Dennis Domino
Encyclopedia
The Dennis Domino is a midibus
built by Hestair Dennis
in Guildford
, England
between 1984 and 1985. It is, in essence, a scaled down Dominator
. Developed for intensive urban work, the Domino was fitted with Perkins T6.354.4 turbocharged engine, Maxwell automatic transmission, front radiator, full air suspension and power steering. It can be regarded as a predecessor of the successful Dennis Dart
.
It was only sold to two customers, Greater Manchester Transport and South Yorkshire Transport
. The Dominos for Greater Manchester Transport were Northern Counties-bodied, and South Yorkshire Transport ones were bodied by Optare
.
) a wholly owned coachbuilder, the Northern Counties Motor and Engineering Company. Also GMPTE were unique outside London in having an in-house design-consultant in Ken Mortimer who had styled the Manchester Corporation Mancunian bus
in the 1960s.
The 20 GMPTE Dominos with Ken Mortimer-designed Northern Counties bodies entered service in late 1985 with C-prefix registrations. 1760 (C760YBA) demonstrated for an extended period early in 1986 to London Transport in a version of their livery but the only other customer for the type was South Yorkshire PTE, who wanted to replace a batch of second-hand Bristol LHS on services reaching into more inaccessible areas of Sheffield
. Whereas the 20 GMPTE Dominos were quite stylish for their day with bonded glazing and had low entrances with 2+1 seating forward of the rear-axle to maximise standing capacity and thus were 23 seaters, SYPTE chose to specify a body with all glazing, lights, doors, seats, and other parts standardised with its Alexander-bodied Dominators, the all-aluminium bodies were the first to be built by Optare
after they had taken over the Charles H. Roe
coach works from British Leyland. Unlike most subsequent work from Crossgates they were far from stylish, being of very angular outline and fitted with a higher floor than the Greater Manchester buses with a three-step entrance leading to a slightly ramped obstruction free floor with 33 seats. These fourteen buses were marginally longer than the GMPTE buses at 7.8m and delivered before the first of the GMPTE buses.
The first of the GMPTE Dominos 1751 (C751YBA) exhibited at the Bus and Coach Council's show at Earls Court in 1985 and is now preserved by the SELNEC Preservation Society. One of the SYPTE batch adorns the scenery at the Alton Towers
Nemesis ride. Most of the 32 other Dominos have been scrapped.
Midibus
A midibus is a classification of single-decker minibuses which generally are larger than a traditional minibus but smaller than a full-size single decker and can be anywhere between and long...
built by Hestair Dennis
Dennis Specialist Vehicles
Dennis Specialist Vehicles is a major British coachbuilder and manufacturer of specialised commercial vehicles based in Guildford, England...
in Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey. England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region...
, England
England
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...
between 1984 and 1985. It is, in essence, a scaled down Dominator
Dennis Dominator
The Dennis Dominator was Dennis's first rear-engined double-decker bus chassis, it was launched in 1977. Dennis had been absent from the bus manufacturing market since the last Lolines were produced in 1967. The Dominator was described as bespoke, with numerous options...
. Developed for intensive urban work, the Domino was fitted with Perkins T6.354.4 turbocharged engine, Maxwell automatic transmission, front radiator, full air suspension and power steering. It can be regarded as a predecessor of the successful Dennis Dart
Dennis Dart
The Dennis Dart is a rear-engined midibus built by Dennis in the United Kingdom. More than 11,000 were built during 18 years of production....
.
It was only sold to two customers, Greater Manchester Transport and South Yorkshire Transport
South Yorkshire Transport
South Yorkshire Transport was formed in 1986, as a result of deregulation of bus services in the UK. The South Yorkshire PTE was no longer allowed to operate buses itself, so an arms length operating company was created....
. The Dominos for Greater Manchester Transport were Northern Counties-bodied, and South Yorkshire Transport ones were bodied by Optare
Optare
Optare plc is a bus manufacturer and importer based in Leeds and Blackburn, UK. The company operates from three main business units, Bus Manufacturing, Coach Sales and Unitec....
.
History
In 1983 Greater Manchester PTE realised its nine-year-old Seddon Pennine 4-236 midibuses in use on the Manchester shuttle between Piccadilly and Victoria stations were nearing the end of their useful lives. Nothing was at that time readily available that would meet the PTE's requirements and Dennis was requested to provide a solution. This used a very-short-wheelbase version of the Dominator frame, with the optional air-over leaf suspension to axles with 16-inch wheels and low profile tyres, overall body length was 7.6m and width 2.3m. The engine was mounted transversely and vertically as in the Dominator, but was a 130 bhp 5.7-litre Perkins T6.354 unit, this drove through the radical Avon Maxwell transmission, an automatic electronically controlled constant-mesh gearbox using small multi-plate clutch units to select drive ratios, this also did the jobs of retarder and angle-drive. The radiator was smaller but like most Dominator derivatives mounted at the front, low down in the frame. Greater Manchester PTE were unique among bus operators of the time in having (as a result of buying Lancashire United TransportLancashire United Transport
Lancashire United Transport was a tram, bus and trolleybus operator based at Howe Bridge in Atherton, 10 miles north west of Manchester...
) a wholly owned coachbuilder, the Northern Counties Motor and Engineering Company. Also GMPTE were unique outside London in having an in-house design-consultant in Ken Mortimer who had styled the Manchester Corporation Mancunian bus
Mancunian double-decker bus
The Mancunian double-decker bus is a type of bodywork for double-decker bus designed by Manchester Corporation Transport Department and built on Leyland Atlantean and Daimler Fleetline chassis. Four hundred and seventy two Mancunians were ordered by the Department between 1965 and 1968 and...
in the 1960s.
The 20 GMPTE Dominos with Ken Mortimer-designed Northern Counties bodies entered service in late 1985 with C-prefix registrations. 1760 (C760YBA) demonstrated for an extended period early in 1986 to London Transport in a version of their livery but the only other customer for the type was South Yorkshire PTE, who wanted to replace a batch of second-hand Bristol LHS on services reaching into more inaccessible areas of Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
. Whereas the 20 GMPTE Dominos were quite stylish for their day with bonded glazing and had low entrances with 2+1 seating forward of the rear-axle to maximise standing capacity and thus were 23 seaters, SYPTE chose to specify a body with all glazing, lights, doors, seats, and other parts standardised with its Alexander-bodied Dominators, the all-aluminium bodies were the first to be built by Optare
Optare
Optare plc is a bus manufacturer and importer based in Leeds and Blackburn, UK. The company operates from three main business units, Bus Manufacturing, Coach Sales and Unitec....
after they had taken over the Charles H. Roe
Charles H. Roe
Charles H. Roe Ltd. was a Yorkshire coachbuilding company. It was for most of its life based at Crossgates Carriage Works, in Leeds.In 1947 it was taken over by Park Royal Vehicles. Two years later, along with its parent, it became part of Associated Commercial Vehicles in 1949, which was merged...
coach works from British Leyland. Unlike most subsequent work from Crossgates they were far from stylish, being of very angular outline and fitted with a higher floor than the Greater Manchester buses with a three-step entrance leading to a slightly ramped obstruction free floor with 33 seats. These fourteen buses were marginally longer than the GMPTE buses at 7.8m and delivered before the first of the GMPTE buses.
The first of the GMPTE Dominos 1751 (C751YBA) exhibited at the Bus and Coach Council's show at Earls Court in 1985 and is now preserved by the SELNEC Preservation Society. One of the SYPTE batch adorns the scenery at the Alton Towers
Alton Towers
Alton Towers is a theme park and resort located in Staffordshire, England. It attracts around 2.7 million visitors per year making it the most visited theme park in the United Kingdom. Alton Towers is also the 9th most visited theme park in Europe...
Nemesis ride. Most of the 32 other Dominos have been scrapped.