Quad-axle Scenicruiser?

[Jeremy]

In fact it's a Sultana Panoramico 4 apparently, but sufficiently similar to a Scenicruiser that I thought some would be interested to see it. I came across some photos of it whilst looking for a image of a drom (see other thread).




(quad-axle versions in background)


And this is a Sultana-based motorhome. I want one.




Jeremy

[DaveG]

Wow!

[Iceni John]

Bedford VAL meets PD4501?

I wonder what drivetrain they had.   Was there any compelling reason for this design, or was it just mechanical machismo?   "Hola, more wheels means more . . ."

Juan

[TomC]

Twin steers-used when mainly the only tires available were bias 12 ply that only supported 9,280lbs (old weight laws for big rigs were 9,280lb on front axle, 32,000lbs on drivers, 32,000lbs on trailer for that infamous 73,280lbs overall.  Now it's 12,000lb front, and 34,000lb on drivers and trailers for 80,000lbs).  There are tires now that will support 18,000lbs (315/80R-22.5) rated for 75 mph.  There is a 20,000lb version, but at a reduced speed of 65mph.  Good Luck, TomC

[Jeremy]

Whatever the reason for the quad axles was, it hasn't gone away - below are some pics of modern Peruvian buses from the same site. There are many more but I got bored pasting them here



Jeremy

[zubzub]

Very interesting, I am going to be in Bolivia and Peru on and off over the next 5 months.  I had been looking forward to seeing some of the old buses still on the road, and hopefully I will on the 2nd and 3rd class routes.  I don't really like modern buses but those are cooler than most.  latin america has always had nicer newer buses on the 1st class routes than anything commonly seen in Canada or the States.  Maybe BK can get the Bank of Peru to finance some for him.

[RJ]

I wonder what drivetrain they had.   

John -

I've seen those a few times here in CA back in my charter bus days.  Most of them had 8V71s with a 5-speed manual gearbox.

FWIW & HTH. . .

[kyle4501]

With tandem front & rear axles, you'd get a better ride on rough roads.

[Mex-Busnut]

Check out my post on Mexican 4-axle buses here:

http://www.busconversions.com/bbs/index.php?topic=16795.0

[buswarrior]

Great pics! Thanks for sharing!

If we start demanding better crash/roll over/passenger containment and occupant protection in our new coaches...

and they enforce some axle loading laws against those coaches...

at 45 feet long, we'll be seeing twin steer axles here too!

Presently, the front axles are awfully heavy with a load, and awfully light without... try them in the snow both ways!

Note where the fuel, anywhere 170 to 200 gallons, and HVAC is placed in the newest coaches, snugged up just ahead of the drive axle, and the tags are rated to carry as much as the steers.

happy coaching!
buswarrior

[Chaz]

Just plain cool! Thanx for ALL the pix and effort. I love seeing that sort of stuff!

Chaz

[Cary and Don]

I would think that this would take some of the terror out of the front tire blowout.

Don and Cary

[kyle4501]

I would think that this would take some of the terror out of the front tire blowout.

Don and Cary

It is very likely the extra steer axle will increase stability in the event one tire fails. 


FWIW, it has been my experience (after 3 or 4 front tire blowouts) that the driver's response has the most influence on the level terror experienced.
   
Over correcting or slamming on the brakes = more terror.

[Busted Knuckle]

It is very likely the extra steer axle will increase stability in the event one tire fails. 

FWIW, it has been my experience (after 3 or 4 front tire blowouts) that the driver's response has the most influence on the level terror experienced.
   
Over correcting or slamming on the brakes = more terror.

Kyle, 56 passengers and a huge bang like a 10 gauge shoot gun going off in the bus = terror ~ regardless how smooth the driver handles it and brings it to a stop! Speaking from experience BTDT!
  BK 

[TomC]

I rode on one of those twin front axle buses in Mexico.  Considering the rough roads, it rode very well.  What was confusing was the 10spd Roadranger transmission.  Since it was a rear engine, the shift pattern was backwards. To top that off, it had the old overdrive transmission where 9th and 10th were reversed.  So the shift pattern looked like this:

       4/9    3/8    1/6
         |       |        |
      5/10   2/7      R     Good Luck, TomC