AEC Regent II
Encyclopedia
The AEC Regent II was a front-engined double-decker bus built by AEC soon after the end of World War II in Europe
. Despite officially being a new type it was very similar to the 1929 Regent. The Regent IIs were all documented as being new with the A173 (also known as the 7.7-litre) engine and a four speed sliding mesh gearbox. The only vehicles that were not standard was the 100 purchased by B.M.M.O. (Birmingham & Midland Motor Omnibus Company)
, which were classified as O661/20 as the front had to be re-designed so they could carry similar bonnets and radiator grills that B.M.M.O. had designed for the double deckers they built themselves.
STLs, all of which carried flared-bottomed Weymann bodies. Dundee changed the sliding mesh gearbox for the pre-selective version - a move which may have been expected from a concern like London Transport (who favoured pre-select vehicles) but not of a corporation buying vehicles second-hand. Other operators who bought Regent IIs new included Lowestoft Corporation, Mansfield and District, Reading Corporation, City of Oxford Motor Services, Ebor Bus Co of Mansfield. The twenty from London purchased by Norths, a dealer and were sold to a variety of operators such as Grimsby-Cleethorpes Transport and Dundee Corporation.
has been converted into a towing vehicle. Now the only place you can have a ride on a Regent II is at the East Anglia Transport Museum near Lowestoft
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There is also one in British Columbia. Canada which is running and ready to be restored http://www.theoddmuseum.com.
End of World War II in Europe
The final battles of the European Theatre of World War II as well as the German surrender to the Western Allies and the Soviet Union took place in late April and early May 1945.-Timeline of surrenders and deaths:...
. Despite officially being a new type it was very similar to the 1929 Regent. The Regent IIs were all documented as being new with the A173 (also known as the 7.7-litre) engine and a four speed sliding mesh gearbox. The only vehicles that were not standard was the 100 purchased by B.M.M.O. (Birmingham & Midland Motor Omnibus Company)
Midland Red
Midland Red was a bus company which operated in the English Midlands from 1905 to 1981. It was the trading name used by the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company , which was renamed Midland Red Omnibus Company in 1974...
, which were classified as O661/20 as the front had to be re-designed so they could carry similar bonnets and radiator grills that B.M.M.O. had designed for the double deckers they built themselves.
Operators
The only other Regent IIs to differ from standard were Dundee Corporation's fleet of ex-London TransportLondon Passenger Transport Board
The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for public transport in London, UK, and its environs from 1933 to 1948...
STLs, all of which carried flared-bottomed Weymann bodies. Dundee changed the sliding mesh gearbox for the pre-selective version - a move which may have been expected from a concern like London Transport (who favoured pre-select vehicles) but not of a corporation buying vehicles second-hand. Other operators who bought Regent IIs new included Lowestoft Corporation, Mansfield and District, Reading Corporation, City of Oxford Motor Services, Ebor Bus Co of Mansfield. The twenty from London purchased by Norths, a dealer and were sold to a variety of operators such as Grimsby-Cleethorpes Transport and Dundee Corporation.
Survivors
Out of almost 700 produced between 1945 and 1947, only nine survive. Two of those are derelict in America and one in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
has been converted into a towing vehicle. Now the only place you can have a ride on a Regent II is at the East Anglia Transport Museum near Lowestoft
Lowestoft
Lowestoft is a town in the English county of Suffolk. The town is on the North Sea coast and is the most easterly point of the United Kingdom. It is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and south-east of Norwich...
.
There is also one in British Columbia. Canada which is running and ready to be restored http://www.theoddmuseum.com.