Ikarus USA

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Ikarus USA was a bus manufacturer based in Union City, Indiana. The company sold buses from Ikarus Coach and Body Works of Hungary, which produced partially completed buses for final assembly in the United States.

History

At the end of the 1970s, Ikarus Coach and Body Works and Crown Coach Corporation entered into an agreement to sell an articulated bus in the United States. Designated as the model 286, it was a derivative of Ikarus's existing articulated bus and adapted for the American market. A similar agreement was made with Ontario Bus Industries in 1984.[1] The joint venture would end in 1987 with Crown and in 1989 with Ontario Bus amid a number of quality and construction problems.

In the wake of the problems with the 286, Ikarus regrouped and entered into an agreement with Union City Body Company of Union City, Indiana, to market and assemble a new bus for the American market. Ikarus USA was formed as a subsidiary of Union City Body Company in 1989 and launched their new product, the 416, followed by the articulated 436. However, the end of the Cold War led to the financial decline of Ikarus in Europe and uncertainty with its future. Union City Body Company eventually declared bankruptcy in 1992, ceasing operations in August of that year.[2]

Ikarus USA was rescued after the First Hungary Fund, under the direction of Hungarian-American citizen Peter Rona, purchased a majority of the company.[3] The company was renamed American Ikarus and relocated to Anniston, Alabama.

Models

References

  1. "COMPANY NEWS Ontario Bus Gets Contract." The Globe and Mail, 1984.
  2. Burger, Frederick. "Ikarus' Owners File Chapter 11." Anniston Star, 1992.
  3. Burger, Frederick. "Ikarus USA Expected to Start Up again in Fall." Anniston Star, 1992