The Mercedes-Benz OC 500 LE is a modular, heavy-duty,
twin-axle bus chassis produced by
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
/
EvoBus
EvoBus GmbH is a German bus and coach manufacturer headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany and a wholly owned subsidiary of Daimler Truck AG. Its products go to market under the brands Setra or Mercedes-Benz.
History
In 1995, the bus division of ...
Ibérica, Spain. It was designed as a modular platform for
low-entry city, suburban, and intercity buses with a maximum
gross vehicle weight
Vehicle weight is a measurement of wheeled motor vehicles; either an actual measured weight of the vehicle under defined conditions or a gross weight rating for its weight carrying capacity.
Curb or kerb weight
Curb weight (U.S. English) or kerb ...
of 19.1 tonnes. The main modules consist of: driver's pedestal, front axle, buggy centre section, drive axle and engine. It has much in common with the chassis used for the
Mercedes-Benz Citaro
The Mercedes-Benz Citaro is a single-decker, rigid or articulated bus manufactured by Mercedes-Benz/EvoBus. Introduced in 1997, the Citaro is available in a range of configurations, and is in widespread use throughout Europe and parts of Asia ...
integral bus range, and also the raised floor
OC 500 RF coach chassis. The engine is horizontally mounted over the rear overhang.
Mercedes-Benz in Brazil manufacture a low-entry chassis known as the
O 500 U, which is related to the OC 500 LE, but is not identical. It is also available as the
articulated
An articulated vehicle is a vehicle which has a permanent or semi-permanent pivot joint in its construction, allowing it to turn more sharply. There are many kinds, from heavy equipment to buses, trams and trains. Steam locomotives were someti ...
O 500 UA and the quad-axle articulated O 500 UDA, with the latter giving a vehicle length of 23 metres. The O 500 U is also available in Australia, marketed as OH1830LE.
Technical details
Variations
;OC 500 LE 1825h
*
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 ...
type: OM 457 hLA (
Euro III
The European emission standards are vehicle emission standards for pollution from the use of new land surface vehicles sold in the European Union and EEA member states and the UK, and ships in EU waters. The standards are defined in a ser ...
) inline 6-cylinder 11.967-litre
turbocharged
In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (often called a turbo) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to pro ...
intercooled
An intercooler is a heat exchanger used to cool a gas after compression. Often found in turbocharged engines, intercoolers are also used in air compressors, air conditioners, refrigeration and gas turbines.
Internal combustion engines
Most ...
,
direct injection diesel
Diesel may refer to:
* Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression
* Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines
* Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engin ...
*
Power
Power most often refers to:
* Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work"
** Engine power, the power put out by an engine
** Electric power
* Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events
** Abusive power
Power may a ...
: 185
kW (252
hp) @ 2000
rpm
Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines.
Standards
ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...
*
Torque
In physics and mechanics, torque is the rotational equivalent of linear force. It is also referred to as the moment of force (also abbreviated to moment). It represents the capability of a force to produce change in the rotational motion of th ...
: 1100
N m (811
ft·lbf
The foot-pound force (symbol: ft⋅lbf, ft⋅lbf, or ft⋅lb ) is a unit of work or energy in the engineering and gravitational systems in United States customary and imperial units of measure. It is the energy transferred upon applying a fo ...
) @ 1100 rpm
;OC 500 LE 1825hG
*Engine type: M 447 hLAG (
Euro IV
The European emission standards are vehicle emission standards for pollution from the use of new land surface vehicles sold in the European Union and EEA member states and the UK, and ships in EU waters. The standards are defined in a seri ...
/Euro V/
EEV) inline 6-cylinder 11.967-litre turbocharged intercooled,
lean burn
Lean-burn refers to the burning of fuel with an excess of air in an internal combustion engine. In lean-burn engines the air:fuel ratio may be as lean as 65:1 (by mass). The air / fuel ratio needed to stoichiometrically combust gasoline, by con ...
, spark ignition
single point injection CNG
Compressed natural gas (CNG) is a fuel gas mainly composed of methane (CH4), compressed to less than 1% of the volume it occupies at standard atmospheric pressure. It is stored and distributed in hard containers at a pressure of , usually in cy ...
*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 III/Euro IV/Euro V/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
;OC 500 LE Euro VI
*Engine type: OM 936 (
Euro VI
The European emission standards are vehicle emission standards for pollution from the use of new land surface vehicles sold in the European Union and EEA member states and the UK, and ships in EU waters. The standards are defined in a seri ...
) inline 6-cylinder 7.698-litre turbocharged intercooled, direct injection diesel
*Power: 220 kW (299 hp) @ 1200 rpm
*Torque: 1200 N m @ 1200-1600 rpm
Initially available with Euro III engines, the OC 500 LE chassis got upgraded to Euro IV, Euro V and EEV-compliant diesel engines using
AdBlue
Diesel exhaust fluid (DEF; also known as AUS 32 and marketed as AdBlue) is a liquid used to reduce the amount of air pollution created by a diesel engine. Specifically, DEF is an aqueous urea solution made with 32.5% urea and 67.5% deionized w ...
Selective Catalytic Reduction
Selective catalytic reduction (SCR) is a means of converting nitrogen oxides, also referred to as with the aid of a catalyst into diatomic nitrogen (), and water (). A reductant, typically anhydrous ammonia (), aqueous ammonia (), or a urea () s ...
technology. With Euro IV, Euro V and EEV, the 252 hp rating of the OM 457 hLA was discontinued, making the 299 hp engine as standard for the OC 500 LE. It is also available with the OM 936 engine in Euro VI markets.
Transmissions
Currently, Mercedes-Benz only offers a
ZF EcoLife
The ZF EcoLife transmission is a 6 speed planetary transmission for medium capacity applications with rapid speed variation, such as city buses and diesel commuter rail, designed by ZF Friedrichshafen. It features boosted operating economy, longer ...
6-speed
automatic transmission
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 ...
with integrated hydraulic retarder (model 6 AP 1200 B for the 252 hp CNG engine or model 6 AP 1400 B for the 299 hp diesel engine). Previously available was the Voith D864.3E 4-speed automatic transmission as well as the
ZF Ecomat
The ZF Ecomat automotive transmission was specifically designed by ZF Friedrichshafen AG primarily for city-buses and motorcoaches. It has several generations – all of the automatic transmission type, and many variants. The latest variants ...
5 HP 502/592 5-speed and 6 HP 502/592 6-speed automatic transmissions.
Orders
Australia
Large numbers of buses built on the OC 500 LE chassis can be found in Australia, where it was originally marketed as the O 500LE. then got renamed as the Mercedes OC 500 LE . Now, it is marketed here like in the world, as OC 500 LE.
Transperth
Transperth is the brand name of the public transport system serving the city and suburban areas of Perth, the state capital of Western Australia. It is managed by the Public Transport Authority (PTA), a state government organisation. Train op ...
operate 540
Volgren
Volgren is an Australian bus and coach body manufacturer.
History
Volvo Buses, VolGrenda Corporation, gren was formed in 1977 by Melbourne bus operator Grenda Corporation in Dandenong, Victoria. Because Grenda held the Volvo Buses dealership i ...
bodied examples, 474 being
CNG
Compressed natural gas (CNG) is a fuel gas mainly composed of methane (CH4), compressed to less than 1% of the volume it occupies at standard atmospheric pressure. It is stored and distributed in hard containers at a pressure of , usually in cy ...
powered. There have been 15 OC 500 LE CNG fires in Perth, and in October 2013, the
Public Transport Authority commenced legal action against Mercedes-Benz, Evobus and Volgren. The action was dropped in 2014.
Sydney Buses purchased 255 CNG and 20 diesel powered examples, all with
Custom Coaches
Custom Bus (previously Custom Coaches) is an Australian bus body builder in St Marys, New South Wales.
History Cycle Components Manufacturing Company
In 1935 Stanley Hillsdon founded Cycle Components Manufacturing Company (CCMC) in Guildford, ...
bodies, however one was destroyed by fire in June 2011. The Custom O500LE is powered by a 185 kW and 1050Nm CNG M 447 hLAG inline 11.967 litre 6-cylinder engine.
There are two gas tanks (indicated by two CNG stickers on number plate) located on top of the bus near the front. Metal pipes run on the offside roof to the back of the bus. Because the gas tanks are in the front, the air conditioning unit is placed at the rear of the roof. The gas tank placement is counter-intuitive, but this is due to the various weight requirements imposed by the RMS.
Other purchasers included
Ventura Bus Lines
Ventura Bus Lines is a large bus and coach operator in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, operating a fleet of 893 buses on 141 bus routes, including 2 SmartBus routes and 2 V/Line services. It commenced operations in December 1924.
History Earl ...
(72),
Brisbane Transport
Transport for Brisbane, previously called Brisbane Transport'','' is an organisational division of the Brisbane City Council, responsible through its related Council Committee for providing policy and advice to Brisbane City Council, and for de ...
(40),
Premier Illawarra (38),
Kefford Corporation
CDC Victoria is a transport company which operates in Victoria and is a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro Australia. It was renamed from Kefford Corporation, which was acquired by ComfortDelGro Cabcharge (predecessor of ComfortDelGro Australia) in Feb ...
(19) and
Darwin Bus Service (14).
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 its 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 fixed by Mercedes-Benz and these vehicles are now back on the road. However, as they were under lease from Mercedes-Benz, their lease expired in 2013 and were then sold to
Transit Systems NSW
Transit Systems NSW, previously known as Transit Systems Sydney, is a bus operator in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is a subsidiary of Transit Systems.
History
In November 2012, Transit Systems was awarded a contract by Transport for ...
where they currently operate.
[Australian Bus Fleet Lists - Transit Systems Sydney](_blank)
/ref>
In January 2009, Mercedes-Benz Australia issued a recall on 443 CNG-fuelled OC 500 LE units due to respecified welding specifications for the turbocharger
In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (often called a turbo) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to pro ...
oil supply pipe.
Singapore
SMRT Buses
SMRT Buses
SMRT Buses is a bus operator in Singapore. A subsidiary of SMRT Corporation, it traded as Trans Island Bus Services until 10 May 2004.
History Trans-Island Bus Services (1983–2004)
In April 1981, Communications & Labour Minister Ong Teng Cheo ...
had taken delivery of 134 Mercedes-Benz OC500LEs for fleet replacement and expansion. These buses feature bodywork built by Gemilang Coachworks of Malaysia and assembled by Thonburi Busbody Limited of Thailand, with a CapaCity licensed front from Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
, engines that meet Euro V
The European emission standards are vehicle emission standards for pollution from the use of new land surface vehicles sold in the European Union and EEA member states and the UK, and ships in EU waters. The standards are defined in a seri ...
emissions standards and are SMRT's first wheelchair accessible buses (WABs). They were the first to feature voice announcement system, with announcements similar to the ones used on the MRT
MRT may refer to:
Transport Rapid Transit Systems
* Mass Rapid Transit (disambiguation)
* MRT (Singapore) or Mass Rapid Transit, Singapore
* MRT (Bangkok) or Metropolitan Rapid Transit, Thailand
* Manila Metro Rail Transit System, Philippine ...
. They are also the first buses in South-East Asia to be fitted with a Euro V engine. The last bus to be registered, 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. It is currently used as a Kranji Bus Depot
Kranji Bus Depot is an SMRT Buses bus depot located at Kranji Road in Kranji, Singapore. As of November 2014, the total fleet consists of 324 buses.
Kranji Bus Depot was the first bus depot to be built under Trans-Island Bus Services
SMRT Bu ...
(KJDEP) training bus with a new design of EZ-Link
The EZ-Link card is a rechargeable contactless smart card and electronic money system that is primarily used as a payment method for public transport
Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, o ...
card readers installed.
;First production batch
The 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.
;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. They can be mostly found on WAB-certified services, similar to the first production batch.
SMB91Y is installed with Mobitec MobiLED EDS replacing its original EDS, LAWO BENEFIT EDS due to accident in January 2012.
Tower Transit
In March 2021, Tower Transit
A tower is a tall structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting structures.
Towers are specifica ...
took over 1 OC500LE from SMRT Buses in preparation for the takeover of Sembawang-Yishun Bus Package. Tower Transit took over more units as part of the transition in September 2021.
United Kingdom
Small numbers of OC 500 LEs bodied by MCV have entered service in the United Kingdom. The first bus was unveiled in March 2010, and was also exhibited at IAA Hanover 2010. A number have been purchased by Carousel Buses
Carousel Buses is a bus company based in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. Originally an independent company, it is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group. It is grouped together with Oxford Bus Company and Thames Travel, both of Oxfordshire, ...
for use to and from Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...
for express services.
Norway
In 2004, Vest Busscar bodied nine OC 500 LE 1825h with its Center L bodywork for Nettbuss
Vy Buss, formerly branded as Nettbuss, is the largest bus company in Norway, owned by Vy. It was established on 10 February 2000 as the continuation of the bus operations from former NSB Biltrafikk. In addition to bus services in major parts of N ...
. One was used in the Østfold
Østfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in southeastern Norway. It borders Akershus and southwestern Sweden (Västra Götaland County and Värmland), while Buskerud and Vestfold are on the other side o ...
region, while the other eight entered city traffic in Kristiansund
Kristiansund (, ; historically spelled Christianssund and earlier named Fosna) is a municipality on the western coast of Norway in the Nordmøre district of Møre og Romsdal county. The administrative center of the municipality is the town of ...
. All eight OC 500 LEs in Kristiansund were exported in 2014, with some of them appearing in Estonia. No other OC 500 LE have been bodied, nor imported to Norway.
Portugal
* Irmãos Mota Atomic UR2000, UR2005, UR2011, URB2014 and Urbis
* Marcopolo Viale
Serbia
Ikarbus
Ikarbus a.d. (''Ikarbus - Fabrika autobusa i specijalnih vozila a.d.'') is a Serbian bus manufacturer based in Zemun.
It was originally established as an aircraft manufacturer in 1923, under the name Ikarus. In 1954, it commenced bus production ...
IK-112LE, in production as of September 2015, used in Belgrade urban and suburban bus system.IK-112LE
''Ikarbus'' (Visited 15 October 2015) Ikarbus offers 2 versions, with 2 or 3 sets of doors.
More than 60 is produced.
Ikarbus
Ikarbus a.d. (''Ikarbus - Fabrika autobusa i specijalnih vozila a.d.'') is a Serbian bus manufacturer based in Zemun.
It was originally established as an aircraft manufacturer in 1923, under the name Ikarus. In 1954, it commenced bus production ...
offers suburban version with softer anti-vandal seats and a place for hand luggage.
Spain
*
Unvi Urbis
*
Hispano Habit
Tata Hispano Motors Carrocera, S.A. (formerly Hispano Carrocera, S.A.), based in Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, was one of the largest manufacturers of bus and coach cabins in Europe. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of the India-based Tata Motors. Tata ...
*
Hispano Intea
*
Burillo
*
Sunsundegui Astral
Sunsundegui is a bus and coach manufacturer based in Alsasua, Spain.
History
The company namesake is businessman José Sunsundegui, who founded the company in the Basque Country town of Irún in 1944. Sunsundegui initially started out as ...
*
Castrosúa Magnus
*
Noge Intertouring
*
Noge Cittour LE
References
External links
{{commons category-inline
OC 500 LE
Bus chassis
Low-entry buses
Buses of Germany