Starcraft Focuses on CNG, New Models and MFSABs While GM was set to


announce a new CNG offering for its medi- um-duty commercial chassis that would not be certified for Type A school buses anytime soon, Starcraft Bus is taking advantage of a


deal with Ford and “a very well-established and nationally-known” engine modifier to bring CNG to the small school bus market. While details had yet to be released at this writing, Starcraft GM


David Wright said the deal will be similar to other liquefied propane partnerships, one between Collins Bus Corporation, Clean Fuels USA and GM and the other between Micro Bird, ROUSH Performance and Ford. Te third-party company utilized by Starcraft and certified by Ford will modify engine codes supplied by Ford for its gasoline engines. Te CNG chassis will require certification for school bus use and a full warranty by both Ford and the third-party. Last year, Starcraft won its fifth-consecutive Ford Commercial


Shuttle/School Bus Chassis of the Year Award. Wright added that Starcraft was expected to surpass 25,000 total school buses and


commercial white buses shipped by next month. Te company is hoping to see its school bus market share continue to grow with its second-generation Type A Quest and Prodigy models, which both come in either single-wheel or dual rear-wheel configurations on Ford or GM chassis. Like the rest of the industry, customers inter- ested in diesel will need to opt in favor of GM, as Ford announced last year it would forgo the diesel market in 2011. Te Quest and Prodigy will come standard with two-point lap


belts, and Child Check-Mate systems will be stock on the Prod- igy only. But the biggest changes come to the bus bodies that include a one-piece roof bow, a redesigned front cap and a full fi- berglass rear cap standard on the DRW that was re-engineered to fit 7-inch lights as standard equipment rather than 4-inch lights. Starcraft is also targeting growth in the MFSAB market this


year. Two floor plans were expected to be available this month — 14 passengers plus the driver with regular school bus seats or 14 passengers plus the driver with activity seats — on either Ford or GM chassis to keep down manufacturing and pass-along costs. In fact, Wright said the new Starcraft MFSAB would be “priced considerably under the current MFSAB market.” “More states are trying to get away from 15-passenger vans, so that market will continue to grow,” he added. ■


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