The Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF) – organisers of the Africa Cup of Nations event in Gabon – recently ordered a fleet of 16 MAN Lion luxury coaches to transport participating teams from their hotels to sports grounds.
“The order came about as a result of the close and productive cooperation between the MAN importer in Gabon – Sodim TP – and the MAN Centre Importer NWC Africa,” said Burak Keskinkilic, Head of Bus Sales at the Centre.
The 12-metre long coaches are equipped with a number of safety innovations that include fire and smoke detection systems in the engine compartment. Double glazed windows are green-tinted to ensure privacy and enable players to fully focus on their matches.
Air conditioning systems have been adapted to suit local conditions while standard equipment includes a DVD player with two LCD displays, a kitchen, toilet and two refrigerators.
The coaches are powered by 400hp (294kW) diesel engines which meet Euro 4 emission standards, coupled with MAN’s TipMatic gearbox. To become familiar with the vehicles, drivers were subjected to five days of training on Gabon’s Libreville ring road by MAN ProfiDrive trainers Jimmy El-Khoury and Denis Rigot.
