Spartan Motors history

Spartan Motors, Inc. got its start in 1976 outside of Lansing, Michigan, when a small group of automotive engineers who lost their jobs due to a bankruptcy decided to draw on their collective expertise and launch their own company.

Although in 1978 they moved out of the cinder-block garage that had served as their headquarters since their founding, their new offices and manufacturing space provided very little more in the way of comfort.

Spartan's unorthodox approach appealed to customers, and by 1983 the company's fire truck chassis were bringing in revenues of almost $12 million and income of $629,000.

By 1986, they were offering specialized chassis for the bus and motorhome market, as well as for the airport vehicles market.

Although the new applications took a few years to produce profits, by 1988 Spartan was ready to expand their facility to include a motorhome chassis plant.

In 1993, Spartan made its first significant move into the international market, founding Spartan de Mexico in Queretaro, Mexico, to produce bus chassis for the Mexican and South American markets.

Even more significantly, in 1994 the company opened a dedicated research and development facility as part of its new plant expansion.

In 2003, Spartan consolidated Luverne and Quality under the Crimson Fire brand in order to leverage and strengthen its engineering, design and manufacturing expertise in the fire apparatus market.

Building on the strength of it expertise in heavy-duty custom chassis, Spartan Chassis began assembling and integrating key chassis components for military vehicles in 2005.

In late 2009, Spartan Motors acquired Utilimaster Corporation from John Hancock Life Insurance Company.