MAN 18.280 Question

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John
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Location: Melbourne

MAN 18.280 Question

Post by John »

I am curious to know how well the 18.280 runs. It has a 6.8L engine yet the output figures seem quite impressive on paper, is this the case in practice?

I have been told that the 6.8L engine runs quite hot due to the stress of having such output coming from a small engine. The buses that I have been told this happens on are rated to 220hp. Is this also a problem with the 280hp rated engine in the 18.280?

Thanks in advance.
Keep Melbourne Moving.
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PoweredByCNG
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Post by PoweredByCNG »

I don't know the exact details about how reliable they are, etc. but I can tell you that the performance of the 18.280s is rather good considering the size of the engine. As expected, however, the large turbine takes a long time to respond and initial acceleration is sluggish until the bus engages 2nd gear, where a sudden surge forward is felt.

Mercedes-Benz's new Euro 4 engine range also includes a 6.374-litre 6-cylinder engine rated at 210kW (286hp) with 1120Nm of torque peaking at 1200-1600rpm.

Regards,
Dave
Proud owner of ex-Transperth 1042 and ex-Transperth 1114.
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LowRider
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Post by LowRider »

Adelaide has a large fleet of MAN 18.280's (76 infact - 50 with Southlink and 26 with Torrens Transit) and they seem to run fairly successfully. Perhaps one of the Adelaide drivers can make a mention how they are reliability wise?

I would imagine they would have to be fairly reliable given that they form the mainstay of Southlink's rigid fleet @ Lonsdale depot.

From a passengers perspective they feel very well powered, they don't seem to struggle nearly as much as other busses going up the steeper inclines, they do have some get up and go.
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gbarklimore
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Man 18.280

Post by gbarklimore »

When Harris Bus Lines was operating, they operated an MAN 18.232 It was specced up as a charter vehicle wit a very heavy custom coaches series 300 body. On top of that they retro fitted 70 styleride lap/sash seats to it in 3x2 config. Which made it very heavy.

They did their research and tuned the engine up by changing the push rods, and the turbo, and fitting a more sophisticated cooling and breathing system to the vehicle, and then they upgraded the diff and ratios to suit highway cruising.

I remember whn driving the vehicle, in top gear at 100km/h, there felt to be plenty of power in reserve, and it kept up with its sisters, The 18.360's and !8.370's on the highways, different story when it saw hills though, but it does better then the mercedes of comparison.

Pleasure to drive.
G.Barklimore
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PoweredByCNG
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Re: Man 18.280

Post by PoweredByCNG »

gbarklimore wrote:...but it does better then the mercedes of comparison.
What Mercs would you be comparing them to?

Regards,
Dave
Proud owner of ex-Transperth 1042 and ex-Transperth 1114.
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