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This website is for anyone interested in the
products of Bristol Commercial Vehicles, a manufacturer swallowed
up by British Leyland and a victim of the politics of the 1970s
and early 1980s. The specific model we deal with in most detail is the Vertical
Rear-engined (VR) double decker which is still operating in several parts of the
country, but in ever-dwindling numbers. 2009 saw a large number of VRs exported
as very few newer lowheight double deckers are available on the secondhand
market. The only large fleet of VRs used in regular service in the UK remains
with Johson of Hodthorpe, but on the other hand there
are now 212 VRs recorded in various
states of preservation in the UK. The youngest
VRs will celebrate their twenty-ninth birthday this year (2010), testament to the quality of design and build which was a
hallmark of the Brislington factory where they were built.
Last Updated : February 7th 2010 (HGM341E and TRB589F for sale, XOI2520 and SRU981 on eBay)
FACEBOOK PAGE LAUNCH : I thought it might be nice to have a forum whereby readers could easily comment on and raise issues about the website, chat with me and with each other and help with information and photos for use on the website. I have therefore added a page on Facebook where I will periodically post photos and information that might not normally make it onto this website. I have started off with four photos of Bristol Lodekkas which I hope we might be able to identify and thereby add to the historical record on here. Do please become a fan of this website - you can even receive updates on Twitter - I look forward to seeing you there!
This week's interesting non-Bristols on
eBay:
UPDATED ***
Leyland Olympian/ECW coach
A101FPL*** UPDATED
UPDATED ***
Leyland Lion
F387GVO
*** UPDATED
UPDATED ***
Leyland Titan PD3/Queen Mary
BUF425C
*** UPDATED
London Transport/London Country
RF600
Bedford YLQ/Alexander
LOI1859
Leyland Olympian
CUD222Y
Leyland Olympian
C62CHM
Leyland Olympian
A148PNC
MCW Metrobus
LMO191X
Leyland Tiger/Alexander
D713CSC
Ford/Duple Viceroy
WNK480J
Leyland Olympian coach
C450BKM
Leyland Olympian coach
PJI4983
MCW Metrobus
WYW57T
Scania K93 coach
H927DRJ
Unknown Leyland
Royal Tiger
Low-height Metrobus
D708NKY
Bluebird
N731EOT
Dennis Dominator
F95STB
Leyland Tiger/Duple
C65JTU
Leyland National
B359LOY
Leyland Tiger/East Lancs
C41GKG
IVECO Daily
N301FOR
Dennis Arrow
N806TPK
Dennis Arrow
N804TPK
Dennis Arrow
N803TPK
Unknown
Dennis Dart
Bristols For Sale
I do not charge any fees for listing Bristol vehicles for sale
on this page, but I regret I cannot advertise events or vehicle parts due to
lack of available time. I do however now list Bristols advertised on
eBay in the hope of alerting buyers who may otherwise
miss the opportunity and have added a few additional links to interesting eBay
categories such as those for
Photos and
Models at
various points on the website.
***New Feature -
Bristols on Video***
Following the use of JOU161P on free services in and
around Cheltenham on Saturday 12th September a
video
of it has appeared on YouTube, thanks
to the prolific camera of Simon "Video47". This has prompted me to add a
new page
to this website where I will add links to videos of Bristol VRs, REs, LHs and
Lodekkas across the Internet. If you find any more do please drop me a line at
rob@robsly.com and I will build up this library
of material.
Operator Focus(April 26th 2009) Updated January 9th 2010Crosville RE
After taking four months to complete the West Riding VR operator focus (due to the volume of current updates in the world of Bristol buses) I have now moved on to Crosville REs. This gives me a chance to showcase the photographic collection of Graham Senior, already used extensively for Crosville LHs, which includes views of nearly every RE that ever ran for the great company. Above is SRG165 (EFM165H), one of the last flat-screened RELLs. I have now finished the fifth and sixth sections of Crosville REs - it's still a slow job with the amount of current activity to be recorded on this website! Operator Focus - ArchiveThe Operator Focus Archive contains a log of previously featured operators. If you can contribute to fill any gaps or correct any mistakes I'd be delighted to hear from you. |
Photo of the Month (December 26th 2009) |
The aim of this website is to be the up-to-date reference point for all surviving Bristol VR, Lodekka, RE and LH vehicles. Ultimately it is the intention to have an Illustrated History page for every one of these vehicles that were built including photos with every owner in every livery. Obviously this is a lifetime's work and will not be achieved without the help of a great many contributors - these kind folk have already helped to swell the number of photos held for publication to over 15,000, many of which are already in use on the site. I have decided that the time has come to record all changes of vehicle status on the website, and this information can now be found on the Recently Recorded Changes Log.
For a couple of years now I have been adding Illustrated Fleet Histories for operators who have run VRs, REs, LHs and/or Lodekkas at some point, ranging from large groups to tiny one-vehicle operations. Those added so far are listed by county on the Operator Cross Reference page (including an indication as to whether or not the list yet contains all the details and photos in my possession), but I now plan to showcase operators as I work on them. The purpose of highlighting them on here is both as a means of promoting the pages but also as a request for viewers to send in any photos that fill in the gaps in the Photo Archive sections on each page. The aim is to illustrate every vehicle in every livery with every operator and I want to thank all the very many kind individuals who have already made such contributions to this website.
The Illustrated
Histories Log page details those vehicles that have already been
processed. More are added each week. If you can help to complete any with either additional
information or photos I would be delighted to hear from you, either through the
submission of photos or slides for scanning, or through the email of digital
images. You will find my Contact Information at the foot
of this page.
I do not charge any fees for listing Bristol vehicles for sale on this page, but I regret I cannot advertise events or vehicle parts due to lack of available time. I do however now list Bristols advertised on eBay in the hope of alerting buyers who may otherwise miss the opportunity and have added a few additional links to interesting eBay categories such as those for Photos and Models at appropriate points on the website.
ILLUSTRATED CURRENT SURVIVORS LISTS
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VRs in Service ***New format***
All current VRs operated around the UK. |
Playbuses, exhibition units, caravans, etc. They're all here. |
Over one hundred and eighty VRs are already in preservation. Keep up with their progress here. |
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Lists by original owner of all RE survivors from around the World |
Lists by original owner of all Lodekka survivors from around the World |
Lists by original owner of all LH survivors from around the World |
COMPLETE TYPE LISTS
| BRISTOL
VR
Here you will find all VRs that were manufactured, listed by original owner. The lists show the current location of all survivors, all others being marked as scrapped. |
| BRISTOL
RE
Here you will find all REs that were manufactured, listed by original owner. The lists show the current location of all survivors, all others being marked as scrapped. ***New feature - work in progress*** |
| BRISTOL
SU
Although we do not cover the Bristol SU, you will find very comprehensive comprehensive coverage on Gerry Tormey's website using the above link |
| BRISTOL
MW
Gerry Tormey has also now completed a superb site devoted to the Bristol MW. Follow the link above. |
| BRISTOL
SC
Further offerings from Gerry Tormey now include this site for the Bristol SC.... |
| BRISTOL
LS
...and this one for the integral Bristol LS model |
This is a work in progress, but take a look - Frapper link - for the time being I have added my own VR and its sister with Stagecoach - do please feel free to add your own Bristol bus and photo.
Your webmaster would be delighted to hear from you about anything Bristol/ECW-related. His email address is rob@robsly.com.
This site is best viewed at a resolution of 1024 x 768 or higher
I am selling a few photos from my personal collection on eBay to raise funds towards the continued restoration of JOU161P. Please click here or on the link below to take a look:
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The Doctor Who story has been moved here
Fantastic news is that after 22 years "missing in action" Series 1 flat-front VR BYG851H, former West Yorkshire VR44, has been spotted in good condition in Morocco. It was parked just off the main road heading back into Tangier from Cap Spartel and the "Caves of Hercules". Unfortunately Clive Williams (whose quick thinking provided enough of the registration to check its identity on this website) was on a tour coach at the time so it was impossible to get a photo. My request to readers is for anyone who finds themselves heading out to Morocco to keep their eyes peeled for this one (and to carry a camera with them!!).