“It never gets old,” Flavio Garcia says.
Being integrally involved in the beautifully artistic transformation of the exterior of a Marathon Coach, that is. Each time a new coach rolls out of the Marathon production facility, with its precise and painstaking paint process finally complete, Garcia says it can be hard to believe it’s the same Prevost bus that rolled into the facility several weeks earlier.
No matter how many times he has been part of that transformative process.
Top Image: Marathon Coach Paint Team Member, Flavio Garcia, Mapping Out Paint Design
“That’s the most rewarding part of my job,” says Garcia, a team leader in Marathon’s paint booth. “I love taking part in and then seeing that beautiful transformation from just a primer gray canvas to a shiny, beautiful piece of art.”
Just as no two Marathon Coach interiors are alike, each exterior also is unique, reflecting its owner’s’ individual tastes and brought to life by the wildly creative and meticulous members of Marathon’s design and paint teams.
Top Image: Flavio Garcia Working on Digital Paint Design for a Marathon Coach
Paint Division Manager Ryan Fox, who has been with the company for 15 years, says his team of prep, production and paint specialists put the best in both experience and talent to work on behalf of Marathon clients, constantly pushing their own high standards as they go.
Garcia is a great example of that – a ten-year veteran of Marathon’s paint department who brings his experience and creative eye to his role as a designer. His eye for color and balance in design and his years working in the booth painting give him a unique perspective on the process which will inform his designs.
Left Image: Flavio Garcia at Paint Work Station, Right Image: Test Paint Panels
“Like Flavio, most of our team members have been with Marathon for anywhere from five to 20 years,” Fox says. “And most had painting backgrounds before they joined us. It’s a close-knit team that takes quality and communication very seriously. We’re always talking about issues that may come up, looking for opportunities for improvement, always pushing to raise the bar on quality.”
The process that results in each coach’s colorful and expressive exterior personality begins when its owner’s tastes, preferences and vision are shared with the Marathon design and paint specialists. “They’ll relay to us ideas of what they are looking for in colors and designs,” Fox says. “They can be based on their own concepts or maybe another coach they’ve seen. We’ll put together a design and share it with them then tweak it according to their feedback.”
Top Image: Marathon Coach #1402 End Cap
Once the design has been finalized, the transformation of the Prevost bus shell begins. It’s a multi-step process that begins with body blocking and sanding before proceeding to the application of base coats and then on to the layout of the intricate paint designs. Colors are then mixed to exacting specifications and details added by a skilled airbrush artist, which bring character and depth to each design.
Nine layers of clear coat are applied over the color, sealing in the paint and design and ensuring a smooth glossy finish. Finally, after allowing time for the paint to cure, the cut-and-buff process is completed to create a mirror-like finish and enhance the depth and gloss of the paint.
Top Image: Marathon Coach #1401 side paint details
“Depending on the complexity of the design and paint, the entire process can take from five to eight weeks to complete,” says Fox. He adds that, while the majority of coach owners opt for more traditional graphic patterns, the Marathon team’s creativity and skills certainly don’t stop there.
“We’ve done some really custom paint jobs,” Fox says. “We’ve done American flags draped over a coach. We did a coach with a Mardis Gras theme. That one was loud, but it looked amazing. We’re painting one a Ferrari green now, a dark green metal flake that looks great.”
Left Image: Marathon Coach #1393 Paint Details, Right Image: Marathon Coach #1398 Paint Details
Fox adds that the team also recently finished a “Designer Choice Coach” that featured an innovative 3D pattern. “We wanted to give it a try and see what it looked like, and it turned out really nice,” he says, adding that team members are always willing to stretch their creative wings, so to speak, on behalf of coach owners.
That’s another thing that never gets old – making Marathon owners happy by meeting their needs and exceeding their expectations.
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