Top Gear- James May tests if the New Routemaster can be used as a personal vehicle (Part 1/3)

Series 20 Episode 6

[@thaqifazumi4001]

I mean, why not. Spend another 300k for motorhome conversion, and you'll be on a way.

[@richie18898]

Oh yes

[@gchsbus]

When you absolutely need to pick up 40 hookers for the party of your life

[@Genius_at_Work]

Double Deckers make fairly bad Motorhomes if you are over 1.7 m tall, sometimes even less. Either you can't stand upright (especially in the upper Deck), or they are oversized and you can't pass under many Bridges because it is at least 10 cm higher than the normal maximum Vehicle Height. Go for these Coaches with a separate Driver Cab below the Passenger Area instead; they have enough Headroom and are within the normal Vehicle Size (4 m Height in Europe). Plus the Baggage Space below makes for a much better Storage Space and "Garage" than the lower Deck on a Double Decker, thanks to the very large Doors.

[@markcf83]

Give it another decade and you can buy one for bobbins.

[@kingsize127]

And then he said later, “Easiest thing I’ve ever done.”

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

"So you can have a joint."

[@mrguest3749]

@@Bosco_the_Historian "oh nooooooo"

[@anonymouswhite352]

He was talking about driving it not starting it

[@reconbravo104]

He was probably ploughing through a field of children and was too high to notice

[@joshcoyle3804]

@@Bosco_the_Historianplease keep this on your KZbin channel i really like it

[@AdamTheMan1993]

James May presses a random button. "FIRE SYSTEM PRESSURE OKAY!"

[@takaimanaka]

*Tire

[@NewLERoyUser]

The way May started the bus was very hilarious.

[@AstonL3]

Tyre pressure ok

[@johnnyboy3949]

If I has the cash I would buy a 90s old double decker and do it up into the best camper van ever

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

That would cost a lot, but I would like to see it finished.

[@Genius_at_Work]

Double Deckers make fairly bad Motorhomes if you are taller than 1.7 m, sometimes even less. Either you can't stand upright (especially in the upper Deck), or they are oversized and you can't pass under many Bridges because it is at least 10 cm higher than the normal maximum Vehicle Height. Go for these Coaches with a separate Driver Cab below the Passenger Area instead; they have enough Headroom and are within the normal Vehicle Size (4 m Height in Europe). Plus the Baggage Space below makes for a much better Storage Space and "Garage" than the lower Deck on a Double Decker, thanks to the very large Doors. EDIT: A Coach also fits better for the Way a Motorhome is driven than an Urban Bus, because Coaches are designed for driving continiously at a fairly constant Speed while Buses are designed to drive short Distances between Stops. The Gear Ratio of a Bus is optimised for Acceleration, which makes driving longer Distances uneconomic and loud. There are Double Decker Coaches tho, but they suffer from the same Headroom Isssues.

[@quillmaurer6563]

@@Genius_at_Work Very good points. Other thought though - what about a bendy bus? Same issues of being built more for city driving, and doesn't have the lower cargo hold, but I think it would be hilarious. Of course the other thing a lot of people build campers out of is old school buses (at least in the US, I get the sense that style school bus isn't seen elsewhere). They probably aren't a particularly great platform, not as good as a motorcoach, but they can be had pretty cheap from what I hear.

[@marvincool3744]

Fire system pressure okay

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Oh bollocks.

[@jamesporter4749]

I was going to convert a optare solo into a campervan but the high cost of low mpg and storing it away put me off.

[@dayceroberts]

As someone whose driven them as busses, they're also hopelessly slow, even when empty. You'd have your foot welded to the floor just to get anywhere, and they're woefully unreliable too

[@jamesporter4749]

@@dayceroberts yes I have also driven and maintained the Solo. They aren't the fastest of vehicle but it is a bus after all, I wouldn't be that fussed about it doing 45 - 50mph flat out as when you go away on holiday as a camper you just want to relax and you get there when you get there. My wife and I have bus licences so we could take it in turns to drive, just as I said before the amount it would cost in diesel and cost of storing the bus wouldn't be worth it, might as well just get a old Talbot campervan.

[@dayceroberts]

@@jamesporter4749 I may be wrong but I believe once you convert them they fall under HGV rules, although with them being under 7.5 tonne you might get away with grandfather rights. Although an old Talbot is what I’d choose

[@ichbinjon]

Wow a converted Solo would look so good, I don't think I've ever seen one of them converted either and they'd be ideal given their small size, so hardly any tight squeezes! A Dennis Dart would be good too.

[@b3nchur]

Darts are pretty good. Just don’t buy a citaro

[@bokhans]

Beware of low bridges!

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Oof, would not like to imagine that when people are on the upper deck.

[@thedoublek4816]

@@Bosco_the_Historian This happened to few doubledeckers (DDs) in Berlin in the last years. Here (Berlin) there are many railway bridges built before WW2, which have a height of only 4m (just enough for DDs) or less. The most cases of a clean upper deck shave happened to privately owned sightseing or long distance bus companies, whose drivers either don't know which routes they can take safely or are simply too blind to read the signs. As far as I know, one case of a city transport authority bus getting a barber visit was of a young, inexperienced driver who was on the way from a depot to the start of his passenger route. Berlin, once known for his yellow DDs which shaped the streets since the very beginning of public busses, is slowly running out of them. Before someone asks, no it's not because of the bridges, they are simply getting old, having 15 years and more on their clocks, being hard to maintain by now or getting damaged beyond repair, be it due to technical failures, accidents or occasionally leaning towards spontaneous combustion. Luckily, we are getting some new ones from the UK, 2 prototypes of the ADL Enviro 500 are already here, further 198 will come in the next years.

[@harrisonmcginley-power4252]

Fire system pressure ok scared James may lol 😂 on that routemaster bus

[@paleoph6168]

This is the closest Top Gear has ever been to the Magic School Bus, and that's still a stretch.

[@taddersauce3672]

James May is probably the male counterpart to Mrs. Frizzle

[@matismf]

Should have been Clarkson attempting to farm with it!!!

[@scorpionwolf9729]

If you have a PCV license you know what to do

[@kevinskipp2762]

It's Fire System pressure, tyres are virtually run flats given how thick they are, wouldn't need a warning system and bus certainly doesn't tell you. It's the Fire suppression System in the engine bay

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Oh. So the subtitles I found was wrong...thanks for clarifying. I will go change it back now.

[@humorpalanta]

Oh yes. The final insult of Boris Johnson as a London Mayor for the inhabitants.

[@leonardnose5695]

Me and my brothers would love watching top gear.

[@jonniejam-shovel6405]

As a bus mechanic who worked on the original Routemaster bus, this new fangled contraption does not inspire confidence. The original bus, was built and developed to do a job of work, while considering ease of maintenance that would put the bus back on the road quickly. If Colin Curtis and his colleagues were alive today, I'm sure they would agree that the new bus has taken us backwards. It's a white elephant that does not deserve the name 'Routemaster'.👎

[@Danspy501st]

Well, alot of cars now and days also arent so mechanic friendly too. Heck, I dont want to pull an engine out of a small car from the Asian car market. The engine bay is literally smaller then the engine itself

[@jonniejam-shovel6405]

@@Danspy501st Yes, and these modern vehicles are not manufactured for us to fiddle about with. These people want us to visit their garages, where they can work their secret magic and give us a whopping great bill at the end. So much for progress eh?👎

[@Danspy501st]

@@jonniejam-shovel6405 Well, Im okay that they making money in one way or an other. But for the sake of the mechanics, especially theirs, they do need to try to design their cars with the people who had to fix the cars, in their mind. Also, I wont get onto the topic for independent mechanics or the small workshops which dont have any kind of car company as their sell point (Some of those around in Denmark)

[@jonniejam-shovel6405]

@@Danspy501st Sure, let working people earn their money, I've no problems with that. Although if I go back to my London Transport days and the original Routemaster that I worked on. As I mentioned those buses were designed, so we could repair them easily. Sad to say that method of working is now totally outdated. Fast forward to 2021, and we find ourselves at the mercy of manufacturers who don't want us touching their vehicles. The poor mechanic now finds himself fighting time because every task on a vehicle is timed to the last second. It certainly happened to me, whilst I was on the tools. It was manic, and you'd get directors of the company I worked for shouting and swearing at you if you didn't hurry up. I'm very glad to say that after 33 years and six months total service, I resigned from the buses and I was glad to go because it affected my health.

[@Danspy501st]

@@jonniejam-shovel6405 Yeah I can see that, and it is understandable that way. Most companies do only think on money and not the health of their workers and so on

[@701mphtransport7]

T Y R E S Y S T E M P R E S S U R E O K

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

H a n g o n

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Yeah me neither. I heard it as fire originally but then later I found a transcript and it said tyre, so I changed it to that but then now people are telling me it's fire. So, yeah.

[@rolby]

@@Bosco_the_Historian It says ‘Fire’ because with the new voice it’s a lot clearer

[@ben.taylor]

It's fire system pressure. I don't know exactly how it all works but with my knowledge of buses I think it's telling you the automatic fire prevention equipment is at a good pressure for release.

[@christopher32074]

He has a point. Having 2 seater supercars means having no friends.

[@CoatsyJnr]

240p in 2021

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Yes, suprise suprise.

[@Topgear2006]

I didn't think KZbin could go higher than 240p...

[@Halloweye]

"Oxford Circus"? Didn't know the bus would have his house on the route selection panel.

[@LondonTransport466]

FIRE SYSTEM PRESSURE OKAY

[@membershipofbus]

My favourite bus

[@ChanceDogUSA]

What is this360p? looks like lego blocks moving on the screen. or is it taken from a 1990's gameboy?

[@dr.enigma815]

Hey gamers, today were playing minecraft with the vehicle mod

[@gergoantal1066]

Fire system pressure OK

[@SugmaNatsu]

i bet he didn't get lost this time

[@vernonlinden6586]

Has it not got the same simple controls as a London General Omnibus 1914 "Old Bill"bus?🤣🤣🤣

[@afe31]

It's 2021. Video uploaded in 240p. wtf

[@atlascallisto1461]

Cropped Instagram reposts have a higher bitrate than this.

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

I'm sorry, but you have to deal with it.

[@fordman38]

I drive a bus,, and yep you have to press everything, just to make it go....Fuck

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Lol

[@jaysmith1408]

Our buses were exactly two buttons, ignition, and start.

[@robloxfan4271]

1:10 subtitles are wrong its fire system not tire

[@christianmichael1970]

The quality of this top gear video is horrible.

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

No shite, Sherlock.

[@christianmichael1970]

@@Bosco_the_Historian don’t get pissy with me, you uploaded this horse sh*t lmao

[@joshcoyle3804]

Fire system pressure ok

[@syahminorizan8064]

Didn't they create a Top Gear Bus using a Routemaster?

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

I don't think so, can't recall nor find anything about it online. Perhaps it was some other version of Top Gear?

[@syahminorizan8064]

@@Bosco_the_Historian They actually had a segment planned for the bus, but it got scrapped. A lot of things did not work out, and it eventually appeared on a news segment where Jeremy Clarkson's GT had issues. It can be seen on the background.

[@WhatALoadOfTosca]

£330,000? How on earth did Wright's go bust?!

[@ben.taylor]

Was thinking that, surely GAL would be in hot water as well!

[@Catonaut.]

the busses are operated by the german railways Deutsche Bahn

[@XE1149production]

a B8L is better

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Definitely feels more local to me.

[@emjackson2289]

Stuff the London Bus, get a Leyland Atlantean!

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Those were popular in my city back when I was little.

[@markcf83]

...or a Metrobus....

[@pharrellshek9679]

Only one word to say here, lol

[@Saviliana]

I really hate routemaster, can we bring back the good'ol olympius and Dennis dragons back please?

[@HROM1908]

How predictably juvenile.

[@TraustiGeir]

First time watching Top Gear?

[@HROM1908]

@@TraustiGeir No, but that really does not matter.

[@dont-want-no-wrench]

NBFL? they didnt call it bussy mcbusface?

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Lmao

[@danielconway4989]

“Bussy” 🥴

[@blackwolf-tq7sh]

Not bad

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

100% would buy one if I have the money and live in the UK

[@puckypucky2610]

Communist And Games you live in North Korean than UK.

[@mchmchminecraft1637]

Too bad in place I lives, bus will retired after 15 years and will not be road legal anymore

[@sheffb]

why the fuck would you upload 240p footage in 2021 when the original is 1080p?

[@hkg_jojozero0142]

The bus looks like mmc

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

British double-deckers look quite similar to each other.

[@ben.taylor]

E400 MMCs are easily distinguishable and are even used outside of London

[@hkg_jojozero0142]

Does E500s are allowed in London?

[@ben.taylor]

@@hkg_jojozero0142 E500s are everywhere. I've seen them with Stagecoach, Arriva, all across the board.

[@hkg_jojozero0142]

@@ben.taylor what about 3atenu (if you don't know what's 3atenu search it on yt)

[@ikoq6656]

which episode is this？

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Series 20 Episode 6

[@Assaultzyy]

Cream

[@ingsoc]

240p

[@shephalidixit5972]

Where can I full episode??

[@Bosco_the_Historian]

Facebook is a good place to look. There's a user named Top Gear Videos and he upload full episodes there

[@shephalidixit5972]

@@Bosco_the_Historian thanks

[@jatinrhulsure8432]

You can try telegram too.

[@MichaelOKeefe2009]

It's 2021, why the hell are you uploading a shitty 240p quality video?

[@gchsbus]

YEA RIGHT!! I have a license to drive one of these. Anyone who is NOT familiar with driving a bus in general is most likely not licensed to drive one AND anyone not licensed to drive one has absolutely no business in the drivers seat. The minute I saw him playing with the buttons, even though I know it is for comedic value, made me nervous. How about an air brake check before you pull out? Maybe a pretrip to make sure all the lights are working? This guy.......

[@jaysmith1408]

They’re LED, they work. It stopped didn’t it? TFL is likely one of those companies who have mechanics going over the buses all night, fueling, washing, inspecting, and tinkering, so they’re in pristine shape in the morning.

[@mfx1]

I used to install equipment in these (and pretty much every other bus in the TFL fleet) and every garage I went to was fine with me starting the engine and if I couldn't figure out how on a new model they'd just show me and leave me to it.

[@RomanBellic]

Fire system pressure okay

[@180sammy]

FIRE SYSTEM PRESSURE OKAY