MAN celebrates 70th bus for Fallon Bus Group, expanding Australasia chassis business
At the Australasia Bus & Coach Expo in Sydney, MAN and Penske marked the 70th MAN bus delivered to Australian family operator Fallon Bus Group.
- 70
- 60+
- 22
- 311
What Happened
MAN Truck & Bus appeared at the Australasia Bus & Coach Expo in Sydney on 15 and 16 July 2026 together with importer Penske Australia & New Zealand. It was MAN's second time at the region's most important industry trade fair, held at Sydney Showground. The focus was on the chassis business and the new MAN Lion's Chassis IC (RR8), and the company celebrated its 70th bus for Australian family operator Fallon Bus Group.
The Fallon Bus Group is based in the Australian state of Victoria, was founded in 1962, and is run by the third generation. The family business has relied mainly on MAN since 2012. The jubilee bus is based on the 330 PS MAN Lion's Chassis IC (RR8) and carries a body built by Coach Concepts. "The combination of modern safety technology, high reliability and low running costs makes MAN the compelling choice for us," said Director Luke Fallon, adding that the extraordinary support from MAN and Penske keeps the fleet running every day.
Fallon Bus Group is founded in Victoria, Australia.
Fallon Bus Group begins relying predominantly on MAN.
MAN shows its chassis solutions for the first time at Busworld Southeast Asia in Indonesia.
Australasia Bus & Coach Expo is held in Sydney; MAN and Penske celebrate the 70th MAN bus for Fallon.
Delivery of 22 MAN Lion's Chassis LE (RC2) to Kinetic is planned.
MAN says it is particularly successful in the school bus segment, where operators increasingly pay attention to assistance systems. Along with low total operating costs, the safety equipment on the innovative Lion's Chassis models makes MAN the preferred choice for many operators. The assistance systems fitted include the following:
- Emergency brake assist
- Adaptive cruise control
- Electronic stability program
- Lane-keeping and lane-return assist
“With a reliable customer-service infrastructure of more than 60 authorised dealers and workshops throughout Australia, Penske is ideally positioned to support the growing demand from school, charter and regional operators across the entire operating cycle.”
At the previous expo MAN presented the Lion's Chassis E, the first fully electric MAN chassis for markets outside Europe; the first eBuses built on it are to enter customer use in the region. "Australia and New Zealand are very important markets for our international bus business," said Tom Kuiphuis. Penske Australia recently received an order from Kinetic for 22 MAN Lion's Chassis LE (RC2), with delivery planned for early 2027. MAN follows the same pattern worldwide: it supplies the chassis while local bodybuilders and importers handle bodies, sales and service; in Thailand 311 touring coaches have been built this way, and in Indonesia MAN showed its chassis solutions for the first time in May 2026, later naming TopBest, Modasa and Geyushi as 'MAN Lead Bodybuilders'. "Countries like Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and Indonesia show how our international chassis strategy works," said Barbaros Oktay, Head of Bus at MAN Truck & Bus.
Why this matters
The milestone shows how MAN is growing its bus business outside Europe by pairing its chassis with local bodybuilders and importers. For Australian and New Zealand bus operators, it means more choice in the school-bus segment with assistance systems such as emergency braking and lane-keeping, backed by a service network of more than 60 workshops. The planned arrival of fully electric Lion's Chassis E buses and the 22-bus order from Kinetic signal the next step toward lower-emission public transport.
Terms in This Story
- Chassis
- The base frame of a bus or truck that carries the engine and drivetrain; the body is added on top by a separate manufacturer.
- Bodybuilder
- A company that builds the passenger body or coachwork onto a vehicle chassis.
- Assistance systems
- Electronic safety features that help the driver, such as automatic emergency braking or lane-keeping.
- PS
- German abbreviation for Pferdestärke, the metric unit for horsepower used to describe engine output.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.