[julupani]

A drag link that long must make steering really difficult, not to mention vague.

[Ashley2]

Originally Posted by silversteed

So, which one will be longer ie.,higher seating capacity - the tractor part or the trailer? And will there be air suspension in the trailer, and at least the rear axle of the tractor?

No idea.
It should have Air suspension and rear and middle I guess!

[teamveevee]

Originally Posted by julupani

A drag link that long must make steering really difficult, not to mention vague.

AL uses Hubner Articularion systesm in its Vestibule buses.
Hübner Articulation Systems
You can read more about the technology in their website Articulation systems
For India, Not sure how much Indigenization gone into this

[Ashley2]

Originally Posted by julupani

A drag link that long must make steering really difficult, not to mention vague.

Thats the reason they are offered with power steering.
The effort is similar to normal buses only there is no much additional effore put up by driver.
Remember as these are operated by STUs' any additional effort or difficulty in driving it will no longer be prefered s and it will end up its life.

[Transsenger]

Spotted the new AL Vestibule bus for KeSRTC on its way to Trivandrum. The driver said the bus is fitted with a BS3 engine, body was built at Chennai. The fit & finish is poor. It has 60 seats & 90 standing capacity.

[silversteed]

A few things that I felt about this bus:
1. Finish is as bad or even worse than the vestibule buses of MTC Chennai
2. Looks like the body was built by some not-so-famous body workshop
3. Paintwork is pathetic
4. Paint scheme is really bad, especially the bi-color frontage
5. Wheel cups - yuck. Feel like puking. Anyway, KSRTC will take them off or they'll get damaged very very soon
6. Harita seats - comfortable to sit. But the upholstery will go bad easily
7. Pneumatic, driver-operated doors - good to have. Hope they remain functional and the drivers use them properly
8. Horizontally sliding glasses - not a good design for the climate in Kerala. I would prefer to have a fully openable window, instead of having to adjust with the person sitting in front or behind me.
9. The driver's window is very small - competing with the Marcopolo?

Now some doubts:
1. Why the old-school instrument cluster fitted there?
2. The bonnet looks like the one found in the new versions, but gear lever in the old position. Why not use the Through-bonnet gear lever?


This bus would be the best match for the "Aana vandi" nickname given to KSRTC buses. Miss the Red and Yellow livery here

[julupani]

What is a spare wheel doing in the middle of the seating area????!!!!!

[smashnerd]

Why is that front partition near the drivers's seat so clumsily designed? All it needs is a couple of tubes; not a tube mesh!

Also, are passengers honestly supposed to cross that spare tire? Could't they have put a cover on it? Someone could trip, you know.

[silversteed]

If you observe closely, the spare tyre is just lying there. It's not bolted onto any carrier. Transsenger said it's on its way to Tvm, and not in service. Once the bus reaches the depot, it will be moved to their stock yard.

PS: I've never seen a KeSRTC bus carrying a spare tyre

EDIT: I simply cannot associate this paint scheme with KSRTC!!! With MTC, yes of course...

[Ashley2]

Originally Posted by silversteed

..
PS: I've never seen a KeSRTC bus carrying a spare tyre

No STU's carries I beleive.
Cost saving at the expense of Trip cuts when there is a puncture.

[silversteed]

Originally Posted by Ashley2

No STU's carries I beleive.
Cost saving at the expense of Trip cuts when there is a puncture.

Yeah, very much true. Even if the spare tyre is present, the crew won't care to do it themselves. Most often the conductor and driver behave just like the bureaucrats in govt offices - not many drivers wipe the windshield glasses unless it impairs their vision, or care to fill water in the radiator even when it's fuming. Once I told a driver about the steam coming out from the water inlet (in front of the bonnet) which was left open, and he was cursing the mechanics/attendants at the depot instead of stopping the bus and emptying a bottle of water into the radiator

[AkMar]

Originally Posted by Ashley2

No STU's carries I beleive.
Cost saving at the expense of Trip cuts when there is a puncture.

MSRTCs carry a spare tyre on the roof luggage carrier AFAIK.

[DWind]

Originally Posted by Ashley2

No STU's carries I beleive.
Cost saving at the expense of Trip cuts when there is a puncture.

Not True! I remember have seen that SETC and TNSTC buses do carry a spare. It is a different matter whether the spare is any good or is maintained regularly. It is carried in a roof carrier. Those that ply(like MTC) in the city do not.
I believe the tyre is being carried this way because the spare came with the chassis and is the property of customer(KeSRTC) that ordered the bus to be built.

EDIT: Could not make out how the finish is bad by looking at the picture. Request silversteed or Transsenger to enlighten me here. I agree the paint scheme is bad and definitely not in league with KeSRTC.

[binaiks]

Originally Posted by Transsenger

Spotted the new AL Vestibule bus for KeSRTC on its way to Trivandrum. The driver said the bus is fitted with a BS3 engine, body was built at Chennai. The fit & finish is poor. It has 60 seats & 90 standing capacity.

The design looks very kiddish. Looks as if some one created the design on photoshop by editing and mixing a couple of images. The driver door area is looking too disproportionate.

The colour scheme is horrible - the standard Ananthapuri scheme itself would've looked great.

Originally Posted by smashnerd

Why is that front partition near the drivers's seat so clumsily designed? All it needs is a couple of tubes; not a tube mesh!

There is a rule that mandates a full width "cabin" for the driver. But then, the partition can be achieved by using a single rod (which KeSRTC does for their in house bodies). Is that "cabin" openable? It seems open in one of the images. I am sure the openable portion would be gone in a few days, and KeSRTC would come up with a "patch" for that portion.

Originally Posted by silversteed

PS: I've never seen a KeSRTC bus carrying a spare tyre

All Long-distance KeSRTC buses carry spare tyres. Long-distance = Inter state.

Buses that run within the state would not carry spare tyres - they would just call up the nearest KeSRTC garage and ask for a spare. They trip continues after that - and usually the bus would complete its "entire schedule". I've traveled in a bus that was running two hours late, but completed its quota for the day.

[arvi86]

As I had already mentioned, I am a big fan of AL Vestibule Buses which when new were extremely good-looking. In fact, the picture of the TNSTC Trichy city bus that I posted in #559 looks so good to me even now. These are the same buses plying in MTC Chennai also.

But, somehow, I am not able to digest the looks of this new KeSRTC Vestibule bus. Can someone please tell me what is creating so much of a visual difference between these two buses (apart from minor design elements like taillights and others)?