The Leyland Experimental Vehicle (LEV)
| The forerunner of all those nasty railbuses was the Leyland Experimental Vehicle,
a joint venture between Leyland and BR to combine the worst features of
rail and bus. Here are some pictures of the various early railbuses with links. The railbuses were powered by 200bhp 6-cylinder Leyland TL11 diesel engines, with fully automatic SCG gearboxes and a Gmeinder final drive unit driving one axle. They were 12.3m long and consisted of a standard Leyland modular bus body on a chassis having suspension based on the HSFV series of experimental designs for freight vehicles but with flexicoil springing. This allowed for a double-ended body mounted at four resilient points on the underfame. There were five single car railbuses built for trials on BR, including one built by Wickhams for export.. Amazingly, they have all survived - look here for information and pictures. |
Click on the picture for a bigger image- all photos are BR official unless otherwise indicated
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The first LEV was un-powered and unbraked and is shown here in the sidings at the RTC around 1978 |
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As part of the preliminary trials it was ride tested on the WCML and is pictured here between two test cars at an unknown location |
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At Carlisle probably on the same day |
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The re-built LEV1, now with
power equipment and brakes, outside the Test Hall at the RTC c1979 J A Lower |
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Outside Stanton Tunnel on the Old Dalby test track in 1980 |
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LEV1 pictured at an unknown depot whilst on trial. Now known as the BR Leyland Motors experimental railbus and numbered RDB975874 |
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Pictured here near Woodbridge on the line to Saxmundham
in early 1980 on test. G R Mortimer |
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After extensive tests it eventually entered
passenger service in East Anglia and is pictured passing through Ipswich
station.
M J Collins |
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After trials in passenger service it was sent to the USA in early 1980 - note the grilles over the windscreen which were fitted for use in the States. It travelled widely before returning to Derby works in 1986. |
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Pictured in the C&W Works prior to departing for USA c1980 |
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LEV1 awaits the passage of a freight train whilst on trial in the USA in late 1980 |
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Somewhere in the US of A - it eventually returned to the UK in 1986 and is now to be found undergoing restoration at the North Norfolk Railway - on loan from the NRM. |
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A view of the Wickham version of
the railbus (which was a stretched version at 15.3m for the USA and known as
R3) at the Old Dalby test track - pictured on the straight between the Covered Way and Grimston.
Note the destination on the blind - 'Bus stn'. This went to the USA and is still there today - look here and here for more info and pictures. |
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The next version was a second version of R3 (or Rb3) and is shown here when new in the C&W works at Derby. It was given a Departmental number RDB977020. |
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RDB977020 pictured at the
Control Centre at the Old Dalby test track in the early1980's Alan Rimmer |
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In service at an unknown
location - this was eventually converted to 5' 3" gauge and finished up in
Northern
Ireland Unknown |
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Another version, RB004
built at Derby in 1984 and shown here at Essen (Belgium) on 17th June 1985 -
It did go to Sweden as a demonstrator so maybe it's on its way there or
back. This looks much more like a class 141 than the earlier railbuses. RB004 is preserved at Shildon (NRM) Gerrit Bethuyne |
