busmansholiday

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202206066514943 £375 Golf with two weeks test then needing a close encounter with a sparkly stick.

Just further up that road was a big sign erected by United Auto (that's one of their Bristol LS's with ECW body) that said, IIRC, "Drivers must engage 1st gear NOW and keep in that gear until the next sign", or something similar. At the top of the hill was a sign telling you that you could change gear. I well remember the first time I saw that, some 44 years ago, and dropping my Duple bodied Reliance into bottom. It flew up, but I daren't risk changing up. That LS has just come down the hill and there was an identical sign at the top (vacuum braked buses didn't always stop!), hence the smoke, as it's been in 1st all the way down using the engine for braking. Nowadays buses have retarders and auto boxes.

Former LX03 EEH, new as London General's WVL116, a Volvo B7TL with Wrightbus Eclipse Gemini bodywork, now with Unipessoal LDA (Impactjungle), Castelo Da Maia, Portugal.

Those are the ones that came with a length of wood to wedge the throttle pedal down as they were fucking heavy and hurt your legs IIRC (I wasn't involved in anything like that, honestly).

I saw a "recreation" of the original Batmobile driving through Henley on Friday morning. I was on my way to the car carrying various bags so couldn't get my phone out. I assure you it was; a), shite b), I was sober. c), I laughed.

Fly by wire ?

https://www.fbhvc.co.uk/news/article/wythall-busfestgaydon-and-leyland-national-50th-update An event for all you Leyland National lovers. Obviously, I'll not be allowed in with my 5 gallons of petrol. Nice selection of presenters..........

Neepsend, a name that sends shudders down the backs of us older Sheffield entusiasts. Basically an East Lancs tax loophole IIRC. There were tax incentives on offer for new businesses in Sheffield and EL set up Neepsend to build bus bodies as there was a large demand in the early 60's. I remember talking to a former employee who told me that nobody there had ever built one before, and you could tell. Boy were they wank, just imagine ELs usual shiteness, then add 50%. When the tax incentives ended, so did Neepsend and production of shite bus bodies went back to Blackburn.

Step back just over 100 years and people came up with the idea of powering buses using a pair of overhead cables. That lasted until 1972, I wonder what old idea will turn up next.

Presumably an iron ore mine. Not quite big enough to be a drag line excavator, but seen the same in the UK.

Is it still there ?

Good to see all your hard work is now starting to reward you.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205185853947 £395, Sheffield, if I had the space....

We had HA vans at work until they were replaced by Marina and Metro vans in about 1983. They were quite spritely and easy to drive, certainly better than their replacements.

Yes, Southdown were based there. Portsmouth was as the western end of their area, Hants and Dorset took over after that.

We'll stay in Porstmouth and Southsea and have a look at the other main operator, Southdown. They operated the longer distance services and had an agreement with the council in terms of local pickups and set downs, as well as two depots, Hilsea and Churchill Road (near the centre which was for the coaches). So, 800 was a a 1956 Leyland PD2/12 fitted with East Lancs H59RD bodywork and here's a view of that rear end and the platform doors. I didn't realise then, but I was to own a 'H' reg Alpine with the vinyl roof in that colour a few years later. "We're proud to be part of of the National Bus Company, together we can really go places" is what that advert on the front of 420, a convertible open top Northern Counties bodied Leyland Titan PD3/4 says. They were better known as "Queen Marys" and were the staple Southdown double decker of the period. It had already lost its gold fleetnames for the standard NBC font and the registration would subsequently re-appear on various Stagecoach buses in later years. The NBC livery didn't look as well on these, as you can see on this 1966 delivery. The last batch of Queen Marys were delivered in 1967 and had panorama windows, here's 356. The NBC influence started on the double deckers fairly shortly after the NBC was formed, and Southdown started to receive batches of ECW bodied VRs. Chod a plenty on this view of 525. This isn't in Portsmouth, it's photographed in Sheffield at the SUT depot (they were part of BET so ended up in the NBC). There were regular weekend specials from military bases around the country for service men who were given weekend leave, so finding a Southdown coach wasn't unusual, a Bristol RESL with a bus seated body by Marshalls certainly was though. Northern Counties were a favorite of Southdown and they had these unusual Leopards as well. Nice HA van, and another (or the same) HA in this crappy winter shot of a very nice Harrington bodied Leopard. Southdown did have your more usual Plaxton bodied Leopards, here's 1210 showing its illuminated front name. Finally their tow wagon, was like Corporations a cut down TD Titan. I believe this is the now preserved EUF184, a TD5. Note the Southdown on the top of the radiator.

Ex BEA, been a mobile home for a long time. Good to see it still around. Was NLP650.

OK, they are Google Street View, but I see these regularly on the A61 on the way home from Sheffield.

Liked for what it is, but fuck me, I seem to remember paying less for mine a long time ago.

It's possible that the filters have never been changed and the metallic bits are due to the initial"wearing in" process years ago.

Try it, then don't blame me as you run away thinking this engine is about to explode because it will not turn off.

Oil bath air filters, that brings back memories. Just ensure if you get an apprentice to follow your instructions of "clean it out with petrol and refill it", they don't refill it with petrol.

Not B&W but...

Fucking sadly.