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Originally Posted by Ram_NP The driver's cabin/console , specailly driver seats does not match the passenger side of the bus. I guess , you can ask drivers to keep the cushions and switch to new comforts. |
The drivers would rather find another bus to drive than drive in a cabin which suits the owner's taste.
Driver comfort within the limits they can adjust is No.1 priority for them.
@Raj - please consider having leather steering covers custom made for the steerings. That steering is the old style one, which I had in the 1978 model bus. Looks ugly after a few years, and can get very slippery in sweaty palms.
Is this your first venture into the heavy vehicle operations business?
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Originally Posted by raj_5004 the sad about about prakash is that you dont have too many customization options. i had enquired about an emergency exit in the form of an opening rear glass but they said that was not possible. |
Please consider buying a book called "Law of Motor vehicles in Kerala". You need to be very thorough with the rule book. (I think the author is one A. G Suresh).
You should buy only the "Kerala" edition - you need to know the Kerala rules inside out.
A clear (as in no barrings / bars) window which is at least 1.2M x 1.2 M is a good substitute for emergency doors.
Openable emergency windows are a pain - can rattle like a bullock card on a country road.
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about the safari headlight, there are 2 reasons-
1) i had no other option except safari's headlight. not that it does not look good though. the other option i had was a simple non-reflective round headlight, which was too boring.
2) you people term the safari as the truck, the beast, the king, etc. so i thought its headlight would be more apt for this beast!.
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Heh. And additionally, safari headlights would be available for another 10 years at least. No such assurances about other headlights.
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the entire driver cabin including the dashboard has been custom made at extra cost. very few (i have not seen any) buses in kerela come with such a dashboard..
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Is not a bit different from what it used to be; almost same controls and meters.
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talking about clean, yesterday was the first trip of both the buses & 1 child vomited in the bus! luckily, i had covered the passage with removable mats & also given the cleaners mops to clean the bus's floors!
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So, how will you handle teenagers going out on their annual school / college trip?
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Originally Posted by raj_5004 Some info (things i noticed) on the buses-
1) the instrument console has a speedometer, an ammeter, two air pressure gauges & a fuel meter. warning lights consists of the turn indicator signals & high beam signal. there is also one red light which glows slightly when you lift of the throttle & goes away as you rev the bus. . |
What? No oil pressure guage?
Or have you confused teh air pressure guage and oil pressure guage? Please look closer.
[/quote]2) it no longer has the push button type starter. you twist the key to start the bus like in any car!.[/quote]
Law requires so. Earlier, it used be a key, + a push button starter.
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3) the air pressure gauges shows the air pressure in both the air tanks for front & rear air brakes respectively. it reads from 0 to 10. for the brakes to apply, the pressure must be above 6 atleast. when the bus has been lying idle for long, the pressure drops to below 2 & the bus has to be revved to fill air in both the tanks. this is a 5 min procedure every morning! AL has provided a warning buzzer as a safety feature & it remains on till the needle goes above 6psi. it also remains on if the handbrake is engaged. another important thing to note is that one should not pump the brakes in a stationary bus, the air pressure will fall..
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The hand brakes are vacuum operated. In case air pressure is insufficient, the vehicle will not move, since the hand brakes would be engaged. Notice the "whooosh" sound when hand brakes are engaged - it is the air escaping.
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5) the seat has seat height/tilt adjust & slides on rails too. the seats have seatbelts too..
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The passnger seats and driver's seats look very good - better than what I expected.
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Originally Posted by Sankar Can someone tell me why heavy vehicles use air-brakes instead of hydraulic braking systems found in cars and light commercial vehicles? What are the benefits of having air brakes? |
Frankly, I do not know the answer; but will put in something others may be interested to know.
AL has always had air brakes.
Tatas used to have fluid brakes till mid 1980s. Early 1980s onwards, some models used to come with dual air/fluid brakes. This was known to cause problems, and late 1980s onwards, Tatas switched over to complete air brakes.
Diagonal twin braking circuit - was mandated by law, and was introduced only as the law mandated it.
This means there are independent brake circuits for one front wheel and the rear wheel on the diagonally opposite side.
This provides better safety in case of circuit failure.
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Originally Posted by raj_5004 Review about ashok leyland:
the AL dealer in ernakulam was very helpful & they showed us around their yard the different models available & also the pros & cons for each. however, the price they quoted was way higher than the company price. |
You mean outside Kerala price?
Did you have to pay any "entry tax" since the chassis was purchased outside Kerala? I am very much sure you had to.
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TVS is the authorized service centre of AL here. they are nothing but useless.
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+1 to that. Getting a scheduled maintenance done from them is next to impossible. I mean "scheduled" means "I havea trip at 3 PM, so please return the vehicle by 2.30" kind of schedule.
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also, we had complained of a noise from the front wheel hubs during braking. they dint check that too. when enquired, they said the bus is "new" & let it run first. the brake noise dint go & the wheels started getting hot during running. finally, we had to get it rectified from a local garage.
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This squealing is usually caused by dust from the liners. Just use air / brush to brush away the dust.
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1) sales staff said JBL amp would do & we bought it. then technician says, its impossible to connect this!
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That is called ignorance. Not mis-communication. I am sure that the ICE guys here will fry them for making this statement.
Some queries - does the engine realy have an intercooler?
If the owner's manual has some info about
engine specifications, can you please post them here.
How / where is the spare tyre situated?
Where is the first aid kit? And what does it contain? (That is where the checking guys will look at first go, especially when they do not get anything else).
What is the insurance preminum? Can you give a split of third party and own insurance rates? And did you get the unlimited cover for third party
property damage?
Edit:- can you post some pics of the engine bay? with the engine cover off? And a pic of the engine cable?
Where is the air filter?