(13 May 2014, 8:04 pm)busman101 wrote You'd have to board the bus windows up to be realistic for the Warriors Arms in Lumley ! I like the comments on the Volvo's - especially as another very regular Lime user, as I suspect that they could run for a while longer on the route. It does go to show just how good the Volvo B10 product was as they've probably been the longest lasting single deck bus since the Leyland National.
The branding ideas are interesting, but it does need to be a bit generic as it is a "sum of the parts" route, despite their being a lady travelling from Consett to Sunderland on the bus I was on yesterday (from overhearing her phone call)
The Volvo DH10A and Volvo D10-245 were the best and still are the best engines. Nothing but bullet proof. One thing that I notice about the B9TL is that when it gets thrashed and driven hard, it feels very similar to the Palatine. A bit more sharp on the cornering but foot flat to the floor on a straight and it's got that smooth feeling to it like what a Palatine had. But not even the B9TL doesn't come as close to a pure old school Volvo. No ECU's, DPF's, no strict EU regulations, high gearing ratios, excellent reliability particularly on long routes (D10-245) and been there to bail out the fiasco with the B7TL's on the TTX until 2012 even at 14 year old.