http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9662037/

I thought GM was the leader in hybrid buses, but now in one order DCX will almost match the number of hybrid city buses GM has sold.

Anyone know more about this deal?

What made them go with the DCX buses as opposed to the GM buses? :huh:

I didn't even know that DCX had hybrid buses. It's unfortunate they're getting them in San Fransisco and Toronto too rather than GM ones.

Such deals are usually done by providing specifications and then asking for bids. I assume that DCX either undercut GM's price or produces a bus with specifications that GM does not offer. If it came down to specs, DCX may have offered a size, seating layout, turning radius, or other some other parameter that is not in GM's program. MB has a very comprehensive bus model range because it produces for markets worldwide.

We have had hybrid buses for many years now and even Toyota makes hybrid buses. On Iceland Mercedes even has hydrogen buses! There have been prototypes of natural gas hybrid buses that used regenerative brakes (mostly using hydralics) dating back to the early '80s (Leyland-DAB and Volvo B10M60/AA).

GM doesn't make hybrid buses, they make hybrid systems for buses, which are used by more than one bus manufacturer. DCX does make buses, but the hybrid systems come from BAe Systems. Who knows, one day perhaps DCX will switch to GM's hybrid system instead.