The Frontrunner Revolutionizes the Cutaway Bus
Cutting-edge lowered floor technology , fuel efficient V6 engine , and a lightweight yet strong and durable composite body structure make the Frontrunner the greenest alternative to electric and the most technologically advanced purpose-built cutaway available in the market today . Paul LaRose - President / CEO
Since its development in 2016 , the purpose-built , low-floor Frontrunner minibus has raised the bar in every aspect of passenger transportation . Its divergent design incorporates numerous advancements in technology , engineering , and construction representing the most innovative , durable , and comfortable low-floor minibus available in its class . While not historically known as a bus manufacturer , Frontrunner Bus Group has been setting the standard in Mobility Transportation for over 35 years . From its inception in 1988 , it was a leader in structural van modifications for the mobility industry , incorporating numerous best-in-class innovations including its Municipal Transporter and the introduction of a composite floor in a van . In August of 2019 , Frontrunner Bus Group divested its structural van conversion business to focus exclusively on the further development and manufacture of its disruptive Frontrunner low floor bus .
The Frontrunner Is Born With the introduction of the RAM Promaster 3500 chassis in 2016 , Paul LaRose , President and CEO of Frontrunner Bus Group , saw an opportunity to develop a true purpose-built flat floor , cutaway sized minibus . Unencumbered by the drive shaft of a rear-wheel drive vehicle , the front wheel drive Promaster 3500 offered no such obstruction and the vision for the Frontrunner was conceived . With a 9,350 GVWR , nearly 2,000 pounds lighter than a traditional high floor cutaway , the design would need to incorporate advanced technology and out-of-the-box thinking to maximize payload while achieving strength , durability , and comfort . With these goals in mind , LaRose assembled a team ready for the task . It included engineers with heavy-duty transit bus experience as well as an accomplished automotive engineer from General Motors . The design of the Frontrunner required a radical departure from traditional bus building , leading the company to challenge and re-examine conventional thinking and construction methodologies relative to weight , durability , and structural design . “ The decades old methodology – of building high-floor cutaways with steel cage structures – produces vehicles that are heavy , fuel inefficient and notorious for their poor , noisy ride quality and premature corrosion ," LaRose said . Desiring to further advance the merits of the low floor , the Frontrunner design team had three criteria from which all design
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