Volvo Super Olympian

Volvo Super Olympian, also known as B10TL, is the low floor replacement of the 3-axle version of Volvo Olympian double-decker bus (its 2-axle version was replaced by Volvo B7TL).

It was unveiled in 1998, with one chassis being sent to Hong Kong for a motor show held by UITP in the same year. The chassis was later sent back to the UK.

Chassis

The design of the chassis of Super Olympian is based on the Volvo Olympian. The front radiator is moved to the back of the first axle for 12 m version, or in front of the second axle for 10.6 m version (due to shorter wheelbase). In order to lower the chassis further, the auxiliary passive steering function of the mid-axle was cancelled. The suspension system has also been largely modified that it is electronically controlled instead of moving passively. One special feature is that after turning, the suspension unit does not recover to the normal, instead the bus will keep tilting to either the left or right, until the bus has come to stationary.

An option for 11.3 m version of Super Olympian was also available, but none was built as no order was received.

Initially, the Super Olympian chassis were built in Volvo's factory in Irvine, Scotland. After the closure of the factory in mid-2000, production line was moved to Wrocław, Poland.

The engine model used on these buses is Volvo D10A285, with a maximum power of convert|285|hp|abbr=on, lower than convert|305|hp|abbr=on of Cummins M11-305E used on Neoplan Centroliner and Dennis Trident 3, and convert|335|hp|abbr=on of Cummins ISMe Euro III used on Dennis Trident 3/Enviro500.

There are several nicknames of this bus model in Hong Kong, all of which mean that the bus is not powerful enough. The most common are "豬" (pig), "扒" (meat cutlet) and "豬扒" (pork chop, derived from the pronunciation of the word "Super").

Hong Kong

Kowloon Motor Bus

12 m version

Kowloon Motor Bus ordered the first batch of 61 Super Olympians with ZF 4HP590 gearbox, Alexander ALX500 body and plastic route display in 1998. The first bus passed the tilt test of the Transport Department in May 1999 and was licensed in August 1999. They were numbered 3ASV1-61 and all of them entered service in 1999. All except the prototype 3ASV3 had narrow 2+2 seats on the upper deck.

A total of 80 Super Olympians (3ASV62-141) entered service between 2000/2001. These buses have electronic route displays and the gearbox was changed to ZF 5HP590. 3ASV78 was the 3000th Walter Alexander-bodied bus supplied to KMB, and 3ASV141 was the first KMB bus to meet Euro III emission standards.

The last 351 Super Olympians (3ASV142-492), including 21 which were fitted with Australian Volgren CR223LD body, entered service between 2001/2002. All of these buses had their chassis built in Poland. They had their D10A285 engines built to meet the Euro III emission standard and had aluminium alloy front wheels supplied by ALCOA. 3ASV297 was coated with special metallic paint, which shows different colours (mainly green and purple), depending on the angle of light reflection.

10.6 m version

Kowloon Motor Bus is the only buyer of 10.6 m Super Olympians. The first 49 10.6 m Super Olympians (Alexander ALX500 body, numbered ASV1-49) were introduced in 2001. They are equipped with D10A285 Euro II engines and had ALCOA front wheels.

ASV50, which was put into service in 2002, is a prototype short-wheelbase Super Olympian (chassis built in 1999), and also the only short-wheelbase Super Olympian built in Scotland. It is equipped with an Euro III version of D10A285 engine and ZF 4HP590 gearbox rather than 5HP590 in other ASVs.

ASV51-100 are equipped with the Euro III version of D10A285 engines as well. They are almost identical with ASV1-49, but they have a slightly different interior design. Only the first 24 were put into service in 2003. The remaining 26 were stored for more than 1 year, with its engine tuned to increase its output power, and they were put into service between September 2004 and March 2005.

12 m wider version

In January 2003, Kowloon Motor Bus received the first Super Olympian with Wright 2550 mm-wide body (once known as the "Wright Explorer"). Like the TransBus Enviro500, straight staircase and plug door (only for the exit) were fitted. It was numbered AVW1 and was registered in March 2003.

The next 49 buses (AVW2-50) with slightly different design followed shortly after AVW1, they entered service in 2003/2004. One of them (fleet number AVW47) had participated in "Coach and Bus 2003" and "EFE Showbus 2003" in UK before being delivered.

The last 50 buses (AVW51-100), which are almost identical with AVW2-50, entered service in 2004/2005.

New World First Bus

New World First Bus bought 103 Super Olympians in 5 batches, all are 12 metres long and were fitted with Alexander ALX500 body.

The first 40 Super Olympians (5001-5040), with electronic route displays, were introduced in 1999. Then the next 20 (5041-5060), which have their side route number boxes moved to lower position, entered service in 2000/2001. The chassis of 5060 was the first to be built in Poland.

The next 19 Super Olympians (5061-5079), with the Euro III version of D10A285 engine and ALCOA front wheels, entered service in 2001. For the occasion of meeting the Euro III emission standard, New World First Bus designed a full body advertisement for one of them (fleet number 5070) to state that they were environmental-friendly.

They were followed by 10 similar ones (5080-5089) later in the same year. Among these buses, 5080-5086 had their registration numbers originated from ex-CMB buses and service cars.

The last batch of 14 Super Olympians (5090-5103), introduced in 2002, had their rear route number electronic boards raised to a location above the emergency window to form a box, which the design unique among all the Alexander ALX500-bodied Super Olympians in Hong Kong.

ingapore

Super Olympian buses are also in service in Singapore with bus operator SBS Transit. In late 1999, Volvo delivered one Volgren CR223LD-bodied Super Olympian (body assembled in Australia) to the then Singapore Bus Service as demonstrator. This bus had electronic route display and the chassis was built in UK. It was registered SBS9888Y and entered service in October 1999. The electronic route display was removed on 1 December 2005.

Later, Singapore Bus Service (now SBS Transit) ordered 51 Volvo Super Olympian chassis. They had Voith DIWA863.3 gearbox, rather than ZF 5HP590 gearbox in SBS9888Y, and unlike the examples introduced at the same time in Hong Kong, their front wheels were not ALCOA products. On the other hand, only the chassis of SBS9810X was built in UK, the others were built in Poland.

Among these 51 buses, 50 of them were fitted with Volgren CR223LD bodywork and registered SBS9800A to SBS9849K. The body of SBS9810X was assembled in Australia, and it was equipped with electronic route display, other bodies were delivered to Singapore as kits. SBS9800A entered service in April 2002 and the others entered service in early 2003. The last one was fitted with ComfortDelgro Engineering bodywork; it was registered as SBS9889U and finally entered service on Monday 21 March 2005. Unlike other operators, the SBS Transit's Super Olympian is not wheelchair accessible and no wheelchair equipment is installed.

Replacement

Production of Volvo Super Olympian ended in 2004 after finishing the last order from Kowloon Motor Bus. Its successor was the Volvo B9TL.

ee also

Competitors:
*Dennis Trident 3
*MAN 24.310
*Neoplan Centroliner
*Scania K94UB