Road Test
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MOST pundits agree that deregulation will increase the market for mini or midibuses. The Government would also like to see rural services benefit from the better use of community owned buses, including those used to carry the disabled and elderly. So the all-purpose welfare and stage bus capable of coping with occasional private hire could prove a sensible investment.
Such a vehicle is the latest Reeve Burgess welfare bus demonstrator fitted to the proven Dodge 50 series chassis. Although it is essentially a welfare vehicle it is built to public service vehicle requirements and has a much higher specification than many welfare vehicles in service today.
With inpending deregulation in mind I put the emphasis of my test on stop-start urban operation. I took the Dodge on an intensive day run into central London and on shorter trips in the surburbs.
The Dodge chassis has been around many years and holds few surprises. Nevertheless it is a thoroughly acceptable bus chassis — straightforward to drive, conventional and uncomplicated to maintain and relatively pleasant to ride in.
As a bus either for local services or for more specialist transport the Reeves Burgess body is attractive. It is also far less austere than many welfare bodies in service today. Construction is conventional, consisting of an all-steel body, frame mounted on a steel subframe. Reeve Burgess uses glass reinforced plastic mouldings to merge the body front panels into the original Dodge scuttle. The result is successful — the two units look as if they were styled as one. Rear mouldings are also grp and aluminium sheets are used to panel the body sides.
Passenger access for local bus use is good, with three low steps leading to a flat floor. The entrance is not too wide and there are plenty of handholds to ensure that the entrance is not intimidating for the elderly or disabled.
Again from the local bus point of view, the Dodge is convenient with its entrance door next to the driver for easy fare collection. A separate drivers' door is also fitted.
The test vehicle was large enough to carry 24 passengers, although at the time of our test was fitted with only 20 seats. The last pair of double seats on the off-side of the vehicle had been removed to carry wheelchair passengers.
Inside the little bus has a traditional Plutons air about it; the Melamine faced panels used look smart and are practical to keep clean. An opening roof light and an extractor fan are fitted. The suitability for stage carriage work is also emphasised by the fitting of adequate stanchions and a roof dome with enough space to accommodate destination equipment.
The complete body is well finished and gives a far better appearance than some of the more basic third world type welfare buses around. It is two years since CM last tested the Dodge S56 and it has changed little. I still found the bus predicatable and stable. The brakes still proved progressive enough to cope with the demands of local bus operation and central London traffic, although on this occasion the front wheels locked up during the programme of emergency braking tests at the Motor Industry Research Associations track near Nuneaton.
On previous tests I commented that third and fourth gears seem just a little too far apart. On this vehicle the fitting of an optional five-speed gearbox seems to have overcome the problem. and I found very little to criticise.
he five-speed box has a very low first gear which I found necessary for only a few hill starts. I found no operational or driving problems with the clutch or cranked gear lever. The old style mechanical park brake worked well, although I had to take special care to make sure that it was completely released after stops. The park brake warning light more than proved its worth here.
On the road the six-cylinder Perkins engine gave the vehicle adequate power to keep up with traffic and maintain a bus service schedule. The fitting of viscous de-coupled fan drive and better sound insulation keeps noise from the internal engine compartment to a minimum — in fact, this vehicle seemed significantly quieter than the Dormobile bodied version test in 1982.
The ride was better too, aided by the fitting of special rear suspension — at an extra £107— to reduce rear end bounce on passenger vehicles based on the Dodge 50.
After a day of stop-start operation I found the vehicle adequate, but not exciting. The steering was precise and the turning circle allowed reasonable manoeuvrability, although towards the end of the day I began to wish that the test vehicle had been fitted with optional power steering.
Instruments are grouped directly in front of the driver and all can be easily read. The standard Dodge facia is incorporated into the Reeves Burgess design, which includes a supplementary switch panel for heaters, interior lights and the master switch for the Ratcliff tail-lift.
Visibility is generally very good. The large Dodge screen is complemented by corner light windows allowing a view down to kerb level. The large exterior mirrors give a good view to the rear, but there is a blind spot which is particularly annoying when pulling out of a side road to rejoin a main traffic stream.
The PLC Peters two-leaf folding door for the main entrance seemed relatively draught free, although its side rubber caught on the top corner from time to time. All windows and doors fitted well and were free from draughts and rattles, but there were occassional rattles from the tail-lift.
On our intensive running exercise the vehicle returned between 1811t/100km (15mpg) and 17.7Iit/ 100km (15.9mpg). The bus was fully laden and our average speeds were as low as 16km/h (10mph). For a prospective local bus operator the Dodge chassis has the benefit of an established Renault Track Industries dealer network. Routine servicing is at 6,000 mile intervals and few tasks would mean excessive downtime.
Renault quotes the following workshop times for a selection of major or minor repair tasks: remove and replace gearbox, 3.82 hours; remove and replace clutch plate, 4.07 hours; remove and replace front brake shoes, 2.20 hours; remove and replace injectors, 1.55 hours; and replace rear spring, one hour.
Spare part prices, too, are reasonable. A windscreen is priced at £183; an exchange engine radiator is £90; and, an exchange engine is £2,066.
The body price of £19,687 'includes many optional features including moquette seats, psy emergency exits, the electrohydraulic Ratcliff wheelchair lift, wheelchair clamps and tracking, and a full length mudflap. The total retail price of £30,288 may seem a little high at first, but it includes the wheelchair lift at £2,500. Reeve Burgess is equipped to build to suit customer requirements and prices vary accordingly.
To sum up, the Dodge Reeve Burgess combination is practical and pleasing. It is well able to handle local bus operation and is certainly able to fulfill all welfare roles and provide added revenue from shorter distance private hires. The demonstrator, while essentially a welfare vehicle, has been built to psv specifications and provides a compromise between the full-size bus and coach, and lighter minibus type vehicles.