(03 Aug 2020, 10:33 am)Big O wrote The E400 isn't on par with the Gemini 2. That's ridiculous, I remember when I used to overlook PDIs on new E400s coming to a London company and the number of faults there were was just ridiculous, such as window seals loose, misaligned body panels etc. The company switched to Gemini 2s which is a far better product, there is literally no comparison. 

Also, GNE isn't going to order 40 plus £200,000 vehicles only because they got a good deal notwithstanding the quality of the product they are purchasing. No company does that, its just not good business.  The MMC isn't that great that's the thing, its just the quality of the earlier Gemini 3 models has been highlighted, but at the time when quality was being highlighted they were still getting orders all across the country. 

Transdev cancelled their order for Streetdecks for the same reason a number of companies did which was the uncertainty at Wright, but with them back up and running again, their order book is nearly full. Diamond has taken on the first of 128 Streetdecks and 35 Streetlites.

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The E200 isn't much better than the Streetlite however, they're both pretty rubbish buses if you ask me. The build quality on E200s is just about the same as on the Streetlites. 

Of course, the E400 is going to be more proven as you put it, the Cummins engine has been used for over 20 years compared to 6 on the Streetdeck, those stats are nothing to go by.  If the E400 was so full proof and the Streetdeck not as good, then it simply wouldn't get as many orders as it does. Look at the Metrodecker Diesel model. Less than 10 in its 6-year production.

To be honest I've been on Gemini 2s with faults of a similar standard to those you report on the original E400 - possibly due to the company, but there are a number of Gemini 2s that I've been on that have been a worse experience than an E400. A faultless Gemini 2 (take pretty much any GNE example), is better than an average E400 though for sure. 

I'd argue that companies were purchasing Wright products more due to price than quality for a number of years. We all know how shoddy the Streetlite was, and the first few Streetdeck batches - if, as you say, companies were only considering build quality then there's not a chance they'd be going with Wright. I've got no idea how you don't rate the MMC as a product, everything about them looks and feels the part.

I'm not sure the "look at the Metrodecker" argument holds up - nobody was buying Optare bodied double deck products in huge quantities beforehand anyway. On the other hand, Wright had a huge share of the double deck market - and were partnering with Volvo. The E400 has, largely, used the same running gear for over a decade now and not only is it reliable, it means that operators get a better understanding of maintenance and how to keep the things running well. 

I think a point often overlooked is Stagecoach's reliance upon the E400. Despite Souters obvious interest, if ADL were churning out substandard products then Stagecoach would absolutely place an order with someone else until they sorted themselves out.