I loved the rattling! Brings back memories when I would ride these as a little kid with my mother. I remember when the Flexibles came in also...I hated them and was much happier when the fishbowl pulled up to the stop.
I'm right there with ya dude, believe me. My mother and I used to take the blue busses and the orange busses in the Fresh Meadows Brooklyn and NYC area in the early to late seventies, and I miss em'. They rattled like a sunnovabitch, especially traversing the shitty NYC streets, and you were usually half-deaf, when the rattling stopped! The NY MTA had loads and loads of em... so did Steinway Transit which ran the orange busses. Those were sharp as shit. Loved em'! And they bring back such memories for me when my mother was actually nice to me and cared about me, when I was a very small child. Somber feelings and decent memories, indeed.
So cool seeing this! I grew up riding GMC and Flxible "Fishbowls" and repaired them as a young adult. They were around for so many years and it didn't occur to me that they'd eventually disappear from public service. I'd enjoy getting behind the wheel of one again for just 5 minutes. To me, the classic fishbowls are far more attractive and durable than the giant "shoe boxes" on wheels we see today that look like they were designed by LEGO!
+ACLTony Me too in Cali and Pa. He did a great job cranking that wheel with manual steering because it is a turkey to do. My Gramps drove these in Cali for 20 years and had massive bi and triceps due to rolling all those miles
That no power steering life... Turning: Leaning forward, working the wheel like crazy to make the turn at 2mph... 5 seconds later going straight: sitting classy straight and chill like it's the easiest job in the world... :-D
Oooh! Nice! She's got an Air Starter. This bus is a GMC model TDH-5302 also known by many bus fans as the "Fishbowl". I have driven many of these and quite enjoyed them!
I recognize that engine anywhere. Detroit Diesel 6V-71 series with a 71 series blower! I always enjoyed the sound these (and the 8V version) made. A slightly modified version of this same type of blower was often used as belt driven supercharger in street rods. Those were the days! Funny situation was that when the Detroit 92 series was introduced as the successor to the 71, they leaked oil like mad! Back in the 80s, the running joke in transit systems with RTS & Grumman Flxible buses was: If the engine wasn't leaking oil.........something was wrong with it!
ACLTony I remember the days in my hometown we had 3 shorter wheelbase gmc coaches that had the v6 in them.. we're slow.. but reliable. Now.. the other ones.. we're the long wheelbase ones. They had 2. Both with the 8v71 my goodness they would flat move! But like he said in the video they were retired due to lack of wheelchair access. Miss those clattering bumpy noisy ol girls
Love this vidio. I use to work for a Transit Co. We had old Look and New Look Busses . No power steering.... Just a little tip. Push & Pull the wheel when making turns. Not hand over hand. That's the way the Ole time's told me much better. Try it builds up your arm's.... Not being a back seat driver. Thank You!
I used to ride these beauties to work in Washington DC. D.C. Transit was the first in the Nation with air conditioned buses. Smooth air ride. This bus seems to have a lot of power. Most of these New Vision/Look seem like there's a lot of slip between the engine and transmission. Your bus doesn't seem to be shifting. The air conditioning system was massive and sucked a LOT of power out of the engine. The cooling condenser fan was hydraulic and there were many of these buses reaching the end of their life and you could see that the stain from hydraulic fluid when the lines would leak. The air was pre-heated to a specific temperature and the compressor ran all the time. I remember seeing the driver turning off the A/C to go up steep hills while the bus was standing room only from passengers.
Notice in the bus interior right above the windshield is the fleet number "1319" from its days as a WMATA Metrobus. This bus was a regular at the Four Mile Run Division for years.
Hope you all don't mind just one more observation. This is a 1962 coach, but the tailgate (engine access door) looks like the early 1970s version. The early 1960s GMC Fishbowls had "bucket style" light housings that protruded outward. (You can see examples on Google). In later years, tailgate lights became more flush fitting. It's likely that, as with many transit buses, this bus may have been rear ended in an accident and the tailgate was replaced with an upgrade. Smart move on GM to keep parts interchangeable throughout the production runs.
I remember seeing these buses when I went to Halifax In the early 2000's. From what I know the bus company Metro Transit kept em running for years. I rode on one and It was amazing.
we used to have about 200 of these busses in Calgary, they started phasing them out a few years ago and now none are on the road. sad sight because the ran so well
THEY NEED TO BRING BACK AB&W TRANSIT 1962 GMC FISHBOWL BUS BACK INTO THE WASHINGTON D.C.AREA AND PUT THE NEW MALFUNCTIONING SMARTRIP BOX ON IT AND UPDATES ROUTES FOR D.C. AND VA
Just to let you know that former Bi-State now Metro had these. They bought scores of these in the 1960s. St. Louis had the dual jacknife door in the back. St. Louis bought their last set in 1981 which were their 8200 class buses and the 8300 class buses. GM very seldom equip these with power steering. Some bus drivers ended up complaining of bad backs when they were assigned these buses. The windshield wiper motors were of two different sizes. And that led to the cause of the right hand windshield wiper's bad behavior when it came to air. The dome lights were designed to where you had to have the head lights on to run the dome lights. If you didn't have the head lights on, and you turn the dome lights on, they would oscillate on and off. The wrap-over lights were designed differently to where you could have them on and have them stay on even with the headlights off. The windshield was very well designed for the time the bus was built.
This is a nice, well-preserved bus, but it looks to have had some modifications. The taillights appear to be 1968+, the emblem on the front-end, and the horn button should read "GM", not "GMC". They weren't called GMCs until 1968. Also, those black bumpers don't belong on anything from 1962. Sorry for the nitpicking; these are easily-corrected items. It's good to see these great buses finally get the respect they deserve. This proves that it's not only cars that can be considered classics. Thanks for sharing this interesting video.
No hubodometer? These usually have one attached to the right hand rear wheel. In Australia GM 2 strokes were used mainly for long distance buses with manual transmissions. One coach from the 1980s with 6-92 engine had a three speed Mercedes automatic from a Mercedes bus fitted!
Three speed. That sounds extremely fuel inefficient. I drive busses in Aalborg, Denmark. We have IVECO busses with only four speed transmission. But those are quite fuel efficient actually
Shreveport kept a few of the 1974 models till as late as 1992. I didn't get to ride them as much after around 1989/1990. I didn't like them at first but seeing all these youtube videos of how good these buses were, I actually miss them now.
No powered steering, that must have been hard work for the bus drivers! Especially with all those stop signs at the intersections. Is this bus a manual or an automatic transmission?
+dykodesigns2yt Actually once you got used to it they weren't bad at all, even when turning corners. Kept you from becoming sleepy behind the wheel, that's for sure!
+jimster586 Correct. I saw the shifter near the end of the video...I've seen very recently some other states in real life and on RUclips using these..an of course just as important private owners like the one here and elsewhere..
commonwealth museum in roanoke va needs to contact wmata metro in washington dc about bring back this 1962 gmc alexandria barcroft and washington transit bus back to the northern va area and created metrobus and used it for northern va routes
Honestly, I would really like to see the part of the ADA law that states that buses had to be wheelchair accessible to be deleted from the current ADA law. It is because of that part of the law that we have had to retire nice pieces of equipment like the one featured in this video. Also The environmental protection Agency needs to go as well.
I miss the red and white octranspo Gm new look fish bowls expecially the ex sanamonta inside colour scheam and the later double exit back and the pressure step that I had to jump on to to open the door. though I was light weight at the time
Specialty Elevators and UEE's by Technicalboy3000 : Was that an Ingersoll Rand air starter? Scare the living daylights out of anyone just passing by 😨. Don't hear those any more on Diesel engines. Kinda cool though.
Its alook alike of european busses of the sixties,but no Detroit Diesel.The Detroit diesel was built in trucks by smal manufacturers, in the UK and the Netherlands
I never cared for the "New look/Fish bowl" GM, I like the 4106 far better. In Los Angeles,Ca "RTD" (Rapid transit district) had a ton of those "New look" GM's, I wonder what they did with them?. I remember when I was a kid, L.A. was swarming with those. They were friggen everywhere.
YOU'RE NEED TO BRING BACK THIS GMC 1962 ALEXANDRIA BARFCROFT AND WASHINGTON TRANSIT BUS BACK TO THE NORTHERN VIRGINIA AREA AND CREATED METROBUS AGAIN AND PUT THE MALFUNCTIONING SMARTRIP BOX ON IT
personally I think these buses are obsolete because they lack all the things modern day buses have that are needed in the 21st century for public transit like automated PA system, and wheel chair ramp
Since these vehicles are used primarily for public transportation it became necessary to provide a lift mechanism to accommodate wheel chair bound riders. The changes to the requirements mandating this is not stupid at all. What is stupid is your kneejerk reaction.
Very nice! As a child, I used to travel in those buses!
Love the air start, I miss Driving these Buses in New York City
I loved the rattling! Brings back memories when I would ride these as a little kid with my mother. I remember when the Flexibles came in also...I hated them and was much happier when the fishbowl pulled up to the stop.
Hey....Me too! I felt the same way. My favorite model was the TDH 5301 '59 year. Just fantastic. Aesthetically a beautiful bus.
I'm right there with ya dude, believe me. My mother and I used to take the blue busses and the orange busses in the Fresh Meadows Brooklyn and NYC area in the early to late seventies, and I miss em'. They rattled like a sunnovabitch, especially traversing the shitty NYC streets, and you were usually half-deaf, when the rattling stopped! The NY MTA had loads and loads of em... so did Steinway Transit which ran the orange busses. Those were sharp as shit. Loved em'! And they bring back such memories for me when my mother was actually nice to me and cared about me, when I was a very small child. Somber feelings and decent memories, indeed.
So cool seeing this! I grew up riding GMC and Flxible "Fishbowls" and repaired them as a young adult. They were around for so many years and it didn't occur to me that they'd eventually disappear from public service. I'd enjoy getting behind the wheel of one again for just 5 minutes. To me, the classic fishbowls are far more attractive and durable than the giant "shoe boxes" on wheels we see today that look like they were designed by LEGO!
+ACLTony Me too in Cali and Pa. He did a great job cranking that wheel with manual steering because it is a turkey to do. My Gramps drove these in Cali for 20 years and had massive bi and triceps due to rolling all those miles
loved riding in the back 4 window view!
At the swap meet today I saw a fishbowl die cast toy
The engine sounds really smooth!
That no power steering life...
Turning: Leaning forward, working the wheel like crazy to make the turn at 2mph...
5 seconds later going straight: sitting classy straight and chill like it's the easiest job in the world...
:-D
Oooh! Nice! She's got an Air Starter. This bus is a GMC model TDH-5302 also known by many bus fans as the "Fishbowl". I have driven many of these and quite enjoyed them!
+busrailfan I remember the last time I rode one of the "fishbowls" in Seattle, on a Thursday evening in Summer 1986, on the "11 Madison Park" line.
busrailfan theres a such thing as a bus fan?
Conrailfan2596 yes you talking to one.
I’m a huge bus fan! Hope to own one of these new looks one day
This appearance of the fishbowls will probably never stop looking modern to me..I miss them, plus they were so reliable too.
I recognize that engine anywhere. Detroit Diesel 6V-71 series with a 71 series blower! I always enjoyed the sound these (and the 8V version) made. A slightly modified version of this same type of blower was often used as belt driven supercharger in street rods. Those were the days! Funny situation was that when the Detroit 92 series was introduced as the successor to the 71, they leaked oil like mad! Back in the 80s, the running joke in transit systems with RTS & Grumman Flxible buses was: If the engine wasn't leaking oil.........something was wrong with it!
They both have engines from 1982 onwards.
Wow, really? So is it a Detroit 92 series? The 92's were usually turbocharged.
ACLTony I remember the days in my hometown we had 3 shorter wheelbase gmc coaches that had the v6 in them.. we're slow.. but reliable. Now.. the other ones.. we're the long wheelbase ones. They had 2. Both with the 8v71 my goodness they would flat move! But like he said in the video they were retired due to lack of wheelchair access. Miss those clattering bumpy noisy ol girls
Love this vidio. I use to work for a Transit Co. We had old Look and New Look Busses . No power steering.... Just a little tip. Push & Pull the wheel when making turns. Not hand over hand. That's the way the Ole time's told me much better. Try it builds up your arm's.... Not being a back seat driver. Thank You!
This bus sounds awesome.
I used to ride these beauties to work in Washington DC. D.C. Transit was the first in the Nation with air conditioned buses. Smooth air ride. This bus seems to have a lot of power. Most of these New Vision/Look seem like there's a lot of slip between the engine and transmission. Your bus doesn't seem to be shifting. The air conditioning system was massive and sucked a LOT of power out of the engine. The cooling condenser fan was hydraulic and there were many of these buses reaching the end of their life and you could see that the stain from hydraulic fluid when the lines would leak. The air was pre-heated to a specific temperature and the compressor ran all the time. I remember seeing the driver turning off the A/C to go up steep hills while the bus was standing room only from passengers.
Of all things I totally remember the sound of the doors and interior bits rattling over rough spots in the road.
Notice in the bus interior right above the windshield is the fleet number "1319" from its days as a WMATA Metrobus. This bus was a regular at the Four Mile Run Division for years.
Sounds like Ducy is quite the wheelman! I'd like to be able to drive one of these
Hope you all don't mind just one more observation. This is a 1962 coach, but the tailgate (engine access door) looks like the early 1970s version. The early 1960s GMC Fishbowls had "bucket style" light housings that protruded outward. (You can see examples on Google). In later years, tailgate lights became more flush fitting. It's likely that, as with many transit buses, this bus may have been rear ended in an accident and the tailgate was replaced with an upgrade. Smart move on GM to keep parts interchangeable throughout the production runs.
The operating company probably mixed & matched all kinds of parts to keep them running
what a great busride!.. wish I could ride this!!
As a child I vividly remember riding the GMC “New Look” Fishbowls on what is now the Q32 route (Jackson Heights/5th Ave/Penn Station) in NYC
The surrounding area has an old feel to it I like it
I remember seeing these buses when I went to Halifax In the early 2000's. From what I know the bus company Metro Transit kept em running for years. I rode on one and It was amazing.
we used to have about 200 of these busses in Calgary, they started phasing them out a few years ago and now none are on the road. sad sight because the ran so well
Drove those Fishbowl Jimmys for many years in Denver.
THEY NEED TO BRING BACK AB&W TRANSIT 1962 GMC FISHBOWL BUS BACK INTO THE WASHINGTON D.C.AREA AND PUT THE NEW MALFUNCTIONING SMARTRIP BOX ON IT AND UPDATES ROUTES FOR D.C. AND VA
Man that rattling brings back memories
It has a nice loud radiator fan
Man, she sounds nice! And what a beauty too!
Just to let you know that former Bi-State now Metro had these. They bought scores of these in the 1960s. St. Louis had the dual jacknife door in the back. St. Louis bought their last set in 1981 which were their 8200 class buses and the 8300 class buses. GM very seldom equip these with power steering. Some bus drivers ended up complaining of bad backs when they were assigned these buses. The windshield wiper motors were of two different sizes. And that led to the cause of the right hand windshield wiper's bad behavior when it came to air. The dome lights were designed to where you had to have the head lights on to run the dome lights. If you didn't have the head lights on, and you turn the dome lights on, they would oscillate on and off. The wrap-over lights were designed differently to where you could have them on and have them stay on even with the headlights off. The windshield was very well designed for the time the bus was built.
Great video!
This is a nice, well-preserved bus, but it looks to have had some modifications. The taillights appear to be 1968+, the emblem on the front-end, and the horn button should read "GM", not "GMC". They weren't called GMCs until 1968. Also, those black bumpers don't belong on anything from 1962. Sorry for the nitpicking; these are easily-corrected items.
It's good to see these great buses finally get the respect they deserve. This proves that it's not only cars that can be considered classics. Thanks for sharing this interesting video.
Oh boy...that rattling brings back memories ...
And I thought my 78 chev had the rattles...lol
Cool bus!
....... what a awesome bus..... and a awesome video.... thanks.... I love it.... best regards from germany.... :)))
thanks for sharing :) Love it!!!
Bus looks awesome.
So this was the classic Allison trans? 😎
Brings me back memories
City and County of Honolulu used the same buses thru the 70s. I remember the sound of the rattles.
Those classic city transit buses had a capacity of almost 45 seats comparing to these buses today.
oH MY goodness this FISBOWL BUS I love it.
man that sound when the engine starts huh !! :)
I want that bus!
I like this bus.
I read this place burned down a few years ago.
Very sad.
No hubodometer? These usually have one attached to the right hand rear wheel.
In Australia GM 2 strokes were used mainly for long distance buses with manual transmissions. One coach from the 1980s with 6-92 engine had a three speed Mercedes automatic from a Mercedes bus fitted!
Three speed. That sounds extremely fuel inefficient. I drive busses in Aalborg, Denmark. We have IVECO busses with only four speed transmission. But those are quite fuel efficient actually
@@HeritageElevators It had a lock up converter stage in each gear and was used for suburban charters so quite suitable.
was the rear bumper change, was the A/C added thanks it takes me back
The reason why the gmc new looks in Saskatoon where I live were retired in 2013 because they were having mechanical problems 🇨🇦
New Orleans had these from 1960-1964 , Jefferson Parish had some in 1961 and 1963 . GM TDH5301 and a few GM TDH4531 buses
Shreveport had 5 1966 and 32 1974 35ft models. I remember riding a few when I was about 5 years old before they retired them.
I see
Baton Rouge had 35 ft ones too until 1992.
Shreveport kept a few of the 1974 models till as late as 1992. I didn't get to ride them as much after around 1989/1990. I didn't like them at first but seeing all these youtube videos of how good these buses were, I actually miss them now.
No Allison 2 speed transmission. The Allison is a hydraulic coupling or direct drive. Starts in hydraulic and shifts to direct between 20 and 30 mph.
I had a dream that I actually drove this bus!!!
No powered steering, that must have been hard work for the bus drivers! Especially with all those stop signs at the intersections. Is this bus a manual or an automatic transmission?
+dykodesigns2yt 2 speed auto.
+dykodesigns2yt Actually once you got used to it they weren't bad at all, even when turning corners. Kept you from becoming sleepy behind the wheel, that's for sure!
+jimster586 Correct. I saw the shifter near the end of the video...I've seen very recently some other states in real life and on RUclips using these..an of course just as important private owners like the one here and elsewhere..
dykodesigns2yt heh just saw this reply of mine
I remember a lot of these in DC and when it was called DC transit and they was Green and Gray before they turned Red white and blue now
This bus is typical of the golden era in transmission -- one gear ⚙️ split in two with torque converter as Sheila Tractenverg says
PA Shiela, any relation to Michelle?
Great video, I want to visitover there
What a nice, terrific bus this is-and it goes mighty fast, too! Can it go from 0-60?
Yes
10:24 The fan has a torque converter?
Isnt he the fluorescent light guy?
commonwealth museum in roanoke va needs to contact wmata metro in washington dc about bring back this 1962 gmc alexandria barcroft and washington transit bus back to the northern va area and created metrobus and used it for northern va routes
Orange bus is from Richmond VA
Heard the museum burned down lost several busses in the fire.
so when Grumman made the 870 why did they have cracked A frames but when Flxble made the Metro the had no issues???
El motor de ese autobús me recuerdan los de la MASA- SOMEX que circulaban en México como autobús foráneo y urbano
I remember all Richmond VA busses was orange in the early 70s Green
Honestly, I would really like to see the part of the ADA law that states that buses had to be wheelchair accessible to be deleted from the current ADA law. It is because of that part of the law that we have had to retire nice pieces of equipment like the one featured in this video. Also The environmental protection Agency needs to go as well.
True. I live in So Calif you hear of governor Jerry Brown. Piece of garbage from way back he heads EPA
Parabéns ônibus muito bonito.
Nice video
and bring it to four mile run metrobus division
I miss the red and white octranspo Gm new look fish bowls expecially the ex sanamonta inside colour scheam and the later double exit back and the pressure step that I had to jump on to to open the door. though I was light weight at the time
Looks like it got a new front bumper at some point.
love her
Wasn't this model in the movie speed that was blown up by a mad bomber
I in this video the other bus if the flixible metro and where's n&w 611 and 1218
how about staying above 50 ??
In a residential neighborhood?!
awesome
am listening to this bus and it sounds like it has a Detroit 6-v71
lol no power steering on a bus that big. that looks hard
I wonder if this bus is destroyed by the tragic fire.
THIS BUS IS GOOD YOU'RE NEED TO FOLLOWED UP LIKE NYC TRANSIT DID
Guess what! I'm going to go to the mountains tomorrow to drive a UTV in the forest.
+Uphoisting Experiences by Technicalboy3000 Sounds fun! Enjoy your day up there.
Specialty Elevators and UEE's by Technicalboy3000 : Was that an Ingersoll Rand air starter? Scare the living daylights out of anyone just passing by 😨. Don't hear those any more on Diesel engines. Kinda cool though.
Its alook alike of european busses of the sixties,but no Detroit Diesel.The Detroit diesel was built in trucks by smal manufacturers, in the UK and the Netherlands
ANd passengers are still in it
So let me ask you, what did you think of the US...I'm sure there are a few different things here than there are where you live...
THIS BUS NEEDS TO BE BROUGHT BACK TO D.C. AND CREATED METROBUS AGAIN
Or just singing the wheels on the bus in Westchester Bee Line Bus
I never cared for the "New look/Fish bowl" GM, I like the 4106 far better.
In Los Angeles,Ca "RTD" (Rapid transit district) had a ton of those "New look" GM's, I wonder what they did with them?. I remember when I was a kid, L.A. was swarming with those. They were friggen everywhere.
"Arm-powered" steering eh ?
YOU'RE NEED TO BRING BACK THIS GMC 1962 ALEXANDRIA BARFCROFT AND WASHINGTON TRANSIT BUS BACK TO THE NORTHERN VIRGINIA AREA AND CREATED METROBUS AGAIN AND PUT THE MALFUNCTIONING SMARTRIP BOX ON IT
AND BRING THIS 1962 GMC FISHBOWL ALEXANDRIA BARCROFT AND WASHINGTON TRANSIT BUS TO FOUR MILE RUN DIVISION AND CREATED METROBUS AGAIN
Come to POLAND KATOWICE ELVATOR
personally I think these buses are obsolete because they lack all the things modern day buses have that are needed in the 21st century for public transit like automated PA system, and wheel chair ramp
Good thing it's not a stick, cause this guy can't shift one to save his life!
supertruckerw9 no power steering
LMFO at they requires bulls*** at 4:19!
If this were on Dieselducy's channel the Dover buzz would censor it
Get your dirty shoes OFF, the seat, young man !😠
If even enthusiasts can't be respectful what's the hope?
Being an insipid millennial doesn't help.
so awesome.. our stupid government laws..
Since these vehicles are used primarily for public transportation it became necessary to provide a lift mechanism to accommodate wheel chair bound riders. The changes to the requirements mandating this is not stupid at all. What is stupid is your kneejerk reaction.
La El y