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Trivia - obscure non-passenger vehicles in operator livery?

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scosutsut

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I'm looking to omit vans and other general support vehicles and look for the more obscure - do any operators keep their own full towing rigs these days? Tree loppers? That sort of thing?

I open with the beachball horsebox:


As per comments on the link it was at least at one point used to transport horses for a horse drawn Stagecoach in their possession. Not sure if that's still the case?

Not my photo, full credits on link.

What else you got?
 
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Taunton

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There was a coach operator in SW London had a petrol-powered miniature coach which used to turn up at childrens' charity etc events, open top of course, held driver plus about 8 kids. about the size of a car. Full operators livery of course.

Then there was this, which I seem to recall could turn up at the same major events

[/QUOTE]
 

borage

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pdeaves

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There was a coach operator in SW London had a petrol-powered miniature coach which used to turn up at childrens' charity etc events, open top of course, held driver plus about 8 kids. about the size of a car. Full operators livery of course.
To be picky, that's not a 'non-passenger vehicle' as per thread title. Still fits the spirit, though, I would say.
 

scosutsut

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To be picky, that's not a 'non-passenger vehicle' as per thread title. Still fits the spirit, though, I would say.
Yeah I think we let it slide on the obscure side of things.

Interesting to see wreckers are still a thing!
 

CN04NRJ

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Cardiff Bus NUT344W, an ERF. Can't find any of my own photos of it at the moment so here's one from Flickr - it was still in use as late as 2012 for dragging immobile vehicles around the depot and to the second site across the road. It's now preserved with the CTPG.

6636405933_5e9f85e918.jpg
 

awsnews

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A couple of ex fire service vehicles:
Firstly a former fire engine used by Hong Kong Citybus during a trolleybus trial
and an ex support and command vehicle in use with City of Gloucester

 

quarella

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Sadly I do not have a photo but around 1970 Coombs Coaches of Weston-super-Mare converted one of their Ford Transit minibuses into a Yellow Submarine for the Winter Carnival. Company colours were yellow and white.
 

MotCO

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Does it imply that those companies with recovery vehicles have more breakdowns of their own vehicles to attend to than otherwise? ;)
 

scosutsut

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Does it imply that those companies with recovery vehicles have more breakdowns of their own vehicles to attend to than otherwise? ;)
I'd love to take a dig at a firm here but I'll behave and say it's probably down to the usual decision making process - when it's not a core business process is it cheaper / better to maintain the skillset in house or to outsource it.

Edit: it appears on balance the majority outsource it these days
 

Volvo142

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Arriva in Derby outsource to the Mansfield Group, but a Mansfield vehicle seems to be stored at the Derby depot on a permanent basis.

Not sure what that says about their maintenance / reliability (or lack of it )
 
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swifty

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First Somerset & Avon has this ex Mainline Ford Cargo in a barbie colour scheme.


They also had this ex Avon Fire service Scania which was painted into the new fuchsia Urban 2 livery.

 
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Doctor Fegg

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There was a narrowboat in Virgin Trains' original red-with-white-stripes livery moored up near Tamworth once... does that count? (No.)
 

swifty

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Random pair to own!

They had about 8 or 9 recovery vehicles at one point, including an old fire tender with First logos, ERF (P822 FOG) and Foden (T811 XVO) tractor cabs with a fuel tanker and low loader trailer which popped up at depots all over the country.


Also, annoyingly I can’t find a picture, Western National had a Ford Galaxy in the barbie Rail Link livery in the early 00’s.
 

XAM2175

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Does it imply that those companies with recovery vehicles have more breakdowns of their own vehicles to attend to than otherwise? ;)

Please forgive the foreign example but it makes an amusing counterpoint:

Picture%252520624.png

(from https://the-riotact.com/bus-tow-no-problem/50625)

Rumour has it that Renault included the recovery vehicle as a free sweetener when trying to tempt ACTION in Canberra into ordering the PR100.2 over staying with Mercedes or switching to Volvo or Scania - not the best endorsement of your product, one would think, but ACTION did end up taking delivery of 334 Renault vehicles between 1987 and 1996 so it seems safe to assume they were at least reasonably satisfied :D
 
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