Daimler Buses to deliver 460 Mercedes-Benz buses to South Africa for the 2010 Football World Cup. These were ordered by Autopax Passenger Service Ltd. Pretoria, South Africa’s largest bus and coach operator. Delivery of the coaches began in December 2009; the customer will take delivery of the last vehicles in April 2010. Autopax transports around 4 million passengers per year within South Africa and is a 100 percent subsidiary of South African railway company PRASA (Public Rail Agency of South Africa).

Hartmut Schick, Head of Daimler Buses: "We are very proud to have won such an important contract for the Football World Cup in South Africa. This shows the prestige enjoyed by Mercedes-Benz buses all around the world and demonstrates the great confidence our customers place in us. With 460 buses, Daimler Buses is by far the largest supplier of buses for the upcoming major events in South Africa".

The chassis of the four hundred and sixty O 500 RSD coaches are sent as CKD parts from Mercedes-Benz do Brasil to Mercedes-Benz South Africa, to be assembled at the Mercedes-Benz plant in East London, South Africa. The bodies are made by body manufacturer Marcopolo, Johannesburg, working in close cooperation with Daimler Buses. This large order is an important contribution towards securing the South African business location. Due to the current increase in capacity in the bus and coach manufacture, Daimler Buses has invested around one million euros in the East London plant, including the personnel area of the bus and coach sector. Around 50 workers work for Daimler Buses in East London. Financing for the 460 buses is provided by Daimler Financial Services, South Africa.

Holger Suffel, Sales, Service & Parts Vice President, Daimler Buses: "With this contract, not only do we increase the volume of buses delivered, we also undertake to carry out the maintenance of the vehicles. This underscores our expertise as suppliers of professional services."

The Mercedes-Benz O 500 RSD with fully-electronic engine management is powered by a 260 kW engine. The vehicles feature a fully automatic transmission with an integrated retarder which has recently been incorporated in the product portfolio. The automatic transmission is ideal for driving in the city, offering numerous advantages in terms of ride comfort and safety. As the transmission shifts automatically if required, the driver can concentrate on the traffic and on driving, without stress.

Safety and comfort for the passengers are top priorities. For this reason all the seats 52, or 61, are equipped with seat belts. Nor will passengers miss out on entertainment either when riding these fully climatised coaches, as they feature, DVD and MP3 players, for instance, as well as screens and microphone connections.