| |
A Rear-Engined
Tiger Q723 GHG - Part 1
by Maurice Doggett
(Torque 44)
The response to the picture appeal
for details of Q723 GHG on page 2 of Torque No.42
has been brilliant, to the extent that it is to be
published in two parts. The first was mainly written
by Maurice Doggett, with additional information
added from Bob Kell, Ray Thornton and Chris Redpath.
The second part, written by Charles Marshall, former
MD of OK Motor Services, will appear in the next
issue.
The photograph appearing on page 2
of Torque No.42 of the ‘odd-looking’ Leyland Tiger
has prompted me to write to provide some additional
information on the history of the vehicle. However,
some background information is firstly appropriate.
In the 1980s Eastern Coach Works, in Leyland
ownership, were hoping to enter the export market
but whilst they had a very limited success, they did
not receive the orders which they had hoped for.
However, a number of vehicles were produced, mainly
on Leyland Olympian chassis to act as demonstrators,
all of which ended up as ‘one offs’, but they did
see service with various operators. In 1985 ECW
allocated numbers in their EX (Experimental) series
to two rear-engined Leyland Tigers as prototypes or
demonstrators in anticipation of a large order for a
new fleet of buses for service in Bangkok, Thailand.
EX67 was allocated to one body, the vehicle being
intended for pave testing whilst EX68 became a
complete vehicle.
It is thought that EX67 was never
actually built, as there is no mention in ECW
records of a
 chassis
number or any other information relating to the
body. However, EX68 was eventually built on Leyland
chassis no. 8500750, being classified as a RETL11
model although being left-hand drive, seemingly did
not have the /L suffix. If the chassis was intended
for the Thailand market one wonders why the chassis
was left-hand drive as the
Thai’s drive on the left as in the
UK. The chassis was photographed at ECW on 22nd
October 1985clearly showing the left-hand drive
position but seemingly, it was converted to
right-hand drive before construction of the body
commenced. It was a Tiger chassis with
vertically-mounted TL11 engine (longitudinal along
frame) and pneumocyclic transmission, air suspension
and Tiger axles (hub reduction gear).
Two photographs of the partly
completed body were taken at ECW on 27th May 1986
and the vehicle was eventually completed and
despatched to Leyland although there is no note of
the delivery date in ECW records. It would seem that
the vehicle lay dormant at Leyland until it passed
to the Leyland-DAF Football Club, believed to be in
January 1991, and given the registration Q723 GHG.
The photograph of the nearside of the vehicle shows
the centre exit position which remained in situ
whilst it was used by the Club, the seating capacity
apparently being a mere twenty-two.
When Leyland were breaking up,
Q723 GHG was sold by LMSAC to North’s, Leeds,
dealer. Ray Thornton (owner of the preserved
Sunderland Panther) visited North’s, saw and bought
the bus in June 1993, for North East Bus Breakers of
Annfield Plain from whom it was purchased by O.K.
Motor Services in the same month. After converting
the bus to full psv specification, including the
provision of the rear offside emergency exit,
removing the near-side centre exit, fitting plain
glass to the saloon windows instead of the original
vertical sliding type and installing seating for 51
passengers, the vehicle finally entered service with
O.K Motor Services, Bishop Auckland in January 1995.
Following the acquisition of OKMS by
Go-Ahead, it was numbered 9723 in 4/95, then 2723 in
3/96, and 4830 in 9/97, being withdrawn in 5/98 and
sold to NEBB, again, in 8/98. In January 1999 the
bus was sold to Appleby’s of Louth, Lincolnshire,
who then sold it to Amvale Ltd of Grimsby in January
2002. In October 2007, the bus passed to another
owner, TM Travel of Staveley, Derbyshire (this
operator is now based at Halfway, South Yorkshire)
who still owns it.
So the bus has an interesting
history but it is hopeful that when this unique
vehicle is eventually withdrawn from public service,
it will be saved for preservation.
|
Join the discussions on
|
 |
|
|
