XHE60

NEW FLYER OF AMERICA, INC. Download PDF Report

New Flyer of America, Inc. submitted a model XHE60, hydrogen fuel cell powered, battery electric drive 51 seat/61-foot, 7 ½ inch bus, for a 12 yr./500,000 mile test.  Power is provided by a Ballard fuel cell HD85. The odometer reading at the time of delivery was 3,516 miles.  Testing started on September 20, 2016 and was completed on May 8, 2018.  The Check-In section of the report provides a description of the bus and specifies its major components.

The primary part of the test program is the Structural Durability Test, which also provides the information for the Maintainability and Reliability results.  The Structural Durability Test was started on February 20, 2017 and was completed on March 27, 2018.

The interior of the bus is configured with seating for 51 passengers including the driver.  Three seats fold away for one wheel chair positions, or six fold away for two wheelchair positions.  Free floor space will accommodate 81 standing passengers resulting in a potential load of 132 persons.  At 150 lb. per person, this load results in a gross load of 19,800 lb. and a seated load of 7,800 lb. accordingly.  The first segment of the Structural Durability Test was performed with the bus loaded to a measured GVW of 69,750 lb.  The middle segment was performed at a measured seated load weight of 57,700 lb. and the final segment was performed at a curb weight of 49,890 lb.  Durability driving resulted in unscheduled maintenance and failures that involved a variety of subsystems.  A description of failures, and a complete and detailed listing of scheduled and unscheduled maintenance is provided in the Maintainability section of this report.

Accessibility, in general, was adequate, components covered in Section 1.3 (Repair and/or Replacement of Selected Subsystems) along with all other components encountered during testing, were found to be readily accessible and no restrictions were noted.           

The Reliability section compiles failures that occurred during Structural Durability Testing.  Breakdowns are classified according to subsystems.  The data in this section are arranged so that those subsystems with more frequent problems are apparent.  The problems are also listed by class as defined in Section 2.  The test bus encountered no Class 1 failures.  Of the 79 reported failures, three were Class 2, 75 were Class 3 and one was Class 4.

The Safety Test, (a double-lane change, obstacle avoidance test) was safely performed in both right-hand and left-hand directions up to a maximum test speed of 45 mph.  The performance of the bus is illustrated by a speed vs. time plot.  Acceleration and gradeability test data are provided in Section 4, Performance.  The average time to obtain 50 mph was 42.25 seconds.  The Stopping Distance phase of the Brake Test was completed with the following results; for the Uniform High Friction Test average stopping distances were 28.75’ at 20 mph, 59.21’ at 30 mph, 96.42’ at 40 mph and 123.44’ at 45 mph.  The average stopping distance for the Uniform Low Friction Test was 31.06’.  There was no deviation from the test lane during the performance of the Stopping Distance phase.  During the Stability phase of Brake Testing the test bus experienced no deviation from the test lane. The Parking Brake phase was completed with the test bus maintaining the parked position for the full five minute period with no slip or roll observed in both the uphill and downhill positions.

The Shakedown Test produced a maximum final loaded deflection of 0.004 inches with a permanent set ranging between -0.003 to 0.004 inches under a distributed static load of 49,500 lb.  The Distortion Test was completed with all subsystems, doors and escape mechanisms operating properly.  No water leakage was observed throughout the test.  All subsystems operated properly. 

The Static Towing Test was performed using a target load (towing force) of 59,868 lb.  All four front pulls were completed to the full test load. There was some deformation to the frame where the bumper attaches to the tow eyes on the 20° up pull.  The Dynamic Towing Test was performed by means of a front-lift tow.  The towing interface was accomplished using a hydraulic under-lift wrecker.  The bus was towed without incident and no damage resulted from the test.  The Jacking and Hoisting Tests were also performed without incident. The bus was found to be stable on the jack stands, and the minimum jacking clearance observed with a tire deflated was 5.7 inches.

A Fuel Economy Test was run on simulated central business district, arterial, and commuter courses.  The results were 2.16 M/lb., 1.78 M/lb., and 3.37 M/lb. respectively; with an overall average of 2.44 M/lb.

A series of Interior and Exterior Noise Tests was performed.  These data are listed in Section 7.1 and 7.2 respectively.

An Emissions test was not performed, as this is a hydrogen fuel cell, battery electric drive bus.