After the large-scale purchase of minibuses in the 1980s, National Welsh having been particularly enthusiastic in this regard, it became clear that they were not suitable for the work they were being asked to do. They were generally not sufficiently robust but even more, their small size meant that they were unsuitable for handling the peaks in traffic that occur. The advantages that minibuses brought of manoeuvrability along with using a well-developed chassis for which spares were readily and cheaply available were recognised whilst moving up in size and the Mercedes-Benz chassis has been particularly successful in this market.
150 (M866 LNY) was bought new in June 1995 and proved to be the precursor of many more. It was a Mercedes-Benz 711D chassis and had a Plaxton Beaver B27F body. 152-160 (N152-160 MTG) were on the same chassis but fitted with UVG (Universal Vehicles Group, formerly Wadham Stringer) Citi-Star B27F bodies and were new in November 1995. In August 1996 two further buses entered service which were 161/162 (P161/162 TDW). These were on the less-powerful 709D chassis and reverted to the Plaxton Beaver B27F body. The final batch were once more on the 711D chassis with Plaxton Beaver B27F body and were 163-171 (P163-171 VNY) new in October 1996 (163-165), December 1996 (166-168) or January 1997 (169-171).
These vehicles operated from both Bedwas and Porth depots and seem to have remained at the same depot in their time with Rhondda Buses. Vehicles at Bedwas were 156-162 and 169-171 whilst Porth's allocation was 150, 152-155 and 163-168.
All retained their original fleet number on Stagecoach takeover and on introduction of the National numbering scheme had 41000 added to their numbers. Disposals were very varied and too complex to list here. Notable was the use of several as staff buses at various locations with 166 ending up in that role with Stagecoach Manchester.
Finally a special mention needs to be made of 164. This was generously donated by Stagecoach to the Cardiff Transport Preservation Group in Barry in 2010 and repainted in original Rhondda colours, again by Stagecoach, in 2016.
The nature of the association between Parfitt's and Rhondda Buses means that there was, at times, a rather blurred line between the two, with vehicles passing from one to the other quite readily. For this reason, coupled with an eye to the future structure of the gallery to ensure things will still work correctly as it expands, I have grouped all the vehicles which operated from Rhondda but originated with Parfitt's together. Rhondda took over the Parfitt's business on 1-Apr-1995.
The first vehicles to move were three former London Transport Leyland Nationals. 383/393/397 had been London Transport LS383/393/397 and had the same numbers in both the Parfitt and Rhondda Buses fleets. Originally with B36D bodies they were all rebuilt to B44F before entering service with Parfitt's. 383 and 397 had been fitted with Volvo engines around the time they joined the Parfitt fleet but 397 had been fitted with a DAF engine (seemingly an experiment, it remained a one-off) in 1986 and remained as such with Parfitt's. They all moved to Rhondda Buses for a few months towards the end of 1995.
2128/2129 (E143/144 KYW) were two former London Buses MCW Metroriders which transferred briefly to Porth before their withdrawal in the spring of 1996. They had the distinction of being the highest-numbered vehicles in the combined fleet.
Two Dennis Darts transferred permanently during 1996. 99 (J454 JRH) was new in June 1992 as a Plaxton demonstrator before joining the Parfitt fleet. It was a Dennis Dart 98SDL3017 with a Plaxton Pointer B40F body and after the takeover became Stagecoach 599. 88 (L270 EHB) was a Dennis Dart 98SDL3035 with Plaxton Pointer B43F body that was new to Parfitt's in January 1994 and ultimately became Stagecoach 588.
The next vehicles to arrive from the Parfitt's fleet, later in 1996, were two Leyland Tigers new to West Yorkshire PTE in 1983 as their 1656/1657. They were TRBTL11/2R model chassis with Duple Dominant DP47F bodies. Numbered 698/699, 698 survived to become Stagecoach 926 but 699 was withdrawn in mid-1997 and sold to Blue Bus who fitted it with a new East Lancs body and re-registered it WJI 9074.
Towards the end of 1996 371 (GGM 71W) arrived from Parfitt's. This was a Leyland Leopard PSU3F/4R with Plaxton Supreme C49F coachwork. New as Alder Valley 11, it later became 1111 then Bee Line 715 before joining the Parfitt's fleet. It seems to have gone to and fro between the two fleets but survived to become Stagecoach 973.
In March 1997 499 arrived at Rhondda Buses. This was Leyland National 2 NL116L11/1R built with a B52F body and new as Bristol Omnibus 3525, later Badgerline 3525. It was re-seated, first to B48F then to DP48F and was one of just two Leyland National 2s fitted with ZF Ecomatic fully-automatic transmission. After sale by Bristol it passed to MTL Holdings as their 6199, ending up with their Heysham Travel subsidiary. It was bought by Parfitt's from MTL in October 1996 and entered service in MTL livery but did ultimately gain fleet livery in August 1997. It passed to Stagecoach at the takeover, retaining the same fleet number but was withdrawn in June 1998 with no recorded disposal.
The final ex-Parfitt's vehicle to consider is 301. This was one of two that were new to Harris, West Thurrock which became 301/302 (E308/309 HPU) in the Parfitt's fleet. They were Leyland Swift LBM6T/2RA chassis with Wadham Stringer B37F bodies. 302 remained at Parfitt's but 301 moved to Rhondda in mid-1997. 301/302 were renumbered 401/402 by Stagecoach.
This group of Metroriders came from several sources.
253 (F815 CWJ) was an MCW Metrorider MF158/10 with a B31F body new in September 1988 to East Midland. Its earlier existence is particularly well-chronicled in the gallery. It arrived with Rhondda in late 1993 running at first from Porth with Rhondda fleet names but from 1994 in Caerphilly Busways livery. It remained until mid-1997, following which it was sold to Road Car as their 345.
254-256 all started life as Optare demonstrators, Optare having bought the rights to the design from MCW. 254 (G689 KNW) was new in January 1990 and ran for Heaton, Leigh until early 1994 when it joined the Rhondda Buses fleet. It was an Optare Metrorider with a B29F body but had been built as B31F. 255 (K320 FYG) was new in April 1993 and came to Rhondda about a year later. It moved across to Parfitt's at the end of 1995. The final one of this group, 256, had been new in November 1991 and was originally registered J364 BNW. It was sold to Cherry, Bootle who gave it the cherished mark J5 ACL after their fleet name Aintree Coach Line. However, when it was sold to Rhondda in 1994 it lost that and instead of regaining its original registration was given a different one, J797 MHF and it ran for Rhondda with this. 254-256 all survived to be taken over by Stagecoach and retained the same fleet numbers.
257/258 (L839/840 MWT) also give the impression of being former Optare demonstrators, as they come from the same block of registrations used for a range of Optare vehicles. However, they were two of four Metroriders supplied to Darlington Transport Company (the arm's length municipal operation in the town) and were numbered 39/40. They had B31F bodies and were new in September 1993. Following the collapse of the Darlington operation they came to Rhondda at the beginning of 1995. They moved to Parfitt's about a year later and remained there at the Stagecoach takeover, retaining the same fleet numbers.
National Welsh had inherited a very large fleet of Leyland Leopards from its predecessors, including some from Rhondda Transport, and National Welsh also bought a large number themselves. However, by the time of the formation of Rhondda Buses many of these had been withdrawn and only four entered the fleet on formation in 1992. The lives were very much characterised by a series of renumberings.
369 (WUH 186T) was a Leyland Leopard PSU3E/4R with a Plaxton Supreme Express C49F body and had been new as National Welsh UC878 in December 1978 although actually ordered by Red & White. It was fitted with a G2 automatic gearbox, along with the rest its batch and was equipped for one-man operation from new. It was renumbered UC1169 in January 1983 and further renumbered UC169 in February/March 1986, shortly afterwards being downgraded to dual-purpose as UD169. Around the end of 1987 it was renumbered again as UD369. It was part of the initial Rhondda Buses fleet and then lost the prefix letters becoming plain 369. It remained in the fleet until mid-1994.
388, 391 and 392 (KWO 556,560,561X) were Leyland Leopard PSU3F/4R chassis with Willowbrook C47F bodies new in early 1982. New as National Welsh UC8202/8205/8206 they became UC1188/1191/1192 in the January 1983 renumbering. They were rapidly downgraded to dual-purpose with UC1192 becoming UD1192 in May 1983 and the rest in September 1983. Renumbering happened again in February/March 1986 when they became UD188/191/192 and on 27-Mar-1988 they became UD388/391/392.
UD388 and UD391 were fitted with replacement fronts from the Plaxton Supreme IV in Feb-1990 and Dec-1988 respectively, which gave a different headlamp and grille arrangement. In Rhondda days (in theory) they lost the prefix letters to their fleet numbers although, as the photos show, in practice this started happening beforehand. They were withdrawn in 1994 and 1995, with 392 spending a period on loan to Golden Coaches, Llandow before withdrawal.
These vehicles were a batch of three Leyland Leopard PSU3E/4R chassis with Willowbrook C49F bodies and were new to South Wales Transport in January 1980 as their 481-483 (BTH 481-483V). On 3-May-1982 South Wales took over the Swansea operations of National Travel (South West) and to clear a block of numbers for the acquired coaches these Leopards were renumbered 173-175.
BTH 481V joined the Cyril Evans fleet in February 1991 but the other two had arrived earlier in June 1990. Cyril Evans bought another four similar vehicles from South Wales around the same time. Originally operating without fleet numbers the three coaches received numbers around February 1992 - BTH 481-483V being numbered W28, W24 and W23.
These three Leopards were acquired by Rhondda with the bus services of Cyril Evans on 15-May-1993 and Rhondda gave them numbers 385-387. The numbers were applied as small numbers inside a black rectangle instead of the normal plates, which perhaps indicated the intention to dispose of them quickly, which is what happened as all were sold to Baber of Penygraig in October 1993. As was the case with the rest of the fleet Rhondda acquired from Cyril Evans, they were operated with the 'Cyril' part of the fleetname removed so that it just showed 'Evans'.
Rhondda Buses took over a selection of Leyland Nationals from National Welsh. The latter had a large fleet of the type of which Rhondda only took over a small proportion. However, as they retained their National Welsh fleet numbers it meant that their fleet numbers were a rather jumbled collection. The picture was confused in the early days as Rhondda Buses took on more vehicles in a dealer capacity and some of these ran in service very briefly. I believe the list below to be accurate.
The detailed history of these vehicles before the takeover by Rhondda Buses will be dealt with in due course in the galleries relating to Red & White, Western Welsh and Jones, Aberbeeg with some of the history reflected in the photograph captions, so that part of their history will not be covered here.
All these vehicles joined the Rhondda Buses fleet at its formation in February 1992 except 621 which was part of the allocation of the final National Welsh depot and didn't transfer until May 1992.
There were eight 11.3 metre long semi-coach versions, which were 401/412 (KDW 347/358P) and 424-426/428/429/435 (NWO 458/460/462/463/469R). 401 was new as Jones, Aberbeeg ND3975 whilst 412 was new as Western Welsh ND5075 in October 1975. 424-426 had been new to Red & White and 428/429/435 to Western Welsh, being new from December 1976 to April 1977.
There were five 10.3 metre long bus versions, which were better suited to some of the Rhondda local services with tight corners. These were 473/475 (YBO 148/150T) and 476/478/479 (YDW 398/400/401T) and new to National Welsh as NS15/17/18/20/2179 in 1979. The short National only ever formed a small part of the National Welsh fleet, which had just twenty-one of this variant bought new (along with three National 2s).
Finally there were ten 11.3m long buses. These were 576 (NWO 492R), 606 (PKG 738R), 621 (SKG 925S), 629/636/638 (WUH 162/169/171T), 650/654 (BUH 215/219V), 657 (NHA 264M) and 660 (MAR 796P). 576 was new in November 1976 as N4776, 606 new in May 1977 as N4377 and 621 in January 1978 as N5877, all three being Western Welsh vehicles originally. 626/636/638/650/654 were all new to National Welsh in July 1978 (626), August 1978 (636/638) and November 1979 (650/654).
The other two 11.3m Nationals were ones bought secondhand in the final days of National Welsh. Both had come from Brewer's at Caerau but had very different origins. 657 (NHA 264M) had been National Welsh N657 when acquired but had been new in October 1973 as Midland Red 264. 660 didn't carry a fleet number prefix in its time with National Welsh and had been new in June 1976 as Eastern National 1774.
These Nationals were gradually withdrawn as new vehicles joined the fleet. Just one (475) remained in service at the time of the Stagecoach takeover and even that had been transferred to Parfitt's.
Seven Leyland Nationals were taken over along with the services of Cyril Evans on 15-May-1993. All of these had originated with London Transport. All were 10351A/2R models with B44F bodies that had been converted from the B36D configuration in which they operated in London. There was no order to their numbering so it is better to tabulate them:
480 (BYW 406V) formerly London Transport LS406 new in Oct-1979 to Evans Aug-1992
481 (BYW 412V) formerly London Transport LS412 new in Nov-1979 to Evans Oct-1992
482 (YYE 275T) formerly London Transport LS275 new in Dec-1978 to Evans Feb-1992
483 (AYR 348T) formerly London Transport LS348 new in Sep-1979 to Evans May-1992
484 (THX 263S) formerly London Transport LS263 new in Jun-1978 to Evans Dec-1991
485 (THX 157S) formerly London Transport LS157 new in Jan-1978 to Evans Jun-1992
486 (THX 145S) formerly London Transport LS145 new in Jan-1978 to Evans Feb-1992
481-486 were numbered N3/N4/N11/N5/N6 and N8 respectively in the Cyril Evans fleet but 480 hadn't previously carried a fleet number.
480 and 481 were withdrawn very soon by Rhondda Buses and sold to Parfitt's at Rhymney Bridge who fitted them with Volvo engines. They ended up as part of the Rhondda fleet in Apr-1995 following the takeover of Parftitt's but were quickly re-sold.
486 was the next withdrawal in mid-1994 and was sold to Hawkes of Waunarlwydd, whilst 483 was sold in Sep-1994 to Thomas Motors of Barry.
482,483 and 485 were all transferred to Parfitt's after the Rhondda Buses takeover, curiously helping to displace former Rhondda Buses 480/481.
All apart from 480 and 481 received Caerphilly Busways fleetnames, having operated initially with just 'Evans' as a fleet name. The livery remained very similar as the Cyril Evans livery was used as a basis for that adopted for Caerphilly Busways.
These three vehicles were new to Taff-Ely Borough Council and were the last new full sized buses bought by that undertaking. Taff-Ely 35-37 (A35-37 XBO) were on the Dennis Lancet SD515 chassis and had East Lancs B47F bodies, although 35 was reseated to DP43F in December 1985.
Dennis introduced the underfloor-engined Lancet chassis in 1981 with rather limited success, many examples being used as welfare vehicles or mobile libraries. With the exception of a later demonstration vehicle the last service buses on this chassis were these three supplied to Taff-Ely.
All three passed to National Welsh after the 1988 takeover and were initially numbered NS495-497 in Nov-1988 until it was realised that they did not belong in a series for Leyland Nationals. They were quickly renumbered DS495-497 in Jan-1989. They ran at first from Aberdare and then Bedwas but seem to have been troublesome buses and spent quite some time idle and all had been withdrawn by 1991.
They were acquired by Tellings-Golden Miller in Apr-1994 and passed to Rhondda Buses in May 1994 as 495-497. On paper they were withdrawn in Oct-1992 (495) and Jul-1992 (496) with no withdrawal date available for 497. They would have seen little, if any, use with Rhondda and no photographs have come to light of them in service from Porth. They were sold to Vanguard, Bedworth in Oct-1992 or Nov-1992 and it seems they were still in full National Welsh livery when sold.
This gallery contains the same photographs as the gallery on this batch in the Taff-Ely section.
Chesterfield Transport bought six new Leyland Lynxes which were 60-65 (E60-65 WDT). 62-65 were B49F buses new in December 1987 but 60/61 came slightly later in March 1988 and had DP47F bodies. They all had Leyland TL11 engines. Chesterfield sought buyers for all six in 1994 but only actually sold the bus versions (62-65) which came to Rhondda Buses. The two dual-purpose vehicles remained until Chesterfield Transport passed to Stagecoach.
The first two to arrive at Rhondda were 62 and 65 which were numbered 500 and 501, closely followed by 63 and 64 which Rhondda numbered 502 and 503. Hence, despite being in a contiguous block, they were not numbered in order whilst with Rhondda.
In 1996 501 and 503 (E64/65 WDT) were sold to Wilts and Dorset, with whom they entered service in their Damory Coaches subsidiary, based at Blandford, where they were numbered 5053/5054.
504 was new to long-established operator Chambers of Bures in March 1988. It was an LX112L10ZR1R model with a B52F body and therefore unique amongst Rhondda's Lynxes in having the Cummins L10 engine.
It was one of the later buses to join the Rhondda Buses fleet around the end of 1996 and it is likely that a deal was struck with Chambers as its acquisition coincided with the departure of the ex-Great Yarmouth Volvos 851/852 to Chambers. It took the number 504 in the Rhondda fleet and was the only one of the original Lynx models to receive the later livery with more cream.
500, 502 and 504 remained in service until the Stagecoach takeover, following which they were renumbered 692/693/691 respectively. They moved to Stagecoach Ribble in early 2001 in preparation for the transfer of much of the North Lancashire operation to Blazefield Holdings, Stagecoach taking advantage of the opportunity to offload some of their less-desired vehicles. (The Rhondda Buses Leyland Lynx 2s (41/42) were also caught up in the same exercise.) As a consequence former Chesterfield 62 and 63 (as 692 and 693) were briefly re-united with their dual-purpose sisters 60 and 61 transferred from Chesterfield as part of the same exercise, firstly with Stagecoach Ribble and then to Blazefield-owned Lancashire United. 692 and 693 quickly moved to the Burnley & Pendle fleet but 691 remained with Lancashire United.
Following its spell with Damory Coaches E64 WDT has entered preservation and been restored into its original Chesterfield livery.
Just 122 Optare Prismas were built in the period 1995-1998, using the Mercedes-Benz O405 chassis and front cowl. Rhondda Buses bought two which became 550/551 (N550/551 MTG) in the fleet. New in December 1995 they came about halfway through the production run of the model.
They would appear to have been well-liked and looked very smart in the Rhondda Buses livery. The pair seem to have spent most of their time on the express services from Cardiff (X8/X9). They retained the same fleet numbers with Stagecoach until the national renumbering scheme when they became 23951/23952. Despite being non-standard not only within the Red & White operation but also the Stagecoach group as a whole, they lived full lives. Latterly spending some time in reserve and operating from Blackwood depot, they were finally sold for scrap in 2011.
Rhymney Valley District Council bought six Leyland Tigers in total, all with East Lancs bodies:
71 (A71 VTX) was a TRBTL11/1R type chassis that was only 10 metres long - only one other operator (Tayside) bought this variant. Fitted with an East Lancs DP43F body it was new in January 1984. This bus was not taken into National Welsh stock and instead passed to Davies, Pencader in whose fleet it was numbered 228. It is included in this story for completeness but was never in the Rhondda Buses fleet.
All the remaining Tigers were on TRBTL11/2RP chassis and had DP47F bodies. 72/73 (A72/73 VTX) were new in October and November 1983 respectively whilst 25-27 (B25-27 ADW) were all new in August 1984.
Rhymney Valley, by this stage trading as the stand-alone company Inter Valley Link, were finally taken over by National Welsh on 1st April 1989 after an existence of exactly fifteen years. Initially 25-27 and 72/73 were not taken into stock and were instead offered for sale, although they were used at times. However they had joined the fleet by early 1990 and were numbered U695-U699, all receiving Caerphilly Buslink livery. The prefixes were dropped when they joined the Rhondda Buses fleet in 1992 and they became 695-699.
All left the Rhondda fleet in 1994 or 1995. 695 and 699 joined the fleet of Blue Bus, Horwich whilst 696 and 697 were transferred to the Parfitt's fleet from where they were sold to South Lancs Transport around the end of 1996. 698 had its body partly dismantled whilst with Rhondda Buses after withdrawal in January 1994, with a view to rebodying. This didn't happen and it was sold to Blue Bus in November 1994 who it seems also considered rebodying it but that never happened either.
Rhondda bought nine Volvo B6 buses in 1994 but reverted afterwards to purchasing Dennis Darts. The Volvos came in two batches with the higher-numbered examples first and also, for some reason, the later batch had with one exception lower chassis numbers than the first. The numbers were not continuous due to the DVLA restricting the issue of certain numbers perceived as desirable and Rhondda Buses liked to have matching registration and fleet numbers.
The first batch of three arrived in April 1994 and were 9.9 metre long Volvo B6-50 chassis with TD63E turbocharged engines and Plaxton Pointer bodies. They were numbered 79/81/82 (L79/81/82 CWO) and were delivered in the original Rhondda Buses livery of maroon and cream. They initially operated from Porth depot but were transferred to Caerphilly around the end of 1996 and received the later livery along with Caerphilly Busways fleet names. They were renumbered 719/721/722 after the takeover by Stagecoach but only 719 and 722 received numbers in the National Scheme (30729/30732).
The second batch comprised six 9.0 metre long Volvo B6-41 chassis which this time had Plaxton Pointer B35F bodies and only had the naturally-aspirated version of the TD63E engine. They entered service in August 1994 and were 71/73-76/78 (M71/73-76/78 HHB). The first five of these arrived in the Cyril Evans-inspired livery and operated from Bedwas with Caerphilly Busways fleet names but 78 initially operated from Porth in the maroon and cream livery. They moved around quite a bit in Stagecoach ownership and had quite a lot of different numbers. They were renumbered 711/713-716/718 originally but, for example, 718 became 692 with Stagecoach Cheltenham and Gloucester. 714 and 716 moved to Stagecoach Ribble at Chorley and were renumbered 323/324 there before becoming 30724/30726 in the national scheme, ending up in Cumbria. The batch became 30721/30723-30726/30728 but operating in different parts of the Stagecoach empire.
Those transferred to Cumbria in particular seem to have been quite long-lived, but 78 proved the longest-lived, operating latterly for Island Rover on the Isles of Scilly and still running when it was over twenty years old.
For the last year of Rhondda Buses operation all the B6s were based at Bedwas and they were the only full-sized single-deckers at that depot.
These Bristol VRTs were in two groups, the standard ECW-bodied version bought new by National Welsh and a trio of East Lancs-bodied examples which had been new to Rhymney Valley and had been taken over by National Welsh.
The two that were new to National Welsh were both Bristol Bristol VRT/SL3/501 chassis with ECW H43/31F bodies, they were different in that 717 was a low height version whilst 819 was just three inches higher. They were also, oddly, never in the Rhondda Buses fleet at the same time! 717 (GTX 741W) had been new as LR8044 in September 1980 and was renumbered LR1717 in January 1983. Its earlier years seem to have been spent at Cwmbran depot. It was renumbered LR717 in February/March 1986 finally becoming 717 around 1991. Latterly it was based at Barry and remained there until the National Welsh era finally closed in August 1992. It was then acquired by Rhondda Buses and saw out double-deck operation by Rhondda Buses, being withdrawn in May 1997. It didn't travel far as it was sold to Thomas, Porth, who had bought the old bottom garage at Porth. It lasted with them until 2000 when it was sold for scrap.
819 (VHB 679S) had originally been National Welsh HR4478 and seems to have spent its time mainly at Porth depot. New in July 1978 it was renumbered HR1819 in January 1983 and became HR819 in February/March 1986. It joined the Rhondda Buses fleet at formation but does not seem to have operated for very long at all. It was sold to Southend Transport in May-1992 but they didn't use it and it was sold on, re-registered MIW 2422 in August 1993 and exported to the Netherlands, remarkably, in August 2018.
In March 1981 Rhymney Valley District Council took delivery of three Bristol VRT/SL3/6LXB chassis with East Lancs H44/32F bodies 84-86 (GHB 84-86W). These were some of the vehicles National Welsh retained when they took over Rhymney Valley in 1989 and they were allocated numbers XR828-830 in that fleet but for some reason actually carried numbers HR828-830. They ran for a very short time in the first weeks of Rhondda Buses operation (whilst still using the Tellings Golden Miller operating licence) before disposal to a range of operators. The former RVDC 85 was acquired for preservation but unfortunately was damaged in an accident when in storage and had to be scrapped.
National Welsh bought just ten Leyland Olympians, ONLXB/1R models with ECW H45/32F bodies. They were new as HR8207-8216 (MUH 281-290X) and delivered in March to May of 1982. The batch gained new numbers HR1851-1860 in the January 1983 renumbering and in February/March 1986 became HR851-860. The first five were allocated to Barry depot with the other five being based at Porth. When new they were fitted with ventilators in the upper saloon front windows but these were removed quite quickly, the last to lose them being HR1856 (formerly HR8212) in February 1984.
HR852 was withdrawn following a fire at Barry depot in August 1986 but the remainder survived to the end of National Welsh. They were given numbers 851/853-860 in the Rhondda fleet but the picture is a little complicated. 851 and 856-860 joined the Rhondda fleet from the outset in February 1992 but 853-855 operated at Barry depot until the final demise of National Welsh. Of these 854 joined the Rhondda Buses fleet but the other two did not, but have been reported as being used occasionally whilst Rhondda Buses owned them in their capacity as dealer.
Instead 853 and 855 passed later in 1992 to Southend Transport, joined at the same time by 851 and 856 which had been in the Rhondda fleet. 854 and 857-860 all left the Rhondda fleet in 1995 with all but 859 moving to Luton & District, although operating with several associated fleets. 859 was sold to Armchair Coaches of Brentford and moved about after that. It had a very long active life, seeing almost thirty years's service before being bought for preservation by The Cardiff Transport Preservation Group in 2011. It has since been restored to original National Welsh condition.
National Welsh bought significant numbers of Leyland Tiger coaches in the early 1980s. The history of the whole series is too complex to cover here, this narrative concentrates on those vehicles which operated for Rhondda Buses. All were based on the Leyland Tiger TRCTL11/3R chassis. The story is made complex by multiple re-numberings and re-registrations.
901 was new in March 1983 as National Welsh UC1196 with a Plaxton Paramount C51F body. Renumbered UC196 in early 1986 it was registered AAX 311A in January 1987. Its original body was burnt out in an arson attack at the Bulwark workshops in Chepstow on 17th November 1987 so it did not become UC896 in the March 1988 renumbering. Instead it received a new Duple 340 C50Ft body (later re-seated to C46Ft) in November 1988 and was then numbered UC896. When the bulk of National Welsh ceased trading in February 1992 this vehicle was sold to Tellings-Golden Miller and numbered 71. It transferred to Rhondda Buses at the end of 1994 along with the TrawsCambria service on which it was regularly used and was then numbered 901. It moved again about a year later to Parfitt's, Rhymney Bridge and was finally sold to Island Coachways on the Isle of Wight.
903/904/908 were all similar to 901 with Plaxton Paramount bodies when built with the exception that they been fitted with toilets when new and were thus C48Ft but were later converted to C51F. They were new as UC1203/1204/1208 (SDW 919/920/924Y) in May, June and July of 1983 respectively. They were re-registered AAL 622A, AAL 587A and AAL520A in late 1985 and became UC203/204/208 in early 1986. On 27th March 1988 they were renumbered UC903/904/908 to leave the 200-series numbers free for new Bustler minibuses. By mid-1991 they were downgraded as dual-purpose vehicles and renumbered UD903/904/908. The first two joined the Rhondda Buses fleet on its formation as 903/904 but 908 was one of the National Welsh vehicles based at Barry depot which remained with their original company until the closure of that depot on 7th August 1992, after which it joined the Rhondda fleet. 904 and 908 remained in service until 1996 whilst 903 lasted until the following year.
National Welsh's Leyland Tiger intake also included a number fitted with Duple Laser coachwork. Five of these ended up in the Rhondda Buses fleet and had been new as National Welsh UC1226/1228/1230/1232/1233 (A226/228/230/232/233 VWO) in May 1984 (except UC1233 which was new the following month). New with C49Ft bodies the toilets were later removed but the seating arrangement varied - it is believed that most become C53F but UC1230/1232 became C49F. They became UC226/228/230/232/233 in the 1986 renumbering and like the Plaxton-bodied examples they were also renumbered in March 1988, as UC926/928/930/932/933. They were re-registered AKG 213A, AKG 231A, AKG 265A, AKG 282A and AKG 293A respectively in late 1988 to early 1989. In 1991 they were downgraded with a UD prefix instead of UC and later that year UD928 and UD933 were re-registered again as A185/186 AHB. In the Rhondda Buses fleet they were numbered 926/928/930/932/933 and all were with withdrawn during 1995. They all passed to Road Car with 926 being rebodied by East Lancs before entering service becoming 458 in that fleet and later, in Stagecoach ownership, 25811, by which time it had been re-registered again as YDZ 3458. It saw further service with RML Travel of Cote Heath. 928/930/932/933 became 425/423/424/426 in the Road Car fleet.
This batch of Metroriders formed the biggest block of vehicles in the Rhondda Buses fleet and was also the biggest batch of vehicles bought by Inter Valley Link or their predecessors, albeit they were of two slightly different types.
They were new to Inter Valley Link and numbered 101-117 in that fleet. 101-105 were MF150/104 models with DP25F bodies whilst 106-117 were MF150/103 with DP23F seat bodies. They were in a revised livery incorporating quite a lot of grey and branded as "Inter Valley Classic". New in September (106-108) and October 1988 they didn't operate for Inter Valley Link for very long as the fleet was taken over by National Welsh on 1st April 1989. These Metroriders comprised over half of the Inter Valley Link fleet taken on by National Welsh, most vehicles not being part of the sale.
With National Welsh they received the yellow Bustler livery and were at first moved en bloc to Merthyr Tydfil to counter competition. They did move around later with, for example, 2101/2103/2104 moving to Bridgend, 2102/2105/2108 to Chepstow and 2106 to Caerphilly. 2110 seems to have been particularly mobile as the photos in the gallery show. When Rhondda Buses bought part of National Welsh in February 1992 these Metroriders were included. 2107, 2108, 2111, 2112, 2114, 2115 and 2117 operated briefly for Offerdemo in Merthyr Tydfil.
They retained the same fleet numbers although there was a plan to number them 101-117. This was partly implemented in mid-1992 and then abandoned, although as the gallery shows, some vehicles ran with their three-digit number for some years.
Most of these Metroriders were withdrawn in 1996 and 1997, displaced by new Mercedes-Benz 711Ds. However, four survived to be taken over by Stagecoach in December 1997 - 2105, 2106, 2112 and 2114, which became 105, 106, 112 and 114 with their new owner. However, they didn't last much longer and were withdrawn in 1998. Many of the sold Metroriders went for further service, a notable buyer being municipal operator and Metrorider enthusiast Rossendale, who took four.
This gallery, of the highest-numbered buses in the Rhondda Buses fleet, comprises a selection of MCW Metroriders bought secondhand by Rhondda Buses, Parfitt's or Cyril Evans but all ending up in the Rhondda fleet.
The first group had been new in June 1987 to London Buses (Westlink) and were MCW Metrorider MF150/14 with B23F bodies. They were used on minibus routes in Kingston but were a little too successful as the demand generated meant that bigger buses were required. They then moved around in London before disposal started:
2118 (D473 PON) new as London Buses MR13, to Rhondda Buses Sep-1992. Withdrawn end of 1996, to Phil Anslow, Pontypool.
2124 (D472 PON) new as London Buses MR12, to Cyril Evans Sep-1992, to Rhondda Buses May-1993. Withdrawn Aug-1997 and sold for scrap.
2125 (D479 PON) new as London Buses MR19, to Parfitt's Aug-1992. Withdrawn end of 1996, to Phil Anslow, Pontypool.
2126 (D481 PON) new as London Buses MR21, to Parfitt's May-1993. Withdrawn end of 1996, to Phil Anslow, Pontypool.
2127 (D482 PON) new as London Buses MR22, to Parfitt's May-1993. Withdrawn mid-1997 and sold for scrap.
Note that 2125-2127 only worked for the Parfitt's fleet but are included here for completeness.
The second batch of Metroriders started operation from North Wembley working the Harrow hoppa services, but later moved around the capital as many of the Harrow Buses routes were lost in tendering. They were MF150/14 models with B25F bodies. The ones in the Rhondda fleet were:
2119 (E132 KYW) new as London Buses MR32, to Rhondda Buses Aug-1992. Withdrawn mid-1995 sold to Bevan, Edge End.
2122 (E128 KYW) new as London Buses MR28, to Cyril Evans Aug-1992, to Rhondda Buses May-1993. Withdrawn end-1996, to Harris, Pengam.
2123 (E137 KYW) new as London Buses MR37, to Cyril Evans Nov-1992, to Rhondda Buses May-1993. Withdrawn mid-1995 sold to Bevan, Edge End.
2128 (E143 KYW) new as London Buses MR43, to Parfitt's May-1993, to Rhondda Buses late 1995 withdrawn early-1996. To Rossendale (43).
2129 (E144 KYW) new as London Buses MR44, to Parfitt's Apr-1994, to Rhondda Buses late 1995 withdrawn early-1996. To Rossendale (44).
2119, 2122 and 2123 had been new in Sep-1987 whilst 2128 and 2129 were new in Oct-1987.
2120 (E640 KYW) and 2121 (E930 KYR) were new as Bexleybus 40 and 30 respectively. 40 was an MF150/57 model with DP25F body new in Dec-1987 and 30 was an MF150/46 with a B25F body new the previous month. After Bexleybus disappeared they were numbered in the London Buses series as MR64 and MR54. Both moved in Aug-1992, E640 KYW joined the Rhondda Buses fleet directly in Aug-1992 but E930 KYR passed to Cyril Evans and didn't join the Rhondda Buses fleet until May 1993. Both were withdrawn in mid-1995 with 2120 passing to Bulwark Engineering, however 2121 returned to London with F. E. Thorpe of Perivale.
1053 (XFW 953S) was a Bristol LH6L with ECW B43F body that was new in January 1978 to Lincolnshire Road Car as 1058. It was sold in April 1991 to National Welsh in which fleet it became 1053 and was used for driver training. It passed to Rhondda Buses on their formation in February 1992 and continued in the driver training role until May 1995 when it was withdrawn following an electrical fire. It was sold to South Lancs Transport who used it for spares.
The AEC Mammoth Major was based on a chassis originating with the Royal Navy around 1970 and had passed through South Wales and National Welsh, joining Rhondda Buses at the time of formation.
Rhondda Buses Ford Transit fleet comprised eight examples new to West Yorkshire along with a solitary example acquired with the services of Cyril Evans.
With one exception the buses from West Yorkshire were acquired at the end of 1992 and all were Ford Transit 190D with Carlyle B18F bodies on Dormobile shells:
19/20 (C82/87 AUB) were new as West Yorkshire 104/109 in early 1986 and passed with the business when AJS Holdings sold out to Yorkshire Rider in 1990. They were numbered 182/187 in the latter fleet and 187 at least passed to Rhondda via Stevenson's of Uttoxeter.
The second group is a little more complicated as they were not numbered in registration order and also had been re-registered before entering service. 21-25 (D529/523/524/525/528 HNW) had been originally registered C99/86/90/93/98 AUA but didn't enter service until August 1988 and therefore received the new registration. Numbered 121/108/112/115 and 120 in the West Yorkshire fleet, they were numbered 129/123-125/128 by Yorkshire Rider.
19 lasted until 1995 whilst 20 survived as a crew bus in Caerphilly bus station, not being replaced until mid-1996. 21 was a 1993 withdrawal whilst the withdrawal date of 22 isn't clear. 23 and 24 were re-instated to work the Treorchy to Cwmparc service, the tender for which was won from Shamrock in late 1994. 23 didn't last long but 24 lasted until 1996, after which it took over temporarily from 20 as a crew bus in Caerphilly. 25 was withdrawn in early 1995.
Finally, 1063 was a much later purchase, joining the fleet in 1996 from Tellings-Golden Miller in Byfleet. Registered C97 AUB it was from the same batch as 19/20, new as West Yorkshire 119 in January 1986, later becoming Yorkshire Rider 197. It was bought in mid-1996 and was bought as a replacement for 24 as crew bus at Caerphilly and given the number 1063 which was in the service stock series - it didn't operate in passenger service.
The remaining Ford Transit had been along with the services of Cyril Evans in May 1993. It was 26 (C503 NOE) which had been N4 in the Evans fleet but was new as London Buses FS28. It joined Cyril Evans in 1992 and didn't remain long with Rhondda before disposal.
These two were the only Leyland Lynx 2s in the fleet. Never a common type, with only around 140 being supplied to the home market, they were two of four of the type new to Whitelaw, Stonehouse, these two being new in August 1991. The Lynx was an integral vehicle although the Lynx II could be supplied as an underframe to be bodied by another coachbuilder. This didn't happen in this case and they were built completely at the Leyland National factory in Workington with chassis type Leyland Lynx 2 LX2R11C15Z4S and a B51F body.
These buses had a somewhat peripatetic nature and moved rather a lot. They moved after about two years to D & J (Dearsley) Travel, who used them on a shuttle service from Liverpool Street station to London City Airport. They moved again to Redby Travel of Sunderland by 1994 and it was from there that they came to Rhondda Buses.
Arriving at the end of 1996 they were numbered 41 and 42. A year later, following the purchase of Rhondda Buses by Stagecoach, they received new numbers 681/682 in that fleet. They were sold later to Stagecoach Ribble and operated from Burnley depot. When Stagecoach sold the operations to Blazefield Holdings on 15-Apr-2001 they were also transferred to the new Burnley and Pendle fleet, still with the original Stagecoach fleet numbers. 41 went on to join Hedingham & District Omnibuses as their L327.
This single bus doesn't fit readily with any others and therefore has a gallery of its own.
New in September 1992 and entering service the following month, it was a Dennis Dart 9SDL3016 with a Northern Counties Paladin B35F body new to Mainline, Sheffield as their 402 and registered K402 EDT. Mainline evaluated the Volvo B6 and the Dennis Dart but seem to have preferred the air suspension on the B6 compared to the Dart and therefore standardised on Volvo's product. The Dart, thus being non-standard, was offered for sale quite early and snapped up by Rhondda in 1996.
It survived to become Stagecoach 590 and later 32990 and has now been secured for preservation.
149 (F392 DHL) was an isolated purchase in 1996. It was a Mercedes-Benz 709D fitted with a Reeve Burgess B20F body fitted with a wheelchair lift and was new as London Buses DT2 in November 1988. It was one of five similar buses bought on behalf of the London Borough of Ealing and used on the Southall Shuttle. It joined the Rhondda Buses fleet in 1996 via South Lancs Transport and was briefly numbered 392 after arrival before being given the more logical number 149. It was based at Bedwas.
Losing the wheelchair lift about the time of the Stagecoach takeover, it ended its career as a publicity van for Stagecoach Red & White, retaining the number 149 throughout.
This collection includes the Leyland Tigers in the Rhondda Buses fleet that didn't come from National Welsh. They came from a diverse range of sources and almost have to be dealt with individually:
700 (F311 RMH) was a TRBTL11/2RP chassis with a Duple 300 B55F body. It had been new in August 1988 to Jim Stones, Glazebury. It was sold to Whitelaw, Stonehouse and then passed to Kelvin Central as their 1281. It joined the Rhondda Buses fleet in early 1994 and after just over a year it was re-registered A17 RBL. In the Stagecoach fleet it was numbered 918 and after it left that fleet it moved to Blue Bus with whom it lost its cherished mark and was given the new registration F816 OVU.
701/702 (F603/604 CET) had both been new to Whitelaw, Stonehouse in October 1988 and were also TRBTL11/2RP models but this time with Plaxton Derwent 3000 B54F bodies. They moved to Kelvin Central as 1283/1284 before moving again to Thames Transit as their 993/994. They arrived at Rhondda Buses in mid-1994. They received cherished marks A19/20 RBL in early 1995 but 701 reverted to its original mark in mid-1997 prior to a rather complex subsequent history. It was sold to South Lancs Transport, St. Helens (very soon to be known as Arriva Lancashire) and was re-registered 49 XBF when with that fleet and numbered 849. The Arriva Lancashire operation was soon absorbed into other parts of the group and it then transferred to Arriva North West. Later it moved to Arriva Midlands North, first numbered 1649 then 3039. Its final disposal, by then once again united with its original registration F603 CET, was to TM Travel who painted it in a livery not unlike one it would have received had it been painted in the final version of the Rhondda Buses livery.
702's later story is much simpler - it remained with Rhondda Buses until the takeover and became Stagecoach Red & White 920. It was sold to GHA Coaches in June 2000 and remained in use for a long time, not going for scrap until October 2013.
703 (G399 PNN) had a rather unusual pedigree as it started life as van in the Prison Service, new in June 1990. Unlike the other Tigers it had a Cummins L10 engine and was of chassis type TRBL10/2RZA. When acquired at the beginning of 1995 the original body by G. C. Smith was removed and replaced with an East Lancs DP49F body. It was the only one of this group of Tigers to receive the later livery incorporating more cream. Towards the end of 1995 the seating was changed to DP53F and in early 1996 it was re-registered A13 RBL. It passed to Stagecoach as their 913, later moving to Southlands Travel, Bromley then Boomerang Bus Company (Warner's of Tewkesbury) who re-registered it AAL 520A. Curiously, this registration had been carried by National Welsh Leyland Tiger UC1208 which went on to become Rhondda Buses 908. The final disposal was to Ogden, St. Helens.
The three vehicles covered by this gallery looked very different and just had in common the Mercedes-Benz 811D chassis. This was a chassis for a slightly heavier gross weight than the 711D which allowed a longer body and more seats.
151 (N151 MTG) was bought new at the same time (November 1995) as 152-160 but was on the longer chassis. Like them it also had a UVG body but this time seating 31 and entered service from Porth in the Rhondda Buses red livery with cream roof. It survived to join the Stagecoach fleet in 1997, retaining the same fleet number.
251 (E76 SWT) was a secondhand acquisition that was new to Harte, Greenock. It was again a Mercedes-Benz 811D although its Optare StarRider C33F (originally C31F with a large luggage pen) body eliminated the familiar Mercedes bonnet, giving a very different appearance. It was bought by Rhondda Buses not long after their formation but didn't stay long, being sold by mid-1994. Originally at Porth in the standard Rhondda livery it later transferred to the Caerphilly Busways fleet and received the revised livery with more cream.
252 was a further secondhand acquisition which should not be confused with the later 252, a Metrorider which was only acquired in 1996 and ran in the Parfitt fleet. This 252 (F985 EDS) was new in August 1988 to McConnachie, Port Glasgow and had an Alexander C33F body. Another purchase used to improve the fleet inherited from National Welsh, it joined Rhondda Buses in 1992 but left to join Stevenson's, Uttoxeter as their 245 in March 1994. This bus also moved from Rhondda Buses to Caerphilly Busways and received the later livery.
Rhondda Buses operated three Volvo B10Ms which came from very diverse origins indeed although the original operators of all three were Scottish. In addition there were five that came from National Welsh which only operated a couple of months - these are covered in a separate gallery.
704 started life as one of a pair of Volvo B10M-50s new to Fife Scottish which had unusual Alexander RVC-type CH42/28F bodies. They were FRA75/76 (B175/176 FFS) in the Fife fleet and carried a livery of yellow with three shades of blue - Scottish Citylink livery but with Fife branding. FRA76 (B176 FFS), the one that would become Rhondda 704, was exhibited at the 1984 Motor Show at the NEC.
FRA76 received Fife Scottish fleet livery in later 1985 as it was no longer used on Citylink services, this livery changing in detail more than once. In September 1987 it was transferred to Western Scottish where it became V176 and it once again received Citylink livery. It was re-numbered V999 in mid-1990 and about the same time was re-registered WLT 444 using a registration from a Routemaster in the associated Clydeside fleet, transferred shortly before withdrawal of the Routemaster fleet. In October 1991 V999 was renumbered V899 and in December 1991 it lost cherished mark WLT 444 and received new mark B660 EGG.
Both these vehicles had followed similar paths until the end of 1994. However, whilst the former B175 FFS went on to become a playbus(!) the former B176 FFS, now registered B660 EGG, was sold to Rhondda Buses and rebodied with an East Lancs DP53F body and entered service in November 1995. In early 1996 it received its fourth registration mark, becoming A14 RBL. Following the Stagecoach takeover it became 744 in that fleet and operated from Brynmawr for some time. It was numbered 20001 in the national numbering scheme and ended its days back at Porth as a driver training vehicle. It later passed to GHA of Wrexham.
705 had a simpler life but was another unusual vehicle, being one of just two bus versions of the Van Hool Alizée body imported into the UK and on Volvo B10M-56 chassis. It was new to Hutchison of Overtown who bought both examples of the type registered B947/948 ASU. B947 ASU passed to Henderson Travel, Hamilton in 1991 before moving to Rhondda Buses as 705 in mid-1995. It was re-registered A15 RBL in early 1996 and became Stagecoach 745 on the takeover. It had a long life passing to GHA, Wrexham in 2000 where it was re-seated to B64F and then in 2010 it moved to Carson (WJC) of Chapelhall, near Airdrie where it lasted at least another three years, being nearly thirty years old at that point.
900 differed from the other two in being acquired for coach use. It was a Volvo B10M-61 with a Van Hool Alizée body that was new to Park, Hamilton registered MSU 571Y and was the first of their intake for the 1983 season. They sold it to Scarlet Band, West Cornforth and it subsequently passed to Tellings-Golden Miller where it was numbered 73, having gained a new registration mark of YLP 528 along the way. When they transferred operation of the 701 TrawsCambria service to Rhondda Buses at the end of 1994 this coach was also transferred. It remained for about a year and was then transferred again, along with the service, to Parfitt's at Rhymney Bridge who were by then owned by Rhondda Buses. It became 748 in the Stagecoach fleet on takeover and lasted until 1999 when it too joined the fleet of GHA in Wrexham.
This gallery contains photographs of a few vehicles that were loaned to Rhondda Buses in the period they operated. Not included here are vehicles that may have been on loan briefly in the first weeks of Rhondda Buses operation.
As each vehicle was different and only stayed a relatively short period with Rhondda Buses, their histories are covered within the photograph captions.
This group of vehicles haven't much in common, only that they were double-deckers bought by Rhondda Buses from sources other than National Welsh.
850 (D888 YHG) was a solitary Leyland Olympian ONTL11/2RH with East Lancs CH47/31F body bought by Rossendale in April 1987 and numbered 88. It spent a little while in the associated Ellen Smith fleet in 1992 and was renumbered (on paper at least) to 388 and had also been re-registered by then to HIL 3188. It came to Rhondda Buses in early 1995 and remained until late 1996 when it was sold, passing to Shuttle Buses, Kilwinning.
Rhondda's first 851 was a former National Welsh Leyland Olympian withdrawn in late 1992 and dealt with in the collection about that batch elsewhere in this gallery. In mid-1995 a second 851, along with 852, arrived from an unusual source, Great Yarmouth Transport. They were Volvo B10M-50 chassis fitted with Alexander H47/35F bodies, new in March 1989 and numbered 50 and 51 in that town's fleet. They lasted until early 1997, by which time they were some of the last remaining double-deckers in the fleet. Both passed to Chambers, Bures, quite possibly as part of a deal which brought the Leyland Lynx 504 (E87 KGV) to the Rhondda fleet.
The final pair were in fact the first of this group to arrive, joining the Rhondda fleet in late 1992. 861/862 (JHE 156/152W - note the order of the registrations) were MCW Metrobus DR104/6 with H46/31F bodies that had been new in February 1981 as South Yorkshire PTE 1856/1852. What made them more unusual, and unique in the Rhondda Buses fleet, was that they were equipped with Rolls-Royce Eagle engines. Whether the engines were the reason isn't clear, but they only lasted until mid-1994 after which they were sold to MTL (Merseybus) as 3156 and 3152. In 1996 they moved on to Capital Citybus as 111 and 109 respectively, both withdrawn in 2000. JHE 152W went on to serve another year with First Hampshire in Southampton as their 531.
The three most recent batches of National Welsh coaches briefly came into the Rhondda Buses fold and had in common Plaxton high-floor coach bodies.
The first was a batch of six Leyland Tiger TRCTL11/3RH with Plaxton Paramount 3500 C48Ft. New in March 1986 they were numbered XC259-264 (C259-264 GUH) but from 27th March 1988 were renumbered XC959-964. Their seating capacities varied over time.
Between April and June 1987 four DAF MB230s entered the fleet. These were XC265-268 (D625-628 YCX) which carried Plaxton Paramount III C51Ft (except that XC267 was C50Ft). These were leased from dealer Stanley Hughes, hence the unusual registrations. These were also renumbered from 27th March 1988, as XC965-968. This quartet were all re-registered by National Welsh, as AAX 528A, AAX 562A, AAX 231A and AKG 293A respectively, the latter two registrations having briefly also been carried by the coaches that became Rhondda Buses 928 and 933 before transfer to the DAFs.
The final batch comprised five Volvos that proved to be the last new vehicles delivered to National Welsh, 969-973 (G969-973 KTX). These were new in July 1990 to full National Express specification and were Volvo B10M-60 with Plaxton Expressliner C46F bodies.
At their demise, National Welsh were still operating two National Express services. At the outset these came into the Rhondda Buses fold but only remained for short time such that they were only ever operated under the Tellings-Golden Miller licence. The services were 507 (Cardiff-London) and 549 (Cardiff-Glasgow) and operation passed to Tellings-Golden Miller in Cardiff on 25th April 1992. As a consequence most of these coaches passed on very quickly with only one surviving long enough to operate for Rhondda Buses.
This was one of the Tigers which became part of Rhondda Buses fleet, but only briefly. In August 1992 it passed to Edwards, Llantwit Fardre and lasted long enough to be bought for preservation around 2015 and is now restored. The five other Tigers were quickly exported to Eire where they were re-registered. XC259 and XC260 eventually returned to the UK with De Courcey Travel in Coventry. XC259 seems to have regained its original registration but XC260 was re-registered C914 AWK.
The DAFs were presumably all quickly returned to Stanley Hughes by Tellings-Golden Miller and passed to a variety of new owners, most gaining further new registrations along the way. The Volvos were also dispersed, with the former XC969 even being exported to Zambia in 2012!