charter group size has changed."

Sales efforts also will focus on limousine operators, churches, colleges, universities and other passenger carrier operators.

Hotard says the Glaval Synergy will sell for $185,000 to $200,000.

It will have a full, pass-through luggage bay under the floor, with the same cubic feet per passenger as an MCI D-model, according to Hotard.

The Freightliner chassis on which the Synergy will be built has a GVWR of 26,000 to 36,000 pounds, and utilizes an Allison transmission, Meritor ABS air-brake system and axles, and offers an optional ZF independent front suspension.

Several cutaway and trolley bus manufacturers offer models built on the Freightliner XB chassis, including StarTrans, Champion, Trolley Enterprises, Molly Corp. and Cable Car Classics.

The Synergy is expected to compete with a 35-foot bus, the Spectrum LX, that was introduced earlier this year at Motorcoach Expo 2006 in Tampa (see April 1 issue of Bus & Motorcoach News.), and new IC Corp. models that will be introduced later this year (see story that begins on page 1).

The Spectrum is produced by Trident Industries of Cumming, Ga.

"The Trident bus will compete with the Synergy," said Hotard. The Spectrum utilizes a Brazilian-built body on an International chassis and carries a $195,000 price tag.

The Synergy will be built by Glaval at its 300,000-square-foot plant in Elkhart, which produces half-a-dozen midsize cutaway and body-on-chassis buses. Glaval builds one model on a Freightliner chassis, the Apollo, a 10-year shuttle and transit bus.

Hotard said Glaval will sell and service the Synergy through a select group of its dealers (including Bus Group).

Fritz Engelmann, Bus Group vice president of sales, said of the Synergy: "It will perform like a coach. It wont look like a truck or drive like a truck."