Santa Monica Big Blue Bus # 5180 - 1986 GMC T6H5307A

[francisjairam]

That bus was used the movie Speed (1994)

[97SCT]

i do know some of the 1986 Fishbowl fleet were bought secondhand by Brampton (Ontario) Transit

[97SCT]

@Zendau007 it sucks that theyre gone and are probly Budweiser cans now. a buddy of mine has saved a Fishbowl from the scrapper. exact same only its a 1981 and originally from San Diego

[MyKevinChicago]

sounds like gm rts engine.

[F7Aengineer]

does any one remember the engine that was in the SMMBL in the early 90's i really miss that sound of the enigne i think i was in the 3rd or 4th grade but line 13 always had them

[ClassicTVMan1981X]

@F7Aengineer

Engines used in the SMMBL New Looks (post-1977):

#5101-5122 (1982) - Detroit Diesel 8V71N with Allison V730

#5123-5180 (1985-86) - Detroit Diesel 6V92TAC with Allison V730

[F7Aengineer]

@ClassicTVMan1981X

The 8V71N is that the engine that have that deep loud moan on take off with the mufflers still on the rear window? because thats the one i really miss

[ClassicTVMan1981X]

@F7Aengineer

I would think so because the 6V92TA is the only one that compared to it in terms of horsepower/torque in later years. I know TriMet once was abundant with Flxible and GMC New Looks, mostly 35 feet long, during the 1970s and 1980s.

[F7Aengineer]

@ClassicTVMan1981X Ok thanks i really appricate it because i really didnt know that much bout the fishbowls besides the ones SMMBL. But the thing i really dont get is if it the same engine as LACMTA RTS why did they sound different?

[ClassicTVMan1981X]

@F7Aengineer

Exhaust setup would be the most likely thing to make a difference. But yes, all of the RTS-II buses that LACMTA (then SCRTD) ran did have the 6V92TA in all of them (8200-9139, 4400-4434, 2000-2266, 2300-2402, et al) and the 6V92TA-equipped Fishbowls that SMMBL ran was in group 5123-5180.

[F7Aengineer]

@ClassicTVMan1981X Thanks again man i really appricate it man i wish i payed more attention when i was younger cause man i miss them alot now.

[1987gmusa]

to bad new york city transit couldn`t get the 1986 fishbowl because it would have been expansive and the law was from the government only in america u can get a bus

[Speedymac1986]

WOW! takes me back to when I was a kid!

[MetrobusChris]

Hi these are great buses im from England they are helfire!! i loved the GM Bus in Speed 1994 the sound on them are fantastic i wish sombody bring 1 to Engalnd and put them next to 1 of our buses by the way does anybody know the exact bus Sandra Bullock drove in the film i know a couple was used is the exact one Preserved :)

[LeylandNational01]

@MetrobusChris There is a museum in the England that has been looking to buy a Toronto Transit Commission bus for it'd collection.

[retroolschool]

@MetrobusChris The one in speed was 1967 model. And there was an ex-Edmonton trolley New-look imported into England recently. Since '86 was the last year New looks were built, I wonder how many were made?

[dsevil]

@retroolschool 44,484 according to Wikipedia.

[retroolschool]

@dsevil I meant New looks made in thier last year of production...

[clockbuilderhg]

The bus in "Speed" had chrome wheels. I've been looking at lots of fishbowls on here and other places and I've not seen another one with chrome wheels. Did Big Blue Bus ever really use them? I think they looked really good on that bus.

[1987gmusa]

to bad it`s just the sound recording i wish it was an actual video. if only some one has an actual video of one so i can see that bus is a beast machine

[1987gmusa]

to bad it`s just the sound recording i wish it was an actual video. if only some one has an actual video of one so i can see that bus is a beast machine

[1987gmusa]

when was this bus retired from service before it was saved as a museum bus

[1987gmusa]

when was this bus retired from service before it was saved as a museum bus

[ea90744]

@1987gmusa - This bus was retired from revenue service in the Spring 2006. This bus is preserved at the Santa Monica Big Blue Bus facility

[8v71buses]

Sounds awesome

[panamcunard]

I rode these to Marena Del Rey From High school at time ( I even go kick of one for being for doing something stupid, hey I was a teenager). On the LAX-UCLA route, The Big Blue Bus start useing them just for rush hour in the late 90's early 2000s.

[ea90744]

@panamcunard - 5180 still sits at Downtown Santa Monica. Its stored for historical purposes... as it was the last Canadian-built GM fishbowl.

[panamcunard]

@panamcunard

The route that I been talking about was Line3 UCLA-LAX.

[panamcunard]

Oh yes, I remember riding on these many of times. I went to Westchchster High School And I would ride them then.

[eofficer]

This was the bus from the movie Speed wasn't it?

[ea90744]

@eofficer - This was the same type of bus used in the movie "Speed"...unfortunately, it was not the same bus. To film the movie, they actually used some old, retired GMC buses from San Diego Transit. A few of these buses are preserved by Bus Enthusiasts and Transit Historians

[Speedymac1986]

@eofficer same type, different bus #.

[micismyname]

looks like san diego transit blue

[Spectacular66]

This was the same company that appears in the movie Speed, if anyone noticed!

[ea90744]

@Spectacular66 - the actual bus used in speed was one of Loren Joplin's buses I believe. But yeah same company and everything

[Nabinut]

Never heard a fishbowl with a 6V92, but doesn't sound bad at all

[TheBusDriver84]

yo this engine sounds just like some of the Mci classics that CTTRANSIT New Haven CT had back from 1991-2003. Damn i miss them classics

[jrosscsu06]

i got a shot of privately owned 5140 in santa monica last saturday...its such a beautiful bus looks and sound wise

[busrailfan]

OMG! This recording brings back so many memories of riding the 1982 GM T6H-5307N's in Vancouver which were 6V92TA and Allison V730's as well. They also had the Telma retarder systems. Nice recording! Thanks!

[ea90744]

@busrailfan - This bus also had a Telma Retarder retrofit.

[baul104]

Excellent audio! The New Look sounds just like the GMC or TMC RTS bus!

[ClassicTVMan81]

The powertrain will remind you ...

[ClassicTVMan81]

The bus may have a 6V-92TAC MUI engine (rated 240 or 260 hp in California in 1986), but the model designation of the bus is actually a T8H-5307A, for the 6V-92TA produced about the same amount of power as the 8V-71N.

[busrailfan]

Yeah I never understood why GM Designated the units with A/C as T8H-5307A's, but the non-A/C equipped units like Vancouver's were T6H-5307N's and still had the 6V92TA engines.

[ClassicTVMan81]

6V-92TA-equipped T6H-5307Ns were also ordered by Utah Transit Authority (Salt Lake City, UT) in 1981-82 (the convention continued in 1983-84 with the GMDD TC40-102Ns, same powertrain; until UTA went to Gillig in 1987), Denver RTD (Denver, CO) in 1981, and Grand Rapids Transit (Grand Rapids, MI) in 1981-82.

San Diego Transit (San Diego, CA; now Metropolitan Transit System, or MTS) ran some 1981 T8H-5307As with the 6V-92TAC instead of the 8V-71N. One of those units is preserved by MOBT.