The MAN SG 220 was a VöV standard articulated bus designed and built by MAN between 1978 and 1983. It was offered in two lengths with two, three or four doors and was also built in France, Slovenia, Turkey and the United States.
MAN SG220 at a glance
| Production | 1978–1983, Germany |
|---|---|
| Class | articulated standard city bus |
| Predecessor | MAN SG 192 |
| Successor | MAN SG 240 H, from 1980 |
| Lengths | 16.48 m and 18 m |
| Doors | two, three or four |
| Engine | MAN D2566 MLUM/US inline-six turbodiesel, 305 hp (227 kW) |
| Layout | high-floor puller, middle axle driven |
| US assembly | AM General in Texas, then MAN’s plant in Cleveland, North Carolina from 1981 |
| US withdrawal | 1988 |
The English and German articles complement each other; the American production details come from the English one.
History of the MAN SG220
The SG 220 arrived in 1978 as the successor to the MAN SG 192. Like its predecessor it was offered with the VöV front or the StÜLB front, and it was MAN’s last German model with an underfloor engine between the front axle and the middle axle and a Göppel trailer with a steered axle. It was also available as an intercity bus of 16.48 or 18 metres with various door arrangements. In 1980 the SG 240 H replaced it, and production ended in 1983.
Model numbers
The full model number describes the type, generation, length and number of doors: an SG 220-18-3 is an articulated bus 18 metres long with three doors. The possible door positions were ahead of the front axle behind the windscreen, ahead of the middle axle, behind the articulation and ahead of the rear axle, and behind the rear axle. In the United States the number of doors was limited to two or three, and the related SG 310 was offered with two doors. Both the SG 220 and SG 310 were high-floor puller-type articulated buses with the middle axle driven and a MAN D2566 MLUM/US inline-six turbodiesel rated at 305 hp (227 kW).
United States
In the early 1970s six transit districts developed a ‘super bus’ specification, and AC Transit and Seattle’s Metro Transit tested two European articulated buses in the summer of 1974, one on a Volvo B58 chassis and the MAN SG 192. Riders liked the MAN bus, and the pooled purchase consortium, by then ten transit districts, awarded the order to AM General in August 1976. Deliveries of the AM General/MAN SG 220 began in 1978: buses were shipped from Germany as driveable shells and finished by AM General in Texas to customer specifications. After the joint venture ended, MAN opened its own plant in Cleveland, North Carolina in October 1981, with a planned capacity of 400 buses a year, and built the SG 220 and the related SG 310 there until it withdrew from the US transit bus market in 1988. The plant was sold to Freightliner in 1989. By March 1982, 399 of the 511 articulated buses delivered in the United States were MAN/AM General buses, with 557 more on order.
Design and features
- VöV standard: built to the German standard articulated bus rules with VöV or StÜLB fronts.
- Underfloor engine: MAN’s last German articulated bus with the engine between the front and middle axles.
- Flexible layout: two lengths and two to four doors.
- American assembly: driveable shells finished by AM General, later built in Cleveland, North Carolina.
MAN SG220 versions
- SG 220 with VöV front: the standard city version.
- SG 220 with StÜLB front: the intercity-style front.
- Intercity versions: 16.48 m and 18 m with various door arrangements.
- SG 310: closely related derivative built in the United States from 1981.
- US versions: two or three doors to American specifications.
The SG 220 followed the MAN 890 SG / SG 192 and was replaced by the later low-floor MAN NG272. More MAN buses are in the MAN collection.
Sources
- MAN SG 220, English Wikipedia: production, design, US assembly and orders
- MAN SG 220, German Wikipedia: VöV and StÜLB fronts, underfloor engine, successor
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