1985 MAN SL200 Bus 958

This vehicle is one of 153 M.A.N. SL200s built by Denning at Acacia Ridge between 1982 and 1986 for the Brisbane City Council. In fact, this vehicle is part of the last batch of 40 built by Denning and one of only 20 from that order supplied to Council’s ‘CityXpress’ specification. This saw the vehicle painted white with blue and orange diagonal stripes and fitted with Henderson coach passenger seating.

The Council assigned particular buses such as 958 to operate express services between the City and suburbs including Algester, Aspley, Carseldine, Garden City, and The Gap. Additionally, Bus 958 was one of only 30 Council M.A.N. buses fitted with a 4 speed Voith gearbox, with the remaining vehicles supplied with 3 speed Voith or Renk transmissions.

Bus 958 was completed by Denning in May 1985 and entered service with the Council in August of that year at Carina depot. In later years, the vehicle was transferred to Toowong depot where it was dedicated to the Great Circle Line. After this time, the vehicle was re-painted into the Council’s standard yellow and white colour scheme. The vehicle was later withdrawn from service at Toowong depot in March 2008 and was sold to Red and White Coaches at Sandgate. At this time, the vehicle was not operational and was brought back to life following an in-chassis engine rebuild.

The vehicle entered service with Red and White in January 2009 and operated school and charter services in Brisbane’s northern suburbs for 3 years. In July 2012, the vehicle was sold privately for preservation. In May 2019, the vehicle was acquired by Damian Milne of Sydney and restored to running order once again. The vehicle then passed to QOCS in January 2021 for continued preservation.

Vehicle Specifications

Year1985
ChassisM.A.N. SL200
Engine11.4 litre, 6-cylinder M.A.N. D2566MUH diesel engine, 177kW at 2200rpm
TransmissionVoith D854 four-speed automatic with electric retarder
BrakesWabco Westinghouse air brakes and spring handbrake
SteeringZF 8046 power steering
BodyA.B. Denning & Co Pty Ltd, Acacia Ridge, Queensland
ConstructionTubular steel frame with exterior aluminium panelling
ColourAll-over white
Seating69 passengers (45 seated, 24 standing)
In ServiceAugust 1985 to July 2012
Bus 958 was one of only 20 Denning bodied M.A.N. SL200s manufactured to the Council’s CityXpress specification. Photo: Robert Birrell
By 1992, Bus 958 was later transferred to Toowong depot where it was assigned to the Great Circle Line. Photo: Robert Birrell
The vehicle operated until March 2008 in the Council’s yellow and white colour scheme. Photo: Paul Garred
The vehicle operated school and charter services for Red and White Coaches at Sandgate between January 2009 and July 2012. Photo: Paul Garred