Coach 3500

1982 Neoplan AN440A

This coach was added to our collection March 31, 2000. Coach 3500 represents the very first coach PAT received out of the famous 1982 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 1,000 bus order. PAT received 410 coaches from this large order starting late 1982 and later purchased an additional 60 coaches in 1986. As this was the very first coach received, it is slightly different that the remaining 409 coaches that followed it. Coach 3500 was received by PAT to verify that everything was as it should be and a few changes were specified for the remaining coaches. A couple of the more noticeable differences in this coach is that the right side sander refill door is in a different location than the left hand side (and all of the other coaches from the order) and the side signal lights are set higher than on the other coaches.

13 coaches in this first order were built in 1982 with the remainder being built in 1983. The first order was somewhat troublesome with the coaches prematurely rusting out. Neoplan rebuilt some of the coaches in a settlement with PAT (3500 wasn't one of them). In addition, some of the coaches were acquired by the Flxible Corporation in an exchange agreement to reduce the cost of the Flxible order PAT received in the mid 1990's. Several of the exchanged coaches were rebuilt and sold to a system in Canton, China. The rebuilt coaches didn't seem to last all that long there as by 2000, they were retired there and replaced with a Chinese version of the Flxible bus.

Coach 3500 spent most of it's life at the Ross Division, working the North Side and North Hills routes. It was transferred to Collier Division in 1998 when Ross Garage was undergoing renovations and some of the routes were temporarily transferred to Collier and Harmar. When PAT committed to letting AMCAP acquire 3500, it was at Collier and some additional work was done to the coach. It was retained by Collier at that point and was frequently seen on the 41G Dormont route.

Specifications

Manufacturer: Neoplan USA Corporation

Year: 1982

Length: 40 foot

Width: 102 inches

Engine: 6V-92TA

Seating: 44 passengers

Condition: Very good. The A/C is not working and minimal body work is needed. The engine is worn on it but the coach could very easily go back into revenue service with just a minor cleaning.

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