X958 CNO

History

X958 CNO is, as far as we're aware, the last remaining Wright Eclipse Fusion bodied Volvo B7LA in the UK, being new to Dublin Bus as 00-D-65007, their AW7. It was later imported by Ensign in 2010, going to Peoplesbus in Liverpool, where it was painted in their distinctive blue and pink livery, re-registered X1 BUS, and given the unusual fleetnumber 0201½. It ran there for a number of years on school and football services, until DDA regulations saw its replacement in late 2015. In the middle of 2016, it made its way across the Pennines to Robin Hood Airport for use as an airside transfer vehicle. In the end, it was only ever used for its intended purpose twice, for two TUI flights. It's been parked up since the airport, by then named Doncaster Sheffield Airport, closed in 2022.

In Preservation

This project was in the works for over six months before it was delivered to our base, with the nature of the site, and the fact it's been standing for a number of years and requiring recovery, necessitating detailed risk assessments, method statements, and indemnity coverage for any potential damage during the removal. Thankfully, with a very heavy duty boost pack, and after checking all the fluids, it fired up straight away. Once the air had built up, the brakes came off without issue, and both drive and reverse selected correctly. Unfortunately, the suspension initially wouldn't raise on the front section - it later sorted itself out, although not before the tow. To improve clearance on the accordian, Ceri removed the front wheels to allow it to hang a little lower on the truck, before refitting them before drop off to allow us to drive it into the shed without having to worry about getting the truck in too.

After freeing off and cleaning up the battery tray, and swapping the batteries over, it fired straight up again, but then levelled off the middle, and then the front axle. With a quick clean of the offside, it's looking a lot better, with years of dirt and faded paint cleaned up a bit. We've also made progress with the interior clean up, with the cab having a first pass, before moving on to the remaining 17 metres of the rest of it!

Our thanks are due to Peel Group for their generosity in donating the vehicle to us, the Mayor of Doncaster, Doncaster City Council, and the DSA team for their hospitality and assistance in arranging the donation, and for us to come on site to view and collect the bus, and Ceri at Applegates as always for recovering it back to base for us.

X958 CNO being collected from DSA by Applegates.

Upon arrival at our yard after a long trip from Doncaster.

First wash in perhaps 5 years!

Future Plans

As is to be expected with any vehicle that has been stood outside for a long period, there are a number of jobs that will need to be completed before an MOT and any cosmetic work. First off, a deep clean of the interior is in order, to see what we're working with. There are a few areas that will require some rectification work, with a few mouldy seats, a faulty dashboard LCD and stalk, and most importantly, an area of rotten flooring just forward of the middle axle, due to water ingress. On the mechanical front, it needs a full service, and a couple of air leaks sorting, but surprisingly, nothing particularly serious.

Additionally, the bellows show signs of wear on the underside, so we'll look to get that sorted before any cosmetic restoration can begin. Once all of the above has been completed, we can look at getting the paintwork sorted, which should be relatively straightforward due to the excellent condition of the body.