Optare MetroDecker launch
Optare MetroDecker launch
New integral weighs less than 10 tonnes to TfL specification
Optare has been going to launch a new double deck model for more than a decade and last week it finally took the wraps off a completely new design. Though lessons have been learned from the previous development projects and the experience in the double deck market gained from East Lancs, the new bus has been completely developed from the ground up in the last eight months by Optare’s own team. Only the rear axle is common with the development vehicle with the old Olympus style of bodywork that we were shown at the Sherburn plant at the time of its opening
Maintainability
Glenn Saint commented, ‘The bus has been designed specifically for ease of service and maintenance. For example, all electrical items are on the lower deck and the iBus & CCTV systems housed in a dedicated rear electrical compartment which can be easily accessed without tools.’ To avoid confusion, Optare’s harnesses run alongside the offside of the bus and third party harnesses down the nearside. Bulkhead connectors are employed and the electrical sections are split into front and rear areas in order to maximise fault traceability.
Optare has tried in every way they can to ensure that the maintenance team can do their jobs without having to work from the interior of the bus. There are virtually no interior hatches for mechanical items because everything, including the shock absorbers and air bags, can be accessed from the exterior of the bus. The only exception I spotted was a small hatch within the mouldings between the seats over the rear wheelarches, necessary to allow the rear brakes to be wound off.
Lower body panels are all quick release items that can easily be replaced. They lock into the waist rail section and are held by screw fasteners. Mounting the exhaust system higher up enables the DPF filter to be removed for cleaning without the need to remove the whole unit. On the upper deck, the destination display module has been designed for easy access too.
Taking advantage of the Actimux intelligent control and monitoring system, all of the many systems can be checked from the dashboard without the need for the driver to dip levels and get dirty. The fluid filler points for the fuel, AdBlue and screenwash, are all grouped together at the front offside and are low mounted to avoid spillage. The stainless steel fuel tank has a 275 litre capacity with an anti-spill neck, while the AdBlue Tank holds 25 litres and is also of stainless steel.
Manufacturing
There are almost no physical drawings for the MetroDecker, the whole thing has been designed entirely on computer using CAD systems. Component suppliers are given CAD files from which to produce the items required, which ensures that all tolerances are extremely precise; Tim Hampshire quoted me a figure of 0.2mm. He said there had been no legacy limitations, which meant that everything could be placed in the optimum position, and neither had there been any compromises.
As with other Optare products, the stainless steel box section structure will be produced around the corner from the Sherburn factory by WEC who also produce for companies such as JCB and Bentley. John Fickling said that WEC had all of the latest equipment and ‘could produce quality and accuracy better than we could.’ He reminded me that one of the reasons Optare had moved to Sherburn was to enable it to become an assembler rather than a coachbuilder.
Mouldings are also produced off CAD files and any trim panels needed in future can be created in the same way. The combined upper deck side moulding and window cappings illustrated how clever use of materials has enabled rationalisation of the structure. Though in two different colours, with two different textures, they are single piece units, also simplifying installation.
John Fickling assured me, ‘The quality of build has been moved on dramatically.’
The Optare management team declined to say how much had been invested in the project, but G.P. Hinduja interjected that since Ashok Leyland had bought Optare it had injected over £20m into it.
Performance
This was a static launch and we will know much more about the potential of the MetroDecker when we’ve had the opportunity to experience it in action, something we are promised later in the year when Optare plans to hold a press ride and drive event.
Talking to Glenn Saint about how it performed, he said, ‘the ride and roadholding is brilliant. It has independent front suspension and with it a lower unsprung mass so you feel fewer bumps coming into the vehicle.’
Aims
In their opening presentation, the Optare management team had said that the sales priorities were to improve sales in the UK through a wider product offering, to develop European and Middle East markets through dealer distribution and local organisations and to continue growth in the Australian and South African markets. The 2014 product strategy was to rationalise the product range, progressively launch the MetroDecker, develop a common platform between double and single deck, pursue energy efficiency and obtain low carbon certification and, finally, to develop a rolling chassis for international body builders.
Australia
The decision to build the MetroDecker to an overall width of 2.50m rather than the 2.55m that is permitted and to which others build, is based entirely on the potential it brings to offer the bus in the Australian market.
Optare is enthusiastic about the possibilities in Australia where it started operations through the dealership, Patico, in October last year. Orders for 45 vehicles have been placed with 15 of these delivered so far. Most are Solo SRs but there are also five Tempo SRs. Enrico Vassallo told me that the Tempo was very suitable for Australia, which was a bodybuilder driven market, where the 12.4m long version was capable of seating 47 or 49.
One other bus delivered in Australia is the only Bonito low floor minibus to have been sold by the group. Optare is no longer offering the model with effect from 1 April and in future, all sales will be handled by Plastisol. Enrico explained, ‘We will focus on monocoque designs with rear engines: that’s the Optare DNA.’
Last word
Optare’s new double deck is quite a surprise package. It needs to have compelling features to win business in a market place in which its competitors have far from stood still while it has been gone and the weight it has achieved for a fully TfL compliant decker is little short of astonishing. The claim that it will be the most fuel efficient in its class is based on this lower comparative weight and though this has yet to be proved through product testing, Glenn Saint was utterly confident that this would be the case.
A double deck buying decision is never based purely on the hardware alone; it has to be backed by the support side and elements such as confidence in delivery times which are areas where Optare has struggled to match up in recent years. However, there can be no doubt that the world’s fourth largest bus manufacturer is squarely behind the business and determined that it will once again become a significant player in the double deck market, both in the UK and overseas. I don’t think it will be easy and the conservative delivery target of 30 in the first year reflects this, but if everything works as well as the designers believe it should, the MetroDecker will be a bus that operators will be giving serious consideration to.
Dimensions
- Length: 10,500mm
- Height: 4,310mm
- Width: 2,500mm
- Wheelbase: 5,350mm
- Front overhang: 2,760mm
- Rear overhang: 2,390mm
- ULW: 9,980kg
- GVW: 18,000kg