sw4400 Posted March 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 I saw #6193 a few days ago on #152, and while it's not really a breakdown, I think it's pretty close to being one. It left the Lincoln/Addison EB stop and the engine was making chugging sounds, the tailpipe was emitting dark gray/black smoke, and I got a strong odor of oil burning in the air shortly after #6193 passed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted August 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2009 Took the #11 Lincoln today, boarded #1374 and immediately was on a troubled bus... A steady alert tone was able to be heard, there was a light on the dash just above and to the left of the ((S)) that was on, and the "D" button on the ZF Transmission panel was blinking on and off. The bus was slow on takeoff and when stopping would make two hard jerks before stopping. I wonder if the bus finished it's run and went back to NP without the aid of a Tow Truck. The tranny seemed to be on the verge of failing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted September 17, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 17, 2009 #1970 might've broken down on #11 today... Last known location(via Bustracker) was at Lincoln and Bryn Mawr heading Southbound. Every other bus passes it by. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dann Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 Just drove by 6900 W Grand and saw 1030 broke down, engine compartment open and all. No wonder 103rd sent this bus back to Chicago Ave.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cta 5555 Posted September 24, 2009 Report Share Posted September 24, 2009 Just drove by 6900 W Grand and saw 1030 broke down, engine compartment open and all. No wonder 103rd sent this bus back to Chicago Ave.... But is a new flyer some people on here think there are so great and never brake down! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted September 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 24, 2009 But is a new flyer some people on here think there are so great and never brake down! But they are so great, cta5555!!! j/k... All buses, no matter how great, break down from time to time. If they didn't, what would the mechanics and parts makers do for jobs??? And what would be that point of a Breakdown Thread??? But, that aside, I found some songs to "illustrate" some of our more known current and recently retired buses... First, a song tribute to the workhorse fleet.... the TMC RTS 4400-Series, Flxible-5300-Series and Flxible-6000-Series: Following that, a song tribute to the test fleet New Flyer D40LF 5800-Series(most were good, some were bad... I think you know where I'm going with this choice): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hYV-JSjpyU Next, the first major order of low floor buses... the NOVA LFS 6400-Series(the new workhorses after the departure of the 6000-Series Flxibles): We can't forget our "favorite" NABI 60-LFW 7500-Series, can we??? I have just the most unique musical piece for this unique group of buses, followed by a unique sound clip: (Music) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2JRz8kzmZY (Sound Clip) Before we get to our New Flyer D40LF's of today, we can't forget the Optima 500-Series*... Unique music for a uniquely painted bus... here goes...: (I tried to find a instrumental-only version, but none were around, so this'll have to do, but you get the idea if you've heard Ice Cream Trucks in your neighborhood.) Now, the New Flyer D40LF 1000-Series. I should include the DE40LF and DE60LF, but haven't ridden them enough to fairly judge them and give them a musical representation(I'll leave that to you to do). Since there are so many(1,030) and they'll eventually become the future workhorses after the retirement of the NOVA LFS, plus the fact that they are so fast(yes, a handful are sluggish, I know) and seem to be tough in accidents(from what I've seen), I've given this music to them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehmFl1sjkXg *=Song choice was based on a past post I read by trainman8119, CTA5750, and T8H5307A Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jajuan Posted September 24, 2009 Report Share Posted September 24, 2009 But is a new flyer some people on here think there are so great and never brake down! Who said anything about they never breakdown? Like any machine there needs to be maintenance done on them from time to time. Show me any machine that doesn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted September 24, 2009 Report Share Posted September 24, 2009 But is a new flyer some people on here think there are so great and never brake down! They should brake at every red light. The hybrids should regenerative brake. The question may be whether they are mechanical breakdowns or because of all the newfangled computer equipment. With the hybrids, reports from others indicate the latter. Maybe it is like that the check engine light on my 1980 Buick never went on, because it didn't have one. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jajuan Posted September 24, 2009 Report Share Posted September 24, 2009 They should brake at every red light. The hybrids should regenerative brake. The question may be whether they are mechanical breakdowns or because of all the newfangled computer equipment. With the hybrids, reports from others indicate the latter. Maybe it is like that the check engine light on my 1980 Buick never went on, because it didn't have one. Good one. I'd say that might be it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jajuan Posted September 24, 2009 Report Share Posted September 24, 2009 Just drove by 6900 W Grand and saw 1030 broke down, engine compartment open and all. No wonder 103rd sent this bus back to Chicago Ave.... What would that have to do with getting transferred? After a few years service are we to expect it would never ever breakdown? Like I mentioned to cta5555, though it's relatively new but still a machine. And like any machine, there are times when maintenance is needed. We're talking about one reported breakdown. That is nowhere near enough to say what kind of bus it is and why it got sent back to a former garage. That's like saying Kedzie sent back TMCs to NP because they were crap when the real reason is they got displaced by NFs that got delivered at the time. Same case here, 103rd recently got more NF artics so 40 footers got displaced to make room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted October 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 22, 2009 I saw #1391 working Rt.#11 this afternoon, but for how much longer, I don't know. The entire right side of the bus was almost touching the ground, like the air-ride suspension broke or something, which'll jar anyone there if the bus hits a good sized bump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacksone44 Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 4200 was on LaSalle street broke down with engine door up yesterday on the 135 or the 136. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jirehlovescta Posted October 23, 2009 Report Share Posted October 23, 2009 Bus #6264 was running the route 67 67th/69th/71st to South Shore at 69th/Halsted with a stuck wheelchair ramp. Bus #6300 was running the route 47 47th to Lake Park at 47th/Ellis with a stuck wheel chair ramp also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted November 18, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 This was an interesting picture to link here... two breakdowns back to back!!! Clear visible is #6087 and a New Flyer(number can't be made out). It was uploaded on Aug. 14, 2009, so I can only guess this breakdown occured same day or 1-5 days prior... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwantae Posted November 19, 2009 Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 Bus #6264 was running the route 67 67th/69th/71st to South Shore at 69th/Halsted with a stuck wheelchair ramp. Bus #6300 was running the route 47 47th to Lake Park at 47th/Ellis with a stuck wheel chair ramp also. Seems that 6000s has more problems with ramps than 4400s(except won't operate from beginning). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zol87 Posted December 9, 2009 Report Share Posted December 9, 2009 I saw CTA bus #4147 being towed to North Park earlier tonight near Swedish Covenant Hospital (Foster/California). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacksone44 Posted January 5, 2010 Report Share Posted January 5, 2010 I was on 4163 this morning and it broke down on the first run of the day coming up from lower Wacker Drive. The E Drive got up to the typical 15 mph but the diesel didn't kick in. The bus started making that loud humming noise (assuming its the E Drive) that it normally makes when its coming to an abrupt stop. What is that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedracer1407 Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 I was on 4163 this morning and it broke down on the first run of the day coming up from lower Wacker Drive. The E Drive got up to the typical 15 mph but the diesel didn't kick in. The bus started making that loud humming noise (assuming its the E Drive) that it normally makes when its coming to an abrupt stop. What is that? I'm not an Allison engineer or anything, but that "humming" noise is likely a fan or series of fans cooling the electric components of the regenerative braking system. And it doesn't happen only during an abrupt stop. As far as I can tell from observation, anytime the driver lifts his or her foot off the gas pedal, brake regeneration kicks in. Contrary to what some may assume, brake regen has nothing to do with the actual brakes. Under acceleration, the electric motors inside the transmission are used to assist by drawing current from the batteries. But by reversing the flow of electricity, the electric motors can act as generators, thus charging the batteries. When this happens, the motor/generators provide a drag on the driveline that's roughly similar to their accelerative capability, and the result is some pretty effective braking. This is brake regeneration, and in these buses, it seems like it's programmed to activate any time the driver takes his or her foot off the gas. It's a win-win scenario: The bus slows down, saving the service (friction) brakes, and at the same time, the electric motors generate electricity to charge the batteries. Cooling fans are necessary to keep the components from overheating during the spike power transfer, and that's what you hear when a 4000 series slows down. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Railwaymodeler Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 Interesting issue at North today. A friend that is a driver, had bus 2328, an Orion I. He usually picks an Orion during the winter because the heat works better in them than most NABI 35-LFWs. Anyway, whenever he had to open the door, even though after it closed, the door interlock would still stay engaged and the bus couldn't move. He had to shut down the bus and start it again to keep going. Well, at first it was just the front door. So he had me go to the back, and have people board in the rear, then usher them to the front farebox. I had my Pace driver's tie on today (I call it my lucky tie), so no one asked any questions of me. We got a bit further, and then the rear door caused problems too. By then, they had a changup waiting at the end of his route, (Walmart - we were on the 564), and that wasn't too far off. We got bus 2423 as a new vehicle. That one is my favorite bus - it has a 20th anniversary wrap still. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jajuan Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 NF 1211 working the 12 Roosevelt sat EB at Roosevelt/Francisco for at least two hours with a really bad blowout of its front left wheel. The rim of the wheel was actually jutting out from the flattened tire. I passed it when going to the doctor today. Its engine panel was up with flashers on. When heading home two hours later, it was still there with the operator still waiting behind the wheel, though emergency services had come to assess his problem because a new wheel was resting against the corner of the near he driver's window. Interesting they'd bring a new wheel and just leave it there instead of hauling the bus back to the garage like my mom mentioned when I told her about it. :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacksone44 Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 I'm not an Allison engineer or anything, but that "humming" noise is likely a fan or series of fans cooling the electric components of the regenerative braking system. And it doesn't happen only during an abrupt stop. As far as I can tell from observation, anytime the driver lifts his or her foot off the gas pedal, brake regeneration kicks in. Contrary to what some may assume, brake regen has nothing to do with the actual brakes. Under acceleration, the electric motors inside the transmission are used to assist by drawing current from the batteries. But by reversing the flow of electricity, the electric motors can act as generators, thus charging the batteries. When this happens, the motor/generators provide a drag on the driveline that's roughly similar to their accelerative capability, and the result is some pretty effective braking. This is brake regeneration, and in these buses, it seems like it's programmed to activate any time the driver takes his or her foot off the gas. It's a win-win scenario: The bus slows down, saving the service (friction) brakes, and at the same time, the electric motors generate electricity to charge the batteries. Cooling fans are necessary to keep the components from overheating during the spike power transfer, and that's what you hear when a 4000 series slows down. Makes a lot of sense. Thank you :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 As far as I can tell from observation, anytime the driver lifts his or her foot off the gas pedal, brake regeneration kicks in.... Although the explanation (at least for the fan sound) makes sense to jajuan, I'm not sure that the above snippet makes sense to me, in that if the brake regen kicks in anytime the driver takes his foot off the accelerator, the bus can't coast, say when it is going down LSD at 40 m.p.h., unless you are saying that only slight pressure on the "gas pedal" will keep the bus from regen braking. Maybe you can explain further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jajuan Posted January 10, 2010 Report Share Posted January 10, 2010 Although the explanation (at least for the fan sound) makes sense to jajuan, I'm not sure that the above snippet makes sense to me, in that if the brake regen kicks in anytime the driver takes his foot off the accelerator, the bus can't coast, say when it is going down LSD at 40 m.p.h., unless you are saying that only slight pressure on the "gas pedal" will keep the bus from regen braking. Maybe you can explain further. Actually that was jackson who said it makes sense though it did make sense to me as well. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pudgym29 Posted January 17, 2010 Report Share Posted January 17, 2010 I was riding on route #X54 north to Jefferson Park {while I still can} on Thursday afternoon. We encountered bus #1994, its predecessor on the route, broken down at Cicero & Addison. The engine door is up. You'll have to accept my word that it was #1994. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted January 17, 2010 Report Share Posted January 17, 2010 It looks like the red light camera in image #1 isn't going to make any money for a while.:lol: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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