Down Memory Lane
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Nope. SBS did not perform refurbishing on the older buses. They only start large scale refurbishing during 1999/2000.Originally posted by Yusry:Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps.
It's beginning to sound like a song. -
Yes, that was before Serangoon Central bus interchange was opened.Originally posted by SBS3688Y:I missed the old and small Serangoon bus terminal, which used to occupy the current car-park next to the bus-stop at Serangoon Gdn Circus.
The buses(eg svc101) used to park reversed the parking lots; while passing buses such as svc136 called at the current bus-stop, which's infront of the old bus terminal....
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I had a dream last night. The B57 was refurbished and fitted with a/c. How nice if that could be true...Originally posted by off_service:Nope. SBS did not perform refurbishing on the older buses. They only start large scale refurbishing during 1999/2000.
I missed the B57 so dearly.
Cheers and warm regards -
No that was not really a dream. Okay hold your breath and see below.Originally posted by Superbus:I had a dream last night. The B57 was refurbished and fitted with a/c. How nice if that could be true... I missed the B57 so dearly.
Cheers and warm regards
1. One or two B57's were fitted with driver a/c units. Appeared on some bedok/tampines feeder services.
2. At least ONE B57 had its interior refurbished. I did not manage to catch the rego but it was sometime between 1993 - 1996. I saw it outside the Ngee Ann Poly bus stop while I was going home from school at Ngee Ann. Hence it would be one of the SBS (including ex-SBS) services currently plying that bus stop. The interior was refurbished to the original SBS DM/O405 scheme (blue floor, new seats with blue cushion cover and thick plastic handles, grey walls, white ceiling) -
But they did refurbished the first A/C Merdeces 0303 bus.Originally posted by off_service:Nope. SBS did not perform refurbishing on the older buses. They only start large scale refurbishing during 1999/2000.
(refer to pic on the following webpage): http://www33.brinkster.com/busbuzz/bus_story_2.htm
I remembered that the original seats was similar to the tour coaches, with adjustable back-rests. However, it was later replaced with normal sofa-cushioned pair seats...and I remembered travelling on SBS svc22 once during the early 90s... -
Talking about SBS's first Aircon bus... was SVC 168 the first aircon service? It plied between Ang Mo Kio and the city area (World Trade Centre, I believe), right?Originally posted by SBS3688Y:But they did refurbished the first A/C Merdeces 0303 bus.
(refer to pic on the following webpage): http://www33.brinkster.com/busbuzz/bus_story_2.htm
I remembered that the original seats was similar to the tour coaches, with adjustable back-rests. However, it was later replaced with normal sofa-cushioned pair seats...and I remembered travelling on SBS svc22 once during the early 90s... -
168 was the first SBS aircon service, which started in 1984 with 8 Mercedes O303 buses. It plied between Ang Mo Kio and Orchard Rd. Sv. 168 was withdrawn and replaced by sv. 118; Hougang - Orchard Rd.Originally posted by Yusry:Talking about SBS's first Aircon bus... was SVC 168 the first aircon service? It plied between Ang Mo Kio and the city area (World Trade Centre, I believe), right? -
My first ride on an a/c bus in 1987 was a terrible experience. The bus was a Nissan U31SCN. I took it on sv.3 from Bedok to Jurong East, which was where I stayed then. Usually, we would take sv. 7, which was shorter, but I pestered my dad until he obliged.Originally posted by Qoo`~`:sometimes the air-con can be quite cold, miss the natural breeze at night when travelling in buses with no air con...
At first, I was filled with glee. Slowly, the bus got very crowded. The mid-day sun was scorching and the a/c lost its effectiveness. Passengers were sweating and there's a sickly stench.
After a 2 hour ordeal, we finally reached Jurong East, soaking with sweat. My dad said, "I'm never taking that bus again." -
I missed the old buses. They have their own unique characteristics which are missing in the newer buses. Some of my favourites:Originally posted by SBS3688Y:[color=green]
I'd like to find out what people missed about the good old days; be it interesting, pleasant or unpleasant memories...
Albion Viking EVK41L - Very loud engine. Crash gearbox which makes a loud crunch sound while changing gears. And when engaging 1st gear, there's a nice "DUNK!" sound.
Leyland Victory - Very fast. Only bus with semi-auto gears. Love to see the driver flick through 'em. Most drivers 'flat-change' ie. keeping the gas pedal pressed while shifting gears, resulting in jerky movements and rapid engine / gearbox wear.
Merc O306 - Doors open and shut with a shocking slam. Nice high seats over the wheel arches.
Merc OF1413 - The DM bodied ones were re-fitted with auto gears. The torque converter makes a very loud howl.
Merc OF1417 - Nice, loud exhaust brakes.
Volvo B57 - ditto
Leyland Atlantean - They look clumsy but I like them. At speed, there's a ghostly whistle.
Merc O305 - Ah, the cream of the crop. Very powerful, very fast. Loud hub-reduction axle. Nice retarders too. -
I think the merc OF1417 is also a semi-auto bus. The drivers have to change gears but there were no clutch.Originally posted by The_Bus_Guide:Albion Viking EVK41L - Very loud engine. Crash gearbox which makes a loud crunch sound while changing gears. And when engaging 1st gear, there's a nice "DUNK!" sound.
Leyland Victory - Very fast. Only bus with semi-auto gears. Love to see the driver flick through 'em. Most drivers 'flat-change' ie. keeping the gas pedal pressed while shifting gears, resulting in jerky movements and rapid engine / gearbox wear. -
Rgd Nissan U31SCN bus (SBS):
- My first impression was it resembled a Tibs bus, the design and engine sound! Yes, I was young that time too and due to my height, I couldn't look out of the window...
Rgd SBS 118 & 168:
- I don't think svc168 was replaced by 118 because they served totally different areas. Svc168 was withdrawn because the MRT bet. AMK and Orchard had been completed. Svc118 was introduced to serve between Hougang and Orchard. -
Sorry...accidental duplicate..
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I like this bus model too! It used to be manual-geared, with a long L-shaped gear over the gearbox. The driver will pull up and push down the gear to switch gear...but it was later converted to automatic...and I last took them on SBSsvc85 during the early 90s along Upp S'goon Rd.Originally posted by The_Bus_Guide:Albion Viking EVK41L - Very loud engine. Crash gearbox which makes a loud crunch sound while changing gears. And when engaging 1st gear, there's a nice "DUNK!" sound.
In fact, my primary school bus driver bought one such bus(manual-geared) from SBS, with licence no. plate CB3664T. -
The OF1417 was fully automatic. It had a lever type gear selector with a round black knob; looks pretty much like a manual gearshaft. And the fact that it was located beside the engine cover made it look more like a manual shaft.Originally posted by AntiDennisLance:I think the merc OF1417 is also a semi-auto bus. The drivers have to change gears but there were no clutch.
In drive mode, there was a notch to engage a lower gear. Some drivers like to play with the gear selector as I recalled from my experience.
I was going home in an NZMB OF1417 on sv. 99 from Clementi. I was sitting on the frontmost seat, observing the driver. After Clementi Ave 6, there were no traffic lights till Toh Guan Rd and the driver went nuts. As soon as the final gear was engaged he shifted to a lower gear. The engine screamed before easing back to the highest gear. Not satisfied, he did it again. And again. And again. The whole bus shook as it sped along the road. And the engine was making queer rattling noises too.
He drove like that for practically the whole journey and I reached my destination in a record time of 30 mins! -
Those were the old days when buses were ungoverned. It would normally take around 50 mins, right?Originally posted by The_Bus_Guide:The OF1417 was fully automatic. It had a lever type gear selector with a round black knob; looks pretty much like a manual gearshaft. And the fact that it was located beside the engine cover made it look more like a manual shaft.
In drive mode, there was a notch to engage a lower gear. Some drivers like to play with the gear selector as I recalled from my experience.
I was going home in an NZMB OF1417 on sv. 99 from Clementi. I was sitting on the frontmost seat, observing the driver. After Clementi Ave 6, there were no traffic lights till Toh Guan Rd and the driver went nuts. As soon as the final gear was engaged he shifted to a lower gear. The engine screamed before easing back to the highest gear. Not satisfied, he did it again. And again. And again. The whole bus shook as it sped along the road. And the engine was making queer rattling noises too.
He drove like that for practically the whole journey and I reached my destination in a record time of 30 mins! -
oohhh!! is the gear selector located on the left and just next to the steering wheel?Originally posted by The_Bus_Guide:The OF1417 was fully automatic. It had a lever type gear selector with a round black knob; looks pretty much like a manual gearshaft. And the fact that it was located beside the engine cover made it look more like a manual shaft.
In drive mode, there was a notch to engage a lower gear. Some drivers like to play with the gear selector as I recalled from my experience.
and does the driver need to step on the clutch pedal to change gear?? -
Missed old Jurong Bus Interchange:
I missed the old Jurong Interchange...It has a nice setting, and I used to enjor seeing buses refuelling at the corner. And I enjoyed seeing goods trains passing by the interchange too...and finally, not forgetting the wonderful canteen on the second floor of the bus interchange, where I watched the buses while enjoying my meal! -
what i missed:
my early bus "life" if u call it would be dominated by atleantans, Albion vikings (i affectionately called arrng arrng since they make such sound), leyland vics, baco ones even. (they sure looked ugly), volvo B57s, merc OFs (NZ hawke body) (nicknamed hong hong hong) since they made suhc silly retarding sounds.
later came the scanias which i missed most of was their nice 4 gear scanai gear. i remember my scania OACSs on 196 tended to hold the third gear very long before blasting into 4th gear. now they use sucky voiths.
another thing about the N113CRBs OACs were their irritating air-con ringing sounds. ear piercing if u had a sensitive ear. but i liked the sound since it was chracteristic of their thne fuji air-cons. the air-con outlet i remeber looked very much like those air-con outlets in your typipical office building air-con. main vent in the centre with side vents forming a square.
also missed were the OTS bus tickers which i used to collect and also the more recently the validators.
missed the nice bells they had..beep,,,hahhaha
missed the flexvision double deck buses (leyland atleantan DM body version 2) regos range were 68xx and some 34xx. too bad my SBS6821 of 196 went smack into a flyover that time....that was a flexvision bus btw .techincally the first air-con bus service wasnot 168. it u counted the demonstrator of leyland national 2 air-con bus on 143 (SBS6820) that would count as my first air-con bus of SBS. otherwise one cna settle with the STC svc 5's nissan UD air-con buses in the late 60s whcih my parents enjoyed. (btw the STC nissans went on svc STC18 first or so i heard)
ZYX
missing the old arngs arrngs -
Originally posted by xin1jun2:
If my eyes were not playing tricks, I think the public buses in KL or JB (can't remember which cities) also uses similar validators as Singapore public buses??? I saw it during my visit to KL/JB ard yr2000....
[b]what i missed:
also missed were the OTS bus tickers which i used to collect and also the more recently the validators.
/b] -
sorry, accidental post.
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When did accident of 6821 occur? What is flexvision?Originally posted by xin1jun2:what i missed:
my early bus "life" if u call it would be dominated by atleantans, Albion vikings (i affectionately called arrng arrng since they make such sound), leyland vics, baco ones even. (they sure looked ugly), volvo B57s, merc OFs (NZ hawke body) (nicknamed hong hong hong) since they made suhc silly retarding sounds.
later came the scanias which i missed most of was their nice 4 gear scanai gear. i remember my scania OACSs on 196 tended to hold the third gear very long before blasting into 4th gear. now they use sucky voiths.
another thing about the N113CRBs OACs were their irritating air-con ringing sounds. ear piercing if u had a sensitive ear. but i liked the sound since it was chracteristic of their thne fuji air-cons. the air-con outlet i remeber looked very much like those air-con outlets in your typipical office building air-con. main vent in the centre with side vents forming a square.
also missed were the OTS bus tickers which i used to collect and also the more recently the validators.
missed the nice bells they had..beep,,,hahhaha
missed the flexvision double deck buses (leyland atleantan DM body version 2) regos range were 68xx and some 34xx. too bad my SBS6821 of 196 went smack into a flyover that time....that was a flexvision bus btw .techincally the first air-con bus service wasnot 168. it u counted the demonstrator of leyland national 2 air-con bus on 143 (SBS6820) that would count as my first air-con bus of SBS. otherwise one cna settle with the STC svc 5's nissan UD air-con buses in the late 60s whcih my parents enjoyed. (btw the STC nissans went on svc STC18 first or so i heard)
ZYX
missing the old arngs arrngs -
Early 90s, I think?? I remembered reading this newspaper article, but did not cut it out. The double-decker bus svc196 travelled in the wrong path along Nicholl Highway and turned into the slip rd that SBSTsvc16 travelled into National Stadium. Due to low height under the bridge, the double-decker went straight through and the entire upper-deck was ripped off!Originally posted by SBS9818A:When did accident of 6821 occur? -
Flexvision, I think, was the advertisement in Atlanteans on the wall of the stairs facing the rear which keeps turning to show two advertisements.Originally posted by SBS9818A:When did accident of 6821 occur? What is flexvision? -
I remembered the camera crews even went to the upper deck to shoot the damaged upper deck front of the Atlantean.Originally posted by SBS3688Y:Early 90s, I think?? I remembered reading this newspaper article, but did not cut it out. The double-decker bus svc196 travelled in the wrong path along Nicholl Highway and turned into the slip rd that SBSTsvc16 travelled into National Stadium. Due to low height under the bridge, the double-decker went straight through and the entire upper-deck was ripped off!
Did it happen at Nicoll Highway or Marine Parade? -
Now I remember watching TV news about it when I was a kid. It happened at Merdeka Bridge, under Nicoll Highway.Originally posted by off_service:I remembered the camera crews even went to the upper deck to shoot the damaged upper deck front of the Atlantean.
Did it happen at Nicoll Highway or Marine Parade?