On December 5, 2011 the very first Mercedes-Benz Sprinter City 77 was delivered to Christian Winzenhöler, General Manager of the bus operator Winzenhöler. The Winzenhöler bus company has been under family management for three generations, employs around 50 personnel and has a fleet of 42 buses. The Winzenhöler bus company carries several thousand passengers in the Rhine-Main region for both regular routs and special excursions. Roland Sabais, Head of Sales at Mercedes-Benz Buses and Coaches Western Region, Oliver Schlamp sales department at Mercedes-Benz Buses, Western Region and Mark Freymüller, Head of Sales and Marketing at Mercedes-Benz Minibuses, handed over the symbolic key to Christian. Christian chose the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 77 because of its high passenger capacity despite its compact dimensions as well as choosing the Sprinter 77 for the added manoeuvrability and economic aspects.
Sprinter City 77: top-of-the-line city bus in the minibus range
With a length of 28.5 feet, the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter City 77 is the current top-of-the-line city bus in the Mercedes-Benz minibus range. Like the body of the Sprinter City 77, the low-floor chassis with a tandem rear axle is an exclusive in-house development by the Mercedes-Benz Minibus product unit. With a passenger capacity of up to 40, it closes the gap between the Sprinter City 65 and the 10.5 m long Citaro K. Compared to the previous top model in this vehicle series, the Sprinter City 65, the Sprinter City 77 has around one metre more length – all to the benefit of the passenger area – ten additional passenger spaces, a continuous, level low floor in the passenger area and a second wheelchair space. It has this high transport capacity thanks to a permissible gross vehicle weight of 6.8 t.
The chassis of the three-axle Sprinter City 77 has an independent suspension all-round and single tyres. Thanks to its comparatively short wheelbase and slim dimensions, even this largest model in the Mercedes-Benz city minibus range is ideal for narrow inner-city streets. In addition the Sprinter City 77 is highly suitable as a shuttle bus for airports and exhibitions, or for inter-urban operations.
Painted in arctic white, the Sprinter City 77 is powered by a 4-cylinder CDI diesel engine developing 120 kW (163 hp). A 5-speed automatic transmission is standard equipment. Meeting the Euro V and EEV emission standards (Enhanced Environmentally Friendly Vehicle), the Sprinter City 77 is set to be the most environmentally friendly bus in the Winzenhöler fleet. To cater for passengers with impaired mobility, a second wheelchair space with a folding ramp at door 2 was ordered in addition to the standard wheelchair space at door 1.
Environmental friendliness, efficiency, and passenger safety will be the focus of new developments for Mercedes-Benz buses and coaches. At the 63rd IAA Commercial Vehicles, in Hall 14/15 Sept. 23-30, 2010, five travel coaches and transit buses will be presented to the public. Among them will be the innovative, zero-emission Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid, and the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter City 77 for urban use which will be making its debut at the auto show.
New Sprinter City 77: innovative flagship urban bus joins the minibus line-up
This minibus is XXL: Mercedes-Benz caps its urban minibus range with the new Sprinter City 77. The three-axle 8.7-metre-long urban bus is based on a conventional Sprinter up to the B-pillar. The bus body with twin rear axle and continuous low-floor area is an exclusive in-house development for the Sprinter City 77. Thanks to its capacity of 40 passengers it plugs the gap between the Sprinter City 65 and the Citaro K. The new Sprinter City 77 is around a metre longer than the previous City 65 flagship model and – depending on the equipment options – boasts ten extra passenger seats. The gross vehicle weight of 6.8 t facilitates the high passenger-handling capacity.
Two outward-swinging double doors, which are operated using an innovative drive concept, and a kneeling function along with the stepless low floor throughout ensure fast passenger flow and convenient boarding and alighting. Depending on the configuration a wheelchair bay with a ramp is available at the front or rear. The bright interior with its large windows and large glass doors is spacious and attractive.
The Sprinter City 77 has a wheelbase of 4100 + 990 mm. The air-sprung rear axles feature 235/65 R 16 C single tyres all-round. The relatively short wheelbase and the sleek design make the minibus extremely manoeuvrable: the width of the separately mounted body is just 1.99 metres, making the largest member of the Mercedes-Benz minibus line-up likewise ideally suited to tight inner city areas. Moreover, it is also an ideal solution as a shuttle bus for airports or trade fairs, as well as for rural services.
A Mercedes-Benz Sprinter with the most powerful version of the four-cylinder diesel engine provides the platform. Its output of 120 kW (163 hp) and maximum torque of 360 Nm delivers appropriate performance. The Sprinter City 77 is among the cleanest on the block with its EEV emissions standard certification. Power transfer comes courtesy of a convenient fully automatic 5-speed transmission as standard.