Bussin’ (Fuso Style) with Kermie

In-depth

27 Oct

Here’s a story that may only appeal to a few of you – possibly very few, given this website is all about trucks and truckin’ rather than buses and bussin’. So Joe Hupp and Martyn Davies, this is for you guys as I know you will both be interested. Then again, one of the most successful transport publications – and the longest lived – was the ubiquitous Truck & Bus Magazine. So who knows?

Anyway, all that aside it’s fun to play with anything that has a motor and wheels (on the bus) going round and round.

My first meeting with a Rosa was many years ago and that Rosa was then getting on in life. She was also a Mitsubishi rather than a Fuso. I’ve forgotten how many hundreds of thousands of miles she had on the clock but there were lots of them. Her bussin’ days had passed and she had fallen into the possession of one Ronald Doyle, better known as Ruffy - doyen of the Old South Road back in the ‘70’s.

**Ruffy Doyle’s home away from home. He loved his ‘Rose’**

Ruffy had gutted the old girl and turned her into a home away from home for him and wife, Dot. That old bus took them all over Australia including to Alice Springs for the Truckies Reunion on many occasions and not once did it let them down. I fell in love with ‘Second-hand Rose’ as she was affectionately named. When Ruffy and Dot decided to move her on I was sorely tempted to adopt her, but my Rita had her heart set on a caravan.

I can tell you that she drove like a charm, sitting on the road with all the aplomb that a high-class lady would exhibit. She also had plenty of guts (not quite so lady-like). I’ve seen her pulling an all-steel pontoon that would have to have been in excess of 4.5 tons, and she didn’t know it was on board. Yep, I really liked that lady.

**Ruffy’s cab. Read on to see how far the new Rosa has come**

Now Fuso have released a brand new version of the Rosa….

The new generation Fuso Rosa features the most advanced safety features to appear in the Australian light duty bus class. Rosa will be protected by a comprehensive range of safety features including Advanced Emergency Braking, which can perform full emergency braking in the event of a potential collision. This advanced radar-based system can even detect, and begin braking for moving pedestrians. (Very handy if Little Johnny - playing up down the back - has taken your attention away from the road. Also handy in stopping you from running the little prat over – even if you really want to).

Lane Departure Warning System is also standard, as is Electronic Stability. Rosa is currently the only light duty bus in Australia to carry all these features.

Add in the standard driver and front passenger airbags, height adjustable LED headlights, Hill Start Assist and a reversing camera and you’ve pretty well got the full suite.

There are also three-point lap sash seatbelts (in deluxe models) to keep Little Johnny and his pesky schoolkid mates locked in tight, and four exits so you can spit them all out in a hurry if needs be.

**Keeping Little Johnny safe and secure**

There is also a transom window on the passenger side so the driver can see if he/she’s missed anyone on the school run.

Seriously, Fuso has made a range of significant changes inside and outside the Rosa, which is available with 22 or 25 seats, further improving the most popular bus of the last decade in Australia.

There are many other benefits introduced by the upgraded model, but nothing as important as these features that will help protect passengers.

This new Rosa continues its five year/200,000km warranty and has managed to further improve uptime and help reduce running costs by increasing service intervals to 15,000km.

New for Rosa is an efficient 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel common rail engine with 129kW and 430Nm. This advanced unit, which features a variable geometry turbocharger, is smaller and lighter than the engine it replaces, but is also more powerful. It also meets stringent Euro 6 emission standards.

Fuso is also introducing its advanced Duonic Automated Manual Transmission, which features six gears, to the Rosa range. The dual clutch transmission delivers fuel efficiency improvements as well as fast and smooth shifts. It also features a handy creep function for easy low-speed manoeuvring. If so inclined – as you may be if you’ve had a work lifestyle change from a 9-Oh - there is also the option of a five-speed manual transmission.

Fuso has significantly upgraded the interior of the Rosa, with a new-look dashboard that is both practical and stylish. It now incorporates a passenger side airbag, as well as a new climate control display and new switches for key controls that are within easy reach of the driver.

A new high-resolution 7-inch touchscreen display with internet and digital radio has been introduced, along with a new electronic instrument cluster that presents a range of bus data for the driver including fuel efficiency information, maintenance status, date and outside temperature. There is a repositioned handbrake lever, which now sits to the left of the driver’s seat and Fuso has moved the transmission shift lever from the floor onto the dashboard for easier control.

The Rosa benefits from new bright LED passenger lamps, while the rear air-conditioning system with integrated roof vents has been retained. Deluxe models also feature new high-backed cloth seats.

A new flat-floor design not only makes it easier for passengers to get in and out of their seats, but also allows for simpler aftermarket wheelchair lift installations (and that after-bus-life motor home).

The Rosa continues to feature independent front suspension which aids comfort and handling, as well as rack and pinion steering for precise feel. It has a class leading turning circle of 12.6 metres (22 seat) and 14.2m (25 seat) which beats the heck out of that 9-Oh and probably your LandCruiser as well. There are rear suspension stabilisers and disc brakes all round.

The bus is a breeze to drive around town and is quiet and comfortable out on the open road. The Hill Start Assist is always welcome. Controls are well placed and logical. There is a bit of a stretch to the cabin air-con switches on the left of the dashboard, but you set them before heading off. Simples. The steering wheel is missing radio operation controls, but really, in this case it doesn’t matter as the module is perfectly placed for easy operation.

The exterior has been freshened up and looks the bit with its LED headlights. There are two trims available – standard and deluxe. I’d go standard (with the vinyl seats) for the schoolkids and deluxe for the Nursing Home residents – of which I expect to be one in the not too distant future.

All in all she’s a good old (new) bus. May I suggest to you, Martyn Davies, that you talk your employer into buying a couple of dozen of them. Then, when they’ve finished with one I’ll take it off their hands and have my very own Second-hand Rose to turn into that RV. Because by then I’ll be too old to hitch up the caravan.

Job well done, Fuso.

Right, back to trucks …..

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