At the 13th NAA (NEOPLAN Bus Exhibition) in Pilsting the host, Joachim Reinmuth, as the brand spokesman and Chairman of the NEOPLAN Management Team was able to welcome over 2,500 guests and interested bus fans. The traditional company exhibition, held every two years, was first held in 1984 in Stuttgart and is now already being staged for the second time at the new company base in Pilsting in Lower Bavaria – in the production plant which was opened in 1973. Customer outings to the NAA were organised from the German branches and large groups of visitors were also reported from all over Europe.
The exhibition programme with current vehicles was rounded off by a very varied programme which in connection with a large exhibition of supplying partners, a Starliner course of skill, informative tours of the plant and an exclusive gala evening also had a strong historic slant. Beside one of the first representatives of the Skyliner double decker, which has been built since 1967, the history of the now complete premium NEOPLAN Cityliner was brought to life on the plant site. In addition to these models built in 1972, 1978, 1995 and 2002 further NEOPLAN exhibits could also be admired in the new Auwärter Museum to which visitors were transported by a shuttle bus service.
At the end of the exhibition Joachim Reinmuth said: "The NAA is always a good opportunity to welcome customers to the head office of the company again at the end of the year and to offer them a hands-on display of our model range, and this not on a fair stand but so that visitors can really experience it themselves. The second NAA in Pilsting has now also proved to be a complete success and as the brand spokesman I am particularly pleased about this in a year in which we can present a largely revamped model family."
For the first time at the NAA NEOPLAN presented the complete range of the new Cityliner high-liner coach in its three lengths and also made them accessible to the trade press for test driving. Beside the two-axle variant the new three-axle Cityliner C and, as a world première, the new 13.99 m Cityliner L was presented.
The highlight at the NAA was the new Cityliner C, which as the three-axle variant offers the typical NEOPLAN compact rear and just recently at the beginning of 2007 was the first bus ever to be awarded the international design prize "red dot: best of the best". At the same the 13.99 m long Cityliner L, which is also fitted with three axles and has a luggage compartment volume of about 11.4 cubic metres, is also being launched on the market, thus rounding off the range for the time being and offering customers a highly diversified model programme. This long-distance vehicle is also available with the powerful MAN D26 Common Rail engine and features all of the same equipment as the small and compact brother Cityliner C. NEOPLAN regards the electronic damper system CDS, which under normal driving conditions already ensures optimal road contact and body stability, as a further aspect of its all-round safety philosophy.
The electronic damper system CDS, which has been specially adapted for the bus, basically functions in a similar manner to that in a truck, but, here it is designed to achieve increased comfort and indirectly to further improve safety. One of the main reasons for this is the physical features of the vehicle concept which reacts to rolling movements less strongly than a truck. In the coach too there is a choice of two comfort levels which are triggered manually and influence the basic damping of the vehicle. In this way the vehicle can be adjusted to specific loading situations or driving conditions.
The 13.99 m long variant of the Cityliner, which also has the steered trailing axle EHLA and optionally the new D26 Common Rail engine, was also on display in Pilsting. This, the longest Cityliner, offers up to 63 seats. Like the Starliner, the Cityliner is also powered by the new, powerful six-cylinder, in-line turbodiesel engines from the MAN D 2066 CR or D 2676 Common Rail ranges, all of which fulfil the Euro 4 standard with MAN PURE DIESEL technology without additional operating agents. The power range of these small-volume engines extends from 294 kW/400 hp through to 324 kW/440 hp for the D 2066 LOH CR and to 354 kW/480 hp for the D 2876 LOH CR. Modern common-rail technology permits the hitherto unrivalled torque of up to 2,300 Nm at 1,900 rpm. Independent tests by trade magazines also confirm that the units are highly economical.
A 13.79 m long Skyliner L completed the model programme of the NAA, while a Skyliner C with 64 seats could also be driven on the test track. The high-liner coach, of which over 2,500 have been built, is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2007 and just recently it also became possible to order it with the LGS Lane Guard System. ESP has already been a standard feature in this vehicle since 2004.
The exhibition programme with current vehicles was rounded off by a very varied programme which in connection with a large exhibition of supplying partners, a Starliner course of skill, informative tours of the plant and an exclusive gala evening also had a strong historic slant. Beside one of the first representatives of the Skyliner double decker, which has been built since 1967, the history of the now complete premium NEOPLAN Cityliner was brought to life on the plant site. In addition to these models built in 1972, 1978, 1995 and 2002 further NEOPLAN exhibits could also be admired in the new Auwärter Museum to which visitors were transported by a shuttle bus service.
At the end of the exhibition Joachim Reinmuth said: "The NAA is always a good opportunity to welcome customers to the head office of the company again at the end of the year and to offer them a hands-on display of our model range, and this not on a fair stand but so that visitors can really experience it themselves. The second NAA in Pilsting has now also proved to be a complete success and as the brand spokesman I am particularly pleased about this in a year in which we can present a largely revamped model family."
For the first time at the NAA NEOPLAN presented the complete range of the new Cityliner high-liner coach in its three lengths and also made them accessible to the trade press for test driving. Beside the two-axle variant the new three-axle Cityliner C and, as a world première, the new 13.99 m Cityliner L was presented.
The highlight at the NAA was the new Cityliner C, which as the three-axle variant offers the typical NEOPLAN compact rear and just recently at the beginning of 2007 was the first bus ever to be awarded the international design prize "red dot: best of the best". At the same the 13.99 m long Cityliner L, which is also fitted with three axles and has a luggage compartment volume of about 11.4 cubic metres, is also being launched on the market, thus rounding off the range for the time being and offering customers a highly diversified model programme. This long-distance vehicle is also available with the powerful MAN D26 Common Rail engine and features all of the same equipment as the small and compact brother Cityliner C. NEOPLAN regards the electronic damper system CDS, which under normal driving conditions already ensures optimal road contact and body stability, as a further aspect of its all-round safety philosophy.
The electronic damper system CDS, which has been specially adapted for the bus, basically functions in a similar manner to that in a truck, but, here it is designed to achieve increased comfort and indirectly to further improve safety. One of the main reasons for this is the physical features of the vehicle concept which reacts to rolling movements less strongly than a truck. In the coach too there is a choice of two comfort levels which are triggered manually and influence the basic damping of the vehicle. In this way the vehicle can be adjusted to specific loading situations or driving conditions.
The 13.99 m long variant of the Cityliner, which also has the steered trailing axle EHLA and optionally the new D26 Common Rail engine, was also on display in Pilsting. This, the longest Cityliner, offers up to 63 seats. Like the Starliner, the Cityliner is also powered by the new, powerful six-cylinder, in-line turbodiesel engines from the MAN D 2066 CR or D 2676 Common Rail ranges, all of which fulfil the Euro 4 standard with MAN PURE DIESEL technology without additional operating agents. The power range of these small-volume engines extends from 294 kW/400 hp through to 324 kW/440 hp for the D 2066 LOH CR and to 354 kW/480 hp for the D 2876 LOH CR. Modern common-rail technology permits the hitherto unrivalled torque of up to 2,300 Nm at 1,900 rpm. Independent tests by trade magazines also confirm that the units are highly economical.
A 13.79 m long Skyliner L completed the model programme of the NAA, while a Skyliner C with 64 seats could also be driven on the test track. The high-liner coach, of which over 2,500 have been built, is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2007 and just recently it also became possible to order it with the LGS Lane Guard System. ESP has already been a standard feature in this vehicle since 2004.
