The World’s Coolest Bus - General Motors Corporation Scenicruiser
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2023
- Here is a short history on the amazing Scenicruiser. I was lucky enough to go for a ride in one at the Pacific Bus museum just outside of San Francisco. What a cool machine. To my mind the best looking bus in the world. I even had the Matchbox toy as a kid. What do you think?
- Auta a dopravní prostředky
Back in 1961, we spent 3 days crossing the country from San Diego to Norfolk, VA in several of these PD4501 Scenicruiser Greyhounds. For a then 9 year-old-kid, it was a most memorable experience. I got to sit up in front row of the upper deck. I remember the driver manually shifting the non-synchro 4-speed transmission.
Coolest buses ever! They are definitely the most iconic bus ever made!
I totally agree. I have loved them since I had my Matchbox one as a kid. 👍
My drum corps had three scenicruisers. I rode them all through the 1980s. Loved this bus.
I would love to own one. Glad I had a chance to ride in one. 👍
Thank you. I did not know that Raymond Loewy designed the Scenicruiser. It certainly explains how it came out so well. I have seen a few of them on BusGreaseMonkey’s channel.
Yes, he certainly did a great job. I’ve seen that channel too. Quite good to watch the work they do.
I had hundreds of Matchbox, Corgi and Dinky cars. Love them. I still have a box of them that my older brother collected in the late 60's and early 70's- lots of Lesney cars, etc. I also collected quite a few in the early/mid 80's, aged 3 till about 10 or so. Thanks for reminding me!
Great bus, by the way! Cheers
Thanks. Me too. Many of us (as car enthusiasts) started our passion that way I reckon 👍.
Absolutely loved this
Thanks very much 👍
Absolutely awesome Mark. And my contribution here in comments is massive !!
FUN FACT: The most desired meal / sandwich, on board the Greyhound Coach in the USA, was a Corned Beef Sandwich. Yes, each coach had a lovely hostess, attired in uniform and wearing a corporate hat, that would look after you from her small kitchen facility up the back - with coffee, sandwiches etc. What a time. Great history here. Cheers Mark 👍
Ha. Thanks Fletch. Time for a corned beef sandwich, coffee and a Scenicruiser ride I say.
Here is the world’s coolest bus. The Scenicruiser.
Thanks, Mark, and it was a surprise to see the great footage again from Fletch's video. I'm VP of the Pacific Bus Museum in Fremont, CA, and we are almost done with the restoration work on the 1955 Scenicruiser that you rode in. All the seats are restored, and the last pair were installed 2 months ago. We now also have a SECOND Scenicruiser that was modified and used by Red Bull for a cross-country promotional tour that lasted 8 1/2 years! We drove it home from Southern CA, and the two look great side by side. You are invited to come back and see us and both of our iconic Scenicruisers.
Thank you very much. I am glad you enjoyed the video. It sounds like you have made great progress and it would be excellent to visit your museum again. As you may be able to tell if you have been watching any other content on the channel, we are just finishing our latest USA trip - which has been amazing. We will keep in touch regarding our next visit. Cheers Mark
I saw these as a kid. I thought they looked so cool and looked like something from the future.
Exactly. That was when the US manufacturers really pushed the envelope design wise. Please bring back those days!
That's so cool!
Thanks Tony. I love these things. The best of Americana.
@@markbehr88 for sure!
I have lived in Nor Cal all my life and never heard of your museum. How awesome! I am going to go first and then talk to you about bringing my car club to it. Can't wait!
It’s worth checking out. Pacific Bus Museum. 👍
Funny before playing this clip was thinking about my matchbox bus thanks for sharing
Thanks Gerard. I think that little Greyhound was a popular toy.
Hi there Mark, my second favorite bus, from GM. Though the outer shape and polished metal finish was Lowey's design, all the internal structure, chassis and eventual body construction was down to guys in GM engineering as this project was engineered from the outset as a bus, NOT a modified truck chassis like most busses.
So, my favorite is the GM UK Bedford/Vauxhall VAL 14's & 70's like the one in the original 1960's Italian Job movie. These were designed by some of the same guys that did the Scenicruiser, who as a team had been sent to UK GM to re-design al their truck and bus offerings. Having a second chance they knew the short comings of their first US version. i.e. tyre scrub and handling in corners with just one wheel/axle at the front, fix was the dual steer axles at the front. Re the dual small engines and electric selector auto box, the UK busses had a specially designed 8 speed box with an unusual pattern, known as the "chinese" gate and a bought in Leyland "400" engine in the VAL 14's. Over a period of near 10 years British GM built just over 2800 VAL's, around 1,000 early VAL14's had early Leyland 9.8litr engine and the final 1,800 with a purpose-built in-house GM 466 inline 6 cyl diesel. Amazingly 60 years later 2200 out of the 2800 are still road registered. Also, amazingly there is a vast club for spares etc., and not only that the club has documented all ever built and when & why they were scrapped no matter what country they were initially sent to, OR , ended up being in amazing !
These were classy expensive items, only 16 were ever imported into Australia, as a kid my local bus company, the Mosman Omnibus Service bought four 2 early ones and 2 later ones. My grandad's mate that owned the business eventually bought all the others, including a burnt/damaged one. To re body it, he bought off Vauxhall/Bedford the engineless show vehicle they had kept and transferred all the mechanics from the damaged one. Although you could buy a chassis and have your own body built on that chassis, only some airline companies did that as tarmac busses where people were transported to the runway to board with a 75-person seating capacity these were plain. However, GM UK had contracted 6 major bus body builders to build some authorized designs. Two of which were or are so modern they could have been designed in 2023. One from Van Hool and one from Spanish coachbuilder Caetano Estoril, many were sold on the European continent for use on the budding freeway networks. After their stint in GM UK this team of heavy vehicle bus & truck engineers & designers went back to the states and their next piece of handworks is one of Mark's favorites, the GMC Motorhome.
When I was in my late 20's one of Bill Heath's drivers was ill for an easter trip to Canberra and surrounds, my grandad said do you want to get behind the wheel of a Vega Major (one of the 6 designs by Duple) for a weekend, my answer yes. call Bill. Impressed as a child, as an adult I was doubly impressed, smooth silken performance, you easily mastered the strange full syncro manual shift sequence. Another of GM's classy, quality inventions .
Thanks Greg. I know those buses. Great movie btw (the original Italian Job, not the crappy later version). Like you, I have the beautiful Dinky model with the lights. Great design. I still prefer the Scenicruiser but that is close behind and I can see why you prefer it.
Great information Greg I love anything Bedford especially some of the old trucks with the screaming 653 detroits in I’m 💪👍🇦🇺
Gotta love a screaming Detroit Deisel. Such a wonderful noise.@@jamieteal2107
@@jamieteal2107Hi Jamie, so to continue, Bedford/Vauxhall had been losing sales to arch enemy Ford. To combat this and "kick Ford in the head" GM USA sent some of their best men to the UK to look at all areas of concern. In the Bedford truck division, they revamped the cabin pressings used in the 1958 GMC/Chev cab/over/engine trucks by fitting a taller windscreen and new fromnt panel with air vent entry points which we all know as the TK series and also giving it a flip open cab for ease of service a first for a mass-produced European brand TK Bedford's sold really well for years. In the car line up the PB Cresta was a very much wider bigger car than the prior PA. The PB being designed by some of the guys responsible for the '62 & '63 Chev Impala's & Belair's and it was way longer and wider than Australian Holdens of the day, then in the smaller cars the new FB Victor tough as iron and rally winning it was a ferocious adversary to Fords 2 new cars the Cortina and Consul Classic and consul Capri (first early version was a bigger car than the later well-known Capri's). Both these Fords had flimsy MacPherson strut front ends, then GM UK also releases the HA Viva a price savvy car that sold plenty and was a bit smaller and cheaper than the Cortina, but tough and dependable.
After a period in UK next stop was GM Germany where they again targeted Ford Germany and unleashed a very amazing updated complete product line. With their premium cars the luxury Opel Admirals and Diplomats attacking the then version of the Mercedes S class, basically outclassing the Mercs with Chevy 327ci v8 engines and the rear IRS that we in Australia used in the 1992 VP Commodore's & Statesman's until 2006 when GMHA made their own for the new VE & WM series cars.
@@gregharvie3896 👍🇦🇺
Front seat, right, upper level, thanks!
😎👍
Good spotting John. It was a cool ride 👍
Yes it is my favorite GM bus next to the Suburban Fishbowl. I drove and the buffalo
Agree. I love the Fishbowl one too. Very cool 👍. Thanks for your comment.
Would love to have one of those of my daily commute.
Had a Custom Coaches bodied Scania on my trip home today and it rattled like crazy.
Yes, I can imagine the windows rattling away! 😀👍
I've ridden in these about 3 Times
Might have been the Mid to Late 70's
They are terrific aren’t they? I love the look of them.
I have been on this bus many times in the 50s.
They are great aren’t they. 👍
@@markbehr88 yes they are
Awesome video! I've heard of the Aerotrain and the Futurliner. Although this was before I was born, I've seen buses like this Scenicruiser, used for the Grayhound bus. Beautiful design. Were these offered in Australia?
Hi Jason. We unfortunately did not have them here. We only received the matchbox car version! 😀
@@markbehr88 I've never ridden the GM Scenicruiser. It would've been fun to do that. I've always found them quite attractive, with the elevated roof just aft of the driver.
I believe that a few (6-8??) of the versions that were driven in Canada were fitted with 12 cylinder DD engines. They must have had quite a sporty feel to them.
Really? Very interesting. I love these things.
Where they badged as GMC ? Or GM like the future liner truck and the electric car?
As far as I know, they don’t have a GM badge per se. The plaque in the middle, below the windshield is for the bus company id - like the Greyhound dog for example. There is a build plate which says General Motors Corporation I believe.
I thought this was the coolest bus to ride.
Agree 👍
north by northwest movie.
Great movie. 👍