North and South American CC readers are likely familiar with the products of Superior Coach Company – you may have ridden in a Superior school bus “back in the day.” School buses were the company’s main claim to fame, though they were also a major player in the Professional car market. But as with any company, they had their “ups and downs” – let’s take a look at three somewhat obscure Superior buses that were less than a hit with customers.
This bus was recently donated to the Conneaut (Ohio) Area Historical Society – it had been in the basement of a warehouse for over 60 years. The goal is to restore it. Photo by Sid Walker
Late 1940’s-early 50’s Superior “Avenue” Urban Transit Bus. Until recently, I never knew Superior took a stab at the transit bus market, but here it is. A 25-30 foot rear-engined model. Rather than using an OEM chassis, Superior developed its own in-house and allowed customers to choose an engine. This one has a Hercules JXD, a popular model during and after the war. It’s a 320 cu. in. (5.2L) gasoline in-line straight six L-head, with 86 hp and 200 ft lbs of torque. It was a low compression design, so it could run on 76 octane fuel. I couldn’t find any production figures for the bus, but it’s likely only a few were made before Superior pulled the plug around 1952.
1957-77 Superior Supercruiser. Superior made this large rear-engined model, in 35 and 40 foot lengths. It used mostly a GMC RM 7500 chassis with a variety of engine options; gas and diesel. Competing with similar models from Crown, Gillig, Blue Bird, Carpenter, and others, it was never a big seller. But it had a more successful life south of the border where it was license-built and used in both urban transit and intercity roles, mainly in Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela.
1978-80 Superior Pioneer FC. This one is even more obscure – other than these advertisements, I couldn’t find any pictures of this bus. It was a medium-duty model used mostly for shuttle and para-transit work. It appears to have been built for three years in the late 70’s in small numbers, until Superior went out of business and was liquidated by its parent company in 1980.
The “Superior” name went through several owners, and today S&S/Superior Coach Company is located near the old Superior bus factory in Lima Ohio, where it manufactures a Cadillac platform-based hearse.
Superior also made motorhomes in the early 70s. 2 lengths on Mopar chassis with 413 power. In a split from convention of the day, these used a galvanized steel body. Heavy, heavy heavy. Rust not a problem, but getting paint to adhere properly takes a bit of doing. Very well made units overall. Superior also had ambulances available based on their hearse bodies.
I drove a strange Superior in 1973… a 44 passenger ambulance! The Army bought a bunch of front engine/forward control school buses with the rear bulkhead cut off. Two large side-hinged doors opened up like a box truck. The seats would come out and stretchers would be hung on a variety of lugs and brackets. All you would need would be a major war and all those school buses would have red crosses on them.
The only sick people I ever hauled were when I covered an inter-post medical shuffle, and the passengers had to be spry enough to fit through the small front door and then around the huge doghouse for some monster IH 6-cylinder gasser. The only time I ever used those rear doors was to occasionally load baggage for some road-trip.
That was so much fun, wheeling that huge junker thru Germany, that I’ve forgotten how terrible the vehicle itself must have been. I didn’t forget the passengers, though, they have these annoying holes in the front of their heads. Within months of getting out I had moved to dump trucks, they rarely even had a passenger seat. All my friends could ride with me!
Just a quick note: buses for adults counted four passengers per row while a school bus counts six kids. Forty-four to sixty-six, that sure confused the the passengers.
what is cam and lever steering ?
https://www.larescorp.com/toolbox/skinned-knuckles-articles/ross-cam-and-lever-steering/
Before power steering the Ross had a narrower track and the kingpin angle went through the center of the tire contact patch somehow, making it very easy to steer.
Interesting details .
-Nate
Superior had their hands in quite a few segments of the market for various wheeled vehicles. That early transit coach is a new one for me.
I feel like I’ve seen the Pioneer FC somewhere, in a paratransit role, with a wheelchair lift on the curbside rear. But I couldn’t pin it down as to where or when.
Wow, no idea Superior ever built a transit. Surprising one survived.
The Pioneer FC was actually produced as a regular production model in the late 70’s until about 1980. I had the (mis)fortune to drive a 1978 model as an employee shuttle bus at the Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, OH in 1999 and 2000. It was built on a GMC P30 chassis and had the 6.29 rear end gear so 40-45 was about all she would do. It was a good thing though because we loaded the crap out of that bus. It was the only little guy we had in a fleet of equally ancient retired school buses that we used on the shuttle routes. Ran the wheels of those buses, all gassers.
Thanks Brian, I’ll update the article.
Love that Dodge school bus, I’ve never seen one before. Thanks.
Dodge was a minor in the bus market. International was the dominant supplier in bus chassis, at least in Texas. Ford and Chevrolet/GMC fought it out for second place.
Here in Johnstown, PA, we had a few Pioneers. They came in about the time Johnstown Traction Company was taken over by the county.
Hello mr.Jim how are you? in Venezuela, Superior Coach buses were extremely popular between the decades of 50´s to 80´s of the last century, they became the most recognizable urban bus in Caracas for many years, they were assembled by a company called “Talleres Gago – REOBUS”, the flagship model was the Supercruiser 5200, which had the REO A-475 chassis with a Gold Comet engine series but there other options such as the Ford FT 428, MAN D0846, Mercedes Benz O-317K and O-321H, Leyland Tiger and even Volvo B-58 from Brasil, greetings from Venezuela