Gilfred Dasher (Bus)

The Gilfred Dasher is a series of buses that was produced by American manufacturer Gilfred Coach Industries, originally based on an American design. The successor to the Gilfred Transit MKII model line, the Dasher was offered the intermediate option between the Pluto I and Low Floor. Starting with the 2015 models, the Dasher entered its second generation 5 years after the first generation which was discontinued in 2010. The second generation Dasher is distinctive to the first generation in that it is comprised of badge engineered models as opposed to being a standalone model.

First generation (1998)
The original Dasher was a line of standard (high)-floor and later low-floor transit buses developed by Gilfred Coach Industries from its Pluto I design. The design was originally intended solely for the Canadian market as an alternative to the Transit MKII but ultimately the Dasher was soon introduced to the American market as the intermediate option between the Pluto I and Low Floor. The Dasher was produced from 1998 to 2010 and during its lifespan was mostly available in 30' rigid, 35' rigid, 40' rigid, and 60' articulated lengths. In addition to the different available lengths, the buses were sold with a variety of powertrains, including conventional diesel, LNG, and CNG combustion engines along with a diesel-electric hybrid system.

Design
The Gilfred Dasher began life in the mid-1990s as Gilfred was approached by the Toronto Transit Commission, who sought a modified version of the then US market only Pluto I bus. Featuring an ergonomic interior, luggage racks, and two entry doors, the primary design requirement of the TTC was an exclusively low floor and high capacity design. The bus Gilfred designed for the contract was announced in 1996 as the Gilfred DSLFD40. A pilot vehicle was delivered in fall 1997 for a two-month trial, and the first 28 DSLFD40s were delivered in June 1998. Gilfred would produce the DSLFD40 as a rigid design for affiliates of the TTC through 2010, although the design was replaced gradually by Gilfred Low Floor buses starting in 2003.

In 1998, Gilfred built two 40-foot high floor versions of the original model for the Montreal Transit Corporation (STM) and developed it into the high floor variant. Several changes were made to the design, distinguished primarily by the reconfiguration of the entry doors (replacing the central entry with dual entry doors). Gilfred also introduced a similarly styled 60-foot articulated version of the low floor model in 2001. The Toronto Transit Commission was the first customer for this model, as well, followed by the STM the following year.

There were many optional features for the Dasher, including the rear exit doors. Most orders specified wide doors, but a narrower single-stream door was also available. A majority of the high floor dashers had a handicapped lift with its own separate door, but a few opted for a conventional entry door with built-in handicapped lifts. Another modification during the production run was the placement of the exhaust system and tailpipe. Models featuring larger diesel engines usually had a traditional exhaust stack that came out of the left hand corner on the back end, but smaller engined buses had the tailpipe protrude beneath the rear bumper or out of the curb side portion of the rear bodywork.

Second generation (2015)
Gilfred released the second generation Dasher line of low-floor transit buses for model year 2015, after a 5-year hiatus. The newer line was available in 60' articulated and 40' rigid nominal lengths. To decrease development costs on an all-new range of buses, Gilfred entered into a joint venture with two European companies: the French Heuliez Bus and Solaris Bus & Coach of Poland. As a result, the second generation Dasher is comprised of two separate badge engineered models; the 60 foot model was a badge engineered Heuliez GX 437 BHNS whereas the 40 foot model is derived from the Solaris Urbino 12. In addition to the different available lengths, the buses were sold with a variety of powertrain options, ranging from conventional diesel and CNG combustion engines to diesel-electric hybrid.

Gilfred also entered into a joint venture with Oshkosh Corporation to develop a new chassis for the new buses. While sharing a common chassis, the new rigid and articulated variants differed in their modifications to the bodywork; the articulated version was especially modified to accept the new chassis and drivetrain since the original bus it was based on had an integrated unit body design. With the exception of axles, powertrains, and badging, both buses are identical to their European counterparts.