Mercedes-Benz OC500LE
Encyclopedia
The Mercedes-Benz OC 500 LE is a modular, heavy-duty, twin-axle bus
chassis
produced by Mercedes-Benz
/EvoBus
Ibérica S.A.
in Sámano, Spain
. It was designed as a platform for low-entry city, suburban, and intercity buses weighing a maximum of 18,000 kg. It has much in common with the chassis used for the Mercedes-Benz Citaro integral bus range. The engine is horizontally mounted over the rear overhang.
, where it is marketed as the O 500LE. Particularly notable are the OC 500 LE/Volgren
CNG
-fuelled buses that were delivered to the city of Perth
in Western Australia
for operation on the Transperth
suburban bus network between 2003 and 2010.
State Transit Authority (Sydney buses) in NSW, Australia are currently taking delivery of 255 Mercedes OC 500 LE CNG units with Custom Coaches 'CB60' Evo II bodies. Weight and performance issues has delayed the delivery of these vehicles from mid 2007 until June 2008 and finally arriving in early January 2009. In 2010, 20 OC 500 LE Euro 5 diesel units, also with Custom Coaches 'CB60 Evo II bodies (but with Denso airconditioning instead of Thermo King), were introduced to Sydney's northern beaches bus services.
Many operators across Australia have now purchased the OC 500 LE in various configurations. Problems related to quality control and unreliable electronics have not been uncommon. A lot of these complaints have come from drivers due to some units being under-powered, uncomfortable or rough.
Brisbane Transport withdrew their OC 500 LEs from the fleet for a short period because of a major unidentified fault which caused buses to suddenly accelerate without warning. This problem was reportedly fixed by Mercedes-Benz and these vehicles are now back on the road.
In January 2009, Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific Pty Ltd issued a recall on 443 CNG-fuelled OC500LE units due to respecified welding specifications for the turbocharger
oil supply pipe.
SMRT Buses
had taken delivery of 134 Mercedes-Benz OC500LEs for fleet replacement and expansion. These buses feature bodywork built by Thonburi Busbody Limited Thailand with a CapaCity licenced front from Mercedes Benz, engines that meet Euro 5 emissions standards and are wheelchair accessible. They were the first to feature voice announcement system, with announcements similar to the ones used on the MRT
. They are also the first buses in South-East Asia to be fitted with a Euro 5 engine. The last bus, SMB134H, was registered on 1 October 2009.
Buses in this batch were registered in the ranges of SMB2E to SMB67T. The first few units of this batch were put to service from 22 September 2008 onwards and their deployments are spread across two depots, namely the Ang Mo Kio Depot and Kranji Depot. They can be mostly found on WAB-certified services such as 171 , 172 , 189 , 307 , 811 , 851 , 858 and 945.
They were registered from SMB68R till SMB134H. The first few units commenced passenger service on 1 July 2009, almost a year to the day the first unit of the OC500LE (SMB1H) made its first trip. Similar to the first production batch, the buses are deployed to Ang Mo Kio Depot and Kranji Depot. The remaining of the buses are deployed to the Woodlands Depot. They can be mostly found on the same examples of WAB-certified services in the first production batch.
received one unit of the Mercedes-Benz OC500LE for demonstration purposes in early 2009. It features bodywork built by Gemilang. SBS Transit then rejected the trial and now the bus belongs to Chitson Transport.
have started to body the OC500LE as a city bus. The first bus was unveiled in March 2010, and was also exhibited at IAA Hanover 2010.
with integrated hydraulic retarder (model 6 AP 1200 B for the 252 hp CNG engine or model 6 AP 1400 B for the 299hp diesel engine). Previously available was the Voith D864.3E 4-speed automatic transmission as well as the ZF Ecomat 5 HP 502/592 5-speed and 6 HP 502/592 6-speed automatic transmissions.
of between 10.8 m and 13.5 m.
A low-entry articulated chassis, called the O500UA is also available in some markets. It is produced by Mercedes-Benz do Brasil.
Selective Catalytic Reduction
technology. With Euro 4, Euro 5 and EEV, the 252 hp rating of the OM 457 hLA was discontinued. Therefore the OC 500 LE will have a 299 hp engine as standard.
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
chassis
Chassis
A chassis consists of an internal framework that supports a man-made object. It is analogous to an animal's skeleton. An example of a chassis is the underpart of a motor vehicle, consisting of the frame with the wheels and machinery.- Vehicles :In the case of vehicles, the term chassis means the...
produced by Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
/EvoBus
EvoBus
EvoBus GmbH is a bus manufacturer, integrated into the Daimler AG Group. Setra is also a member of the EvoBus GmbH.-History:In 1995, Mercedes-Benz and Setra amalgamated under the umbrella of EvoBus...
Ibérica S.A.
S.A. (corporation)
S.A. designates a particular type of corporation in various countries, mostly those employing the civil law. It originated in Spain during the 16th century. Depending on language, the abbreviation stands for various phrases meaning anonymous society, anonymous company, anonymous partnership, or...
in Sámano, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. It was designed as a platform for low-entry city, suburban, and intercity buses weighing a maximum of 18,000 kg. It has much in common with the chassis used for the Mercedes-Benz Citaro integral bus range. The engine is horizontally mounted over the rear overhang.
Australia
Large numbers of buses built on the OC 500 LE chassis can be found in AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, where it is marketed as the O 500LE. Particularly notable are the OC 500 LE/Volgren
Volgren
Volgren is an Australian bodywork company previously owned by Volvo and the Grenda Corporation but is now entirely owned by the latter. It was established in 1977, initially supplying bodywork for Volvo buses sold in Australia, and later supplying bus bodywork on all types of chassis for both local...
CNG
Compressed natural gas
Compressed natural gas is a fossil fuel substitute for gasoline , diesel, or propane/LPG. Although its combustion does produce greenhouse gases, it is a more environmentally clean alternative to those fuels, and it is much safer than other fuels in the event of a spill...
-fuelled buses that were delivered to the city of Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
in Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
for operation on the Transperth
Transperth
Transperth is the brand name of the public transport system in Perth, Western Australia. It is operated by the Public Transport Authority.-History:...
suburban bus network between 2003 and 2010.
State Transit Authority (Sydney buses) in NSW, Australia are currently taking delivery of 255 Mercedes OC 500 LE CNG units with Custom Coaches 'CB60' Evo II bodies. Weight and performance issues has delayed the delivery of these vehicles from mid 2007 until June 2008 and finally arriving in early January 2009. In 2010, 20 OC 500 LE Euro 5 diesel units, also with Custom Coaches 'CB60 Evo II bodies (but with Denso airconditioning instead of Thermo King), were introduced to Sydney's northern beaches bus services.
Many operators across Australia have now purchased the OC 500 LE in various configurations. Problems related to quality control and unreliable electronics have not been uncommon. A lot of these complaints have come from drivers due to some units being under-powered, uncomfortable or rough.
Brisbane Transport withdrew their OC 500 LEs from the fleet for a short period because of a major unidentified fault which caused buses to suddenly accelerate without warning. This problem was reportedly fixed by Mercedes-Benz and these vehicles are now back on the road.
In January 2009, Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific Pty Ltd issued a recall on 443 CNG-fuelled OC500LE units due to respecified welding specifications for the turbocharger
Turbocharger
A turbocharger, or turbo , from the Greek "τύρβη" is a centrifugal compressor powered by a turbine that is driven by an engine's exhaust gases. Its benefit lies with the compressor increasing the mass of air entering the engine , thereby resulting in greater performance...
oil supply pipe.
SMRT Buses
SMRT Buses
SMRT Buses is a public bus transport operator in Singapore. Singapore currently hosts a duopoly transport system in which SMRT's only competitor is SBS Transit, which also operates bus services in Singapore...
had taken delivery of 134 Mercedes-Benz OC500LEs for fleet replacement and expansion. These buses feature bodywork built by Thonburi Busbody Limited Thailand with a CapaCity licenced front from Mercedes Benz, engines that meet Euro 5 emissions standards and are wheelchair accessible. They were the first to feature voice announcement system, with announcements similar to the ones used on the MRT
Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore)
The Mass Rapid Transit or MRT is a rapid transit system that forms the backbone of the railway system in Singapore, spanning the entire city-state. The initial section of the MRT, between Yio Chu Kang Station and Toa Payoh Station, opened in 1987 establishing itself as the second-oldest metro...
. They are also the first buses in South-East Asia to be fitted with a Euro 5 engine. The last bus, SMB134H, was registered on 1 October 2009.
Demonstrator
The first OC500LE took part in the launch of SMRT's Go Green event on 30 April 2008. The bus was later registered as SMB1H and initially entered revenue service on Service 190 on 29 June 2008. It was later redeployed to operate on Service 172, only half a year into service.First Production Batch
Beginning from the first production batch of buses, slight modifications were made. For example, they include a bigger LAWO side and rear electronic route number display.Buses in this batch were registered in the ranges of SMB2E to SMB67T. The first few units of this batch were put to service from 22 September 2008 onwards and their deployments are spread across two depots, namely the Ang Mo Kio Depot and Kranji Depot. They can be mostly found on WAB-certified services such as 171 , 172 , 189 , 307 , 811 , 851 , 858 and 945.
Second Production Batch
The second production batch featured many more differences as compared to its first batch counterparts, most notably its interior. Blue as well as purple colour schemes were used on the seats in contrast to the first batch's corporate colour seats. Stickers greeting onboard passengers can be found at the front and the rear of the bus. A blue tint situated on the top of the windscreen below the Electronic Destination System reduces glare from the sun, and more grab poles and aircon outlets were added at the last few rows of seats.They were registered from SMB68R till SMB134H. The first few units commenced passenger service on 1 July 2009, almost a year to the day the first unit of the OC500LE (SMB1H) made its first trip. Similar to the first production batch, the buses are deployed to Ang Mo Kio Depot and Kranji Depot. The remaining of the buses are deployed to the Woodlands Depot. They can be mostly found on the same examples of WAB-certified services in the first production batch.
SBS Transit
SBS TransitSBS Transit
SBS Transit Limited is a public transport operator in Singapore. Its major competitor in Singapore's duopoly transport system is SMRT Corporation, which also operates bus, rail, taxi and other transport services....
received one unit of the Mercedes-Benz OC500LE for demonstration purposes in early 2009. It features bodywork built by Gemilang. SBS Transit then rejected the trial and now the bus belongs to Chitson Transport.
United Kingdom
MCVMCV Bus and Coach
MCV Bus and Coach is a British manufacturer of bus bodies founded in late 2002 after buying the assets of defunct bus builder Marshall Bus who closed down in the summer of that year...
have started to body the OC500LE as a city bus. The first bus was unveiled in March 2010, and was also exhibited at IAA Hanover 2010.
OC 500 LE 1825h
- EngineEngineAn engine or motor is a machine designed to convert energy into useful mechanical motion. Heat engines, including internal combustion engines and external combustion engines burn a fuel to create heat which is then used to create motion...
type: OM 457 hLA (Euro 3) inline 6-cylinder 11.967-litre turbocharged intercooled, direct injection dieselDiesel engineA diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber... - PowerPower (physics)In physics, power is the rate at which energy is transferred, used, or transformed. For example, the rate at which a light bulb transforms electrical energy into heat and light is measured in watts—the more wattage, the more power, or equivalently the more electrical energy is used per unit...
: 185 kWKwkw or KW may refer to:* Kuwait, ISO 3166-1 country code** .kw, the country code top level domain for Kuwait* Kilowatt* Self-ionization of water Kw* Cornish language's ISO 639 code* Kitchener–Waterloo, Ontario, Canada...
(252 hpHorsepowerHorsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
) @ 2000 rpm - TorqueTorqueTorque, moment or moment of force , is the tendency of a force to rotate an object about an axis, fulcrum, or pivot. Just as a force is a push or a pull, a torque can be thought of as a twist....
: 1100 N m (811 ft·lbf) @ 1100 rpm
OC 500 LE 1825hG
- Engine type: M 447 hLAG (Euro 4/Euro 5/EEV) inline 6-cylinder 11.967-litre turbocharged intercooled, lean burnLean burnLean burn refers to the use of lean mixtures in an internal combustion engine. The air-fuel ratios can be as high as 65:1, so the mixture has considerably less fuel in comparison to the stoichiometric combustion ratio ....
, spark ignition single point injectionFuel injectionFuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
CNG - Power: 185 kW (252 hp) @ 2000 rpm
- Torque: 1050 N m (774 ft·lbf) @ 1000-1400 rpm
OC 500 LE 1830h
- Engine type: OM 457 hLA (Euro 3/Euro 4/Euro 5/EEV) inline 6-cylinder 11.967-litre turbocharged intercooled, direct injection diesel
- Power: 220 kW (299 hp) @ 2000 rpm
- Torque: 1250 N m (921 ft·lbf) @ 1100 rpm
Transmissions
Currently, Mercedes-Benz only offers a ZF-EcoLife 6-speed automatic transmissionAutomatic transmission
An automatic transmission is one type of motor vehicle transmission that can automatically change gear ratios as the vehicle moves, freeing the driver from having to shift gears manually...
with integrated hydraulic retarder (model 6 AP 1200 B for the 252 hp CNG engine or model 6 AP 1400 B for the 299hp diesel engine). Previously available was the Voith D864.3E 4-speed automatic transmission as well as the ZF Ecomat 5 HP 502/592 5-speed and 6 HP 502/592 6-speed automatic transmissions.
Body lengths
The OC 500 LE can have a total body lengthLength
In geometric measurements, length most commonly refers to the longest dimension of an object.In certain contexts, the term "length" is reserved for a certain dimension of an object along which the length is measured. For example it is possible to cut a length of a wire which is shorter than wire...
of between 10.8 m and 13.5 m.
A low-entry articulated chassis, called the O500UA is also available in some markets. It is produced by Mercedes-Benz do Brasil.
Euro 4 and Euro 5
The OC 500 LE chassis is now available with a Euro 4, Euro 5 and EEV-compliant diesel engine using AdBlueAdBlue
Diesel Exhaust Fluid is an aqueous urea solution used in Selective Catalytic Reduction to lower NOx concentration in the exhaust emissions from diesel engines...
Selective Catalytic Reduction
Selective catalytic reduction
Selective catalytic reduction is a means of converting nitrogen oxides, also referred to as with the aid of a catalyst into diatomic nitrogen , , and water, . A gaseous reductant, typically anhydrous ammonia, aqueous ammonia or urea, is added to a stream of flue or exhaust gas and is absorbed...
technology. With Euro 4, Euro 5 and EEV, the 252 hp rating of the OM 457 hLA was discontinued. Therefore the OC 500 LE will have a 299 hp engine as standard.
Competitors
- MAN NL-series chassis
- Volvo B12BLEVolvo B12BLEThe Volvo B12BLE is a low-entry city and suburban bus chassis launched in 2001 with an engine mounted on the rear overhang. It replaced the Volvo B10BLE and is used as a base for single deck buses in Europe and Australia....
- Scania L94Scania L94The Scania L94 is a longitudinal inclined-engined bus built by Scania AB, which was a direct replacement of Scania L113. It is used widely in Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, Brazil and Australia...
/K-seriesScania K-seriesScania K-series is a series of bus with longitudinally, straight-up mounted Euro IV engine at the rear. For the 5- and 6-cylinder engines Scania is using exhaust gas recirculation system to fulfill the legal Euro IV emission standard...