LAG Motorcoach was the North American subsidiary of LAG Manufacturing Company, of
Bree, Belgium.
History
LAG is a Belgian company founded in 1947 by two brothers, ''Lambert and Arnold Geusens'', hence the name. The two started by manufacturing construction machinery, but soon moved into
semi-trailer
A semi-trailer is a trailer without a front axle. In the United States, the term is also used to refer to the combination of a truck and a semi-trailer; a tractor-trailer.
A large proportion of a semi-trailer's weight is supported by a trac ...
s, especially dump and
stainless steel and
aluminum
Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...
tankers
Tanker may refer to:
Transportation
* Tanker, a tank crewman (US)
* Tanker (ship), a ship designed to carry bulk liquids
** Chemical tanker, a type of tanker designed to transport chemicals in bulk
** Oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tank ...
. In 1974, a neighbouring firm convinced LAG to diversify into products for passenger transport. After some initial hesitation, LAG introduced a small series of school- and mixed-use buses. By the end of the decade, a dedicated LAG Bus division was created.
The Galaxy 300T was introduced in 1979. It was built on a
Renault
Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufacture ...
or
Volvo
The Volvo Group ( sv, Volvokoncernen; legally Aktiebolaget Volvo, shortened to AB Volvo, stylized as VOLVO) is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distributio ...
chassis, with a DAF or
MAN
A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromo ...
engine. It was also offered later on
DAF or
Scania
Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skåne ...
chassis. An integral version was available from 1982. In 1984 the Panoramic 350T was introduced, also as a unibody coach or on others’ chassis. It achieved modest success as an export model luxury touring coach, primarily in the United States because of its relatively low price. The main difference between European and North American LAG coaches was the
third (tag) axle on the latter. The lavatory’s position was also optional in America, as it could be located mid-ship on the lower level, or at the rear of the passenger area. In either instance it reduced passenger capacity by four, rather than the more common two seats. In 1989 the 3-series was replaced by the EOS 100.
In the summer of 1990 LAG spun off its coachbuilding operation as the ''EOS Coach Manufacturing Co.'' and sold it to nearby manufacturer
Van Hool
Van Hool NV () is a Belgium, Belgian family-owned coachbuilder and manufacturer of buses, Coach (bus), coaches, trolleybuses, and Semi-trailer, trailers.
Most of the buses and coaches are built entirely by Van Hool, with engines and axle ...
, which also produced both buses and tank trailers. Under Van Hool management, the product line was expanded:
The EOS line was phased out in 2001-2002, when Van Hool transferred production of its own
T9-series coach into the Bree plant.
LAG today
In 1996, the Dutch company ''Burg Industries BV'' purchased ''LAG Trailers NV''. In 2010 the Flemish company employed approximately 500 employees, and had an annual production of over 2,000 vehicles of all types.
See also
*
Van Hool
Van Hool NV () is a Belgium, Belgian family-owned coachbuilder and manufacturer of buses, Coach (bus), coaches, trolleybuses, and Semi-trailer, trailers.
Most of the buses and coaches are built entirely by Van Hool, with engines and axle ...
References
indicates a web-site in French.
External links
Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lag Motorcoach
Bus manufacturers of Belgium
Companies based in Limburg (Belgium)
Belgian brands
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1947
American subsidiaries of foreign companies
Belgian companies established in 1947