Zhongtong Bus at Busworld Brussels 2025: The Great Leap from “Made in China”to“China Solution”
05 October 2025
Brussels, 4 October 2025 – The doors of Busworld Brussels, the world's oldest and largest dedicated bus exhibition, opened this morning. Among the first to take the spotlight was Zhongtong Bus, a global front-runner in new-energy commercial vehicles. Showcasing five battery-electric models – the N18, H12E PLUS, N12D, N12, and V7 – the Chinese manufacturer arrived with a clear message: its reputation is no longer built on price, but on tailor-made, zero-emission mobility ecosystems.
Twenty Years in the Making: From Exporter to Global Solution Partner
The first container left the plant in 2003; today, nearly half of all Zhongtong buses are sold outside China.
2024: Overseas sales grew 65% year-on-year.
H1 2025: Export volume surged 11-fold compared to the same period last year, ranking second industry-wide and accounting for 90% of Shandong Province’s bus exports.
Yet volume tells only part of the story. “We don’t build buses to sell metal; we build buses to solve transport problems” has become the company’s guiding principle. This expanding global footprint is built city by city through targeted adaptations:
Singapore: A 2.35m-wide “narrow-body” electric bus designed to navigate sharp 90-degree downtown corners.
Denmark: Features include sub-zero battery pre-heating, marine-grade anti-corrosion coatings, and hill-hold logic for steep, icy gradients.
February 2025: Zhongtong won a competitive tender against major European OEMs to supply Dubai’s public transport authority – marking the first entry of a Chinese manufacturer into the premium Middle East market.
Five World-Premiere Vehicles – A Live Demonstration of the “China Solution”
On one of the industry’s most competitive stages, Zhongtong’s lineup served as both product showcase and strategic manifesto.
N12D Double-Deck City Bus
Launched in Singapore in 2024; now a popular choice for sightseeing routes worldwide.
Three doors, two staircases, capacity for 122 passengers.
400 km range; dual-gun DC fast-charging adds 130 km in 30 minutes.
H12E PLUS Premium Touring Coach
Modular battery packs ranging from 200 to 600 kWh.
5A healthy-cabin rating, record-low cabin noise levels.
LKA, ACC, lifetime OTA updates, and AI voice control all standard.
N18 Pure-Electric City Bus
Stylish, high-capacity design with ultra-low energy consumption.
Passenger-focused details include colour-coded priority seats, wireless stop buttons, a level floor, alcohol interlock, and multiple USB ports.
The N12 and V7 completed the quintet, each already proven in demanding fleet operations across four continents.
Technology That Defines the Brand
Zhongtong was among the first Chinese manufacturers to electrify (2004) and to obtain EU Whole Vehicle Type Approval (WVTA, 2015). In 2023, it became the first Chinese commercial vehicle maker to secure WVTA under the latest General Safety Regulation – the legal key to Europe’s high-end market.
Today, Zhongtong buses operate in more than 100 countries and regions, from Germany, Portugal, and Bulgaria to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Chile, and Mexico. Each project begins with a blank CAD file, customized for range, climate, topography, duty cycles, passenger profiles, and local regulations – a level of flexibility that transforms product sales into long-term partnerships.
From Product to Ecosystem
What visitors see on the Zhongtong stand is no longer a simple export lineup; it is a full ecosystem comprising advanced hardware, smart connectivity, and cradle-to-grave sustainability. The showcase in Brussels underscores that Chinese buses have completed the value leap from “Made in China” to “Designed by China, Delivered for the World” – and Zhongtong is writing this next chapter in real time.
Source : www.chinabuses.org
Editor : Lucy
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