British operators consulted for likely requirements A DETERMINED effort to sell
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buses and coaches in Britain is to be made by Mercedes-Benz Ltd., who will exhibit a coach modified to comply with British p.s.v. regulations at Earls Court in September.
It will be recalled that a Mercedes coach appeared at the 1962 Commercial Motor Show, and several firm orders were taken on the assumption that coaches modified to comply with the British regulations would become available. The modifications applied mainly to the front axle, together with several minor details on the bodywork. Apparently the initiative was taken by Mercedes-Benz (Great Britain) Ltd. on the understanding that they had the backing of the parent company. For various reasons, this backing was not forthcoming and the project had to be dropped.
Unlike that rather abortive attempt, the initiative comes this time from the parent company, and two British coach operators, Mr. L. G. Whyte, of Whyte's (Edgware) Ltd. and Mr. K. Flight, of Flight's Tours Ltd. visited Germany last week at Mercedes' invitation. One of the purposes of this visit was to discuss the requirements of the British coach operator.
Next step will be consultation with an official of the Ministry of Transport to ensure that coaches offered for sale in Britain will comply with current regulations.
Mercedes intend to back the project by establishing a first-class service and maintenance organization in this country. A fully-equipped coach would cost a little over £10,000, inclusive of all import duties and charges. This is about £2,000 more than a current heavy-duty British coach.
On the other hand, Mercedes will be able to offer delivery of standard coaches just three months from receipt of order. This compares with an average wait of 18 months for delivery of a heavy-duty British coach chassis—not to mention a further wait while the bodywork is fitted.
Mr. Whyte and Mr. Flight were taken on a demonstration run in a 49-seat coach, which included a rapid ascent of a mountain pass, the coach proving very agile on the numerous hairpin bends. An average fuel consumption of 11 m.p.g. was obtained.
The standard Mercedes-Benz 0.302 coach at present in production comes in three lengths (31 ft. 8 in., 33 ft. 4 in. and 35 ft. 10 in.) with seating capacities ranging from 37 to 49. The shorter coaches are powered by the Daimler-Benz OM 352 5.7-litre engine developing 126 b.h.p. at 2,800 r.p.m.
An option, however, is the OM 327 8.0litre engine developing 150 b.h.p. at 2,600 r.p.m., standard on the long version.