North East Buses

Right, the aim of this thread is to see what vehicle types that members would have liked to have travelled on but no longer exist or you just haven't been on one in service yet. The only thing is, you mustn't have travelled on that vehicle type before and must be available in UK and Ireland. You are allowed to include vehicles that you have been onboard but didn't move at the time you were on it.

For mine, I am including linking pictures from Flickr as it includes some rare vehicles, I do have photos of some that are on my list but I cannot be bothered to upload them.

1 - Iveco Turbocity 100
One built, and sadly no longer around. If I had won the lottery years ago, this would have been on the list of vehicles that I would have preserved.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/ccsGNS

2 - Iveco Turbocity 50*
Handful Built. Either all gone or one hiding somewhere.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/auXAWM

3 - Ace Cougar
2 Built. One Preserved. The other (bodied by Willowbrook) was exported to Ireland and later scrapped.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/auXAWM

4 - Dennis Domino
Think there is 2 in preservation. One of each body example. The Northern Counties one is restored.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/8R4rry

5 - Iveco EuroRider / Marshall Maxi*
3 Built. 2 as Ambulance and one as a demo bus which ended up with Whitelaws. I've got photos of it, but here is one taken by Matthew Edwards on the same day that I took one.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/oFJMbF

6 - Optare Citypacer*
Although I have a few photos including those converted to motorhomes. I've never travelled on one.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/6WAzte

7 - GAC Citybus (KC Class)
There is one of these preserved along with one of the Double Deckers. Whilst the Double Decker KD Class had Detroit engines in. These had a similar drive line to the B&C reg Olympians of Go-Ahead Northern. They had the Cummins L10 engine, but coupled up to a Voith 3 Speed Box - Here is a video of one too - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDKH_gYSO_U
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/kArm8e

8 - Quest Range of Single Deckers
Quest built a number of odd vehicles. Usually with a chain driven engine. Here are 2 that I particularly would have liked to sample. The A-Reg one was used around Heathrow Airport and was last reported as a motor home, whilst the Blue and Cream C-Reg one is preserved and appeared at a Showbus 2008 which I didn't attend mainly due to having a bit of a depression at the time and wasn't really interesting in going to rallies. The vehicle has disappeared off the rally scene and is believed to be parked up in a corner of a yard somewhere.
Photo - A Reg Quest - https://flic.kr/p/aSuzwK
Photo - C Reg Quest - https://flic.kr/p/5qgfVq

9 - MCW Metropolitan*
Always wanted to get on these. Although Tyne and Wear PTE had the 2nd largest fleet of them. Nearly all of them were gone by the time I was 6 years old. A handful survive in Preservation including a T&W one which when finished with be a credit to the owners of it.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/dGhw5r

10 - Bedford JJL*
One of the most Attractive Minibuses I've ever seen. Only one survives as a Motorhome now which I have seen in the metal. Only 4 of them built all with this attractive bodywork by Marshall. Then General Motors pulled the plug on Bedford and then they were no more. The sole survivor has since been painted yellow as seen in the photo. It was still white when I saw it last time.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/ozasUS

Honourable Mentions - Those that didn't quite make the top 10.
Dennis Falcon V Double Decker
Dennis Dominator Trolleybus*
Dennis Lancet*
Leyland B21*
Leyland-DAB Bendy Bus
Leyland Tiger (Rear Engined)* AKA Q723GHG which ran with OK Travel.
MAN NL222
MAN 18:240 LionCity DD / ELC Kinetic+*
MAN SG192
Neoplan N416
Neoplan N4009*
Scania K92 Double Decker*
Volvo B57
Ward Dalesman GRXI

Will be interesting to see the views of other members.

(14 Aug 2014, 12:56 am)GMitchelhill wrote [ -> ]Right, the aim of this thread is to see what vehicle types that members would have liked to have travelled on but no longer exist or you just haven't been on one in service yet. The only thing is, you mustn't have travelled on that vehicle type before and must be available in UK and Ireland. You are allowed to include vehicles that you have been onboard but didn't move at the time you were on it.

For mine, I am including linking pictures from Flickr as it includes some rare vehicles, I do have photos of some that are on my list but I cannot be bothered to upload them.

1 - Iveco Turbocity 100
One built, and sadly no longer around. If I had won the lottery years ago, this would have been on the list of vehicles that I would have preserved.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/ccsGNS

2 - Iveco Turbocity 50
Handful Built. Either all gone or one hiding somewhere.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/auXAWM

3 - Ace Cougar
2 Built. One Preserved. The other (bodied by Willowbrook) was exported to Ireland and later scrapped.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/auXAWM

4 - Dennis Domino
Think there is 2 in preservation. One of each body example. The Northern Counties one is restored.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/8R4rry

5 - Iveco EuroRider / Marshall Maxi
3 Built. 2 as Ambulance and one as a demo bus which ended up with Whitelaws. I've got photos of it, but here is one taken by Matthew Edwards on the same day that I took one.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/oFJMbF

6 - Optare Citypacer
Although I have a few photos including those converted to motorhomes. I've never travelled on one.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/6WAzte

7 - GAC Citybus (KC Class)
There is one of these preserved along with one of the Double Deckers. Whilst the Double Decker KD Class had Detroit engines in. These had a similar drive line to the B&C reg Olympians of Go-Ahead Northern. They had the Cummins L10 engine, but coupled up to a Voith 3 Speed Box - Here is a video of one too - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDKH_gYSO_U
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/kArm8e

8 - Quest Range of Single Deckers
Quest built a number of odd vehicles. Usually with a chain driven engine. Here are 2 that I particularly would have liked to sample. The A-Reg one was used around Heathrow Airport and was last reported as a motor home, whilst the Blue and Cream C-Reg one is preserved and appeared at a Showbus 2008 which I didn't attend mainly due to having a bit of a depression at the time and wasn't really interesting in going to rallies. The vehicle has disappeared off the rally scene and is believed to be parked up in a corner of a yard somewhere.
Photo - A Reg Quest - https://flic.kr/p/aSuzwK
Photo - C Reg Quest - https://flic.kr/p/5qgfVq

9 - MCW Metropolitan
Always wanted to get on these. Although Tyne and Wear PTE had the 2nd largest fleet of them. Nearly all of them were gone by the time I was 6 years old. A handful survive in Preservation including a T&W one which when finished with be a credit to the owners of it.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/dGhw5r

10 - Bedford JJL
One of the most Attractive Minibuses I've ever seen. Only one survives as a Motorhome now which I have seen in the metal. Only 4 of them built all with this attractive bodywork by Marshall. Then General Motors pulled the plug on Bedford and then they were no more. The sole survivor has since been painted yellow as seen in the photo. It was still white when I saw it last time.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/ozasUS

Honourable Mentions - Those that didn't quite make the top 10.
Dennis Falcon V Double Decker
Dennis Dominator Trolleybus
Dennis Lancet
Leyland B21
Leyland-DAB Bendy Bus
Leyland Tiger (Rear Engined) AKA Q723GHG which ran with OK Travel.
MAN NL222
MAN 18:240 LionCity DD / ELC Kinetic+
MAN SG192
Neoplan N416
Neoplan N4009
Scania K92 Double Decker
Volvo B57
Ward Dalesman GRXI

Will be interesting to see the views of other members.

The only ones to interest me, are the variants of stock in the main operator fleets.

I would have loved to have got onto a Greenway and also missed out on a couple of the unique oddities in the GNE fleet.

Seeing something different (like your examples) is interesting, but because they weren't used locally, I haven't been able to build an affinity with them.
Saying that, I wouldn't mind being a passenger upstairs (front seat of course) on a ln Astromega

I've had the odd ace cougar in my time like...

In all seriousness though. I don't actually have a list like this. My interest varies of older buses, and I'm only really interested in some of the older vehicles I have been lucky enough to have had in service. Atlanteans, Fleetlines, Olympians, VRs, Nationals, Lynxs, Deltas, Spectras and so on. My biggest regret is having not put enough time aside to persue my hobby in the past, and therefore not having a massive photo collection.

I've always had an interest in unusual and rare vehicles.

Of the honourable mentions, some did run in the North East.

The rear engine Tiger as mentioned was operated by OK Travel for a number of years. They aquired it from Leyland and converted it to single door and operated it until sold to Applebys. It gained fleetnumber 4830. It has ended up in preservation, and I'm sure I've heard somewhere that it's now back in the North East.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/5cUPLH

Northumbria Motor Services had a Dennis Lancet on long term loan in 1987. It ended up on demo to other operators including Eastern Counties, and it ended up in Wales after it's demo work was completed. I believe it might still be knocking about somewhere (was last with DJ International in Scotland)
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/czqHUQ

MAN NL222. Only one exsists in the UK as N222LFR. There is a good story about this vehicle. Back in 1997, it was on demonstration (It was in fact only the second demo bus I have ever seen, will post about the first one after this) to Coastline and based at Wallsend depot. I nearly ended up getting a ride on it one Sunday after seeing it on the 304. Unfortunatley I only had enough money for the bus that would take me directly home. So I didn't get to have a ride on it, and was only here about a week. It spent some time on demo to other operators, and operated for a few indepents around the UK. Recently it was with Hunter's of Clackmannan in Scotland. However in May I went to their depot to find it to get photos only to be told it was sold to a company in Newcastle. However they didn't say which Newcastle and it has yet to resurface. It remain unique in the UK as MAN decided to use the 18:220 chassis, though that could be a devlopment of the NL222 chassis.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/dq8tjL

Referring the seeing demos. N222LFR was the 2nd one. The first one I saw was M441CCD which was on loan to Wear Buses and was in use on the 188. (Annoyingly the opposite working to the one I was on). It was in use in full Eastbourne Buses Blue and Cream livery. I did however come accross this vehicle later in it's life with Eastbourne Buses. Although by then it had a Blue Front and in the garish Asda Lime Green and White advert.
Photo - https://flic.kr/p/nxXKbd - A photo of it with Wear Buses has appeared on Flickr and I know Aureolin has seen it.

GAC Citybus. Although it was the Citybus version. Similar GAC Rural Bus was operated by United at Darlington depot for around a year. Spent sometime in an advert for Cummins (Had a L10 engine in). Could have been many more, but GAC went bust.
Photo of the United one - https://flic.kr/p/dD2uTh

Also on the original post, I've decided to mark with a * the ones that I've actually got my own photos of, this includes the honourable mentions.