Karosa ŠM 16,5 was prototype of an urban bus built by bus manufacturer

Karosa Karosa ( cs, Továrna na Kočáry, Automobily, Rotory, Obráběcí stroje, Sekací stroje a Autobusy, en, Factory for carriages, cars, rotors, machine tools, cutting machines and buses) was a bus manufacturer in Vysoké Mýto in the Czech Republi ...

from the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

, in 1968. It was succeeded by

Karosa B 741 Karosa B 741 is an articulated urban bus produced by bus manufacturer Karosa from the Czech Republic, in the years of 1991 to 1997. In many towns they replaced Ikarus 280 made in Hungary. In production was succeeded by Karosa B 941 in 1997. Con ...

in 1991.

Construction features

Karosa ŠM 16,5 is completely different from its predecessor,

Škoda 706 RTO-K Škoda 706 RTO-K was a protype of an articulated urban bus produced by bus manufacturer Karosa and Škoda of Czechoslovakia, in the year 1960. It was succeeded by Karosa ŠM 16,5 in 1968. Construction features 706 RTO-K is a three-axle bus w ...

, which had engine in front. ŠM 16,5 is model of

Karosa Š series Karosa Š series is a collective term for several modifications of Czechoslovakia, Czechoslovak bus, which was made by the Karosa Vysoké Mýto in years 1964 (prototypes since 1961) to 1981. History Š-Series buses began to be developed as ...

. It is derived from Karosa ŠM 11 city bus, and also unified with long-distance coach Karosa ŠD 11. Body is semi-self-supporting with

frame A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...

and

engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...

with

automatic gearbox An automatic transmission (sometimes abbreviated to auto or AT) is a multi-speed transmission used in internal combustion engine-based motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving c ...

in the middle, between the wheels. Only rear axle is propulsed. Front axle is independent, middle and rear axle is solid. All axles are mounted on

air suspension Air suspension is a type of vehicle suspension powered by an electric or engine-driven air pump or compressor. This compressor pumps the air into a flexible bellows, usually made from textile-reinforced rubber. Unlike hydropneumatic suspension, ...

. On the right side are four folding doors (first and last are narrower than middle doors). Inside are used leatherette seats. Drivers cab is not separated from the rest of the vehicle. In the rear part is room for a pram or wheelchair.

Production and operation

The first prototype was built in 1968. 15 more buses were built after that. Later production was halted because of a decision to import

Ikarus 280 Ikarus 280 was an articulated bus produced by Hungarian bus manufacturer Ikarus from 1973 to 2002. It was succeeded by the Ikarus 435 in 1985. Construction features The Ikarus 280 is a model of the Ikarus 200 series. It is made of two rigid ...

buses. The last ŠM 16,5 buses were withdrawn in the 80´s.

Historical vehicles

No ŠM 16,5 bus has been preserved. However a replica is being built in

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

since 2012.

Construction features

Production and operation

Historical vehicles

References

See also