Quote:
Originally Posted by Shreyas Agarwal Which one of these options do you prefer
1. Buy a chassis from the manufacturer and have the body built outside.
2. Buy the bus as a whole from the manufacturer.
3. Anything would be fine till it is bang for the buck.
Your response is expected as it would help me and others to suggest you a more suitable model.
With Regards,
Shreyas Kumar Agarwal |
Thanks Shreyas for interest in solving my problem,
With the experience i have, only the first option is possible, buy a chassis and have a body built by sutlej. my only problem is choosing between chassis manufacturers. AL or Eicher.
AL BS4 is new among private operators, Eicher no one wants to try it, in-spite of this i know 3 buses built on eicher and its not impressive. The tourist segment is very demanding , you cannot afford to have breakdown with the guests. the reason for mentioning this is, now these vehicles are to be diagnosed with the help of laptops, local mechanics can only help in mechanical stuff like changing clutch , break liner, oil leakage etc, with electronics in the bus it is going to be difficult. Also on the other hand we pay tax to the extent of rs.1500 per day here in karnataka.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ashley2 If its for tourist application, normally a Viking can accommodate upto 40 seats in 2x2 config. Wrt this segment, people don't prefer calf support since most of the travel will be during day time and hence if you are specific about 36 seats, you will either end up with highly spacious 11m tourist bus or a very luxurious semi sleeper tourist bus. |
Thanks a lot Ashley2, you have almost nailed it, i am pretty sure i will go ahead with 222, if only you can through more light on few finer aspects,
1. 222 is available in iEGR, that is what sales rep say, AC driven by main engine, what is preferred iEGR or SCR
2. how about initial pick up, same as BS3 FIL model or is it comparatively less due to BS4 upgrade.
3. Speed limited to 80kms, is there any way we can change it.
4.Noticed that Dash board is same is BS3 , with more electronics i thought there be more information in the panel.
Also heard from TVS mechanics that some latest buses are coming for change in electrical wiring, not sure about it, any feedback on this.
we cater to inbound tourists, i have attached photo of one my possession, just to let you know what i am looking for,
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheARUN Ashok Leyland is the market leader by far in this segment. Look no further than the Ashok Leyland 222" chassis. It has been available in BS4 for quite a few months now
Ashok Leyland 222" does not have an engine run AC option
The Ashok Leyland 222" is the largest selling bus chassis for Ashok Leyland. You an easily accommodate 37 seats in 9 rows with calf support push back facility.
Ashok Leyland has newly started selling a fully built version but Prakash Body Builders and Veera in Bangalore have been building 222" bus bodies for a long time now and are amongst the best body-builders in the country
The best one to go for would be the Ashok Leyland 12M chassis with retarder, air-suspension and common-rail engine. This bus comes with 225Hp engine with AC running off the engine. The mileage on long distance runs is claimed to be as high as 6kmpl. This is a Volvo/Scania beater, just check for Infant Jesus Travels that runs between Kanyakumari and Chennai.
The 222" chassis should cost 16 lakhs with options of 1.5 lakhs for the retarder (it improves brake liner life since all busses in India still come with drum brakes ), 2 lakhs for the air-suspension. The bus body from Prakash/Veera should cost 10 lakhs, 2.5 lakhs for the seats from Harita, 5-6 lakhs for the AC with slave engine, in all 30-40 lakhs depending on how you want it specified.
There are two schools of thought on whether a slave engine is better for the AC or it is better to run the AC off the main engine. With the AC running off the main engine, there is power loss and you have to keep the main engine running during breaks. With a slave engine which runs at a constant rpm the AC does not have to deal with rpm fluctuations if it were to run off the main engine. The slave engine will be very small, 1500 cc maybe and will not impact fuel efficiency too much, compared to an AC running off the main engine.
If budget is a problem, then check out OLX. There are many operators who have ventured on this route and have failed too quickly, you will be able to get a bus that has run less than 1 lakh kilometers and is in its warranty period for around 25 lakhs. Shriram Auto Finance has loan recovered busses with them all the time which they would be more than happy to finance to you
GTO has pointed you in the right direction. Our Teambhpian Raj_5004 has 4-5 busses running. Search for the thread "An AC bus this time". You should get all the information you want |
Thanks for your inputs TheArun, i was only contemplating on Eicher or AL, since Eicher has come up with a new engine , also AL is not offering any fullbuilt vehicle as of now, though they showcased it many times.
12 M chassis is not meant for my application since i looking at 36 to 39 seats max. on the other hand there are no buses in the second sales market with the configuration i am looking at.
The prices have sky rocketed now, the chassis with air suspension costs 22 lakhs.