DAF Domburg bus with drawer-style engine compartment (4 photos)

A rare example when an engineer thought about mechanics. Take a look at DAF Domburg diesel bus with retractable engine for simplicity service.





Access to the engine for maintenance and repair has become problematic when cabover buses appeared. From one sides the location of the motor in a compartment that does not extend beyond the body was a plus. There was more usable space. On the other side - a minus, which, however, was felt by drivers and mechanics, servicing these machines.

To make life easier for the masters, engineers sometimes came up with very unusual solutions. Let's talk about one of them now.



Meet this 1949 DAF Domburg bus. Its body is made by Domburg, and in appearance it does not stand out in any way. regular bus wagon arrangement.

But there was, as they say, one highlight. The engine could actually be taken out from the inside by pulling on two massive handles.





The design is implemented as follows. power unit mounted on a subframe, consisting of two halves, movable and motionless. With the cardan shaft, the gearbox was docked through special clutch. At any moment, the driver or mechanic could have access to engine by simply stopping the bus and turning off the engine.

However, there were also problematic moments. Clutch that connected the transmission turned out to be unreliable and quickly broke down. Vibration from the engine transferred to the subframe, loosened the slide and clamps. cost a bus with a retractable motor is more expensive than its conventional counterparts, the demand for he did not promise to be big.

As a result, the project of a bus with a retractable engine remained in stages of several prototypes, DAF Domburg was not mass-produced.