The mighty Leyland Olympian LMM Drives Episode 33.

[@stephenroberts7346]

As an old bus driver in the 80s in Yorkshire, the Olmypian bus was elite of the fleet, and yes they did make a coach built where the seats were more plush, many mile on fare stage express ... yet the the poor driver still sat on the hard rock seat, pleased you had a eye opener lol

[@stuartcakebread9665]

Gold Rider 👍👍👍👍👍

[@gs425]

Have a read of my comment Stephen. Yes the elite for sure

[@charlesedwards4160]

Oh yeah, the X6 from Huddersfield to Leeds. What a beaut....

[@cloudstrife1983]

The Gold Rider.

[@johnnyboy3949]

Proper buses. Takes me back to going to school on these in the 90s and on weekends and holidays going to the nearby towns shopping with my mum. I miss going up the steps to get in the bus and that weird fusty smell they had.

[@johnkelly1083]

I used to take an Olympian bus (Volvo not Leyland) to school. It smelt of mildew and hot engine oil.

[@dbrown51967]

used to drive olympian's on service years ago, we used to call them o limpalongs. not a bad bus but my favourite was the old school bristol vr.

[@charlesedwards4160]

My mummy used to drive a Leyland Olympian 700 series with cummins engine when she used to work for Keighley & District back in the early 90's. Happy days.

[@lmm]

Oh really? Good buses

[@LewisCollard]

Your enthusiasm for driving a bus and the details of the bus is every bit as good as the gorgeous Fenland landscape you were driving through. What a lovely video. Thank you!

[@henryjohnfacey8213]

Nice one. Cross gates is in Leeds. I used to work for Yorkshire Rider. The seats for the driver on these were so hard on your bum and back, especially when operated over poorly maintained or bad roads. l loved these busses, foot off accelerator, wait for revs to drop and then change gear off like a rocket. No jerking. One of these converted (the roof was lowered) went all the way to Samarkand. Showing private on the destination should stop any uncertainty. Great video.

[@lmm]

Pleased to hear you enjoyed it!

[@henryjohnfacey8213]

Great vehicle they just needed up dating i e better heating, better seating, better air conditioning, better wind screen wipers, double glazing wouldn't go a miss. probably driven this one many many times. Just so reliable and easy to repair basic. Used to take all the lads to football matches from Hunslet engineering.

[@deepestdub]

More buses please. Lovely stuff.

[@lmm]

That we can do!

[@Routevisual42]

@@lmm Maybe you could try an E350H

[@manfacilitymetalworks1296]

That's the sight and sound of my childhood right there! I used to stare at the driver down the periscope at the front of the upper deck.

[@skylined5534]

Haha! Me too! I bet he loved seeing my chubby little face pressed up against the glass!

[@clementong6332]

Loved to do that too. And the bus driver would be annoyed, haha

[@chazzyb8660]

"The Leyland of car channels", not quite a T-shirt, but I feel you Matt.

[@gs425]

I used to take a school for 7 years along 5 miles of steep hills in Plymouth. Plymouth Citybus had hundreds of Atlanteans, however towards the end of my school days, probably 1982 onwards, my route normally got one of the new Olympians. Wow what a difference! Smooth. Quiet. And so much faster, especially up the steep Plymouth hills. I guess having air suspension was a major difference from old. May have been the first bus with moquette rather than vinyl seats too.

[@TheElDoctoro24]

When I was in school we used to get everyone on the top deck and the bus driver would flick in round the roundabout 😂😂 the driver said he got it on two wheels one day. 100+ school boys upstairs, can confirm they’re hard to tip

[@lmm]

😂 😂

[@worldcomicsreview354]

They have a huge diesel lump and heavy-duty gearbox on the bottom, while the top is mostly empty space. I should imagine it does take quite a few children to tip that balance the other way!

[@Teribus13]

@@worldcomicsreview354 yep, that's why they're so hard to tip, because all the weight is at the bottom. Even the chassis, axles, brakes - they're all weight which helps keep it bottom side down. Buses are tested to 45 degrees to make sure they'll come back to their wheels.

[@mcgherkinstudios]

Kids at our school did that, the driver pulled into the bus station and called the police :(

[@tomtalk24]

Every last day at school, kids swaying the top decks of the waiting busses, clinking the roofs. Brings back memories.

[@andrewnorris5415]

That engine makes a lovely sound. Nice to know the controls are so light. Sweet.

[@alistairshaw3206]

I used to drive an AEC Reliance, it was the first coach I drove. The fuel gauge was on the tank. There was a circular hole in the panel so you could see the gauge. You will have been told to pause between the gears, I used to drive the Leyland buses with semiautomatic transmission. Most buses and coaches are automatic nowadays. I have driven buses and coaches for 35years now.

[@truckrobo147]

Man Lawrie your like the living embodiment of every bcc vehicle documentary

[@lmm]

😂 I'm trying

[@truckrobo147]

@@lmm I know. Keep it up, your videos are good

[@RWL2012]

The Roe factory was the Optare one from 1985 to 2011

[@truckrobo147]

@@RWL2012 interesting...

[@grayfool]

Oh yeah, more buses please. Nice to see the Fens again. My home for 10 years or so before we moved to a sunny island in the Indian ocean. Brilliant guys, thanks.

[@Parknest]

I remember these busses back in the day. I recognize where you're driving round. Guyhirn near to Wisbech in Cambridgeshire.

[@mcgherkinstudios]

So many memories of riding these to and from school, great fun. The gearbox is presumably just the original with manual control over the gear solenoids, to stop it shifting up when trying to get up hills and suchlike.

[@Steve1766]

nowadays they are all automatic

[@dermotcooper4713]

Doesn't feel heavy like an HGV? Brakes very sensitive and sharp? Get yourself 80 passengers in there then see how it feels :)

[@lmm]

I can imagine that would change the handling somewhat!

[@PhilipKerry]

A comment made by a lack of knowledge .... I was a Bus Driver for 44 years until I retired in January and I used to drive Leyland Olympians for Stagecoach Megabus , they have ( shock horror ) Power Steering and having 80 passengers on board doesn't affect the steering weight and also assisted brakes that still stop sharply even with a full load .

[@colinmiller5502]

An aerodynamic brick,0-40 ,most of the day

[@brianwood9913]

I started with a Daimler Fleetline but after driving Leyland Atlanteans, Volvo Ailsas, Bristol VR, Scanias and a few odd balls my favourite was the Metrobus. Nick name for the Olympian was limp a long... says it all! Glad you had fun - now drive it through London in a pre-covid rush hour.

[@owenchuarbx]

We have a few preserved examples here in Singapore and we also have the honour of taking the last Leyland, also an Olympian (SBS9168S/L888 SBS), ever built. In 2013, she was repatriated back to after retiring from her operator SBS Transit and was bought by a collector in Warwickshire.

[@alejandrayalanbowman367]

The typical Leyland bus for me is PD1 or PD2, especially those with Roberts bodywork that used to do the London Wood Green to Southend bus service operated by the City Coach Company. They were so comfortable especially on the upper deck that one could easily fall asleep and go past one's stop!

[@richardadkins6998]

A sometimes contested point but what became the Leyland Olympian, started as Project B45 was designed and built by Bristol Commercial Vehicles, who Leyland had a 50% share (the other 50% was owned by the National Bus Company), which Leyland ultimately closed in 1983. Production moved to Workington and then in 1986 to Farrington works. The body was project B46, which saw Roe and ECW build their own versions of this body, which look similar but are different under the skin. But overall a good video. If you drive other classic buses you will find they are quite different in character.

[@dennywong2408]

Having grew up in Hong Kong the only Leylands that we know of are the couple thousand Olympians in tri-axle configuration running around the tiny territory. They were amazing workhorses that still have a lot of life in them when they reached their scheduled retirement age of 17 years, so much so that some of them even come back home to UK for a second life as coaches and touring buses etc. The reputation of Leyland was a real shock to me when I arrived in the UK - I genuinely thought they were THE good stuff.

[@Set123]

Good ol' Leyland Olympian! In Singapore they were the backbone for one of our transport operator double decker's fleet, alongside the Volvo Olympian. Really robust bus, enjoyable one to drive too! Too bad they were scrapped in 2015 I believe, but the very last Olympian chassis that Leyland had built is thankfully preserved in the UK, with the reg L888 SBS.

[@jbenekeorr]

This is fantastic! Thanks for the nostalgia trip! I followed an Olympian run by Confidence coaches of Leicester just this afternoon! I’m late 20’s and travelled to school and college on Olympians run by Ausden Clarke. A large piece of the ceiling of one with a light fitting in it once dropped down on my head! They were always smashing into trees as the bus route was on tight Leicestershire country roads. We did go on the Confidence Olympians a couple of times for school trips too, maybe even this bus!

[@lmm]

Really pleased to hear that you enjoyed it!

[@maskedavenger2578]

I remember going on the first Atlantean buses in Wallasey & Liverpool ,& also one of the last trams in Liverpool .I would consider that bus to be very modern in the scheme of things .

[@theimaginativelad3491]

Recently got my PSV license and have to say I'm now tempted to buy a heritage bus. I only really do city driving with rural driving only really when I'm out of service and running to a terminus or something. Great video Lawrie, hope to see more like this.

[@SeahorsesJay]

Growing up in Leeds in the late 90s-early 00s these things were ubiquitous in the legendary orange, red and white Leeds City Link livery! As a child the Olympians - along with the Atlanteans - used to absolutely terrify me, the stature of the vehicles, the size of the wheels, the groans and growls of the engines and lastly the ominous feeling of insecurity exacerbated by the consistent rattling and smell of diesel fumes. However, just like a roller-coaster ride, all of these fears were tantamount to unbridled thrills and excitement to a child. During the early 2000s, the Olympians would be summoned to fill in on virtually any bus route within the network whenever the modern deckers (Alexander Royales, ALX400) had let everybody down - otherwise, they would be found in regular service on the odds 'n' sods routes such as the 38 or the 91 - both of which had terrifying inclines to overcome between Kirkstall and Bramley which were always heart in the mouth moments. However, they always managed to overcome any obstacles, both had life cycles of around 30 years respectively and I honestly cannot ever remember seeing one breakdown. These were reliable powerhouses and the streets of West Yorkshire will never be the same without them! Also, I absolutely loved the yellow, black and brown checked upholstery and would love to be able to purchase an original bench from one of these buses just to have in my house 😂

[@darkwarrior6465]

in 2002 when i started driving for lothian buses in edinburgh they still had these in the fleet albeit the auto ones

[@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain]

That's right, think they put them mainly on the 4 and 5 service. Great buses.

[@DrChooChoo109]

I may have travelled on that at some point in my school days. Nice to see it's still around!

[@lmm]

That's really cool!

[@MetroTitanD78]

Hong Kong was a huge user of the Leyland and Volvo Olympian and some of these West Yorkshire PTE Olympians were sold there too.

[@noexpensespentstudios]

I can feel the itchy orange seats and smell the hot diesel fumes that infused the lower deck back seat just watching this. The thunk of those windows, the smokers all bundling upstairs, the fogged up windows on rainy winter nights.... ah, nostalgia. It seemed that every single bus I rode on up until the end of the 90s was one of these with their distinctive engine note and loping gait.

[@lmm]

It very much is 'the bus' for a lot of people!

[@jamesfrench7299]

That was an excellent bus to showcase. It got me to click and I really like your presentation. A lot of the features of the Olympian, Titan and the mid mount engined Tiger single decker bus and coach chassis were inherited from the development of the itegral single decker National bus in the late 1960s and released in 1972. The driver's dash and controls, as well as the steering and air throttle are lifted from the Leyland National. The Titan was developed during the 70s and was an integral bus as well and was quite sophisticated which is what put other operators off buying them, so the simplified Olympian chassis was born which enabled bus companies to have modern features of the Titan but with more traditional construction and simpler mechanical layout. London ended up ordering their own batch of Olympians in 1987, their last official bus type before full privatisation. They had some differences over other Olympians that were specified for the London Buses order. Engine options were the Gardner 6LXB like this one, the Cummins L10 and Leyland's own TL11 11 litre turbo charged diesel. Gearbox options were the Hydracyclic, an automatic version of the gearbox shown here, Voith automatic and the ZF Ecomat auto. Other buses you should try out is the Leyland National and National II an updated version released in 1979. Make sure the first National has it's unique 510 Leyland diesel as many got Volvo, Gardner and DAF engines fitted later in their lives. The National II got the Leyland 680, Gardner and TL11 as options from new. Another decker I'd love you to take out is the MCW Metrobus which came mainly with Gardner, but some got Cummins L10s and one London example got a Rolls Royce Eagle engine! All came with Voith 3 or 4 speed DIWA transmissions.

[@davesbusstuffandmore]

The Leyland Olympian was the first double decker I ever drove and is still one of the best. Midland Fox had 14 semi auto and more full auto. At the end of there working service life, they were sold off. Confidence got a lot of them, I expect a later semi auto bus broke and was used as parts, with its gearbox ending up in this bus. Great Video. 👍👍👍

[@AJGeeTV]

This brings back memories. I used to drive these in Scotland over 30 years ago for Bluebird Northern, later to be Stagecoach. It was just like in this video because we had very few passengers in the far north and the routes were massively subsidised. We only had deckers then because we needed them for school duties.

[@simonoldroyd8803]

I grew up with these buses in West Yorkshire. They sounded really nice I have to say. There were two at Bradford that were fitted with Voith transmission. They sounded like an MCW.

[@CharlesTrains99]

Lawrie and Matt, great video . Thanks for sharing. A very interesting subject of the double decker bus and a great explanation of the workings going on. Not something we see in the US .

[@BITTYBOY121]

That bus would make a fantastic motorhome !.... Us Hippies love stuff like this LOL 👍👍👍

[@DJ_K666]

To be fair the first time you drive a decker is pretty strange. Especially since I trained in a Dennis Dart. I drove things like this for 12 and a half years so I found this highly amusing. It's absolutely true what you say about every bump being like you're about to bottom out but wait til you encounter high winds... Plus in Brighton we had some that were 41 feet long... The other "Good" vehicles British Leyland produced were things like the Leyland National, the Atlantean and the Leyland Leopard coach And of course the Titan. the white one at Tinkers Park was a Leyland Titan PD3 "Queen Mary"

[@farmertrg]

On The Buses with Lawrie and Matt. Great video and I love the old school you show and talk about ;)

[@tomtalk24]

Haha my daily commute is on a double decker across a cliff top feet away from the edge doing 50mph in any wind swerving over 2 lanes. Thanks for the video gents!

[@X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X]

Now I am envious! I'd love to drive a Mercedes O407, which was my school bus. I also recall the driver driving through the countryside with the doors opened on a summer day. Those were the days... I'd love to see more bus content, Lawrie!

[@lmm]

I'm sure we can provide! Opening the doors and getting a through breeze was fantastic!

[@X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X]

@@lmm I look forward to it. Honestly, this video took me way back.

[@DJ_K666]

@@lmm Back in the day it was how you knew Summer was coming. It is frowned upon though and modern buses either shut them automatically or won't pull away. Or an alarm goes off. In Brighton you had a second door in the middle for people to leave the bus through. Quite a few times I forgot to close them and the bus wouldn't move.

[@thegreatwesterner9481]

Matt rejected taking the bus driven by lawie good way to go

[@lmm]

I'd have done the same,

[@gcbus2]

Yes please, more bus reviews 🚌

[@jonniejam-shovel6405]

As a 16 year old I joined London Transport in 1971 as an engineering garage trainee. I was very fortunate at that time to work with old hands, who saw the brand new Routemasters into service in 1959. We had a small allocation of Titan buses, in our garage in East London. Many of these vehicles were brand new direct from Chiswick bus works. My colleagues and I found that the Titan bus, with its transverse engine and gearbox, was problematical and not so easy to work on as the old Routemaster. Many service drivers experienced a number of frightening situations when the roads were icy (or raining) The Titans could be unforgivable, because of the weight of the engine/gearbox at the rear. For us engineers, we were compelled to get to grips with this new bus type. You certainly couldn't change the engine on a Titan in a day like the RM. Plus the fact that many LT garages were having problems with spare parts. All in all, it was all part of the job. Thanks for sharing your interesting film, and if I may suggest that should you drive one of these buses in the wet, keep your speed down especially when cornering. Cheers.👍

[@bridgetown45]

You have to take your hat off to those old hands. During my apprenticeship with a Bus Company, many of the old hands had no formal technical education but were required to take the new breed of engineering students under their wings. They were quite knowledgeable.

[@jonniejam-shovel6405]

@@bridgetown45 Many London Transport foremen, and District Engineers would sometimes rely on these 'old hands' if a problem arose. Many of these blokes when I joined in 1971, were ex WW2 armed forces. I worked with Chief Petty Officers, a Military policeman all sorts. One crusty individual, was ex army, and fought for his country in the 'Western desert'. This old bachelor kept himself to himself, and didn't suffer fools. In time when he and I worked together during the weekend shifts I learned more about his war experiences. A great man, and while I remember; I was transferred to RD Hornchurch garage on the closure of Poplar in November 1985. A man who worked behind the counter in RD, and a chap who I sometimes spoke with in the course of my duties was W.E 'Bill' Sparks DSM. This man was one of two Royal Marines who survived a raid upon enemy shipping in Bordeaux Harbour, during WW2. A real 'Cockleshell Hero'. His colleague who also survived was Lieut-Col H.G. Hasler; DSO, OBE. Blimey working on the buses, must have seemed tame in comparison. A real shame that I never realised who this man was during my time there. Bless them all.

[@BusBadger]

I cut my teeth bus driving Olympians out of King's Lynn in the early 2000s.... You should try driving one in the dark and snow through Sandringham ;p I also drove for Norfolk Green through Gyhurn and Murrow where you filmed this, boy do I have some stories about those days too! XD

[@lmm]

Oh I bet! I think I'll avoid the dark and snow 😂

[@SteamboatWilley]

Incidentally the Olympian in this video is a similar type to the one I took to the Bo'ness winter diesel gala 2018, and that one struggled to say the least on the hills in and out of Bo'ness, so I can well believe the 45mph top speed featured in this video!

[@worldcomicsreview354]

I think I met you once lol. Do you know a ginger named Kate? Anyway, I live in Japan now. The suburban buses here are something else, not as big as Olympians, but the roads the drivers thread them through are insane. More like alleys with traffic.

[@lmm]

@@worldcomicsreview354 depends how long ago - I've not know a Kate for years

[@BusBadger]

@@worldcomicsreview354 yes I do XD small world. Living my dream over there man XD

[@GNTel313]

Loving the "Cambus" vinyls on UWW. A fantastic bus indeed 👌

[@alanbaker2347]

I totally love the Leyland Olympian especially the ECW bodied Olympians I used to go to school on these back in the 90s & they make a really Amazing sound. it's my favourite Double Decker ever & my favourite bus ever is the Leyland National

[@Atlantean1980]

The Leyland Atlanteans and National's were also great busses.

[@BibtheBoulder]

Especially with an Alexander body...

[@lmm]

It's super!

[@nathanlucas6465]

I moved to Leeds in the mid 90s, and spend countless hours sat on the number 41 between the city centre and Kirkstall, and i don't remember anything other than atlanteans on that route. They seemed more welcoming than the volvos that were used on the 65 service

[@huwdavies6650]

You don't need anything as fancy as a fuel gauge. They just top it up when they get back to the depot. Now if the adblue gauge were to fail on a modern bus, they would have to fix it as the engine would be put into limp mode to keep emissions down as it thinks its run out. Great video guys. How about a Bristol VR or a Leyland National next? Buses I remember from my youth. Maybe Laurie could find a railway with a preserved Pacer to compare with the Leyland National that gave its body to build the prototype rail bus.

[@lmm]

Glad you enjoyed it! A pacer is very much on my list of things to do! We've got several more buses offered to us!

[@Madonsteamrailways]

My late mother’s Austin Allegro was a great little car. And it was another vehicle from British Leyland!!

[@lmm]

I really want an Allegro.

[@williamwoods8022]

I had a 1980 Austin Allegro 1750 TC Equipe and it was an excellent reliable car and always attracted attention when it was parked with people looking at it and in it and asking me questions about it when I came back to it. My brother then mother owned a 1978 Austin Allegro 1500 LE at the same time and that was also an excellent and very reliable car. I owned a 1978 Morris Marina 1.8 HL/TC previous to my Allegro and that was also an excellent and reliable car and quick for the day as well. Later on I owned a 1983 Mini 1.0 Mayfair that was also an excellent and reliable car. It was how the cars were looked after and maintained and we looked after and serviced our own cars and didn't use cheap parts on them either. I worked in a couple of different garages back then and BL cars were just as good as other cars if they were looked after properly - Yes you got Friday/Monday cars from BL just as you did with the other manufacturers back then especially Ford but people tend to slag off BL all the time and look at these other manufacturers with rose tinted spectacles - I also find that the people who slag off cars especially BL for being crap and unreliable are the people that didn't look after their cars or bought other peoples unlooked after piles of crap.

[@Madonsteamrailways]

@@williamwoods8022 It’s nice to know that someone else had good times with an Allegro!! The problem was that my mother sold the poor little thing to her cleaning lady for her son. He did the little 1100 Super up so that he had a car to run around in the moment he passed his Driving Test!! When my grotty Marina - a VERY UNRELIABLE car - finally died, I could have done with the Allegro!! My old Marina was so horrendously under powered that it was nearly dangerous. But there again, it was a 1.3 rather than a 1.8!! The Allegro was a much better car in every way. Even considering that it only had the 1100 (1098cc) engine!!

[@Madonsteamrailways]

@@lmm Sadly, the Allegro was solid to my mother’s cleaning lady, who gave it to her son. You should see the little car after his restoration to decent condition. Great little wagon to drive about the way he does now!!

[@williamwoods8022]

@@Madonsteamrailways Correct re the Allegro being a far superior car to the Marina but people forget that it was designed to be that way with the Austins being the more advanced FWD etc cars and the Morris's being the simple RWD cars that the Company/Fleet market wanted easy and cheap to run and maintain and the Marina was a success in that market and sold far more than the Allegro did - BL's big mistake was not making the Allegro a hatchback as it would have sold lots more if it had been and as you are probably aware that was because they did not want the Allegro, and the Princess, to have a hatchback in case they took sales away from the Maxi. A laugh these days when most cars etc are hatchbacks but then again BL had too many of their own cars competing in the same segments against each other the result of all of those cars brands being shoved into one company where as all of the other car companies had only one car in each segment. Strange about your 1.3 A-Series engined Marina as they are usually very reliable engines as well. My Marina was in excellent condition when it was written off in an accident in 1986 when a van drove out without stopping at a junction - I would still have had that car today if that had not happened as I had already decided to keep that car for good and I have only ever seen one of these Mk2 HL's that have survived by the looks of it.

[@yorkie_pudd]

I remember these buses well with the Yorkshire Rider livery along with some serious bone shakers, I don't miss my head hitting the ceiling as the bus went over many potholes

[@davidcoleman7674]

I really enjoyed that! Looking forward to more buses

[@lmm]

Pleased to hear it!

[@joshmartin152]

I'm pretty sure I had one of those as my school bus. It was yellow and the top deck had more holes in the floor than Swiss cheese lol. Anyway another great video lawrie.

[@lmm]

Glad you enjoyed it - seems to be bringing back a lot of memories for a lot of folk!

[@craigbrown3870]

16:58 love this bit, a Disney reference to George of the jungle. (even my old man use to be a bus driver, once apon a time)

[@allenhughes867]

Charles Roe the great bus builders in Crossgates IN Leeds now Optare I worked for Yorkshire Rider and drove these Leyland Olympian's also the Leyland Atlantean, the Leyland Olympian was a great bus to drive turbocharged very fast and did the job for many years, Fully Automatic and fitted with coach seating including headrest some of the Leyands had over a million miles on the clock and still went on for years some of your comments are not correct actually Yorkshire Rider had there own upholstery , the buses that were not so high for more rural routes was the Bristol Low decker

[@scottishrailwaymaniac9996]

It's a good looking bus, Mind you everything from the 80s is good looking! Especially the DeLorean 😃

[@lmm]

Isn't it just!

[@DavidJohnston58]

Wow a decker! Few years ago I was marshalling at an IAM event on a race circuit, knew the bus trainer in attendance and got a drive in an Ulsterbus Irzar coach round the circuit! Single decker though so Lawrie trumps me with a decker! 😭 Made my day

[@lmm]

Oh that's pretty awesome though!

[@PeteCswampy]

Well done on this vid, great presentation style, really enjoyed this. Loved these buses, 1984, school trip, missed the bus, next bus (late for school assembly) Leyland National.

[@lmm]

Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!

[@ThatBusEnthusiastOlli]

Nice to see you drive and feature a bus on your channel again

[@lmm]

That we can do

[@kay110]

Ha! - I used to get the 64 Bus to Leeds years ago... What a coincidence!

[@edbrown84]

Eastern bus enthusiasts brought me here. Great channel. Thanks for the video.

[@lmm]

Thank you!

[@lewiscartwright3609]

Hi Lawrie thoroughly enjoyed the Leyland Olympian review video and I would love to see another video

[@lmm]

Thank you very much! We'll see what we can do!

[@lewiscartwright3609]

@@lmm your welcome Lawrie and how's your little Ruston overhaul coming along as Last time you mentioned her she was stripped down to bare metal and in the process of getting repainted

[@BobM925]

Nice. Ex bus driver here. Drove Leyland and Volvo Olympians as well as much newer stuff in my time. The old stuff was always better to drive I reckon. It's been a good few years since I've driven one, I must admit I'm, feeling a little nostalgic for the bus days. Get your hands on a Volvo B10 or a Leyland National if you can - awesome buses.

[@lmm]

Thank you! We'll see what we can arrange

[@joeyjohnson926]

My lovely share in that bus will miss it thanks for making me happy to see her running again such a lovely bus 10x was best bus I had the joy to see

[@tomforrest7814]

loved this video used to have these for school the company had at least 4, the back seats used to get hot and started smoking good times haha

[@johnbarham7718]

What a wonderful film. As always.

[@stephensmith4480]

Buses was one of the things I worked on when I started serving my apprenticeship in 1976. They used to suffer with Transmission problems because Drivers used to change gear too fast. The next Brake band would be locking up, before the previous one had released, Nightmare. My Mate worked in the Transmission shop, it was a much sought place to get sent to because there was always loads of overtime 🚌😂.

[@dominicwood3451]

Southern Vectis had these as a staple vehicle and utilised them until the early 200O's. In my younger days on the Isle of Wight, I would finish a drink in Ryde and jump on the 'Nightclubber' bus from Ryde Bus Station because I was cold. God rest his soul, 'Ken' would drive the long circuit, taking sozzled revellers back to their home towns. Ken was a salt-of-the-earth bloke, and his only comment to me was 'hang on kid.' Running light, the vehicle would procede from Ryde, then be absolutely caned faster than I realised the things could go, along a stretch of road called Beaper Shute. I was always impressed with the turn of speed you could get from these beasts, if they were allowed a head of steam!! I seem to recall two different versions of engines, one of which would absolutely scream if revved hard! Duly arriving via Brading into Sandown, the main pick-up was from Coloney Bogey's nightclub on Sandown front, and then taking dishevelled revellers back via Ryde again, Wootton, East Cowes (where I was living) and ultimately finishing at Newport Bus Station some time after 3am. On one stupid evening, I'd supped more than I intended, and got nice and warm sat in my seat on this bus. I was woken up at about 3.30pm by Ken, at Newport, at which point he apologised to me that he'd not seen me when stopping in East Cowes, and I was obliged to then walk home. I think I got indoors via an hour-and-a-halfs' walk about 4.45am! It might be rose-tinted spectacles, but to my mind, Olympians were far better than the current machines we have on the Isle of Wight, be they ageing Scania Omnicitys, or the relatively newer Enviro 400's, which make up the staple of the Isle of Wight double decker fleet now. They were build more solidly and their suspension soaked up the poor quality road more efficiently. It was a more comfortable ride, and those things could really motor when needed. An added bonus was that if you were sat at the back, the hot-running motor caused the rear firewall/shield to be very hot; you wanted to be at the back! There was nothing wrong with the Olympians at all, they just aged out when apparently more efficient and lighter vehicles became available. Great video, dredged up memories of my early-mid twenties when there were plenty of nightspots and the Island was more interesting!

[@eze8970]

Thanks Lawrie, enjoyed this!

[@lmm]

Pleased to hear it!

[@BrettCook]

This bus looks like a Confidence bus livery. Our school used these back in the days. Confidence have a massive amount of heritage buses and the depot is round the corner from where I live.

[@paulhowell5011]

But marked up as cambus formerly of Cambridgeshire with still some of the cambus blue paintwork

[@tonybarfield5148]

Very interesting video you have produced Lawrie. Bristol Commercial Vehicles were 50% by Leyland & 50 % by the National Bus Company. Charles H Roe was also owned by the Leyland Group.

[@paulwilson3083]

That model of Leyland bus was so successful due to that option of a Gardner diesel engine, I've known them do over a million and a half miles(not km's) without being touched apart for routine servicing of course, what did surprise me though was watching the oil being checked while the engine was running and oil warm, having run Gardner's for over 40 years I have never heard of that, but if it works why not. When Volvo took over there engines were being rebuilt after 300,000 if you were lucky and they used double the fuel of a Gardner but didn't get round any faster for it.

[@lmm]

Is that so? That's an amazingly well built engine!

[@paulwilson3083]

@@lmm Yes each individual engine was built by the same man and individually tested before dispatch it made them expensive to build and buy but in around 3 months the fuel cost savings paid for the premium price option, fisherman say any engine will take you out to sea, but a Gardner will always get you back again.

[@chrisg6086]

Having owned Gardner-engined lorries, I can wholeheartedly concur. Astonishingly good on fuel, but you do need to know how to get the best out of them when fully freighted. When you do, they can cover the ground surprisingly quickly and with no drama

[@paulwilson3083]

@@chrisg6086 You summed that up a treat Chris, I bought Gardner’s after AECs which felt like racing cars compared with a Gardner but like you said you got them round the same.on nearly half the fuel, we’ve lost our way with modern diesels

[@chrisg6086]

@@paulwilson3083 thank you Paul, and I agree with you. Gardners just get on with it with no fuss, and they don't need a lung-full of ether to get them started either Conversely, anyone driving a 220 Cummins as though it were a Gardner, will end up with slow journeys and glazed bores

[@henkbarnard1553]

4:00 Somone must have got the sack at BL, For making something that works.

[@lmm]

Scary isn't it 😂

[@williamwoods8022]

Leyland truck and bus were very profitable and made very good vehicles but it was only later with the problems of the car division that starved the truck and bus division of money for development because the BL management were taking the truck and bus profits to keep the car division going - of course it didn't help that the government was cutting the money to BL as well as part of the agenda to shut down British industry and transfer the jobs to the cheaper countries in the far east - flooding the country with immigrants and free movement in the EU is also part of this agenda to get rid of countries and bring in a One World Communist Government and to get rid of 95% of the worlds population as well under their UN Agenda 21/UN Agenda 2030 as per the Georgia Guidestones - I wonder how they are going to fool people into agreeing with this agenda - scaring them into taking something perhaps?

[@themaestrosfolly]

Although it was lumped under the same umbrella, Leyland truck and bus was it’s own entity and not run by the car manufacturer.

[@henkbarnard1553]

@@themaestrosfolly That explains why BL trucks and busses actually work.

[@obelic71]

@@williamwoods8022 correct industrial products of leyland were good.For example Leyland buschassis and engines were used and build under license in the Netherlands. After the collapse of Leyland DAF who build the 6 cilinder Leyland engine under license bought all the rights and they kept improving it. The Irony is that a grandchild of that Leyland engine is now put in LDV Leyland trucks in the UK. And politicians need to be only in one place. THROWN UNDER THE BUS.

[@HM_007]

You need to get a Routemaster bus on LMM Drives

[@lmm]

I agree!

[@Delt1c9013]

The ultimate halfcab the RM, try it you will enjoy

[@busboymk2]

Definitely a Routemaster ! I drove one from Bodmin to Bristol at 40mph all the way, took almost 6 hours... Enjoyed every second ! Great noise, hard work but well worth it.

[@Defendertek92]

You need to speak to Pete and his bus

[@nedseagoon5101]

Seen the price of an RM? 50-60k+ for an AEC engine one.

[@chrisskelhorn5727]

This was brilliant! Thank you guys! :-)

[@lmm]

You're most welcome!

[@Unknown-wu8rv]

The bus on rails you are talking about is my favourite train the pacer trains. They are an icon of the railway.

[@lmm]

No, I'm talking about the experimental units that preceded the Pacers

[@Unknown-wu8rv]

@@lmm o i just thought you meant the pacers

[@Unknown-wu8rv]

@@lmm btw the experimental units were the class 140/141

[@lmm]

That was the two car units. Things like the Lev1 wasn't ever a class.

[@mrtommygunwhite]

The pacer I.e the bus train still existed in the north until very recently used quite a lot as well

[@classictraction1744]

That's fantastic ! I remember West Yorkshire PTE getting these Olympians new in the early 1980's. This one was number 5011 and the lowest number was 5001. Here in Huddersfield, we had to wait ages until 5083 finally arrived, maybe that was 1982 not sure ? They had auto boxes and the gears used to "hunt" like crazy going up the local hills. It was like being on a rocking horse, until the driver got fed up and flicked the lever into something appropriate for the climb !

[@NSMerryweather4771]

This is 5010

[@MegaSnake76]

loved the pre-select gear box buses, I used to drive a Leyland tiger here in Australia.

[@Grid56]

Not preselect, semi auto. Preselect you change gear before you need it, where as semis are just manual boxes with electric or pneumatic shift and no clutch.

[@kavyman1066]

Loved this! My new favourite expression for oil is now "Liquid Dinosaur"!

[@locohauledforum]

Loved my time driving Leyland Olympians, I even worked for Cambus for a while and we had three of the UWW-X batch. We also had 3 with floor to ceiling carpets and coach seats! (a bit like what you were suggesting). I got out of the business once the company I was working for sold their last one, it didn't seem worth driving buses anymore. As a slight note. Although they look like a Leyland Titan, they are actually based on the old Bristol VR, which is probably why they are such a good bus.

[@josephharvey9812]

Great video love the content! Would be nice to see you drive a first bus or one that they used at least! They are the ones that have stuck around in my memory. Mostly because they still run a few of the old ones on rare occasions 😂.

[@Fredstrains]

Loved the video and would love to see more bus vids!

[@lmm]

That we can do!

[@glosbusspotter7561]

Well if you want a bus, Stagecoach East Midlands are offering a few Volvo B7TL East Lancs Vykings for preservation in the near future

[@MrDOUG575]

Thank you Lawrie and Matt for taking us along for the ride.

[@theolderigetthewrongbitget4746]

I drove Olympians for London&Country out of Leatherhead garage in the mid 80s, always found it a lovely bus to drive.

[@-A-lm5xb]

I was a bus driver in the 80's and drove mostly the Atlanteans, which had the same type of semi-auto box - a gear shift but no clutch. But the council-owned bus company, who were always the stingiest when it came to replacing anything, bought in a couple of used Olympians with the auto boxes and they were very jerky. Neither drivers nor passengers liked them much for that, so my guess is that's why it was changed. I have to say though I've had a lot of cars since and currently own a Jag, but there's just nothing like driving a Leyland bus. Satisfying somehow, I can't really explain why. It wasn't the salary that's for sure!

[@Meengineer100]

Great video. I miss seeing the Olympians locally, they used to be a common sight. I remember they were so loud especially if you were standing towards the rear of one as it was pulling off. Interesting story behind this one in the video, hope you get to drive many more buses!

[@lmm]

We've got several lined up! Pleased to hear you enjoyed it!

[@lmm]

We've got several lined up! Pleased to hear you enjoyed it!

[@FastCarsNoRules220]

I used to ride on 3-axle Leyland Olympians in Singapore back in the 2000s. One of them is currently preserved in the UK right now.

[@georgegreenoshine]

I've driven hundreds of deckers in my time now. Leyland olympians do generally have quite slack steering so they do make it feel like you're leaning alot. More modern deckers however, if i hadn't seen they were deckers I'd have thought they were single deckers! The power and handling make it easy to forget the top deck is there hence why bridge strikes are in the news alot.

[@markemarkpsv1]

When you learn to drive (psv, now pcv) we had to go on a skid pan. This was scarry for some, but I did it several times and loved it.

[@DarrenSaw]

I've been on this very bus when it was based in Peterborough probably mid to late 80s. A real treat after the tedious Bristol VRs that shook your fillings out.

[@NSMerryweather4771]

It was never based in Peterborough until preservation. You're probably thinking of UWW 3/4/8X

[@fin57]

Got to love a Olympian, maybe you could try get this ones sister from confidence since your such a fan.

[@NSMerryweather4771]

Already got a buyer 😞

[@fin57]

@@NSMerryweather4771 Thats a shame, im sure they could prehaps get one of the other Olympians confidence have

[@NSMerryweather4771]

If 8X was available I'd have bought that rather than this one, and 8 would have stayed with us. Got a genuine cambus VRT3 now so that freed this up for a Leeds owner 🙂

[@fin57]

@@NSMerryweather4771 nice

[@kristinajendesen7111]

You should try a proper bus Lawrie - the original Routemaster. Automatic with manual overide, power steering, dual hydraulic brakes, independent rear suspension. They will run rings around modern buses if maintained properly. Wheels up front so if you stick them round the corner, the back follows without having to worry about the overhang at the front. We used to drive them by starting off in automatic second (you never use first unless you are on a steep hill), which is actually in the 4th position on the column. When you feel it change up to third, push the lever through to the 3rd position instead of letting it change automatically, you can then get the most out of 3rd before pulling back to 4th/top. Great fun to drive. If want a real challenge, try driving a crash gearbox Bristol FLF. I only had an automatic licence on LT because of the RM's so I had to upgrade to a manual when I joined Wilts & Dorset in Poole. That makes your leg ache double declutching and no power steering either. The instructor also showed us how to change gear without using the clutch just by listening to the engine revs.

[@stuff9009]

Never seen a Layland bus before and their COOL!!!

[@chrisrichmond403]

I remember this Olympian on the Isle of Man as I live there and had quite a few trips on this one .. Good to see no 80 preserved 👍🏻 The gearbox did not get some good names like the jerkamatic , Also the oil cooler on the Leyland Olympians were not in a good location especially when replacement was needed being too close the the o/s/r chassis member . I learnt a bit on them as for work experience when I was at college for mechanics I was based at Malborough Street bus station workshops for First Badgerline Bristol & I worked on their fleet of Olympians , The Gardner engines tho were and are quality kit .

[@graemew7001]

Leans to 45 degrees? I wouldn't want to be near it when it does. No fuel gauge, especially on a diesel is madness lol. Really enjoyed the video, loved the sound of the gearbox changing gear, brought back so many memories.

[@lmm]

Pleased to hear you enjoyed it!

[@DecalCentralUK]

buses were made to be refuelled to the brim at the end of the working day so didn't need a gauge and as they had a 200 litre tank they could be driven around allday and wouldn't run out and I have had an Olympian at 40 degrees with no problem whatsoever

[@graemew7001]

@@DecalCentralUK Ah that makes sense then with such a huge fuel tank plus I suppose drivers would know roughly they'd get to a tank so would know when they were getting low. I still don't fancy the idea of 45 degrees, I've seen what them Scammell Army trucks can do and I still wouldn't want to be in one at the extremes.....I'm a coward haha!!

[@joshuahill6153]

New Zealand still uses MAN bendy buses from the 1970s for school routes and MAN Tag axels from the 1980s.

[@nightw4tchman]

Accidentally drove one of those, long story, but your description of how to drive it was spot on.