Independent builder. Powder-coated steel cage, one-piece sidewalls, a 7-year subfloor warranty — built at the factory that wants you to walk the line and see the difference.
Most shuttle bus warranties are a single conversion document. HLE hands you three — and the floor coverage is the longest in the market. Nothing in an HLE warranty prorates: coverage in year five is worth what it was on day one. Ask any builder how many warranties you actually get — and what prorates.
Five construction differences that decide what a bus costs you in year five — and beyond.
Every steel structural component is sandblasted, chemically washed, and powder coated at 400°F — not primer sprayed on the visible side only.
No floor-line seam to leak — the sidewall is a single pressure-laminated panel from roofline to skirt, welded to the structure.
5/8" PerformMAX 500 resin-infused subfloor sheds water instead of absorbing it. The only shuttle bus manufacturer using it.
Folds back on itself without cracking — and we're the only shuttle bus manufacturer using it. We'll hand you a sample and let you try to break it. Nobody has.
A minimum of 15 minutes under full spray with an inspector inside, longer when a bid spec calls for it, then straight into a 25-mile road test. Plenty of builders rain-test some buses. Every HLE bus gets both — no exceptions.
Transit-van footprint to 44-passenger heavy iron — every one on the same powder-coated steel cage, with the same warranties behind it.
Transit T-350
The Ford Transit shuttle: nimble footprint, van economics, full HLE construction.
Up to 14 passengers · up to 6 wheelchair positions
See the STRYKR →
E350/450 · G3500/4500
The flagship. The proven platform for routes, facilities, and fleets.
Up to 26 passengers · up to 7 wheelchair positions
See the MAVRYK →
F-550 / F-600
Heavy-duty platform: bigger loads, longer routes, harder duty cycles.
Up to 35 passengers · up to 10 wheelchair positions
See the KAVLYR →
F-650 / Freightliner / International
Top of the line: medium-duty muscle with shuttle-bus economics.
Up to 42 passengers · up to 11 wheelchair positions
See the STRATOS →HLE came up through the dealer side of this industry. Year after year, we watched the same failures strand the same customers: rotted floors, leaking seams, rusted structure, wiring shorts buried in the walls. So we set out to build the bus that doesn't have them. Our leadership team brings over 100 years of collective experience in buses to every unit that leaves the factory.
Start with your passenger count and wheelchair needs — we'll point you at the right platform.
Start the selector Browse the floor plan libraryWe strip shuttle bodies back to steel at the factory and rebuild them with the same materials as a new bus — PerformMAX floor, rebuilt seats and HVAC, rain-booth tested, 2-year warranty on the work. Faster than building a new bus — you get your own bus back, just better.
See the refurbishment programCome to Wakarusa. We'll put the roof sample in your hands, pour water on the floor, and walk you down the line.
Schedule a factory visit