L.C.C. Builds Own Buses
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k fv1FDIUM-CAPACITY school bus
has been designed by the Supplies lepartment of the London County ouncil, and the fourth of these is at resent under construction at the L.C.C.'s tandsworth depot. Features of these 7/18-seaters include' De Dion rear axles, lastics bodywork, Webasto combustion mters and. n the case of some of the uses. Autolifts hydraulic hoists for ivalid chairs. A total of 72 buses is t be built, and only the first four will lye Wandsworth-manufactured bodyork, the remainder being produced by lartin Walter Ltd., to the L.C.C. design. The basis of the bus design is an ustin FG K40 chassis with certain )ecial modifications. The most interestig of these is the De Dion axle, which similar to that used in the current .C.C. ambulance and which is the work f the Allard Motor Co. Ltd., London, .W.4. Also non-standard, however, are le 2.199-litre petrol engine, hydraulically :ttuated clutch and synchromesh gearox. "the De Dion back-end is at present nly a ' prototype" measure and a ecision as to whether it will be used on II the chassis will be reached after :rvice trials. The special axle has stanard 11.M.C. 30-cwt. components. and the ispension consists of large coil springs, orking with Aeon rubbers, parallel idius arms and telescopic dampers. The se of this back end in the bus is rimarily to achieve good rear-end susension characteristics and stability, [though in the case of the ambulances le main object was to obtain a low oorline. However, variable-rate suspenon was considered very desirable for le school bus in view of the necessity ) provide a smooth ride whether the bus as fully laden or contained just one nail child.
The choice of a B.M.C. four-cylinder etrol engine in place of the standard '993-litre six-cylinder petrol engine was onsidered desirable on the grounds of id economy and the best alternative to sing a diesel engine. The engine is rated ) give 61 6,11.p. at 3,500 r.p.m. and III
lb. ft. torque at 1,750 r.p.m. In addition to these non-standard items, this version of the Austin 2-ton forward-control chassis has 30-cwt. front axle and springs, so virtually the only 2-ton component is the chassis frame.
Two basic mouldings form the main body, which is attached to the standard Austin all-steel front-end; each plastics moulding includes the complete side and half the roof, whilst the floor is of plywood, with plastics wheel arches. The first few vehicles have seats for 16 children and one attendant, plus driver, but the design was originally laid out for 18 passengers, There are inward-facing seats for six at the rear of the body, forward-facing seats for six on the offside and four on the nearside, and a single or a DAM seat adjacent to the driver.
Three Doors
A 2-ft. 3-in.-wide door is incorporated in the nearside. mid-wheelbase, whilst there is a 2-ft. 8-in.-wide entrance at the rear and a separate door for the driver. In the unladen condition, the bus has a floor height of approximately 2 ft. Sin. The plastics panels are impregnated with the usual L.C.C. shade of dark green, a commendable point in this connection being the very close match between the colour of these panels and the paint of the metal front-end assembly.
When an Autolifts hoist is fitted, the platform of this is hinged and folds up inside the rear entrance; the hoist has hydraulic operation, and the pump is driven by an electric motor. When a hoist is not fitted folding steps are used.
The Webasto heater is housed under the floor, immediately behind the nearside-front wheel, and fresh air for the heater is drawn in through a large roof vent, whilst there is a separate vent incorporating a motorized fan to provide fresh-air ventilation, additional to which a three-way opening ventilator towards the rear of he roof is fitted. Interior lighting is provided by four Fasco fluorescent fittings, and to enstire adequate electric power at all times a Lucas 11 AC alternator is employed as standard.
I drove one of these new vehicles recently (writes John F. Moon), and found it to handle well, although there was the usual FC.ir disadvantage with respect to driving visibility in that the top of the windscreen is too low. This particular vehicle had an unladen weight of 2 tons 11.75 cwt. and was carrying 5 cwt. to provide a partial payload. At this weight the bus rode very smoothly, with a minimum of sway. but from the passenger's angle the engine noise level was rather high. Because of the absence of separate framing. the body was quite free of creaks and rattles. " Spot-check " fuel figures Laken with the bus indicated 12 m.p.g. in very heavy traffic, 17 m.p.g. in light traffic and, on open roads, 22 m.p.g. at 30 mph. maximum, 20 m.p.g. at 40 and 16 m.p.g. at 50.