| EBE10—New J Type | Euro Bus Expo 2010 Index |
Egyptian MCV has tried to make its début double deck vehicle look striking. The grinning, heavy front beneath the windscreen looks a little bolted-on, while the upper deck front looks somewhat 1980s though the effect is it unpleasant. Indeed, is it me or does whole front look like a cross between Alexander’s ALX400 an its J-type? The upper windscreen is reminiscent of the J, something about its upper curve. And the lower front has that now dated smiling ALX curve affect. It also looked slightly Autosan (unrepresented at the Show).
The bus was intended for the TfL market but weighed in at over the odds. Waste not, want not and MCV converted it to single door, provincial specification. It’s on the popular Volvo B9TL chassis. What’s good about the product is that it will be supported entirely by Volvo.
Yet, it’s rather spartan inside, with a cheap seats though no doubt these can be specced up), “plasticy” flooring, and a strange heater placed where people’s feet would normally go. The interior upper deck coving panels were flimsy and the step treads were too small. Other than that, a good effort from a builder trying to convince us that it’s world class, able to thump out dozens of quality buses a week. Let’s hope the price is right for purchaser Wessex Connect.
