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Show notes 198 (Patreon)

Published:
2024-02-18 18:01:01
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

Sorry, the show notes are a bit rubbish this week, mainly because we don't have any pictures from school coaches in the '80s (although if we did, they would have been taken on a 110 camera and be terribly dark). Also, we're not allowed to show you the new R5 or the updated Dacia Spring so we start with the amazing Renault 5 Turbo 2, then we have a six wheeled coach like the one Richard used to catch to school, and finally we have Jonny leaning on some top secret pixels (no-name meat, not pictured). 

Oh yes, and the coach with four front wheels was of course the Bedford VAL  

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Comments

Phil Griffiths

Ooh. I shall listen to see if it was a "Chinese 6" like off of the Italian Job n all that. I've no particular interest of coaches but now can't remember how the term "Chinese 6" came about.

Rob Dalby

I love to see Jonny’s dedication to the good old fashioned notebook and pen.

Paul Clark

On the pixelated photo, if you squint really hard, Jonny also becomes pixelated.

John Hammond

The Bedford VAL came about following a rule change in 1962 which allowed the maximum size of coaches to increase from 32ft to 36ft. At the time, the heaviest truck Bedford built was the TK series and the axle rating wasn't heavy enough to permit Bedford to offer a 36ft design on 2 axles, so they used two steering axles up front to get around the issue. Bedford's main rivals Ford, Leyland and AEC simply used heavier duty axles to extend their existing designs to 36ft. The Bedford VAL sold well through a strong loyalty from coach operators to Bedford but ultimately the product wasn't good enough for the increasing motorway network where Leyland Leopards and AEC Reliances would leave them eating dust. Bedford finally launched it's 2 axle 36ft 'YRT' chassis in 1972 but by this time it had let its lead of the UK coach market slip and by the time they exited the market in 1986, they were selling numbers in the low hundreds, they simply got left behind by much better rivals. The VAL in the picture has a Duple Viceroy '36 body, the majority of VALs had Plaxton or Duple bodywork. The 'Italian Job' VAL had the much rarer Harrington 'Legionnaire' bodywork. The small wheels on the VAL meant they had small drum brakes, a real weakness as they became prone to terrible brake fade and required more regular adjustment. Many VAL operators opted for Telma electric retarders to help preserve brake life.

Stephen McEvoy
>>130024229

It might just be the preferred layout in Asia. In Japan a few years ago I saw loads of Chinese 6 trucks about on that side of things.

JDS

Is that a cravat on your neck Jonny? Wow.

Brendan McAleer

Let me know if S&S ever do come to Canada. I could point you in the direction of all the obvious stuff like Bricklins and Ponys etc, but also Conroy 427 Beaumonts and the Bedaux Expedition Citroën-Kégresse and the only official export-grade Peels. You *do* kinda owe it to yourself to drive a Brampton-built Mopar, Jonny.

Anthony Daniels

My mate had a base L 73 5 (850 cc) with umbrella shift. I think the earlier TLs had it too - perhaps floor was an option before it became standard. The umbrella was more direct and better change. Vauxhall Victor's - some had column 3, some had 4 on the floor with bucket seats. Not sure if trim based or an actual option. The mid engine R5 turbo - I think only the original had the mad interior. The Turbo 2 was more like the normal 5's

Paul Stables
>>130026110

You, my friend, need to post this to Dull Men's Club on facebook. Most excellent knowledge.

Nigel Hancock
>>130026110

No trust me that is perfect DMC fodder. I married into a coach company in the early 80's!!

Iain W

We had an old Leyland Leopard at school. I vividly remember people slapping the headrests and 30 years of dust flying into the atmosphere.

Formula Whine

Back in the 80s me and my mate were on our morning school bus journey from Buckingham to Brackley - school year etiquette that year meant we had to sit at the front, so we always sat there chatting with the driver, listening to Steve Wright, and excitedly waiting for the year we would be on the back row handing round the used grot mags. One day, the second row was empty so we decided to sit in it, leaving the front row empty. And as we left the Tingewick stop there was this almighty crash and the large front windscreen simply shattered, showering the front seat we would normally be sat in with glass! I don't remember what caused it but we had to come to a stop at the side of the road and everybody had to get off and wait for a replacement bus to arrive which, in the days before mobile phones and being in the middle of nowhere, took a while.

Taki Innoe

Two weeks in a row of PT Cruiser talk, and time spent on a possible Canada visit? Well, if you do make it over here, I have a PT Cruiser Convertible for you to have a go in (as well as a ratty MGB), and a friend has a mid-80s Skoda 120 as well. All about an hour from Toronto. Think of the Smith and Sniff video possibilities.

James Skinner

I will gladly admit to sharing the same fascination that Greg had for the pre-selector gearbox. Our school had a ageing coach, make and model has long since left my addled brain but the horror of the orange velour seats and a complete absence of ventilation in the summer will remain in perpetuity. I too would favour the front row, absent of bullying and with better view of the intriguing controls which, as Jonny described, were a stubby shifter on a tall column next to the driver. In hindsight, a slightly sinister twist was that the coach was not owned by the school, but by one of the teachers, who also owned a succession of Mitsubishi L300 minibuses used for extra-curricular trips including one to the Duracell factory in Crawley where I got a free torch. The reason for the absence of the coach on the station pickup one morning was revealed to be its sad demise the previous night at the hands of an opportunistic arsonist. Public transport shouldered the burden from that point forward, but at least minus the orange velour.

John Hammond
>>130214028

That sounds like a Leyland semi automatic gearbox. Leylands of the 1960s and 70s had the option of a gearbox which worked off air pressure shifting brake bands in the gearbox. The stubby lever operated a series of air valves but always selected the gear that matched the position of the lever. The movent of the lever changed the gear directly without any kind of pedal operation. A “pre-select” gearbox involves the use of a small pedal to change gears. The first gear is selected by moving the lever but only engaged when the pedal is pressed. The gear lever is then moved to the next desired gear be that up or down the gearbox, but the gear does not physically change until the foot pedal is pressed again. Once moving, a pre select gear lever is rarely in the same position as the current gear. A lot of buses moved to having 'Wilson' pre-select gears instead of manual transmissions but Leyland took over control of Wilsons and it became 'Self-Changing gears Ltd' where the design morphed into the 'Pneumocyclic' semi-automatic transmission and replaced pre-select as it was easier to operate.

John Hammond
>>130026110

For four years I produced the 'Bedford Legend' club magazine, and absorbed a lot of trivia on the Bedford marque and it's painful demise through appalling decision making by General Motors. The 1960s Bedford coach range were the VAS, VAM and VAL. The last letter demoted the length of the chassis (short, medium and you guessed it... long!). The VAS remained in production until Bedford closed down in 1986, although a shuffle of the Bedford computer system resulted in it being known as the PJK from 1980 onwards. The VAM was replaced in 1970 by a new mid engine design and the VAL 2 years later. I'll get me coat......

David H

How did you mention the dual axle bus without mentioning The Italian Job???

Dan DeRoo

Another Canadian here who would be happy to help facilitate your trip here. Most car centric things are in Ontario where the plants are based but a road trip across part of the country could be very interesting.

Barry

This one is an Albertan, not just a Canadian if you do come to canada why waste your time in a overcrowded city when you can easily do that in the uk.