The Plaxton Paragon and Plaxton Panther are closely related designs of
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Coac ...
bodywork built by
Plaxton in
Scarborough, North Yorkshire
Scarborough () is a seaside town in the Borough of Scarborough in North Yorkshire, England. Scarborough is located on the North Sea coastline. Historically in the North Riding of Yorkshire, the town lies between 10 and 230 feet (3–70 m) abov ...
, England, since 1999,
[Millar, Alan (2007) ''Bus & Coach Recognition'' : Ian Allan Ltd., ] and still in production as of 2013.
For part of their design life, Plaxton was part of
TransBus International, during which time the designs were officially referred to as the TransBus Paragon and TransBus Panther.
The Paragon and Panther replaced the
Premiere and Excalibur respectively, with the Paragon being the standard and the Panther the premium specification coach. Externally, the main distinguishing feature between the two models is the front end, which is more upright on the Paragon, although the difference is not as pronounced as that between the Premiere and Excalibur.
One important new feature of the designs was the use of a stainless steel structure, to resist corrosion and prolong vehicle life expectancy.
The Generation 2 Panther was launched at Euro Bus Expo at Birmingham in November 2010. It shares some of the external design with the
Plaxton Elite and will comply with the new European WVTA requirements as well as the older domestic Certificate of initial fitness (COIF) standards. New 12.8m version will be available on
Volvo B9R with 53 seats. The Generation 2 15m Panther will be built on the
Volvo B13RT for Megabus with 65 seats and the latest PLS lift. Production of the Paragon ceased afterwards.
The Panther Cub is a short
wheelbase
In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (fron ...
version launched in 2012.
The Generation 3 Panther launched in September 2013 and is a more substantial facelift with a similar rear to the Elite and new headlights similar to the Elite Interdeck.
Body numbering
From the 1989 build season up until the 2010 build season, Plaxton's body numbering system used a letter to identify the body style. The following letters are used for the Paragon and Panther:
*L Panther
*T Paragon
Since the 2011 build season, in which the body numbering format was changed to match that of parent company
Alexander Dennis, the Panther is now assigned the identifier letter P.
Gallery
Plaxton Panther
File:Eddie Brown A3EBT (8693813088).jpg, Eddie Brown Plaxton Panther bodied Volvo B12B in April 2013
File:Wiltax Y335 AUT rear.JPG, Wiltax Plaxton Panther bodied Volvo B10M rear in June 2007
File:Lakeside of Ellesmere BX11VOF (8716897225).jpg, Lakeside of Ellesmere Plaxton Panther 2 bodied Volvo B12B in May 2013
File:Plaxton Panther - Volvo B9R in Kraków (3).jpg, Leger Holidays Plaxton Panther 2 bodied Volvo B9R rear in May 2013
File:Plaxton Panther - Volvo B9R in Kraków (2).jpg, Leger Holidays Plaxton Panther 2 bodied Volvo B9R in August 2011.
File:Taunton Station Road - Plaxton demonstrator YX16NWM.JPG, Plaxton Panther 3 demonstrator
Plaxton Paragon
File:Shearings (National Holidays) 581 YJ03VOM (9123873295).jpg, National Holidays Plaxton Paragon bodied Volvo B12M in June 2013
File:Wightrollers.jpg, Wiltax Plaxton Panther bodied Volvo B12M in June 2007
References
External links
{{Alexander Dennis
Paragon
Vehicles introduced in 1999
Coaches (bus)
Single-deck buses