AEC shelf
The AEC Regal was a model of a bus made by the British manufacturer AEC in Southall , West London, England. The model was produced between 1929 and 1964. Both coaches and city buses were built on its basis. The various versions of the AEC shelf represented a large part of the fleet of British bus operators such as the London Transport Board or the Green Line Coaches .
The first AEC shelf , later referred to as shelf I , was introduced in 1929. It had a four-cylinder diesel engine in the front. The frame with the engine manufactured by AEC was fitted with superstructures by various British bodywork companies . Typical of British buses of the time was the one-sided driver's cab, which was pulled forward almost to the level of the radiator grille. On the one hand, it offered the driver a good all-round view and, on the other hand, easy access to the engine. Shelves I that have survived were often given new, more modern-looking structures after the Second World War. In many cases, new four- and six-cylinder engines from various manufacturers with a displacement of up to 7.7 l were also installed.
The AEC Regal III came out immediately after the end of the war. In some cases, bodies similar to the pre-war types were installed, and in some cases modern forward control bodies were used. Some of the buses with a half-sided driver's cab as well as Regal I were later converted to open excursion buses .
The Regal IV , presented in 1950, differed from its predecessors in that it had an underfloor engine. Various city and coach bodies were placed on this chassis. The vehicle was powered by the AEC AH590 engine with a displacement of 9.6 l.
The Regal VI , first shown at the Commercial Motor Show in 1960, was intended for export. It differed from the Regal IV only in the more powerful AH690 motor with 11.3 l displacement. The largest export customer was South Africa with around 1500 copies, 150 of them went to Montevideo in Uruguay , 500 to Buenos Aires in Argentina . Other export customers were the Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal and Australia. In Perth, Australia, the buses were in use until 1987. The frame and motor were usually delivered and then completed on site. In South Africa, the engine, which was originally installed under the floor in the center, was placed in front of the front axle, which improved the engine's cooling.
The shelf was replaced by the AEC Reliance .
vehicles
AEC Regal I , built in 1929
AEC Regal I , conversion to an open excursion bus
AEC Regal I or III , here left-hand drive export version in Lisbon
Right: AEC Regal III with forward control arm body from Commonwealth Engineering , built in 1948
AEC Regal IV with body by Metro Cammell
Web links
- AEC Regal on busweb.co.uk (English)