Volvo Ailsa B55
The Volvo Ailsa B55 was a front-engined double-decker bus chassis manufactured in Scotland by Ailsa, Volvo's British subsidiary in which it owned 75%, from 1974 until 1985. Versions The B55 was designed with a front-mounted engine that still allowed a front entrance position suitable for one-person operation. In this sense there was a common goal with the earlier, unsuccessful, Guy Wulfrunian. It was fitted with the Volvo TD70 engine, a compact turbocharged unit of 6.7-litres. The rest of the design was relatively simple, with beam axles and leaf springs. A Self-Changing Gears semi-automatic gearbox was used. It first appeared at the 1973 Scottish Motor Show. The most popular bodywork was the Alexander AV type, replaced by the R type from the earlier 1980s. The Falkirk based Alexander factory thus meant that the Alexander bodied Ailsa B55s were entirely built in Scotland, a significant factor in securing Scottish orders (notably from the Scottish Bus Group, Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive and Tayside Regional Council) especially given the ease in securing locally sourced spare parts and repairs. A prototype low height Ailsa, designated B55-20 (instead of the standard B55-10), was built for Derby Borough Transport in 1975. In 1977, an improved Mark II