• Home
• Used vehicles
• Product news
• Dealer news
• Compliance
• Buying advice
• Archive

AVG' PASSENGER

BODYWORK

ONE of the most interesting Commercial Motor Shows for some time must Surely be the verdict from psv operators visiting Earls Court. Quite apart from the Show highlight, the Leyland National integral bus, fully described elsewhere in this issue Of CM, operators will be able to examine its Closest rival, the fully integral Metro-Scania single-decker. And the first of 367 double-deckers for London Transport will make interesting comparison with the rear-engined double-deckers shown for municipal and PTE undertakings, particularly in view of the likelihood that many more LIE double-deckers will follow, Coach operators too will find a wider range of models, with new luxury coaches from both sides of the water to add to those of the established British builders.

42 ALEXANDER

Walter Alexander and Co (Coachbuilders) Ltd, PO Box 24, Glasgow Road, Falkirk.

AFTER showing examples of express coach bodies in recent years. Alexander is displaying an example of its standard doubledeck for city and urban work. It is a 10-metre 133ft). 74-seat, front-entrance-and-centralexit body, with provision for 18 standees in the lower saloon, and is mounted on an 18ft Sin. -wheelbase, Daimler Fleetline CRG6-33 chassis.

The structure is mainly of steel rolled sections. with full-depth alloy truss panels. Above the upper saloon waist rail the construction is entirely of aluminium alloy. Front and rear domes and the lower saloon front panel are of glass-reinforced plastics.

Equipment includes an electrically operated passenger counter on the staircase. a Smiths 1500 heating unit in each saloon, and sensitive edges on the exit door leaves. The bus is one of a batch of 40 for Bradford City Transport designed for one-man operation.

36 DUPLE

Duple Coachbuilders Ltd, Duple Group Sales Ltd, The Hyde, Hendon, London NW9.

PRINCIPAL exhibit on the Duple stand is a Viceroy 32 45-seat luxury coach body mounted on the new Bedford YRC1 midengined chassis. The coach, which has an overall length of 32ft Nin., is the latest version of the well-known Duple Viceroy body, and retains the established metal and timber construction, jig-built for standardization, ease of repair and replacement.

Full advantage has been taken of the new chassis layout to provide an improved stepwell entrance. driver's compartment, seating layout and sound proofing. The lower front corners are reinforced and fitted with rubber bumpers, and the skirt panels on the body sides are curved under the body to reduce the possibility of kerb damage. A power-operated entrance door with sensitized edges is fitted, and equipment includes a Radiomobile radio and eight-track stereo tape-recording equipment.

A second Viceroy coach is a 53-seat 37ft model on Ford R226 chassis incorporating similar styling features. Forced-air ventilation with individual outlets, beneath the solidbase parcels racks is fitted, and Radiomobile radio and public address equipment is included. Interior lighting includes diffused night-lights —standard on the Duple coach range.

The third exhibit is an updated version of the Duple Vega body for the Bedford SB chassis, for which there is a continued demand. Seating 41 passengers. the coach is of composite construction and is jig, built. Externally the design has been updated. incorporating some of the Viceroy features, though basically resembling the superseded Viscount design. Alt three coaches are fitted with stainless-steel brightwork and mouldings.

41 EASTERN COACH WORKS

Eastern Coach Works Ltd, Eastern Way, Lowestoft, Suffolk.

TWO exhibits on this stand represent standard production models for National Bus Company operators. One is a 70-seat front-entrance/exit double-decker on a Bristol VRT/SL 16ft 2in. 'wheelbase chassis, to the specification of the West Yorkshire Road Car Co Ltd. The alloy-framed body, with flanged box-section pillars, is built semi-integrally with the chassis. Equipment includes a conductor's locker and luggage compartment incorporated in the front offside spiral staircase, with additional luggage accommodation to the rear of the front nearside staircase screen.

Other features include grp front and rear domes, lower front panels and skirt valances, tubular seat frames with stainless-steel double top rails, and cushions and squabs upholstered in moquette and hide, lining panels of decorative laminate, and Melaminefaced roof-lining panels. Overall length of the bus is 30ft The second bus is a 45-seat single-decker for Cumberland Motor Services Ltd, based on a 16ft 2in.-wheelbase Bristol LH chassis. with an overall length of 30ft lin. Designed for o-rn-o, the bus features a locker built into the roof above the driver/operator's head, expanded-mesh parcel rack on offside only, and former BET-style double wrapround windscreen.

44 I mvr SALVADOR CAETANO imyr Salvador Caetano Sad,

do Moseley Continental Coachwork Ltd, Knightthorpe Road, Loughborough, Leics. EXAMPLES of the three basic models of Continental-style coaches marketed in Britain by Moseley Continental Coachwork Ltd are displayed on this stand. Built in Portugal by Salvador Caetano, Oporto, the coaches are a Cascais 45-seater on Ford R192 chassis powered by the Ford Turbo engine, a Sintra 29-seater on Bedford VAS 5 chassis, and a Lisboa 45-seater on AEC Reliance chassis.

Common features on all three coaches are all-metal construction utilizing arc-welded, jig-assembled, box-section frames with heavy-gauge stressed-metal outer panels. Exterior finish includes triple-section stainlesssteel front and rear bumpers with rubber overriders. Continental exterior colour layout in nitro-synthetic paint, and brightwork consisting of anodized aluminium profiles and heavily chromed brass fittings. Panoramic toughened-glass side-windows are also fitted on all three models Interior fittings include full-length parcel racks housing forced-air ventilation and sidewindow demisting with individual vents and reading lights, fluorescent lighting with diffused night-lights, seats trimmed in PVC, draw curtains to all side-windows, and radio and public address systems.

31 MARSHALL

Marshall of Cambridge (Engineering) Ltd, Airport Works (Omnibus Division), Newmarket Road, Cambridge CB5 8RX. FOR the third Show in succession a singledeck bus for a BET or ex-BET company is shown by Marshall. although the current

The two-stop -tramcarentrance, standard on the Park Royal double-deck body, has not been employed on the 72-seat version for Coventry City Transport. The second step has been moved to the entrance to the lower saloon, as shown in the adjacent drawings. However, the standard Park Royal outline has been retained, evident from the front and nearside elevation drawings.

exhibit is a more orthodox vehicle than the Camair for Northern General exhibited in 1968. It is a 45-seat Camagna Two metalframed front-entrance/exit body mounted on a Leyland-engined Bristol RESL6L chassis for Southdown Motor Services Ltd. The bus has an overall length of 10 metres (33ft 5in.), a length becoming common for single-deck stage service buses.

The framework is built of steel sections with exterior panelling in alloy or grp, the latter being used for front and rear domes, skirt panels, corner panels and so on. A 3ft Sin.-wide front entrance/exit is provided, with one-piece grpmouldedstepwell. and Peters air-operated doors. Interior lining and ceiling panels are of Warerite plastics as are the rear panels of the seat squabs. The seats themselves are tubular-type with double stainless-steel top rails, and the cushions and squabs are trimmed with moquette.

Front windscreens. are of the Triplex electrically heated type. Beclawat topsliders are incorporated in the side-windows and a Smiths 1500 heating system is fitted with trunking on both sides of the saloon.

40 MCW

Metro-Cammell Weymann Ltd, ONE of the most interesting psv exhibits is the Metro-Scania single-decker . frontentrance-and-central-exit bus for Leicester City transport, which is the only truly integral vehicle to compare with the Leyland National single-deck bus. Built jointly by Scania Bussar AB, Sweden, and MetroCammell Weymann, the 11 metres (36ft 1 in.) vehicle is fitted with Scania Vabis engine and running units. The Scania 011 engine is mounted transversely at the rear of the bus, and drives through fully automatic transmission to the rear axle. Full air suspension and power-operated steering are also fitted.

The body framing is of mild steel with top-hat section pillars and roof sticks joined at the roof centre-line. Remaining sections are of top-hat, Z, or channel formation. Exterior roof panelling is of 18-gauge alloy with double overlap, and stiffened each side by 14-gauge mild-steel truss plates. The outer body side panels beneath the waist are of 16-gauge mild-steel stress panels, spot welded.

Entrance and exit doorways are 3ft Bin.wide between door leaves when the electropneumatically operated Peters doors are open, and accommodation for 44 seated passengers plus 19 standees is provided. All main side windows are double glazed, and a two-piece asymmetrical curved windscreen is fitted, the offside screen being of the electrically-heated type.

Luggage accommodation is provided to the rear of the entrance screen, and Deans tubular seat frames with stainless-steel double top rails are fitted, the cushions and squabs trimmed in ICI Amble. Warerite interior lining panels extend to cant rail height; the ceiling panels are stove enamelled.

A Clayton Dewandre U28 heating system is fitted, the nearside being of the recircu latory type and the offside provided with a fresh-air intake. Equipment includes a Pye public address system and two-way radio

telephone, and pantograph-type airoperated windscreen wipers.

The second exhibit represents the more conventional body on separate chassis combination, and is an SM6-type bus ordered by London Transport Executive on behalf of London Country Bus Services Ltd. in whose colours it is painted. ft is a 33ft Sin. overall mild-steel-framed front entrance and central exit Metro-Cammell Weymannbodied AEC Swift, with 41 seats and accommodation for 21 standing passengers.

A 4ft 41in.-wide entrance is provided with both sets of the Peters electro pneumatically-operated doors folding to the centre. A clear space of 3ft Sin, is provided between the exit doors when open.

The windscreen is of two-piece curved type and all main side windows have top sliders. Railed luggage accommodation is provided forward of the nearside exit and a moulded one-piece grp parcel rack is fitted on the offside of the front saloon.

Interior lining panels are of plastics to cant rail height, the ceiling and cant panels being stove enamelled. Equipment includes an automatically-controlled Smiths 1500 heating and ventilating system.

32 NORTHERN COUNTIES

Northern Counties Motor and Engineering Co Ltd, Empire House, Mountstuart Square, Cardiff CF1 60N.

EXAMPLES of the latest standard doubledeckers built by Northern Counties are shown. One is a 10 metres (33ft 5in.) front entrance and central exit 76-seater for Lancashire United Transport Ltd and mounted on a Daimler Fleetline 18ft 6in.-wheelbase chassis. The bus is of metal-framed construction, and the interior lining panels are all of Formica, with the roof cavity insulated. Smiths 1500 blower-type heating systems are fitted to each saloon, and Triplex electrically-heated windscreens are incorporated: Tudor manually-operated windscreen-washers are installed.

Vulcan tubular seat frames are provided, and the cushions and squabs are trimmed with Connolly's hide. All handrails and stanchions are of matt stainless-steel tubing, arid double sliding windows are fitted in each saloon.

The second exhibit is a 9.5 metres (30ft 9in.) front entrance/exit double-decker for SELNEC PTE, and is an all-metal 75-seater mounted on a Leyland Atlantean PIDR1A/1 chassis. Much of the specification is common with the LUT bus, other features including electric windscreen washers, Youngs hopper windows and wiring for a public address system.

38 PARK ROYAL

Park Royal Vehicles Ltd, Abbey Road, London NW10.

AT ONE time one of the most studied double-deckers at the Commercial Motor Show was the latest model for London Transport. This tradition is revived with the appearance on this stand of the first of 367 Daimler Fleetlines with 68-seat Park Royal bodies for LTE. The bus has a wide front entrance with the Peters electropneumatically operated doors folding against the centre of the doorway when open, and central exit. It has an overall length of 30ft 10in, and includes accommodation for 21 standing passengers.

Classified DMS, the bus is designed specifically for one-man operation and employs the dual fare collection system now standardized on London Transport's latest standee single-deckers. Passengers entering on the left by the "tramcar step" pay the driver/operator, who is equipped with an Almex motorized ticket machine and enter the saloon on the offside, while people with the correct change enter on the right, and insert the appropriate fare--indicated by an illuminated display—into a machine which automatically issues a ticket and releases the passimeter to allow access to the saloon via the nearside.

The body is basically to Park Royal standard design with body framing of alloy and steel with stress panels arranged between the waist and floor rails. However, the grp front and rear domes are more angular. LTE vertically curved windscreens are fitted and side screens are provided above the rear engine bustle,

Saloon heating and ventilation are provided by a Clayton U.28 unit serving both saloons and fitted beneath the elongated spiral forward-ascending central staircase. The system is automatically controlled, with Danfoss thermostats mounted behind the stairs in each saloon; fresh-air intakes are incorporated. Additional ventilation is provided by double sliding windows in each saloon, and Weathershield push-out units at the front of the upper saloon.

The tubular-framed seats are fitted with stainless steel double top rails, and are upholstered in Holdsworth Celestra blue moquette trimmed with blue hide, Casing panels and rear seat squabs are lined with ICI Chinese green leathercloth, grey plastics inserts are fitted between the windows and the ceilings and upper cove panels are stove enamelled in magnolia.

Externally a full destination display of Routemaster layout is fitted at the front of the bus, with a single route number blind at the rear. The bus is painted in an all-over red livery with no relief, apart from a white bull'seye motif with the fleetname -London Transportaffixed to the staircase panel on the offside and below the waist to the rear of the exit on the nearside.

In addition to the LTE double-decker, Park Royal is also showing another example of a 30ft 10in, overall double-deck body designed for o-m-o, which conforms to the Park Royal standard bus outline. This example is also on a Daimler Fleetline CRG6-30 chassis, and is one of a batch for Coventry City Transport.

Body construction and specification is basically the same as described above. though the Deans entrance doors open to the sides of the entrance. Two Smiths R551 heater units are fitted in each saloon, with fresh-air intakes on the lower front heater and both upper saloon heaters. Seating

is provided for 72 passengers, and the seats are trimmed with Trimtex PVC. All interior lining panels are of plastics.

Equipment includes double flat windscreens both electrically heated Triplex type, an SBK passenger counting device on the staircase, and Beclawat Derwent tipping .window units in the upper saloon and top sliding windows in the lower saloon.

30 PLAXTON

Plaxtons (Scarborough) Ltd, Castle Works, Seamer Road, Scarborough.

IN COMMON with Duple, the 1971 Plaxton range of luxury coaches consists of an updated version bf an existing design

in this case the Panorama Elite. The latest model is the Panorama Elite II, which retains the now well-known side window silhouette, but incorporates styling changes both inside and externally. Three examples are shown on this stand.

The new exterior features are the extensior of the front grille for increased access anc incorporating the four headlamps in pain on ABS plastics panels in chrome finish Also the side-rave mouldings are extendec across the front, blending with and forminç the top of the grille. All exterior brightwori is in stainless steel.

The main structure is of the metal. framed type supplemented by alloy and timber. Internal restyling affects the parce racks, incorporating new flush-fitted pas senger service units, each with twc individual air vents and a switched readirq lamp.

One of the Plaxton exhibits is a 45-sea model based on the new Bedford YR( mid-engined chassis and built to thr specification of Silverline Tours, Hounslow. The seats are Plaxton standard luxury desigr with special neckroll, and the interio features two tables, with full-length dram curtains in Peacock Blue nylon material. Overall length is 32f1 6in.

The second exhibit is an 11 metres 136ft 101in.) 47-seat coach on Leyland Leopard chassis for the Bristol Omnibus Co Ltd. Equipment includes an air-operated entrance door, public address system and warm-air heating from a Smiths Webasto 5GASM oil-fired heating unit installed in the offside centre locker. A conductor's locker is incorporated in the front offside parcel rack.

Finally, the longest coach shown on the stand is a 37ft 1in, model on a Ford R226 chassis for J. B. Tatlock and Son Ltd, Radcliffe, Manchester; it incorporates an executive area at the rear. In the centre of this area is a table flanked by matching couches on both nearside and offside and a rear seat with low squab. Equipment includes a Radiomobile radio and public address system, and stereo tape-machine incorporated in the dash layout.

39 ROE

Charles H. Roe Ltd, Crossgates Carriage Works, Crossgates, Leeds LS13 8SU.

ONCE again the tradition of exhibiting a bus for Leeds City Transport at Earls Court is maintained, and at this Show the bus is again on the Roe stand. it is an 18ft 6in. wheelbase Leyland Atlantean fitted with 33ft front entrance and central exit, 78-seat bodywork and in keeping with the current Leeds standard, large side-windows for each saloon are employed, together with deep two-piece angled windscreens.

Heating i5 provided by Clayton U28 heatexchange units with external fresh-air intakes; in addition a Clayton heater unit and blower are fitted above each doorway to blow down a hot-air curtain, the units being automatically switched on when the doors are opened, thus maintaining a comfortable temperature inside the bus in cold weather.

The body is of metal-framed construction with grp front and rear domes. Glassreinforced plastics upper saloon body panels incorporating defined boundaries for exterior advertisements are provided, and -fluorescent interior lighting with Philips tubes behind Deans Luminator advertisement panels is also fitted. Deans tubularframed seats are trimmed with moquette in the lower saloon and all Amble pleated finish in the upper saloon.

Other equipment includes a public address system. SBK passenger counter on the staircase, electrically-heated front windscreens and destination glasses, radiotelephone and Trico pantograph-type windscreen wipers.

Also shown is a 30ft 9in. 74-seater doubledecker with front entrance and central exit, and mounted on a Daimler Fleetline chassis. Built 'for Derby Corporation Transport the bus also features large windows, heated windscreen, and is equipped with a Pye Motafone radio telephone.

35 VAN HOOL

Van Hool and Fils SPRL, clo R. F. Church, Esq, 68 Eastmoor Park, Harpenden, Herts.

NEWCOMER to the Commercial Motor Show is this Belgian luxury coach builder which is making a bid to enter the UK market. and is showing a coach designed to meet British MoT regulations. It is an 11-metre 44-seat body mounted to a Leyland Leopard chassis, and is of all-metal construction with continuously welded stress panels along the full length of the body beneath the waist.

The particular model is known as the Vistadome body and features two lights or windows at the front of the coach above the windscreens, and panoramic sealed windows in the sides of the vehicle. The generously spaced seats are of the reclining type and are to Van Hool standard design, and the coach features forced ventilation with individual vents combined with reading lights mounted in the full-length parcel racks.

An electro-pneumatically-operated power door is fitted at the front of the coach. Externally the coach is painted in a white/ blue "fimo", or zigzag, colour scheme, giving a Continental effect.

43 WILLOWBROOK

Willowbrook Ltd, clo Duple Group Sales Ltd, The Hyde, Hendon, London NW9.

TWO bus bodies are displayed, one of which is an 11-metres 53-seater mounted on a Leyland Leopard PSU3A/4R for the NBC subsidiary Yorkshire Traction Co Ltd. The construction is metal framed, incorporating steel section underframe-members, pillars, roof sticks, etc, and full-depth ZINTEC truss panels from crib to waist rail at bodysides. The exterior dome and canopy panels and front and rear panels are moulded grp.

Deans air-operated glider-type doors are fitted to the front entrance/exit, solid-base designed parcel racks are fitted each side of the saloon and a luggage locker is fitted at the rear of the bus. The main saloon windows are of the fixed type and ventilation is provided by three Adwest opening roof lights. A Smiths 1500 saloon heating system is fitted and the windscreens are of the electrically heated type. All interior lining is of Warerite and the seats are trimmed with moquette.

The second vehicle is of the service coach-type and is a 45-seater 10 metres body on Ford 8192 chassis for Garelochhead Coach Services Ltd. Air-operated jack-knife doors are fitted to the front entrance/exit of the metal-framed body. The parcel racks are of solid base type and ventilation is provided by top sliding windows. Standard Duple luxury seats are trimmed in moquette, and a decorative exterior moulding scheme is incorporated with stainless steel sections to the sides and polished alloy front and rear bumper mouldings.