Drivers - Bus Reviews & Opinions

[trident4370]

Liberator9, I'd recommend a ride on 4718 if you're a fan of YW buses :P

[Liberator9]

Had a ride on it twice now and it is an excellent bus! No rattles, excellent engine and smooth ride. Hope it turns up on the 76 again some point soon. Thanks Trident 4370. 4722 is another good one by the way  ;)

[trident4370]

Had a ride on it twice now and it is an excellent bus! No rattles, excellent engine and smooth ride. Hope it turns up on the 76 again some point soon. Thanks Trident 4370. 4722 is another good one by the way  ;)

Ah yes that is one of my stalkers!

[Liberator9]

I have certain Scanias that seem to stalk me - 1912, 1922, 1909 and 1916 certainly do. Until today I had never been on 1923 - Taken 4 years to ride it!

[trident4370]

Ironically I see 1923 all the time, 1917 is another one of my stalker scanias. The best scania at YW by far is 1926, it is probably the only scania that has it's own distinctive sound, you can easily tell it apart from the rest.

[Tony]

Liberator9, I'd recommend a ride on 4718 if you're a fan of YW buses :P

You won't get one for a couple of weeks at least - it is in Walsall for refurb

[Liberator9]

Thanks Tony - looking forward to seeing it in its new set of colours.
Haven't ridden 1926 for a while actually - shall have to track it down. 1914 is quite a distinctive one - last two times I've ridden it the cooling fans have been running which sounded good. The Scanias are excellent buses I find - ride well, comfortable (if you're not too tall!) and look smart. Only down side was the roof panel design - those panels do cause some rattling if they start to shake loose. Need the Citaro roof design.

[trident4370]

Feels like an eternity since I've been on 4718, it seemed to be glued to the Longbridge-Redditch rail reps over the summer.
I agree about the Scanias, the roof design is a bit rubbish I've even noticed most now have warning stickers on them telling people to watch their heads! Another downside is that the legroom is appalling, I am reasonably tall and find most seats a struggle on them so usually just stick to the back or front. The chassis seems to be great it is just the bodies that let them down.
That is another reason why I like the Enviro 400 so much, no matter where you sit there always seems to be decent legroom!

[Bob]

Legroom is terrible on omnilinks at nx but I dont seem to struggle as much with arriva one's.  Weirdly

[trident4370]

Must admit my last Arriva Omnilink ride was a while ago now on the 112 so I dont remember it :(

[2900]

1698 basically scrap, only good things were engine/box still strong otherwise it's battered, rattles like hell, suspension none existent, looks very tired indeed inside. These mercs didn't seem that bad five years ago, they,ve aged a lot in recent years. Time to put this one out of its misery.

[2900]

4711 very good all rounder very solid good power delivery, probably one of best 4700,s to drive, brakes/ retarder all good, suspension decent as well. Not to much rattling either, could do with a good clean though. 7/10

4713 vey similar in most ways. 7/10

[Liverpool Street]

1698 basically scrap, only good things were engine/box still strong otherwise it's battered, rattles like hell, suspension none existent, looks very tired indeed inside. These mercs didn't seem that bad five years ago, they,ve aged a lot in recent years. Time to put this one out of its misery.

So is that.... A 7/10?

[P419 EJW]

4711 very good all rounder very solid good power delivery, probably one of best 4700,s to drive, brakes/ retarder all good, suspension decent as well. Not to much rattling either, could do with a good clean though.

4713 vey similar in most ways.

I agree with you on both buses 4711 and 4713. I caught 4713 on WB 87 at 21:17 last night ex Moor Street. It was a nice ride, brakes were great and didn't hear a single rattle. Going through Smethwick, the bus went over the bumps nicely. Yes, it could have a clean. Still has TWM moquette which I like, suits well with the blue colour interior.

After reading your post this afternoon, I ventured to Birmingham and later in the evening, I was waiting for the 20:47 arrival, coincidentally, it was 4711! It was pretty much similar to 4713 but has the horrible dull grey moquette. The driver tonight was not very kind to the bus... He went over the bumps in Smethwick really harshly. Every time the bus went over, it felt like the front wheels were being hit very hard and the bus didn't have time to bounce. So, it was a pity 4711 had a shit driver tonight.

4713 - 9/10.
4711 - 8/10. Would grade it a 9 if I had a better driver.

[2900]

4295 decent all rounder very good for an alexander b7tl volvo,
         Chassis, brakes/ retarder well set up, suspension comfortable , engine/ box smooth
          Body,   Recent refurb so in good condition , interior grey nx spec seats , a good mop out
                     Wouldn't hurt. Cab has a new small steering wheel, some rattle ing going on not overly
                      So. 7/10