LOL The Irony
On Moderation
Wright made those open top Gemini 3's for Cumbria.a business ADL and Wrights don't seem to have been interested in
Wright made those open top Gemini 3's for Cumbria.a business ADL and Wrights don't seem to have been interested in
Wright made those open top Gemini 3's for Cumbria.
I think its a shame the Olympus died a death without a massive number being built. Why didn't many operators take to it?
I believe only the full size Solo is full width nowadays.Just looking through SR pics On Facebook groups and every single one appears to be a slimline, do they not sell many full width SR?
(easiest giveaway in pics being the 1/3, 2/3 door)
Our 12 month old 9.8m are slimline.I believe only the full size Solo is full width nowadays.
I disagree. Volvo and Scania sales have decreased significantly because they are heavyweights, and Optare Tempo SR sales were frankly pathetic, sorry Optare. Operators want lightweights, Optares whole range is, so they should focus on improving their existing integral range.I think to survive, Optare should focus on bodying buses but still offer some integrals, I'll say the Solo & Metrocity. They should also finally make the Rapta as it still looks modern 12 years later.
The 9.2m and 9.9m SRs are offered in either slimline or standard width.Our 12 month old 9.8m are slimline.
I disagree. Volvo and Scania sales have decreased significantly because they are heavyweights, and Optare Tempo SR sales were frankly pathetic, sorry Optare. Operators want lightweights, Optares whole range is, so they should focus on improving their existing integral range.
I don't think an entire refresh is needed, but a front end facelift to sort the issues regarding blind spots would be good as it's one of the things drivers dislike most about Optares, specifically with the Versa. The other issue being the outdated cab. I've never found build quality to be that bad, buses are going to rattle over time regardless of how well they're built, although questions should be raised when a months old bus is rattling more than something 10+ years old. I think the issue is not that they don't see the need to update their range, but more that funds are limited. I fear they've wasted far too much time on white elephants like the Metrodecker that their core products have been left behind.
People are suggesting that Optare could find a niche in the market for electric vehicles, perhaps 5 years ago i would've agreed but not so now. The BYD/E200 combo is archiving far better range, reliability and sales than the equivalent Optare products. I've also seen it mentioned that operators would be more likely to buy a "home grown" product from Optare than a BYD/ADL combo, but it's also disagree there. Operators will go with whatever product is most cost effective, suits their needs and has good backup. ADL were wise to team up with BYD as it meant when they launched their product they were using technology that has already been tried and tested. Wright don't really have much in the way of electric products at the moment, yes they have the Streetair but it's kind of a non-factor particularly the door forward examples. Wright's focus has been more towards Hydrogen, although strangely as of yet they have no single deck product. ADL also offer a Hydrogen E400MMC but it lacks the the testing and proof of concept that Wright have developed with the Streetdeck-FCEV over the last 4-5 years.
Is the problem selling the products, or fulfilling orders? Whichever it is, surely it needs to be addressed. If it finds it difficult to sell the product, can they drop the price to attract orders and get some sqandron service on the roads, so that they become as commonplace as E400 EVs.
The problem could be if EV is not the way forward. If Hydrogen is the future, do Optare have any suitable products, if not they might suffer.
They made an announcement about hydrogen a few months ago: http://www.optare.com/news/2020/4/2...partner-to-launch-a-fuel-cell-double-deck-busThe problem could be if EV is not the way forward. If Hydrogen is the future, do Optare have any suitable products, if not they might suffer.
Optare is pleased to announce the launch of a hydrogen fuel cell double deck bus in partnership with Arcola Energy. With both bus and power system built in the UK, the first Metrodecker FCEV buses are scheduled to enter service in 2021.
Hydrogen fuel cell buses offer a zero-emission "drop-in" replacement for diesel buses. They are especially suited to long-distance inter-urban routes and complement the use of battery electric buses on urban & suburban routes.
The Metrodecker H2 hydrogen bus product is built on the proven Optare Metrodecker battery electric platform. It incorporates a hydrogen fuel cell powerpack developed by Arcola Energy as a direct replacement for the battery powerpack in the Metrodecker EV. It can carry more than 90 passengers and offers a range of between 200 and 250 miles depending on specification and route.
The Metrodecker FCEV complements Optare's existing range of low and zero emission buses. Optare sees a significant export market for fuel cell buses to regions with high ambient temperatures, requiring high air-conditioning power.
They made an announcement about hydrogen a few months ago: http://www.optare.com/news/2020/4/2...partner-to-launch-a-fuel-cell-double-deck-bus
Based on previous performance, maybe take "scheduled to enter service in 2021" with a pinch of salt, but it's something.
East Lancs were for a long time the bodybuilder of choice for the smaller operator, or for operators who needed small batches of double decker buses. For a time the triaxle Olympus was popular with those needing a high capacity vehicle to do local coach work.
I think Optare has a fairly secure future when viewed in the context of the wider Ashok Leyland empire.
As a standalone UK company it isn't doing particularly well, nor does it have a particularly great product line. But it's a tiny part of the AL business, and one that I'm sure they're basically exploiting as an R&D vehicle.
Every overseas joint venture/aquisition AL have been involved with has always been about technology transfer into India (just like Tata did with British Steel/Corus - but that's another story), and I'd bet Optare are their guinea pig for EV, lightweighting etc etc.
which simply means the battery packs have to be redesigned to become demountable and easily exchangedRegarding EVs it's interesting to note that the quoted range for Optare products is 95 miles, yet for the Enviro200EV it's 160 miles, examples in service have proven that the latter is very much possible. So surely if Optare want to broaden their market share they should focus on increasing range? Otherwise (and some would argue it's already the case) the E200EV is going to dominate the market.
I've been on the Optare Solo EVs with Stagecoach Inverness and they're pretty nice buses, however they can't manage a full day in service so need to come off to be recharged.
The battery set is a significant part of the price, is a significant weight and they're often placed in difficult to get at places (to use the space where they can). Previously it's been less costly to have an additional vehicle available (higher purchase price but zero ongoing engineering costs) to solve the range problem.which simply means the battery packs have to be redesigned to become demountable and easily exchanged
- unless the price of the battery exceeds the price of the rest of the bus, in which case the calculation may be different