- Founded
- 1905
- Headquarters
- Arbúcies, Spain
Joan Ayats founded the business at Arbúcies, Catalonia, in 1905, initially exploiting the surrounding Selva timber region when vehicle bodies still used wooden framing. Ayats progressed from commissioned commercial bodies to named coach ranges on Pegaso and other makers' chassis, then became a complete bus constructor as well as a coachbuilder. Its 1980s Apolo, Diana and Jupiter family established high-deck and double-deck expertise. Spain's 1986 entry into the European Community opened export markets, and a new Can Call factory reached roughly 200 vehicles annually; Ayats also began constructing double-deckers on its own chassis. The Atlas launched in 1994, followed by export-oriented Atlantis, Bravo and Platinum families. By 2004 the Vilà family controlled the company and annual production was reported at 450 vehicles. After the 2008 crisis Ayats expanded beyond Europe, delivering its first Mexican coach in 2010 and later operating plants in Spain and Querétaro. The firm now combines integral underframes with bodies on partner chassis and specializes in double-deck long-distance, open-top tourism and intercity buses. Model records preserve chassis-maker variability rather than falsely assigning one engine to every Ayats body.
Text adapted from “Ayats” on Wikipedia ↗ · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗