There’s nothing quite like the power of a sleeping giant. Lurking in the shadows, biding its time to find the opportune moment to return. Over the past year, one of the largest bus and coach manufacturers in the world has evolved from a sleeping giant in the Australian market to now position itself as an emerging force down under.
Zhongtong first entered the Australian market in the mid-2000s as the first Chinese bus manufacturer to bring a fully imported and ready to use bus to the nation. However, during COVID lockdowns, the local ZBus exited the area as sales dropped. Now, in its bid to become the largest bus manufacturer in the world, the Zhongtong badge has returned to Australia to resume unfinished business.
“Zhongtong is currently present in roughly 100 countries and the brand wants to give it another go in Australia,” ZBus national corporate sales manager Glenn Davidson told ABC.
“The brand’s leaders approached investors in Australia to relaunch in the country and they chose to bring ZBus back into the local market.”
The return of Zhongtong to Australian roads sees more international experience join the manufacturing market. Zhongtong Bus’ history dates back to 1958 when the company was founded as Liaocheng Vehicle Manufacturing and Repair Factory. By 1971 the group was building buses, with numerous name changes ending when the name Zhongtong Bus was settled on in 1998.
This paved the way for Zhongtong to become publicly listed in 2000, evolving the rich history of one of China’s earliest bus manufacturers. Nowadays, the manufacturer operates out of a production facility in Liaocheng, Shandong Province that spans 471,000 square metres and can produce on average 30,000 large, medium and light-duty buses each year.
This vast capability has seen Zhongtong produce and sell more than 300,000 buses in its history, of which more than 100,000 of these are new energy. Its wide-ranging product line-up features more than 140 models, with four of these currently available in the local market for Australian operators.
“We have two diesel models in larger and small sizes, as well as two hybrid buses in large and small lengths,” Davidson says.
“The H12 diesel model can range from 35 to 57 seats and comes with a variety of luxury options available as add-ons like toilets. We then have a 22 to 26 seat including driver model, while we have two options on the hybrid side.
“The H12 hybrid model is our larger option at 12.3 metres long, with the addition of a battery allowing us to make it a little longer than the diesel version and seat a few more people courtesy of a totally flat floor and putting the engine at the back.
“The L8 is our smaller hybrid model at eight metres long and offers the same benefits as the H12, just in a shorter configuration.”
Currently the local ZBus team includes Davidson as the national corporate sales manager alongside national sales manager Barry Henderson, who has experience launching Yutong buses in Australia and working with numerous bus and coach brands in the local space.
Davidson says the pair are proactive in introducing the Chinese-built buses to local operators, with Henderson often heading to the ZBus factory to assist with minor details and changes, as well as quality assurance checks.
“We’ve currently got a presence in three states around Australia and we’ve sold 26 buses locally since October last year,” Davidson says.
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“Our aim is to continue growing our operations as the sales and presence grows across the country.”
When it comes to how ZBus has gotten off to such a fast start in its relaunch in Australia, Davidson says there are many factors behind the Zhongtong product that make it a lucrative option for local operators.
“We’re at a good price point – the product is really good and there’s great value for money,” he says.
“We have a lot of standard options built into the models that other manufacturers only have as optional add-ons, while Barry and I have drawn from our experience in customer service over the years to talk to bus operators around the country.
“A lot of people have so far been willing to try the unit and then haven’t had any issues, leading to repeat orders.”
These recent trials and sales have seen Zhongtong buses working in remote regions of Australia, including at mining sites in Western Australia and Queensland, as well as completing school runs.
Davidson says the current Zhongtong models in Australia all come with fully independent front ZF suspension and Cummins running gear, providing a uniform standard for local operators to enjoy.
“These buses are well attuned to Australian conditions,” he says.
“We’ve had a lot of interest to date, we’re the only Chinese manufacturer currently bringing a full plug-in hybrid option to Australia.”
The hybrid option comes with 180kW of battery in the longer 12 metre variant, while the smaller eight metre version packs in 80kW of battery. The popularity of this shorter option is already inspiring the ZBus team to investigate further models, with Davidson saying a smaller L7 hybrid bus is currently being evaluated in Australia with various engine options. So far, he says the 12 metre models have been leading initial sales, with the customisable nature of the larger options being important factors in building momentum.
“Being able to customise each bus has been popular among operators – if people want 57 seats with different colours, then we can do that,” he says.
“We have different paints included in our price, with all options coming fitted out from the factory. With our order bank building for the smaller options, we’re continually looking to grow our offering in Australia.”
The sky is the limit for ZBus as it settles into its second stint in Australia. Davidson says both he and Henderson are excited about what the future holds for Zhongtong in the local market as sales continue to build and the word spreads that a sleeping giant in bus manufacturing has returned to Australia.
“The goal is to grow and bring more models out to the Australian market,” he says.
“We’ve got roughly 14 series and 144 different models globally we can draw on to bring to Australia, it’s just a matter of what the market demands and when.
“We’ve been very progressive in establishing spare parts facilities with a large stock holding of fast moving parts available now in Queensland, Western Australia and New South Wales.”
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