Dennis Dominator
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Launched in 1977, the Dennis Dominator was Dennis's first rear-engined double decker chassis. Dennis had been absent from the bus manufacturing market since the last Lolines were produced in 1967. The Dominator was described as bespoke, with numerous options. To some extent it was considered a successor to the Daimler/Leyland Fleetline.
It was intended to be sold mainly with the Gardner 6LXB engine coupled up to a Voith DIWA transmission and a drop-centre rear axle, although many of the 323 examples bought by South Yorkshire PTE, the largest British customer, had Rolls-Royce Eagle engines and hub-reduction axles. Most of the SYPTE vehicles had standard-height Alexander RH-Type bodywork, these being delivered between 1981-1986, though some had East Lancs and Northern Counties bodywork. The last Dominators in South Yorkshire were withdrawn by 25 June 2006.
The Dominator also appealed to municipal operators such as Leicester City Transport who from 1977 bought 143, mainly with East Lancs bodies although seven had Marshall bodies. It was also sold in reasonable numbers to Central Scottish from 1981 with Alexander low-height RL-type bodywork. There were others too, and in 1978-80 it was sold as a single-decker before the launch of the Dennis Falcon. Other engine options of the Dominator include the Cummins L10, the turbocharged Gardner 6LXCT and DAF engines.
Production of the Dominator was less consistent after bus deregulation in 1986 with production being sporadic during the 1992-6 period. Eight were built in 1992; three in 1993; none in 1994 or 1995; and a final four built in 1996.
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[edit] Export orders
The Dominator was also sold to Hong Kong. China Motor Bus put the first Dominator (with East Lancs body) into service in 1979, then CMB bought 6 with Alexander RL-type body in 1982, primarily for its route 15 (Central-The Peak). Kowloon Motor Bus bought 40 Dominators (Duple Metsec body) between 1983 and 1984.
One Dominator with East Lancs body and DAF engine was exported to Singapore as demonstrator in 1982. It was exported to Hong Kong after the trial and entered Kowloon Motor Bus training fleet in 1986.
[edit] End of production
The Dominator was replaced by the short-lived longitudinal-engined Arrow in 1996. All in all 1007 Dominators were sold, including 1 which was built as a trolleybus in 1985 for test and evaluation by South Yorkshire PTE.
The last production vehicle was N716 TPK, bodied by East Lancashire Coachbuilders for Guildford, Surrey & West. It subsequently served with Arriva Southend, before being transferred to Arriva North West and Wales in 2004.
[edit] Dominator variants
In 1982, a tri-axle version was developed for the Hong Kong market, known as the Dennis Dragon which was sold to Kowloon Motor Bus. The same model was sold to China Motor Bus, but was known as the Condor. They were usually bodied by Duple Metsec.
Some of these went back to the UK through dealer Ensignbus. They are used for school runs and sightseeing since they have high-capacity.
[edit] What might have been
One of the persons behind the development of the Dennis Dominator was one Geoffrey Hilditch, who at the time was Engineering Director of the West Yorkshire PTE. The development bus for Dennis Dominator was an ex-Leeds City Transport Daimler CV, which was re-engined with a Gardner 6LXB coupled up to a Voith gearbox. Though, when this was completed, Hilditch had left the WYPTE and was General Manager of Leicester City Transport.
The Dennis Dominator was to have been the new standard bus for the WYPTE, but never was. The closest this came to happening was an attempt in 1999, when First Calderline (which WYPTE-Halifax became) received a 1981 Dennis Dominator from First Mainline (which SYPTE became) as an idea to replace the aging Fleetlines in Halifax, the process was to remove the Rolls-Royce Eagle engine and put in a Gardner 6LXB, but wasn't successful. No more were received, and both Halifax and Huddersfield received ex-London MCW Metrobuses instead. The solitary Dominator in Halifax was withdrawn c. 2003/4.
