International 3800
Encyclopedia
The International 3800 is a Type C (conventional) bus chassis that was manufactured by Navistar International
for school bus
and commercial bus applications. It was produced from 1989 until 2004. The replacement for the S-Series "Schoolmaster"
, the 3800 used powertrains and components from the 4700 and 4900 lines of medium-duty trucks. In 2005, the 3800 was replaced by the 3300
, a design based on the 4000-Series
(now known as the DuraStar).
In 2002, Navistar made the first visible styling changes to the 3800 (or any 4000-Series truck); to mark the transition of its subsidiary body manufacturer from AmTran
to IC Corporation, the hood was redesigned for its conventional-style school bus. Dubbed the International IC, these wore vertical grille slats instead of horizontal ones seen for over a decade.
The 3800 was discontinued by Navistar in 2004, after outliving the International 4000-Series by three years; it marked the end of the International Harvester S-Series, introduced a quarter-century earlier.
When the 3800 was replaced in 2005, the school bus industry had changed from its introduction. In 1989, it was a common practice for buyers of conventional-type school buses to select different types of chassis for a given body manufacturer (for which there was a wide variety); there was a large number of possible combinations of Type C buses available. By 2004, there were only three body manufacturers (Blue Bird, IC Corporation, and Thomas) and three chassis manufacturers (Blue Bird, Freightliner, and International). International, the parent company of IC Corporation, was the lone chassis manufacturer that sold bus chassis to other body manufacturers. Declining school bus sales during the 1980s and 1990s and corporate politics led to Ford Motor Company and General Motors to stop producing full-size bus chassis altogether.
Inline-six diesel
V8 diesel
3400
The 3400 was a chassis designed in the same fashion as a Type A cutaway school bus, but with a heavier-duty vehicle (the Navistar 4900) as its base. Today, school buses like these are known as Type A-2 buses. In the school bus industry, Mid Bus
and U.S. Bus both developed products based on the 3400, but the chassis became more popular in the transit and specialty vehicle industries instead. The 3400 was replaced by the 3200 when the 4000-series trucks were replaced by the DuraStar
; currently, the 3200 is used only for transit bus, commercial bus, and specialty vehicle applications.
3600
The 3600 was a chassis custom-designed for the Vista
from Thomas Built Buses. The Vista combined design elements of a conventional and a forward control school bus. In comparison to a conventional, the driver sat further forward, closer to the front axle. Although much of the engine was located next to the driver like a transit-style bus, access from the front was also maintained via a traditional (although much-shortened) hood.
The 3600 chassis was designed in much the fashion of International's step van chassis, borrowing many components from the 3800.
As it was originally designed specifically for the Vista's body, no other body manufacturers developed their own product lines based on the 3600. It was produced from 1991 until 1998 when Thomas chose to discontinue Vista production after the body manufacturer's purchase by Freightliner
.
3700
From 1989 to 1994, International offered two versions of its conventional school bus chassis as it had with the S-Series. The 3700 was the lighter-duty model of the lineup; only minor differences in powertrain and weight ratings differentiated it from the 3800. The 3700 only was produced with the 7.3 engine. After 1994, the 3700 was dropped.
Navistar International
Navistar International Corporation is a United States-based holding company that owns the manufacturer of International brand commercial trucks, MaxxForce brand diesel engines, IC Bus school and commercial buses, Workhorse brand chassis for motor homes and step vans, and is a private label...
for school bus
School bus
A school bus is a type of bus designed and manufactured for student transport: carrying children and teenagers to and from school and school events...
and commercial bus applications. It was produced from 1989 until 2004. The replacement for the S-Series "Schoolmaster"
International Harvester S-Series (bus chassis)
The International S-Series "Schoolmaster" was a Type C bus chassis manufactured by International Harvester, which became Navistar during its production run. It was introduced in 1979 as the replacement for the Loadstar bus chassis; it was used for both school bus and commercial bus applications...
, the 3800 used powertrains and components from the 4700 and 4900 lines of medium-duty trucks. In 2005, the 3800 was replaced by the 3300
International 3300
The International 3300 is a conventional bus chassis manufactured by Navistar International, used for school bus and commercial bus applications. It was introduced for 2005 as the replacement for the 3800...
, a design based on the 4000-Series
International Durastar
The International DuraStar, originally introduced as the International 4000 Series, is a medium-duty truck produced by Navistar International. First produced in 2002, it is the successor to the 4000 Series of the 1990s....
(now known as the DuraStar).
Design History
In 1989, Navistar redesigned the S-Series medium-duty conventionals for the first time since 1979; the medium-duty trucks were renamed the 4000 Series. The 3800 (and lighter-duty 3700) were introduced in 1989 and sold alongside the S-Series school bus chassis until it ended production. Over its production life, the 3800 (and its variants) received few visible changes throughout its production run. For 1992, it received a redesigned instrument panel with larger gauges. In 1995, along with all other International medium-duty trucks, the 3800 received chrome hood badges denoting the model series and its engine type; the grille badging changed from red to chrome.In 2002, Navistar made the first visible styling changes to the 3800 (or any 4000-Series truck); to mark the transition of its subsidiary body manufacturer from AmTran
AmTran
American Transportation Corporation was a builder of school buses in the United States. Founded in 1980, the company traces its roots back to Ward Body Works, which was established in 1933. AmTran was acquired by Navistar International in 1994-1995, a move that would begin a series of alignment...
to IC Corporation, the hood was redesigned for its conventional-style school bus. Dubbed the International IC, these wore vertical grille slats instead of horizontal ones seen for over a decade.
The 3800 was discontinued by Navistar in 2004, after outliving the International 4000-Series by three years; it marked the end of the International Harvester S-Series, introduced a quarter-century earlier.
When the 3800 was replaced in 2005, the school bus industry had changed from its introduction. In 1989, it was a common practice for buyers of conventional-type school buses to select different types of chassis for a given body manufacturer (for which there was a wide variety); there was a large number of possible combinations of Type C buses available. By 2004, there were only three body manufacturers (Blue Bird, IC Corporation, and Thomas) and three chassis manufacturers (Blue Bird, Freightliner, and International). International, the parent company of IC Corporation, was the lone chassis manufacturer that sold bus chassis to other body manufacturers. Declining school bus sales during the 1980s and 1990s and corporate politics led to Ford Motor Company and General Motors to stop producing full-size bus chassis altogether.
Body Manufacturers
For most of its production run, the 3800 was used by many manufacturers of Type C school buses in North America. Its availability in the late 1990s and early 2000s was primarily limited by the end of Wayne and Carpenter production (in 1995 and 2001, respectively). Corbeil only ever sold its Type C buses in Canada.| Body Manufacturer | Model Name | Years Available | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Transportation Corporation (AmTran AmTran American Transportation Corporation was a builder of school buses in the United States. Founded in 1980, the company traces its roots back to Ward Body Works, which was established in 1933. AmTran was acquired by Navistar International in 1994-1995, a move that would begin a series of alignment... ) |
Volunteer (1993–1996) CS (1997–2002) |
1993-2002 | |
| Blue Bird Corporation | Conventional | 1989–2004 |
|
| Carpenter Carpenter Body Company Carpenter Body Company, also known over the years as the Ralph H. Carpenter Body Company, Carpenter Body Works, Inc., Carpenter Manufacturing Company, Carpenter Industries, Inc., and Crown By Carpenter, was a bus body manufacturer based in Mitchell, Indiana, United States... Crown By Carpenter |
Classic | 1989–2001 | From 1996 to 1999, Carpenter used the Crown by Carpenter brand name on their buses. |
| Integrated Coach Corporation (IC) | CE | 2002–2004 | The version of the 3800 used by IC wore a modified hood. |
| Les Enterprises Michel Corbeil Corbeil Buses Corbeil Bus Corporation is a school and commercial bus manufacturer, based in Hutchinson, Kansas. It was created from the acquisition of predecessor Les Enterprises Michel Corbeil by Collins Industries in 2007... |
1990–2003 | Corbeil Type C buses were not sold in the United States. | |
| Mid Bus Mid Bus Mid Bus was a corporation which specialized in manufacturing customized school buses. Formed in 1981 by former employees of Superior Coach Company in Lima, Ohio, it grew from a dozen employees working in a small facility in Lima to become one of the country's largest manufacturers of smaller school... |
Mid Bus SC | mid 1990s | cutaway bus, has cab of International 4900 called 3400. |
| Thomas Built Buses Thomas Built Buses Thomas Built Buses, Inc. is a bus manufacturer based in High Point, North Carolina, United States and a subsidiary of the German Daimler AG. Thomas produces school buses, activity buses/MFSAB , and commercial buses; both small and full-size buses are produced.Thomas traces its roots to 1916, when... |
Conventional | 1989-2002 | replaced by Freightliner-based buses (FS-65 Freightliner FS-65 The Freightliner FS-65 is a Type C conventional bus chassis manufactured by Freightliner, used for school bus and commercial bus applications. It was introduced for the 1997 model year for Thomas Built Buses... and C2). |
| Ward Body Works | Volunteer | 1989–1992 | The Ward brand was replaced by AmTran in early 1992. |
| Wayne Corporation Wayne Corporation Wayne Corporation was a large manufacturer of buses and other vehicles branded with the trade name "Wayne." The corporate headquarters were in Richmond, Indiana, in Wayne County, Indiana, in the United States... Wayne Wheeled Vehicles Wayne Wheeled Vehicles Wayne Wheeled Vehicles was a tradename of a division of a vehicle manufacturer that specialized primarily in the production of school buses... |
Lifeguard Wayne Lifeguard The Wayne Lifeguard is a type C school bus built by Wayne Corporation, introduced in 1973. Produced until Wayne Corporation declared bankruptcy and was liquidated in late 1992, the Lifeguard was also produced by successor Wayne Wheeled Vehicles until their closure in 1995... |
1989–1995 |
Powertrain
The 3800 is notable for being the first American school bus chassis to have an engine lineup consisting only of diesel engines. Unlike its S-Series predecessor, the 3800 used an all-International lineup of diesel engines.Inline-six diesel
- DTA360 (1989–1994)
- DT408 (1994–1995)
- DTA466 (1989–1998)
- DT466E (1996–2005)
V8 diesel
- IHC 7.3L IDIInternational Harvester IDIThe International Harvester IDI engine is a 4-stroke 8-cylinder Diesel engine used in International Harvester trucks and Ford F-Series pickups from 1982 to 1994...
(1989–1994) - T444ENavistar T444E engineThe T444E is a Diesel V8 engine manufactured by Navistar International Corporation. It was used by Ford Motor Company, branded the Ford Power Stroke engine, from 1994 through 2003, replacing an earlier 7.3 L indirect-injection V8 from Navistar...
(1994–2005)
Variants
The 3400 was a chassis designed in the same fashion as a Type A cutaway school bus, but with a heavier-duty vehicle (the Navistar 4900) as its base. Today, school buses like these are known as Type A-2 buses. In the school bus industry, Mid Bus
Mid Bus
Mid Bus was a corporation which specialized in manufacturing customized school buses. Formed in 1981 by former employees of Superior Coach Company in Lima, Ohio, it grew from a dozen employees working in a small facility in Lima to become one of the country's largest manufacturers of smaller school...
and U.S. Bus both developed products based on the 3400, but the chassis became more popular in the transit and specialty vehicle industries instead. The 3400 was replaced by the 3200 when the 4000-series trucks were replaced by the DuraStar
International Durastar
The International DuraStar, originally introduced as the International 4000 Series, is a medium-duty truck produced by Navistar International. First produced in 2002, it is the successor to the 4000 Series of the 1990s....
; currently, the 3200 is used only for transit bus, commercial bus, and specialty vehicle applications.
3600
Thomas Vista
The Thomas Vista was a school bus built by Thomas Built Buses from 1989 until 1997, on GMC, Chevrolet, and Navistar International chassis. It was unique in that it combined aspects of both conventional and transit style school buses...
from Thomas Built Buses. The Vista combined design elements of a conventional and a forward control school bus. In comparison to a conventional, the driver sat further forward, closer to the front axle. Although much of the engine was located next to the driver like a transit-style bus, access from the front was also maintained via a traditional (although much-shortened) hood.
The 3600 chassis was designed in much the fashion of International's step van chassis, borrowing many components from the 3800.
As it was originally designed specifically for the Vista's body, no other body manufacturers developed their own product lines based on the 3600. It was produced from 1991 until 1998 when Thomas chose to discontinue Vista production after the body manufacturer's purchase by Freightliner
Freightliner Trucks
Freightliner Trucks is an American manufacturer of heavy duty trucks, chassis and semi-trailer trucks in the United States. The company was founded as Freightliner Inc in 1942 and is now a division of Daimler Trucks North America, a subsidiary of the German Daimler AG...
.
3700
From 1989 to 1994, International offered two versions of its conventional school bus chassis as it had with the S-Series. The 3700 was the lighter-duty model of the lineup; only minor differences in powertrain and weight ratings differentiated it from the 3800. The 3700 only was produced with the 7.3 engine. After 1994, the 3700 was dropped.
See also
- Navistar InternationalNavistar InternationalNavistar International Corporation is a United States-based holding company that owns the manufacturer of International brand commercial trucks, MaxxForce brand diesel engines, IC Bus school and commercial buses, Workhorse brand chassis for motor homes and step vans, and is a private label...
- manufacturer - School BusSchool busA school bus is a type of bus designed and manufactured for student transport: carrying children and teenagers to and from school and school events...