PD-4501 Scenicruiser
Encyclopedia
The GMC
PD-4501 Scenicruiser, manufactured exclusively for Greyhound Lines
, was a three-axle monocoque
two-level coach
used by Greyhound from 1954 to the 1970s. It was introduced in July 1954, and in total, 1001 were made between 1954 to 1956.
Due to its ubiquity in US cities and along highways in the late 1950s and the 1960s, the Scenicruiser became something of an icon
of the American way of life of those years.
The high-level design concept of Scenicruiser may have been inspired by the passenger-carrying railroads of the United States
and Canada
and their popular dome car
s; however, this type of two-level body in motorcoachs was common already in the late forties in Western Europe
, including Great Britain
where it was known as Observation coach. Actually the concept of two-level monocoque body was already present in the Spanish Pegaso Z-403
two-axle coach, designed in 1949 and in production since 1951.
as . The design is listed under the with Roland E. Gegoux as its designer. Originally conceived as a 35 feet (10.7 m) bus, Greyhound used a tandem-axle, 40 feet (12.2 m) prototype called the GX-2 to successfully lobby for the lifting of restrictions against operation of 40 feet (12.2 m) buses.
Power was originally provided by two GM Detroit Diesel
4-71 engines driving through a fluid coupling because the 8V71 engine was not ready for production. This installation proved to be less than successful and the 979 buses remaining in 1961-62 were rebuilt with DDA 8V-71 engines and 4-speed manual Spicer transmissions by the Marmon-Herrington
Corporation.
Originally, the design prototype for the Scenicruiser was a double decker
, with access from the first level; and the driver would look to the road from the second level. However, it was soon decided that it would be a split-level instead, with a lower level containing the driving console and 10 seats behind it, and the upper level containing 33 seats. This arrangement also allowed a baggage compartment underneath the second level, while providing 360-degree view for the upper level. A lavatory was located on the rear of the first level. The Scenicruiser was equipped with air-ride suspension and was air conditioned.
The popularity of the Scenicruiser with the public and bus operators inspired GM's Buffalo bus
models, which had a much less-obvious "second level" which ran most of the length of the coach, and smaller "vista windows" in the front (due to the driver and first passenger seats being positioned higher). Unlike the Scenicruiser, these models were available for sale to all operators and in fact, Greyhound only purchased a few of them. The Scenicruiser also inspired the look-alike Flxible
VistaLiner and a coach from the Beck Corporation, which was very similar in appearance and delivered to Queen City Trailways
, which received the only twelve of these buses ever built. Most of the Beck coaches eventually wound up in Cuba for a time and later returned to the United States, but none is believed to survive. A number of the VistaLiners are still on the road, converted to motorhomes. GM "buffaloes" bought by Greyhound were model PD4107, delivered to Greyhound in 1966-67. Greyhound bought a total of 350 of these buses in two orders, eventually replacing them with coaches from Motor Coach Industries
, which Greyhound had purchased in 1958.
rebuilt most Scenicruisers, a few having already been damaged in accidents. One major change was installing the newly-available Detroit Diesel 8V71 engine and a 4-speed transmission in place of the twin 4-71 engines and 3-speed transmission with 2-speed differential. Another change was adding side reinforcement plates above the rear wheels and below the windows. After the rebuilding a Super Scenicruiser badge replaced the Scenicruiser badge.
The cracking problems continued, however, and many Scenicruisers that made it in to the 1970s had trim panels between upper side windows removed and further reinforcements added. Greyhound and GMC did not arrive at these repairs amicably, and in 1958, Greyhound purchased the remaining stock of Motor Coach Industries
. Greyhound ordered thousands of buses from MCI and thus significantly reduced orders from GMC, although Greyhound continued to buy GMC buses in small numbers for nearly another decade as Greyhound's demand exceeded MCI's manufacturing capacity. GMCs intercity bus sales slumped, and in 1980 they exited the intercity bus market.
buses. As of 2009, some of these remain, most privately owned, and many converted to motorhomes.
The appealing layout of the Scenicruiser pushed other North American coach makers to launch their own two-level models; among them the Flxible
VistaLiner, the Western Flyer
T-36-2L, the Beck
DH-1000, and the impressive four-axle
twin-steer Sultana Crucero Imperial.
It is believed that General Motors was inspired by the Scenicruiser when they designed the Buick Sport Wagon
and the Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser
station wagons for the 1964 model year, both of which had stepped-up roofs behind the second row of seats and a raised skylight over the second row of seats.
-winning novel A Confederacy of Dunces
, by John Kennedy Toole
, includes many obsessively sarcastic references by his main character to a trip in a Scenicruiser coach, which he recounts as a traumatic ordeal.
GMC (General Motors division)
GMC is a manufacturer of trucks, vans, military vehicles, and SUVs marketed in North America and the Middle East by General Motors Company. In January 2007, GMC was GM's second-largest-selling North American vehicle division after Chevrolet, ahead of Pontiac....
PD-4501 Scenicruiser, manufactured exclusively for Greyhound Lines
Greyhound Lines
Greyhound Lines, Inc., based in Dallas, Texas, is an intercity common carrier of passengers by bus serving over 3,700 destinations in the United States, Canada and Mexico, operating under the well-known logo of a leaping greyhound. It was founded in Hibbing, Minnesota, USA, in 1914 and...
, was a three-axle monocoque
Monocoque
Monocoque is a construction technique that supports structural load by using an object's external skin, as opposed to using an internal frame or truss that is then covered with a non-load-bearing skin or coachwork...
two-level coach
Coach (vehicle)
A coach is a large motor vehicle, a type of bus, used for conveying passengers on excursions and on longer distance express coach scheduled transport between cities - or even between countries...
used by Greyhound from 1954 to the 1970s. It was introduced in July 1954, and in total, 1001 were made between 1954 to 1956.
Due to its ubiquity in US cities and along highways in the late 1950s and the 1960s, the Scenicruiser became something of an icon
Cultural icon
A cultural icon can be a symbol, logo, picture, name, face, person, building or other image that is readily recognized and generally represents an object or concept with great cultural significance to a wide cultural group...
of the American way of life of those years.
The high-level design concept of Scenicruiser may have been inspired by the passenger-carrying railroads of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and their popular dome car
Dome car
A dome car is a type of railway passenger car that has a glass dome on the top of the car where passengers can ride and see in all directions around the train. It also can include features of a coach, lounge car, dining car or observation...
s; however, this type of two-level body in motorcoachs was common already in the late forties in Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
, including Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
where it was known as Observation coach. Actually the concept of two-level monocoque body was already present in the Spanish Pegaso Z-403
Pegaso Z-403
The Pegaso Z-403 Monocasco, was a two-level monocoque coach, fitted with a 125-hp diesel engine asymmetrically mounted amidships, and built in Spain by Enasa between 1951 and 1957.First Z-403 body design date back to 1949...
two-axle coach, designed in 1949 and in production since 1951.
Features
The PD-4501, the most distinctive American parlor bus design of the modern era, was the result of five years of GM Truck and Coach Division effort based on a design by Raymond LoewyRaymond Loewy
Raymond Loewy was an industrial designer, and the first to be featured on the cover of Time Magazine, on October 31, 1949. Born in France, he spent most of his professional career in the United States...
as . The design is listed under the with Roland E. Gegoux as its designer. Originally conceived as a 35 feet (10.7 m) bus, Greyhound used a tandem-axle, 40 feet (12.2 m) prototype called the GX-2 to successfully lobby for the lifting of restrictions against operation of 40 feet (12.2 m) buses.
Power was originally provided by two GM Detroit Diesel
Detroit Diesel
As a corporation, Daimler Trucks North America has decided to rename the company "DETROIT".Detroit Diesel Corporation is an American-based diesel engine producer headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, USA...
4-71 engines driving through a fluid coupling because the 8V71 engine was not ready for production. This installation proved to be less than successful and the 979 buses remaining in 1961-62 were rebuilt with DDA 8V-71 engines and 4-speed manual Spicer transmissions by the Marmon-Herrington
Marmon-Herrington
The Marmon-Herrington Company, Inc. is an American-based manufacturer of axles and transfer cases for trucks and other vehicles. Earlier, the company built military vehicles and some tanks during World War II, and until the late 1950s or early 1960s was a manufacturer of trucks and trolley buses...
Corporation.
Originally, the design prototype for the Scenicruiser was a double decker
Double-decker bus
A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or 'decks'. Global usage of this type of bus is more common in outer touring than in its intra-urban transportion role. Double-decker buses are also commonly found in certain parts of Europe, Asia, and former British colonies and protectorates...
, with access from the first level; and the driver would look to the road from the second level. However, it was soon decided that it would be a split-level instead, with a lower level containing the driving console and 10 seats behind it, and the upper level containing 33 seats. This arrangement also allowed a baggage compartment underneath the second level, while providing 360-degree view for the upper level. A lavatory was located on the rear of the first level. The Scenicruiser was equipped with air-ride suspension and was air conditioned.
The popularity of the Scenicruiser with the public and bus operators inspired GM's Buffalo bus
GM Buffalo bus
GM Buffalo bus is the slang term for several models of intercity motorcoaches built by the GM Truck and Coach Division of the General Motors Corporation at Pontiac, Michigan between 1966 and 1980...
models, which had a much less-obvious "second level" which ran most of the length of the coach, and smaller "vista windows" in the front (due to the driver and first passenger seats being positioned higher). Unlike the Scenicruiser, these models were available for sale to all operators and in fact, Greyhound only purchased a few of them. The Scenicruiser also inspired the look-alike Flxible
Flxible
The Flxible Co. was a motorcycle sidecar, funeral car, ambulance, intercity coach and transit bus manufacturing company based in the United States that was founded in 1913, and which closed in 1996.-History:In 1913, Hugo H. Young and Carl F...
VistaLiner and a coach from the Beck Corporation, which was very similar in appearance and delivered to Queen City Trailways
Trailways Transportation System
The Trailways Transportation System is an American group of 80 independent bus companies that have entered into a franchising agreement. The company is headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia.- History :...
, which received the only twelve of these buses ever built. Most of the Beck coaches eventually wound up in Cuba for a time and later returned to the United States, but none is believed to survive. A number of the VistaLiners are still on the road, converted to motorhomes. GM "buffaloes" bought by Greyhound were model PD4107, delivered to Greyhound in 1966-67. Greyhound bought a total of 350 of these buses in two orders, eventually replacing them with coaches from Motor Coach Industries
Motor Coach Industries
Motor Coach Industries International Inc. is an American bus manufacturer based in Schaumburg, Illinois, and is a leading participant in the North American coach bus industry. It has various operating subsidiaries:...
, which Greyhound had purchased in 1958.
Problems and effects on the North American bus industry
As introduced, the Scenicruiser had some significant problems, particularly the drivetrain and cracking around the side windows in the rear quarter of the coach. Indeed, initiallyMaintenance on the Scenicruiser was a constant headache – partly because of the complicated nature of some of the new systems (in the manner of Rube GoldbergRube GoldbergReuben Garrett Lucius Goldberg was an American cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer and inventor.He is best known for a series of popular cartoons depicting complex gadgets that perform simple tasks in indirect, convoluted ways. These devices, now known as Rube Goldberg machines, are similar to...
, some of the critics suggested), partly because some of the components were too new and unimproved (using new, unproved, and unimproved technology), partly because the diagnostic tools and techniques were inadequate, partly because the training and availability of mechanics (and maintenance supervisors and managers) for the new model were less than optimum, partly because the technical support and repair-parts support were less than optimum, and largely because of a combination of several of those factors – along with a few other explanations – including, sadly, occasional incidents of careless or intentional abuse of the new coaches by disgusted drivers or mechanics.
Super Scenicruiser
In 1961 Marmon-HerringtonMarmon-Herrington
The Marmon-Herrington Company, Inc. is an American-based manufacturer of axles and transfer cases for trucks and other vehicles. Earlier, the company built military vehicles and some tanks during World War II, and until the late 1950s or early 1960s was a manufacturer of trucks and trolley buses...
rebuilt most Scenicruisers, a few having already been damaged in accidents. One major change was installing the newly-available Detroit Diesel 8V71 engine and a 4-speed transmission in place of the twin 4-71 engines and 3-speed transmission with 2-speed differential. Another change was adding side reinforcement plates above the rear wheels and below the windows. After the rebuilding a Super Scenicruiser badge replaced the Scenicruiser badge.
The cracking problems continued, however, and many Scenicruisers that made it in to the 1970s had trim panels between upper side windows removed and further reinforcements added. Greyhound and GMC did not arrive at these repairs amicably, and in 1958, Greyhound purchased the remaining stock of Motor Coach Industries
Motor Coach Industries
Motor Coach Industries International Inc. is an American bus manufacturer based in Schaumburg, Illinois, and is a leading participant in the North American coach bus industry. It has various operating subsidiaries:...
. Greyhound ordered thousands of buses from MCI and thus significantly reduced orders from GMC, although Greyhound continued to buy GMC buses in small numbers for nearly another decade as Greyhound's demand exceeded MCI's manufacturing capacity. GMCs intercity bus sales slumped, and in 1980 they exited the intercity bus market.
Specifications
- Length: 40 feet (12.2 m)
- Width: 96 inches
- Height: 134 inches
- Wheelbase: 261 inches
- Turn radius: 45 feet (13.7 m)
- Powerplant:
- 1954: 2x Detroit Diesel 4-71 engine
- 1961 rebuilt: 1x Detroit Diesel 8V-71 engine
- Transmission: Manual, 4-speed
- Fuel Tank: 180 gal.
- Seats: 10 on lower level, 33 on upper level. Total 43 seats
- Luggage: 344 cu ft (9.7 m³).
- Aisle width: 14 inches
- Front door width: 26 inches
Survival and sequels
About 200 Scenicruisers survived when Greyhound replaced them with MCIMotor Coach Industries
Motor Coach Industries International Inc. is an American bus manufacturer based in Schaumburg, Illinois, and is a leading participant in the North American coach bus industry. It has various operating subsidiaries:...
buses. As of 2009, some of these remain, most privately owned, and many converted to motorhomes.
The appealing layout of the Scenicruiser pushed other North American coach makers to launch their own two-level models; among them the Flxible
Flxible
The Flxible Co. was a motorcycle sidecar, funeral car, ambulance, intercity coach and transit bus manufacturing company based in the United States that was founded in 1913, and which closed in 1996.-History:In 1913, Hugo H. Young and Carl F...
VistaLiner, the Western Flyer
New Flyer Industries
New Flyer Industries Inc. is a bus manufacturer in North America, headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It also has factories in Crookston and St. Cloud, Minnesota, USA.-History:...
T-36-2L, the Beck
Beck (bus maker)
C. D. Beck & Company, of Sidney, Ohio was an intercity motorcoach and transit bus manufacturing company based in the United States that was founded in 1934....
DH-1000, and the impressive four-axle
Multi-axle bus
A multi-axle bus is a bus or coach that has more than the conventional two axles, usually three , or more rarely, four...
twin-steer Sultana Crucero Imperial.
It is believed that General Motors was inspired by the Scenicruiser when they designed the Buick Sport Wagon
Buick Sport Wagon
The General Motors Buick Sport Wagon was a mid-size station wagon and a corporate sister of the Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser. Featuring a raised roof and skylights over the cargo and second seat area, this model was an extended wheelbase version of the Buick Skylark station wagon...
and the Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser
Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser
The Vista Cruiser is a station wagon built by the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors from 1964 to 1977. It was based on the Oldsmobile Cutlass/F-85 model but prior to the 1973 model year it utilized a wheelbase which was longer than that of the Cutlass/F-85 sedan.Unlike most station wagons, it...
station wagons for the 1964 model year, both of which had stepped-up roofs behind the second row of seats and a raised skylight over the second row of seats.
Literary references
The Pulitzer PrizePulitzer Prize for Fiction
The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction has been awarded for distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life. It originated as the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel, which was awarded between 1918 and 1947.-1910s:...
-winning novel A Confederacy of Dunces
A Confederacy of Dunces
A Confederacy of Dunces is a picaresque novel written by John Kennedy Toole, published by LSU Press in 1980, 11 years after the author's suicide. The book was published through the efforts of writer Walker Percy and Toole's mother Thelma Toole, quickly becoming a cult classic, and later a...
, by John Kennedy Toole
John Kennedy Toole
John Kennedy Toole was an American novelist from New Orleans, Louisiana, best-known for his posthumously published novel A Confederacy of Dunces. He also wrote The Neon Bible. Although several people in the literary world felt his writing skills were praiseworthy, Toole's novels were rejected...
, includes many obsessively sarcastic references by his main character to a trip in a Scenicruiser coach, which he recounts as a traumatic ordeal.
See also
- GM Buffalo busGM Buffalo busGM Buffalo bus is the slang term for several models of intercity motorcoaches built by the GM Truck and Coach Division of the General Motors Corporation at Pontiac, Michigan between 1966 and 1980...
- GM "old-look" transit bus
- GM New Look bus
- Pegaso Z-403Pegaso Z-403The Pegaso Z-403 Monocasco, was a two-level monocoque coach, fitted with a 125-hp diesel engine asymmetrically mounted amidships, and built in Spain by Enasa between 1951 and 1957.First Z-403 body design date back to 1949...