All Your Favourite Buses Past & Present

[Rob H]

Just thought I'd share all my Favourite Buses If you'd like to share all your favourite Buses Post below :)

Optare Solo - 280/315/318
Leyland Lynx - 1108/1120/1138/1141/1232/1233/1245
Wright Liberator B10B/B10L - 1357/1358/1405/1407/1412/1427/1429/1441/1467
Mercedes Benz O405N - 1515/1516/1632/1668
Wright Eclipse Urban - 1769/1771/1777/1786/1787
Metrobuses - 2469/2483/2554/2574/2654/2707/2741/2783/2813/2832/2849/2869/2871/2905/3056/3082
Plaxton President - 4023/4041/4057/4069/4117
Dennis/TransBus Trident - 4142/4187/4195/4202/4367/4386/4387/4436/4437/4441/4452/4629/4632
Wright Eclipse Gemini - 4520/4532/4653/4674
Dennis Enviro 400 - 4766/4769/4815/4900

[Sh4318]

Metrobuses & Tridents (4166)

[danny]

The lynx's all the way.

[JackC]

The 0405N in general is a favourite of mine -  the seats on post-1628 Mercs are some of the most comfortable in the fleet and the old warhorses do make a great noise. 1700 seems to be the best of the lot to me - for a 12 year old bus it barely rattles inside and the CCTV adds a certain uniqueness to it even if it isn't the only Merc to have it. I have a soft spot for Metrobuses aswell for the noise and nostalgia - they were the first buses I can remember being on. I also like the Liberators that sound similar to Metrobuses, again for the noise.

In terms of modern buses, I do like the E200s but since they've started rattling inside much more than you'd expect from a modern bus they have lost a little bit of charm for me. I think the top spot has to go to the grey leather seated E400s at Walsall for sheer comfort and they're not too bad looking either.

[Ash]

When the citaro bendibuses were used on the 27 in Coventry I used the buses daily and must say were some of the best built buses I have ever traveled on, never heard a rattle from them and weren't too bad for comfort although freezing on winter mornings.

The mercs are my favourite buses being brought up on them from a young age on the 404 service quick, quite reliable and the workhorses of the single decker fleet especially in the black country and Coventry. One of the best mercs for engine sounds is 1556 sounds very whiny and a good runner. Shame that there are no more branded 404 mercs in service as 1534 was the last to be withdrawn not surprised though must have clocked up a fair few miles on the 404/A back in the days. Although 1525/1658 live on as they virtually spent most of their lives on the service.

Favourite metro bus probably between 2646 and 2841 they were two long standing metrobuses at WB.

[nitromatt1]

If I was to pick one favourite individual vehicle of each type currently at NXWM, here goes...

Volvo B6LE: 581
Volvo B7RLE (older): there is one which is a lot louder than the others, had it not long ago, can't remember the number but Nath will be able to tell me!
Volvo B7RLE (newer): 2098
Enviro200: 823
Mercedes O405N: 1540

Optare Spectra: 4002
Dennis/Transbus/ADL Trident (Voith): 4575
Dennis/Transbus/ADL Trident (ZF): 4560
Volvo B7TL (Plaxton President): 4064
Volvo B7TL (ALX400): any which make the screaming sound when the handbrake is applied!
Volvo B7TL (Wright Eclipse Gemini): 4503
ADL Trident (Enviro400): 4813
ADL Enviro400: 4913
Volvo B5LH: 5516
ADL Enviro400H: 5414

I have left out the ALX200 Darts, B10Ls, Omnilinks and Omnicities as I am not familiar enough with them to be able to pick an individual as a favourite

[winston]

For me, it has got to be.......

Leyland National 2's
Leyland Lynx - had them from new on the 19/19S (Quinton garage) & 247/248 (Dudley garage)
Metrobuses - especially BC's DP Timesaver Metrobuses used them frequently on the 900 when that ran through to Hasbury
Scania N113/Alexander RH H--LOM at BC
Volvo B10L's again from new on the Hagley Rd corridor after Quinton garage closed and the routes moved to BC

Not so fussed with the modern stuff

[nitromatt1]

My all-time favourite bus has to be the Volvo Citybus/B10M-50/D10M or whatever you want to call it. Favourite gearbox in that is Voith.

Also am a fan of the Metrobus, Volvo Olympian and Dennis Lance.

There are many types of older buses I have never been on, including Nationals and Lynxes

[Trident 4609]

My favourites (Let me just say i started a similar thread some time ago about favourite buses)

B6LE-581 (One of the best ones at WN)
E200-824
WA B7RLE (Older Batch)-1773
B7RLE (Newer batch)-2013
Merc-1628 or 1676

Tridents-4609(My favourite bus in the fleet),4541 (Fastest one at WN by far!) and another good one 4560

Spectra-4002 or 4019 (4019 sounds very much like a Metrobus so i call it a Spectrobus ;))
E400H-5414
B5LH- All of 5510-14
E40D (Newer E400's 61 plate and 13 plates onwards)-4913
Trident E400-4813 or 4808


The other types i don't ride too often so couldn't pick or in the case of Omnilinks i don't like any of them

[lynx1103]

I have rode on every single Leyland Lynx/Metrobuses ( 2436 onwards) not 2662 2711 2773 2964

Leyland lynx rode them on many routes living in Sutton Coldfield being 66/66A 68A/68C 71.


I was very pleased when Hockley temporally re-instated lynxes 1188/1219 October2004-Febuary 2005 and did have some journeys on them on 68A/68C

1069/1071/1074/1077/1080/1084/1088/1090/1096/1099
/1103/1105/1110/1113/1127/1136/1138.     1158/1166/1172/1180/1181/1183/1188/1190/1199/1226/
1232/1243/1256/1257/1262/1265

Metrobus MK1

Mainly riding on Perry Barr routes during 1998/1999 a lot of vechiles drifted in from other garages EG 2039 2222 2398
to replace Long serving PB examples EG 2146 2258 2302

2039 2057 2082 2099 2106 2205 2222
All rolls Royce 2226-2245
2252 2376 2378 2380 2384 2389 2393 2395 2398
2403 2406 2409

Mk2

2440 2446 2485 2525 2563 2580 2593 2595 2598 2599
2600 2646 2658 2668 2676 2692 2693 2713 2715 2731
2743 2744 2748 2750 2756 2768 2776 2796 2805 2818
2821 2826 2832 2841  2882 2903 2908 2909 2969 2971

Timesaver

2913 2918 2922 2923 2924 2926 2930 2934 2938 2943 2944
2947 2948 2950 2951 2953 2954 2955 2957 2958

Mk2A

2989 2996 3008 3043 3058 3084 3086 3096 3117 3119

Leyland Fleetline

1956 6971 6986 7000

DP National

1818 1830

Mk2 national

1037 1041

Volvo B10L

1404 1419 1426 1429 1430 1438 1441 1446 1453 1461
1463 1464 1465 1469 1471 1472 1473 1477 7127 7128

Trident

4130 4308 4309 4332

Do not have much intrest in modern buses.

Stevensons/Arriva

Leyland Olympian  G505-510 SFT batch and B911-13 NBF batch

[Nathan4775]

Volvo B1OL Ultra - 1514

Dennis Trident - 4141, 4444

Enviro400 - 4737, 4875

B6LE - 600

[Dylan4579]

4810 4618 20274

[nitromatt1]

Spectra-4002 or 4019 (4019 sounds very much like a Metrobus so i call it a Spectrobus ;))

That's my name you thief ;D

[Bob]

Did the rolls Royce metros sound much different to the standard one? I always wanted a ride on 7006/7 with the fleetline interior but never managed to get one

[Kevin]

Ones that I miss are the Lynx, Fleetline, Metrobus and bendi mercs (purely for nostalgia, remembering exactly the same buses in Rotterdam when I was a kid), others I will miss when gone are the Spectras, Mercs and Walsall's Eclipses, probably the B10Ls as well. At the moment I would say I definitely won't miss the Tridents or anything else from the current fleet but that could always change later on when newer buses come and these all start getting phased out.