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Leyland National 52Saturday-Sunday 4-5th May 2024
Having had successful events in 2022 and 2023, we are back again for a free event in 2024 at the excellent Whitehaven harbour.
There will still be a good number of Nationals, but this year we are expecting a bigger variety of makes including a number of double deckers.
a half, the final one in 1985 when the model was superseded by the Lynx. During this time there were several modifications to the original design, beginning with the phase two National in 1976, then the ‘back to basics’ Series B ‘Country Cousin’ in 1978, and finally the excellent Leyland National Mark 2 from 1980, which finally offered an alternative to the notorious Leyland 510 ‘headless wonder’ engine.
Although the National was a success the numbers sold never reached the levels predicted, and
production dwindled as upheavals in the industry and deregulation of bus services took their toll by the mid eighties. Nevertheless, there had been several attempts to diversify as a series of fascinating prototypes were produced, including a one-off coach, an executive commuter bus and even articulated buses which entered service in Sheffield. There were also exports to France, the Netherlands, Australia and Venezuela, and several spin-offs to the Leyland National bus including the infamous ‘Pacer’ rail buses which have only recently bowed out with Northern Rail.
The Leyland National was loved and hated, perhaps with equal measure. On one side it represented standardisation and a lack of diversity, on the other a step forward in passenger comfort, efficiency and ease to drive. Whatever, your opinion there is little doubt of its longevity – the last significant fleet of Nationals, in service with Chase Coaches, survived until 2007, while others were rebuilt to extend their life (Greenway project), and many still exist in preservation.
The factory at Lillyhall continued to manufacture buses after the Leyland National. The immediate successor was the Lynx which was dogged with corrosion problems. Other models included the Royal Tiger Doyen coach, designed to match the stylish continental imports flooding the market at the time, and the excellent integral Titan TN double decker, mainly for London. After Volvo took over Leyland some chassis for the Olympian double decker were also assembled at Lillyhall, the final being tri-axle models for export in July 1993, after which the factory closed. The building is now used by Eddie Stobart.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Whitehaven Harbour, 1 Duke St,Whitehaven, United Kingdom