Before a friend said that they want to know about the British double-decker bus, it must be arranged, today let's talk about the classic in the British iconic double-decker bus, AEC Company's Regent (Regent) series model. The series' big red livery was like a city business card at the time, and today the double-decker buses on the streets of London are still dominated by red paint.
AEC's Regent I double-decker bus
I call the other models the first and second generations, but since I met the Prince Regent, let's call it Prince Regent I according to British rules. The british United Equipment Company (AEC) is well known as the London General Company (LGOC) in 1855, which began to produce passenger cars for its own use in 1909, and the commercial vehicle section was established separately as the British United Equipment Company in 1912. The company manufactures buses, buses and trucks and sells them under the AEC and ACLO brands. After nationalization in 1975 (merged by Leland), the AEC brand was abandoned in 1979.
AEC's triangular wing logo
ACE Regency I double-decker bus in 1930
The original AEC Regent I double-decker bus was introduced in 1929 and officially launched in 1930, with chief engineer J. A. Thompson of the series. G. Rackham used to work in Leland. The second floor of this bus feels like a post-addition, which seems to be a bit out of place, but considering the consistent style of British personality design, it may also be deliberate.
ACE Regent I double-decker bus in 1934
Produced until 1942, the later optimized bodywork looked much more comfortable, the vehicle could be equipped with a 7.4-liter or 7.7-liter diesel engine, with a 4-speed manual transmission, and the chassis was selected for the Titan double-decker passenger car chassis of Leland. The vehicle is a one-sided cab model, with the driver in a separate space on the right side of the long-headed engine. The hood on the left side of the front can be opened upwards, and in front of it is a water tank radiator. The grille is divided into left and right sections by a silver-white metal trim strip, and at the top of the middle dividing line is the AEC's triangular flying wing logo. The grille is flanked by circular headlights and the right front wheel fenders are wrapped around the cab.
First of all, the passenger area is completely isolated from the cab, and there is a small window in the middle that is often obscured by the driver. The first two rows are facing each other's side sofa seats, and the rear are the left and right rows of two-seat sofa seats. The seat backrest has a separate crossbar at the top that serves as an armrest for standing passengers, with several vertical armrests in the middle. Each time the windows on both sides are closed, one will be able to open, and the first layer of lighting is slightly worse. The rounded roof is better load-bearing, but the second floor is flat.
The working environment of the cab can be said to be very poor, and the windshield that can be pushed open in front is so wide. The cross-shaped four-spoke steering wheel is used, and due to the narrow space, the instrument panel can only be set on the right side of the steering wheel. On this cab, it is estimated that the driver is troublesome to stand up and turn around, and there are many blind spots in the line of sight, and I don't know how the driver persists.
A spiral staircase at the rear of the car
The rear of the second floor of the vehicle
The front of the second floor of the vehicle
At the top of the second-storey rear spiral staircase is a curved mirror through which passengers up and down can see each other and stagger through each other. There is a row of two-seat sofa seats on the left and right of the second floor, and the middle passage is not spacious, and it does not feel like passengers are not expected to stand on the second floor. The windows on both sides are similar to the first floor, but because the front and rear windows are relatively wide, the second floor has relatively good lighting.
ACE Regency II double-decker bus in 1945
After a tough few years passed, the AEC introduced the Prince Regent II double-decker bus. In fact, this car has hardly changed from the previous generation model, and even the small mirror hoisted at the bottom of the two layers on the left side of the front has not changed, or it is still so impractical. But some of the details have been optimised, such as the fact that the front windshield of the cab has changed from square to today's sunken outward shape, and that all the side windows of the body have been unified. The open rear door is still like that, as long as you catch up, you don't have to worry about not getting in the car.
Introduced in 1947, the AEC Regency III double-decker bus
Even worse was the AEC's introduction of Regent III in 1947, a car that made its face in the eighth bond film series, Life and Death, in which Bond drove it in a fierce drag racing scene on the street. You can see two pedal grooves embedded in the body behind the front wheel on the right side of the vehicle, and above it is a small cab door. This design is very uncomfortable, and perhaps the British designer still feels that the driver and the coachman are the same, and it is a pity for Bond for 0.1 seconds.
Left-hand drive AEC Regent III double-decker bus rear
I'm a Bond fan, so the AEC Regency III double-decker bus must say a few more words. Enter the car through the open doors at the back, you can choose to go directly to the first floor and sit down, or climb the spiral staircase from the rear to the second floor to take the ride. I personally prefer this door because I can't miss it as long as I catch it. To summarize the car chase tips in the movie, don't jump up from the back, but grab the armrest first, and then board the car from the side.
The Regent series uses a special chassis for Leland's Titan double-decker bus from beginning to end, with leaf spring shock absorption at the front and rear. The AEC Regency III double-decker bus measures 7900 mm long, 2300 mm wide and 4400 mm high. Powered by a 9.6-liter inline 6-cylinder engine with a maximum power of 125 horsepower, the vehicle has a top speed of 72.42 km /h (45 mph). Do you like AEC Regent III? Welcome to leave a message to let me know.