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Ring us on: 0845 021 4711
077 3388 4914
email us at: buses@wheels.co.uk
Welcome to The Friendly Midland Red.
It goes without saying that you will find a unique collection of vehicles at Wheels / Midland Red Coaches. The seasons will bring a suitable range of Vintage Buses Classic and more modern coaches out to play! Most of our work is very enjoyable and each vehicle fitting for our diverse range of work. You will not see all the Wheels/Midland Red Coaches fleet operating at any one time. If you have any special occasion where you need a particular vehicle we can often, with sufficient notice, bring a particular vehicle (which may be in store) into the operational fleet. Overhauls, restorations, painting etc, are carried out when the vehicles are non operational and during winter seasons. Our interesting operation is operated by a charitable project The Wheels Museum of Transport Heritage, which aims to preserve and promote the memories of Midland Red for show to future generations, using the classic and vintage buses provides funds for continued restorations of existing and further vehicles in our collection.
WHEELS / Midland Red Coaches has a wheelchair accessible coach which has special features for the less mobile and disabled passengers including wheelchair lift facilities, this traditional British coach operates some Holidays, Daytrips, Mystery Tours or Shopping trips on a Private Hire basis. There is also a slightly more modern coach and features the traditional and reliable Leyland Leopard chassis, and the very last Leyland model - the Leyland Royal Tiger Doyen, it almost looks too modern for a heritage fleet, but the design is almost thirty years old! Do please ask us for details if you require any further information about what vehicle is suitable for the journey you are planning.
All our fleet are of British design and manufacture - not may companies can say that ! - And most are from an era when we had a forward looking and exciting vehicle manufacturing industry which was highly motivated, extremely innovative, and where the products were in the majority of cases over engineered by today's standards, making them long lasting and reliable. One of this country's main commercial manufacturers was Leyland who since the 1920's have had models identified by names. Animals, mainly large cats have been the basis of names for many Leyland buses and coaches. Here are a few examples: Leyland Lion, Leyland Tiger, Leyland Cheetah, Leyland Cub, Leyland Lioness, Leyland Panther, Leyland Leopard, and Leyland Royal Tiger. We have examples of Leyland Leopard and Tiger animal models and we have decided to take the animal theme a little further. We have large model animals which often accompany our passengers when traveling on our Leopard and Tiger vehicles. They are our vehicle mascots. You will find them securely chained when they travel on our coaches and they don't mind being stroked!
We are also very proud to have in our fleet a number of vehicles which operated for Midland Red, a genuine BMMO D9 double decker and the unique Charabanc 25 seater which previously operated with Midland Red North from Wellington Depot. These vehicles hold special places in our collection and are available for special hire duties and fit perfectly with our slogan "Special Buses for Special Passengers" If you are celebrating something special like a Wedding or Civil Partnership Ceremony, a Birthday or Anniversary, or just want a pleasant day re-creating midland bus memories - then these are the finest you can get, they bring back many memories to everyone who comes into contact with them and they are sure to attract attention from passers-by.
We can even personalise the front destination blinds to show your names or the name of your group - great if you include the bus in any photographs.
Enjoy looking through our fleet list and we welcome the opportunity in the
future when we are able to organise a special day out for you when you can enjoy
the nostalgia and the sense of occasion when you travel in style with WHEELS on
our Midland Red Coaches.
We welcome your enquiries for hiring our vehicles - Here are some tips:
When you email us with your enquiry, please give us as much detailed
information as you can. At this stage your enquiry is just that, and we do not
act upon any information at this stage - apart from accurately costing your
requirements. For your particular hire to be smooth-running and planned
using our best experience we do need all the information available. Its
rather like a Jigsaw - we need to know all the peices so that we know where we
fit in !
Please give us the following information as a minimum - it helps us to get costings and details worked out accurately for you without having to get back to you for more information.
Remember at this stage there is no obligation. We will then
send to you our Email of Costing document, this will detail your requirements,
show costings for each vehicle available at the time, and give you information
on How to Make a Reservation. If you decide to go ahead with your
exciting plans, you return the documents signed, along with a vehicle holding
deposit, and then when your booking is accepted, your chosen vehicle is held
against your booking date and times. A straightforward, easy, and
fail-safe system.
Before you email us with an enquiry or
booking, please check our fleet below and always
have a couple of choices of vehicle in mind. email: buses@wheels.co.uk
Midland Red Charabanc
Fleet number 147
Seats up to 25 passengers
The ultimate in unusual vintage coach transport - This is the vehicle that makes your special occasion outstanding !
There is only one of these Charabancs in the UK which is licenced to
carry passengers. This is truly different!
If you are looking for something unique and special - TV, Films, or for Wedding or Civil Partnership ceremony transport, a special trip out, an anniversary or a Mystery tour - this charabanc is ideal for the most special of occasions.
Our vehicle has an interesting history, the body is thought to date from 1929 - it was heavily refurbished and fitted onto a slightly more modern chassis back in the 1970's. This makes it possible for it to be operational for many years in modern traffic conditions.
Midland Red operated this vehicle in the Ironbridge Gorge, linking the heritage sites for a number of years but was later surplus to their requirements and sold.
This vehicle is available for hire for special occasions and is a very 1920's travel experience well before the delights of air suspension and double glazing- we suggest that your guests wear suitable clothing as this vehicle has open sides ! We also suggest that journeys of an hour or so are best for both the bus and its passengers !
Enter the spirit of a bye gone time and enjoy your Charabanc ride.
Leyland
Titan PD2 Open rear platform Double Decker.
FDB 340C - Named "Wheels Trundler" - fleet number 3340
Seats up to 60 passengers.
The Leyland Titan design was produced for many years and by the time our vehicle was built in 1965 it was rare to see exposed radiators on new buses. Looking alot older than it really is, makes it good to help create scenes from the 1940's to the 1970's. It was supplied new to Stockport Corporation Transport and operated their town services in and around Stockport/Manchester area. In 1979 it was withdrawn from everyday service and entered the workshops and was used for driver training and was also worked on by Trainee Engineers and for this reason it was around longer than many of its sister vehicles. It was sold on to preservationists in the Cheshire area and was advertised for sale in 2002. It is now finished in the livery of Stratford Blue Motor Services which was a wholly owned subsidiary of Midland Red since 1935. It carries the WHEELS fleetname on its sides in the style of the "winged oval" Midland Red logo from the early 1960's.
An ideal bus for special occasions - our "Wheels Trundler" can trundle anywhere around the Midlands area.
Hiring this piece of traditional British transport history brings you Driver and Bus Conductor too.
BMMO D9 Double Decker EHA 415D - fleet number 5415 Seats up to 60 passengers
A
BIG RED DOUBLE DECKER BUS FOR HIRE IN THE MIDLANDS
This bus is very special to us, this much loved type of Midland Red D9 bus 5415 first joined our fleet a dozen or so years ago and we are very pleased and proud to have it in our fleet. The D9 type operated throughout the Midland Red area and is the most popular post war design.
Midland Red designed and built their own buses from 1923 to 1970 in post war times they were produced under the makers name of BMMO which was of course Midland Red's formal company name- The Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company. Although the D9 first appeared in 1958, our D9 is from the last batch of 345, built in 1966. The D9 is 30 feet long and 8 feet wide it has many highly advance features including independantly sprung front wheels, integral construction, rubber suspension, semi automatic gearbox, Midland Reds own design of 10.5 litre engine, and advanced fibreglass/plastics including a one piece roof. The front wheels are unusually set back giving excellent engine access and a good turning circle. The D9 is to the people of the Midlands what the Routemaster is to the people of London and holds a special place in many people's thoughts and memories.
5415 operated at garages including Kidderminster and Tamworth, and it was two Tamworth based drivers who originally bought the bus from Midland Red ownership. However it was later sold and was sadly taken 'down south' for a few years but was later rescued by Lutterworth enthusiast the late Derek Raye who set about properly restoring the bus - and he did some great work over a number of years. He stored his D9 for a time in Nuneaton where we caught up with Derek who was in bad health and looking for a good home for this rare bus. We were successful in buying it then, and set about 5415 gaining full PSV status once again. Due to time delays in its use as a bus no records remained of it being a bus, so it had to be recertified involving its axles being seperately weighed etc. Ironically it was the man who originally did the initial Certification of our D9 that was in charge of the test station and he had great pleasure in showing some of the unusual engineering features of the D9 type to his colleagues.
5415 happily enjoyed semi retirement on light duties including some local rail replacement duties, a peak local bus service and occasionally making an early morning works run to the Rolls Royce plant in Coventry, and of course some private hire work. Three years later when we moved to a depot with no double deck accommodation, a low railway bridge on one access road and a severe hump back bridge on another we werent able to keep 5415 so it was sold to Birmingham enthusiast Peter Mason who was fortunate in finding some ex Midland Red staff to maintain it. He also gained some much valued spare parts. We had been negotiating for the return of 5415 to our fleet for nearly five years and are extremely pleased to see its return to our fleet in the year of Midland Reds 100th birthday year and once again offer it for special private hire work. Nowadays, every passenger enjoys a special experience and if you can remember them from their earlier operating days, then you'll have an even more nostalgic journey.
This bus participated in the wonderful Midland Red 3-day 100th Birthday Party at The Black Country Museum in November 2004, making journeys over the museums road network with other buses from the Midland Red stable.
HIRING OF THE D9 RED BUS COMES WITH BUS CONDUCTOR TOO !
Now you can enjoy our D9 on your special occasion in some of the Midlands area.
We do limit the mileage we operate with our D9, but it's especially good to use
in the general areas of Leicester, Hinckley, Nuneaton, Coventry, Leamington
Spa, Stratford Upon Avon, Tamworth and Birmingham areas. We do make some
exceptions, especially for certain Weddings, TV and Film work, etc. Please
ask us for
details.
Bristol RELH Coach. OTA
645G - Named "Wheels Pioneer" fleet number
4645
Seats up to 34 passengers
This coach has a special place in our fleet - It was the first
operational coach we
bought back in 1991, apart from that fact, it also has a very interesting history. It
was built in
1968, It is a Bristol RELH (rear engine long high) chassis, and has an Eastern
Coachworks 45 seat body. It was new to the Royal Blue fleet and operated their prestigious
services between
London and the South West of England (The English Riviera). In 1975 it was
parked in Bournemouth coach station when fire broke out in another nearby
bus and was damaged, it was
fortunate in that it was fully rebuilt and re-entered service later in 1976. This vehicle
is ideal for most occasions where a classic 'older' looking coach is
needed. For weddings we decorate it with white ribbons, bouquets and
flowers. Its also ideal for resurrecting those old fashioned Mystery Tours, with
its large windows you have no trouble seeing over the hedge rows. Newly
retrimmed in luxurious style it is now downseated to just 38 passengers. 24
people sit at tables for 4, with others in forward facing seats. This bus
will feature in an episode of BBC2's "Priceless" an offshoot of
the Antiques Roadshow to be broadcast in January 2010.
Leyland Leopard - Named "WHEELS
Challenger" fleet number 6222
Seats 47 with no wheelchairs or combinations eg 2 wheelchairs and
41 seats
This
Leyland coach first started life as a Green Line Coach operating in London
Suburbs on services radiating to Cambridge. Leyland have had a long tradition of
naming many of their models after large 'cats' - this example is a Leyland
Leopard. When it was just five years old it
was sent to a dealer for refurbishing before being sold to Hatts of Wiltshire
where it was professionally converted to have wheelchair lift facilities
installed. In 2001 it was sold to a taxi firm in Bridlington, East
Yorkshire who sold it on to Wheels in 2003. It has seen further refurbishment
and repaint before entering service in August 2003. Its centre lift and
full tracking facilities make it a most versatile coach for the carriage of the
less mobile passenger. Its a good all-rounder, go-anywhere coach with
comfortable seats with a bright and vibrant interior.
This model of coach now is fast becoming a classic British Coach design.
This Leyland Leopard coach often
carries our five feet long Leopard mascot on board, If you want the Leopard
mascot to accompany your group - just ask when making the booking..
Leyland Leopard - Named "WHEELS
Conveyor" fleet number 6505
Seating for up to 40 Passengers
These coaches are now very rare.
While the Leyland Leopard chassis has been around
for over 45 years and was Leyland's best ever bus and coach chassis, this coach
is rather different. After 14 years of its life (that's about one normal bus
life), its chassis was refurbished and it became the prototype vehicle for a new
design of coach body, especially, but not exclusively for rebodying on older
heavyweight British bus chassis. The Leyland Leopard sold all over the
world - Ireland, Holland, Portugal, Africa, Australia to name a few, but it also
went to many commonwealth countries. Of course the
British market was the biggest. It was a most versatile chassis and was available as a
normal service bus, a dual purpose vehicle
or a Coach. They had the tried and tested Leyland 680 engine.
The chassis often outlasted the bodywork and some like this one were rebodied in the 1990's. They still retain their traditional and characteristic 'Leyland' sound, but have a higher level of comfort than their original build. Our coach started life in 1978 as a National Express coach and was rebodied in 1992 at local coach builder Willowbrook of Loughborough. It then operated with smaller coach companies, ending its serious working life with Daglish Coaches in Cumbria where it was a very reliable coach. Now after its 30th birthday we have given this British classic coach a refurbished interior, which has just 43 reclining coach seats with retractor seatbelts, footrests, curtains, and very spacious leg room. The seating is arranged with two additional areas for group seating where between 3 and up to 8 people can sit together.
This coach is a modern British classic, and is good for most duties including Extended Tours, Private Hire, and Day Excursions.
This Leyland Leopard coach often carries our five feet long Leopard mascot on board, If you want the Leopard mascot to accompany your group - just ask when making the booking.
Leyland Royal Tiger Doyen - Named "Royal
Tiger Class" fleet number
6100
Seating for up to 49 Passengers
This
is the ultimate Modern Classic !
Production of the Leyland Tiger followed on from the Leyland Leopard. They were both still underfloor engined designs, but in an attempt to fight off competition from foreign vehicle manufacturers which were taking a bigger market share in the UK in the 1980's, Leyland resurected another great name from the past - the Leyland Royal Tiger. This, like many of the foreign imports was rear engined with Leyland's horizontal TL11 turbocharged engine, and it was built to a new "space-cage" design to give massive storage capacity on an underfloor level for suitcases.
Riding on air suspension and using common parts to other Leyland bus products of the time, it was a stunning looking coach. Time has shown that it is one of those 'dateless' designs and standing the Royal Tiger Doyen coach next to a coach of the modern day, the Royal Tiger doesn't look out of place today, yet it is over a quarter of a century since the type first appeared. The design was in-build when Volvo bought out Leyland Bus in 1988 and production was stopped prematurely - no one knows exactly how many were completed. The bodywork was built at two other Leyland owned plants, firstly at Charles H. Roe in Leeds, where production was not successful, and later at Leyland's Workington (Lancashire) bus plant. At the time of writing approximately 15 remain out of the 100 or so produced between 1982 to 1988, but only a handful remain in service. The Leyland Royal Tiger Doyen is the last of a Great British breed
Our coach is ideal for Private Hire, Day Excursions, and Extended Tours. It has reclining seats ample leg room, tinted windows, double glazing, curtains, and PA system with Radio and CD facilities, It is due to enter our operational fleet in early summer.
We have a documented story of this special coach in our Preservabus Pages which will no doubt be of interest to enthusiasts. It gives some details of the history of both the design and type, and of our particular vehicle. This will be updated as new details become available.
This Leyland Royal Tiger coach often carries our five feet long Tiger mascot on board. If you want the Tiger mascot to accompany your group - just ask when making the booking. Adorned with its Crown, the Royal Tiger is securely chained on board and doesn't bite!
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