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School bus manufacturers
Girardin Minibus
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    Girardin Minibus

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    Girardin Minibus
    Industry Bus manufacturing
    Founded 1935
    Founder Lionel Girardin
    Headquarters
    3000 Girardin
    Drummondville, Quebec J2E 0A1
    ,
    Canada
    Area served
    		 North America
    Products School buses
    Commercial buses
    Brands Micro Bird
    Services Bus sales (Blue Bird)
    Divisions Micro Bird, Inc (joint venture with Blue Bird)
    Website www.girardinbluebird.com
    www.microbird.com

    Girardin Minibus Inc. is a Canadian bus manufacturer. Based in Drummondville, Quebec, Canada, Girardin forms part of the Micro Bird joint venture with Blue Bird Corporation. As part of Micro Bird, Girardin is a manufacturer of bus bodies for minibuses for cutaway van chassis.

    While many Micro Bird buses are produced as school buses and related student transport vehicles, Girardin also produces commercial-use buses using cutaway van chassis. In Canada, the company serves as the nationwide distributor of the Blue Bird school bus and commercial bus product line.

    Following the 2008 closure of Corbeil, Girardin was the lone Canadian-based manufacturer of school buses until the 2011 opening of Autobus Lion (now Compagnie Électrique Lion).

    History

    Blue Bird by Girardin MB-II
    Girardin MB-II, rear view

    Girardin traces its roots to 1935, when company founder Lionel Girardin opened a used-car dealership and repair shop in St-Félix-de-Kingsey, Quebec. He expanded into new-car sales in 1953 by opening a Chrysler dealership. In 1958, Girardin entered the school bus market by becoming a school bus dealership.

    In 1965, Girardin opened a bus dealership in Drummondville, Quebec; along with bus sales, Girardin converted vans into minibuses (some of the first Type A school buses). In 1981, a dedicated factory was built to keep up with demand; the factory was expanded in 1991 and again in 2000.

    In 1991, Girardin Minibus introduced the MB-II and MB-IV school buses; from 1992 to 1999, these were distributed throughout North America using the Blue Bird by Girardin name. In 1999, a tornado hit the 1991 factory. In 2005, the MB-IV was replaced with the G5, a redesigned dual rear-wheel Type A school bus.

    In 2009, Blue Bird Corporation entered into a joint venture with Girardin to produce Type A school buses. Under the terms of the joint venture, Blue Bird's Micro Bird (in production since 1975) was phased out and replaced by Girardin-designed products built in Drummondville.

    Joint Ventures

    Girardin Minibus has twice entered into partnerships with a larger bus manufacturer; both have been with American manufacturer Blue Bird Corporation.

    Blue Bird MB-II/MB-IV by Girardin (1992–1999)

    From 1992 to 1999, Girardin and Blue Bird were in a partnership to sell the MB-II and MB-IV Type A school buses in North America. At the time, Girardin was little known outside of Quebec and Blue Bird's own Micro Bird was not available in the single rear-wheel configuration that the MB-II offered. After 1999, Girardin chose to market the MB school buses under its own brand name.

    Micro Bird, Inc. (2009–present)

    In October 2009, Girardin re-entered into a joint venture with Blue Bird. This partnership, named Micro Bird, Inc, resulted in the Micro Bird model being discontinued, as Type A school bus construction was transferred from Blue Bird's Georgia facility to Girardin's Drummondville facility. Type A school buses built by Girardin are now branded as Blue Bird Micro Bird by Girardin.

    The first bus manufacturer in North America to develop a body for the Ford Transit cutaway cab chassis, Micro Bird introduced the T-Series model line in 2015, slotted between the MB-II and G5. While the Transit replaced the E-series as a passenger van, the T-Series marked the introduction of a third model line, produced with a choice of axle configurations on a single body for the first time.

    Models

    Girardin/Micro Bird Product lineup
    Model Name G5 (Micro Bird DRW) MB-II (Micro Bird SRW) T-Series (Micro Bird Transit) MB-IV
    Image
    Microbird Ford T series bus.jpg
    Body Configuration Dual rear wheels Single rear wheels
    • Single rear wheels
    • Dual rear wheels
    		 Dual rear wheels
    Production 2005–present 1991–present (see notes) 2015–present 1991-2004
    Versions
    • School Bus
    • Commercial Bus
    • Multi-Function School Activity Bus (MFSAB)
    • School Bus
    • Commercial Bus
    Chassis Supplier
    Maximum Seating Capacity
    • 30 (school bus)
    • 25 (commercial bus)
    • 20 (school bus)
    • 12 (commercial bus)
    • 14 (MFSAB)
    		 25 (school bus/MFSAB)
    Notes
    • Introduced in 2005, replacing MB-IV as DRW product line
    • Replaced Blue Bird Micro Bird under Micro Bird joint venture
    • An Electric version of Micro Bird G5 Built on ford E450 chassis set to commerce production for 2019.
    • Introduced in 1991 as first single rear-wheel bus to use a cutaway body; produced with aluminum body panels
    • Distributed in United States by Blue Bird from 1992 to 1999 (Girardin from 1999 to 2009)
    • Produced since 2015, first bus produced on Ford Transit chassis in North America
    • Derived from MB-II body (rebodied to fit Ford Transit chassis)
    • Introduced in 1991 as dual rear-wheel version of MB-II
    • Sold by Blue Bird alongside Blue Bird Micro Bird from 1992 to 1999
    • Replaced by Girardin G5 for 2005

    See also

    Wikimedia Commons has media related to Girardin buses.

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