VDL Bova
Bova, later rebranded to VDL Bova, was a luxury coachbuilder based in Eindhoven, Netherlands which began building coaches in 1931. In particular, it is well known for the Bova Futura, a streamlined coach usually with a DAF engine, which was first introduced in the 1980s and continued in production until 2010. The Bova name was discontinued in 2010 and is now known as VDL.
The founder, J.D. Bots, later to be known as J.D. Bova first started the company that would come to be known as Bova in 1878 with the creation of a timber business in Valkenswaard. When J.D. Bots died, he left the business to his eldest son Simon who first introduced the name Bova, which was derived from Bots Valkenswaard.[1]
In 1931 the company began building coaches, and in 1969 introduced the Benelux, a self-supporting integral coach.[2] The company was purchased by VDL Groep in 2003, who also own Berkhof, VDL Bus Chassis and Jonckheere brands. From 2010 the individual brands have been discontinued. The VDL Futura coach references Bova's best known model, however.[3]
Products
Past
- Futura
- Lexio
- Magiq
- Synergy (rebadged Berkhof Axial 100 on VDL SBR4000 chassis)
- X-press (1980, bus with rear-mounted engine)
- Europa
- Calypso (a Europa underframe with Duple bodywork)
References
External links
- Bova website (discontinued)