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Post by VPL630 on Jan 7, 2015 12:04:26 GMT
I wasn't working yesterday but I heard the buses on the 407 and they sound and move just the same as the S4 buses. I immediately saw a car overtake the bus while on the move. I'm not looking forward to driving these new buses anymore Do you know if they have yet sorted out the software issue on those buses? There is NO software issue, it's just how bad it's designed
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Post by VPL630 on Jan 6, 2015 16:19:24 GMT
Enviro 200’s YX09FLZ / FMU / FMV / FLD / FLW have been brought by London General.
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Post by VPL630 on Jan 5, 2015 0:56:10 GMT
The only fleet that usually continuously have issues are 701-705 at MB. The Darts at C always seem to be in service and I regularly see them on the 202, shame they are not at MB as would be nice to get one on the 126. How exactly are they always breaking down? 130 is mainly fully dart daily... I was confused when you stated this about the buses on the 269 the other day. I regularly see the same Tridents appear on the 208 & 261 all the time and the 269 is pretty much always fully Trident. if you was standing at new addington 130 stand at 7.00 in the morning every day you would understand , the amount of times the driver struggles to get the engine going is unberliverble. Euro 3/4 darts are well known for starting issues, it's nothing new, all maintenance is done at NX so blame GAL, MB didn't and wouldn't let buses get in a bad state when they did maintenance
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 28, 2014 23:36:46 GMT
Abellio are following the contract specification and as such are providing the service TFL want Metrobus substituted singles with doubles at there own cost Abellio do not need to do the same i totally understand that but all i am saying is that the t33 needs to be a double deck route The 368 should be decker, it's had deckers on it in the past but yet it's still allocated singles, If you don't like it complain to TFL and something might get done about it, I know at times the T33 needs deckers but TFL don't seem to notice, The route is unreliable because there is very little recovery time at each end***, In most cases singles are quicker than deckers so I would say another bus would have to be added in to the schedule to keep the route running reliability at the same frequency this is an extra cost that TFL or Abellio wouldn't pay for, if the extra bus didn't happen I can see another 172 happening... there is also the problem of finding spare deckers which will most likely be older and unreliable (Take GAL taking on the 498 for example (In less than 3 months of running the route with WVL/PVN BE had gained more lost mileage due to mechanicals than First had in a year!) ) Then small cost's like blinds ( £250-£300 a bus X 12) it all adds up, I'm sure if Abellio were going to make money out of decking the T33 I'm sure they would do it but they aren't *** This probably has nothing to do with it but when Metrobus had the route, The buses were forever getting ragged around the route at the drivers pleasure, this wasn't just the one off, it was literally every driver on the route, day or night those buses were flying, I'm sure the running time was adjusted to suit this driving style, Probably wasn't but always wondered
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 27, 2014 23:53:14 GMT
People who worry about burglars using double deckers to spy on their house, should install blinds or double sets of curtains or just move house. Such a petty reason to not use double deckers on a service, well down my end of selsdon were basically begging for it to be double decker becouse were all really fed up of these silly little single decks being used, when metrobus ran the t33 we got a few double decks but now abellio run it weve been stuck whith these horrible rattly enviro 200's I doubt many of the Abellio Restricted fleet could even get up some of the inclines on the Route, I certainly would not enjoy a slow Volvo on that route
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 24, 2014 20:35:11 GMT
I notice DLA210 still sounds like a Voith Cummins Olympian. Could it have been re-engined? Is possible, can't check until new year Work...
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 20, 2014 22:07:02 GMT
Is the bus wash at BE broken? all the 368's I see today were FILTHY! A few weeks ago they just stopped washing the buses, by wash I mean the asthmatic guy stopped coughing on the buses...
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 19, 2014 16:06:16 GMT
Brand New SE219 is currently out on the 100, looking very smart but just spoken to the driver and it seems all the same issues talked about in the abellio thread (I.e electronic parking brake and a funny gear box) are problems on this batch too. There are NO problems, it's just the way it's been designed
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 19, 2014 8:22:24 GMT
Well well well, never has an E200 made me laugh So after finally making my way over to the S4 route after being distracted by an EMC on the 312 and a very fast driver on the X26 and then 740, I honestly can't believe that someone thought it would be a good idea to put this gearbox in a bus this size with 180hp on tap Good points: Only stalled once Once in third/fourth it pulls like a train The way it rev matches when it kicks down to a lower gear is quite smart The drivers on the route seem quite nice and friendly Bad points: First and second gear Clutch can be quite jabby in some cases Full throttle take offs With a bus this small and 180hp unleashed with a very short first gear you are almost thrown back in your seat when a full throttle take off is done, something that is quite annoying, quite dangerous with standing passengers, I see what Steve80 means about 2500rpm in first then 2nd, it really doesn't feel or sound good but the most annoying thing is you are hardly moving. The bus I had was 8204 it stalled in one of the Hail and ride sections when it took off in first gear 2500rpm then just as it changed into second we had to brake hard just as 2nd engaged and stalled, Having been on many coaches fitted with a ZF AS Tronic Stalling is a common problem with them but normally they only do it when they are heavy, full and taking off, not when moving! this bus including the driver had 3 people on it! The gearbox as far as I know and could work out would not skip gears so it would go 1st, 2nd, 3rd ect and always take off in 1st unlike Volvo's i-Shift, This if anything really lets the bus down, the ratios are so short, constantly back and forth motion while accelerating was annoying for 50 mins so I don't know how the drivers put up with them for hours. When the bus finally gets moving from 3rd upwards it's quite pleasant and when it kicks down I really do like the way it rev matches, what I don't like is the way it re engages a gear after dropping to neutral when slowing down For example; in 4th and slow down gearbox drops into neutral then needs to accelerate it can be quite jerky when it re-engages 2nd as it doesn't rev match. The "hunting" that was mentioned is the clutch anti stall system, anyone that drives a manual car will know if you bring the clutch up to much with not enough accelerate it will stall, what the "hunting" is doing is dipping the clutch very fast to stop the bus from stalling (Hopefully ) This only seems to happen when either the handbrake is on and driver is touching the accelerator or trying to hold the bus on the Biting point or trying to move off slowly Full throttle take offs are quite annoying as the bus just revs and doesn't go anywhere fast, more so annoying when you just come off the X26 Citaro when the driver has been flooring it the entire route lol, must be annoying for drivers at roundabouts Interesting post. When it comes to engines and gears I don't have a clue so its always good to hear from another with a bit more knowledge. I didn't realise the reason why the bus was jerking was because I was trying to reaccelerate after slowing down. I never took any notice of the revs when the bus is shifting to a lower gear so I must make a point to check that out. I was also surprised at how fast the bus moves from a stationary position after releasing the handbrake. Even the slightest incline causes the bus to roll back if you release the handbrake without using the accelerator so I would always use the accelerator but just the slightest touch would get the bus to shoot off from its starting point. I managed to get the bus to move off smoothly on some occasions but it was very difficult. Roundabouts and side streets can be a bit of a worry but I only had trouble at the mini roundabout at the junction of Stanley Park Road and Woodmansterne Road near Carshalton Beeches as traffic were slightly fast there, and going across the junctions at Belmont was a bit dodgy as well. Otherwise, there wasn't too much problems as traffic is generally light on the S4 due to the route it takes. I would be very worried if I was to drive such buses on the 322 or P13 especially in Streatham and Brixton. I can't even imagine taking on the big hill in Gipsy Hill/Crystal Palace area. I doubt the T33 would be any fun...
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 18, 2014 23:46:44 GMT
Route 498 Brentwood to Romford Station (Bus was very early arriving at Romford Station, guess they have just given up controlling the route...) Train RMF-LST Route 149 Liverpool Street - London Bridge Train LBG - ECR Route 312 to South Croydon EMC2 Walk about for a bit Route X26 To Heathrow, Should have been Sutton but Kickdown on a citaro is kinda addictive to listen too MCL10 Route 740 To Uxbridge, Those 12-litre Twin Turbo Merc/MCV's are quite hard to say no too, even if I did cost me £4.30!!! Route A10 To Heathrow, Why does no one drive fast on this route, no matter what time of day, how late they are, what bus they have they always just drive slow, must have been about 10 late by the time we arrived as we he went in and out Route X26 Again To Sutton, MORE KICKDOWN Well until we hit bad traffic 33 mins late at Sutton but oh well... Route S4 3 stops just to see what they were like before committing to doing the entire route 8203 Route S4 To Roundshaw 8204 Route 154 Croydon Train to Victoria LU to Liverpool Street Train to Romford Route 498 to Brentwood Walk home
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 18, 2014 23:18:48 GMT
Well well well, never has an E200 made me laugh So after finally making my way over to the S4 route after being distracted by an EMC on the 312 and a very fast driver on the X26 and then 740, I honestly can't believe that someone thought it would be a good idea to put this gearbox in a bus this size with 180hp on tap Good points: Only stalled once Once in third/fourth it pulls like a train The way it rev matches when it kicks down to a lower gear is quite smart The drivers on the route seem quite nice and friendly Bad points: First and second gear Clutch can be quite jabby in some cases Full throttle take offs With a bus this small and 180hp unleashed with a very short first gear you are almost thrown back in your seat when a full throttle take off is done, something that is quite annoying, quite dangerous with standing passengers, I see what Steve80 means about 2500rpm in first then 2nd, it really doesn't feel or sound good but the most annoying thing is you are hardly moving. The bus I had was 8204 it stalled in one of the Hail and ride sections when it took off in first gear 2500rpm then just as it changed into second we had to brake hard just as 2nd engaged and stalled, Having been on many coaches fitted with a ZF AS Tronic Stalling is a common problem with them but normally they only do it when they are heavy, full and taking off, not when moving! this bus including the driver had 3 people on it! The gearbox as far as I know and could work out would not skip gears so it would go 1st, 2nd, 3rd ect and always take off in 1st unlike Volvo's i-Shift, This if anything really lets the bus down, the ratios are so short, constantly back and forth motion while accelerating was annoying for 50 mins so I don't know how the drivers put up with them for hours. When the bus finally gets moving from 3rd upwards it's quite pleasant and when it kicks down I really do like the way it rev matches, what I don't like is the way it re engages a gear after dropping to neutral when slowing down For example; in 4th and slow down gearbox drops into neutral then needs to accelerate it can be quite jerky when it re-engages 2nd as it doesn't rev match. The "hunting" that was mentioned is the clutch anti stall system, anyone that drives a manual car will know if you bring the clutch up to much with not enough accelerate it will stall, what the "hunting" is doing is dipping the clutch very fast to stop the bus from stalling (Hopefully ) This only seems to happen when either the handbrake is on and driver is touching the accelerator or trying to hold the bus on the Biting point or trying to move off slowly Full throttle take offs are quite annoying as the bus just revs and doesn't go anywhere fast, more so annoying when you just come off the X26 Citaro when the driver has been flooring it the entire route lol, must be annoying for drivers at roundabouts
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 17, 2014 8:11:32 GMT
One of BE's Olympuses has been smashed up quite bad, head on collision or something, was on Tow on the M25 yesterday
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 9, 2014 9:45:42 GMT
890 is gutless 875 rattles so much I thought it was going to fall apart and is also gutless
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 7, 2014 22:40:52 GMT
Brentwood > Brentwood Sainsbury's or Brentwood Town Centre, every bus that runs through Brentwood has a qualifier of High Street or Station, Being pedantic but oh well, on the displays at Brentwood the 498 shows as "Brentwood Town"
76 Waterloo > Waterloo, Baylis Road
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Post by VPL630 on Dec 7, 2014 22:30:46 GMT
LT284 hasn't been in service since the 1st of December, has there been another accident According to LVF it was out on 453 on the 4th December anything could've happen to it. It's a LT, who even cares...
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