The Cummins L-series engine is a straight-six diesel engine designed and produced by Cummins . It displaces 8.9 litres (543.1 cu in ), and began production in 1982 as the L10 at the Jamestown Engine Plant in Jamestown, New York . After lengthening its stroke from 136 to 147 mm, its displacement was enlarged to 10.8 litres and the engine renamed ISM 11, later M11.
41-581: GAC Ireland was a bus and coach manufacturer based in Shannon, County Clare , Ireland. It traded from 1980 until 1986, and almost all the vehicles it built were for the Irish state-owned transport company Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ) with the first delivery out of a 749 order in November 1980. During the 1970s, CIÉ's long-standing relationship with Leyland became strained, and in 1977 the company decided upon
82-448: A Gaelscoil (Gaelscoil Donncha Rua) and a school under the patronage of Church of Ireland (St. Johns NS ). There are two second-level education institutes in the town, St. Patrick's Comprehensive School and St. Caimin's Community School . St. Patrick's Comprehensive School opened in 1966 as Ireland's first comprehensive school. It has been serving the town since and is due an extension to increase its capacity to over 900 pupils. There
123-559: A gearbox failure saw its demise. Bombardier finished the last double decker for CIÉ in August 1983 and thus the end of double deck production. The following examples of the KD series are currently in preservation as of 2021: The following examples of the KD series were released for preservation but subsequently scrapped: Production of KR-class rural buses began in Shannon in 1985. These were
164-854: A group of Dominican Sisters of England had a community in the parish. In 1974 they were replaced by the Sisters of Mercy . The church of Saints John and Paul was opened in Tullyvarraga in 1980. Other churches are the Adoration Chapel in Shannon Town Centre and the Shannon Airport Oratory. The Church of Ireland community is served by the Drumcliffe Union and the Methodist community is served by
205-494: A lay pastor. Shannon is also home of Christian evangelical churches, Shannon Christian Church and New Life Christian Church. St. John's Church of Ireland School was the first school established in Shannon in 1962. Christ Church Shannon opened in 1962, also serving members of the reformed faiths, but it is now closed. Shannon was the manufacturing base of GAC Ireland , which built almost all buses for CIÉ during its short existence between 1980 and 1986. The population grew in
246-458: A new company Bombardier Ireland Limited, 51% owned by Bombardier and 49% owned by GAC. In August 1983, Bombardier sold its shares to GAC, with the company renamed GAC Ireland Limited. The former Rippon piano factory in the new town of Shannon, County Clare was leased, and production commenced in 1980, with 51 of the KE type InterCity/tour buses, with some KD double deck production taking place around
287-546: A number of Bus Éireann depots. One was evaluated by English operator United Automobile Services in 1986. In 1984, three-axle MAN coaches were built at GAC's plant for Star Coach Corporation in the United States. Shannon, County Clare Shannon ( Irish : Sionainn ) or Shannon Town ( Baile na Sionnainne ), named after the river near which it stands, is a town in County Clare , Ireland . It
328-531: A standard "family" for its next generation of buses and coaches. It thus contacted FFG (Fahrzeugwerkstätten Falkenried GmbH) of Hamburg , Germany , which built six prototype vehicles: a 45-seat coach, a 72-seat double-deck bus, a 35-seat citybus, two 47-seat rural/school buses and a wheelchair-accessible midibus . Furthermore, the Dublin-based Van Hool McArdle bus manufacturing joint venture ceased operations in 1978 (it had taken over
369-792: A token response to the International Year of Disabled Persons , also carried a Daimler-Benz engine, and featured a sliding door at the front, immediately to the driver's left. Unlike the other models, it did not go into production, and saw very little use. CIÉ looked for partners to build these buses in Ireland, eventually finding two: the Canadian conglomerate Bombardier , and the United States-based General Automotive Corporation (GAC) from Ann Arbor , Michigan . The two companies formed
410-839: Is one third level institution in Shannon: the Shannon College of Hotel Management , which opened in 1951. Since 2015 it has been an official college of the National University of Ireland, Galway . Shannon Free Zone is Ireland's largest cluster of North American investments. Since its establishment in 1959, more than 110 overseas companies have chosen to open subsidiaries in Shannon. Major companies in Shannon include Jaguar Land Rover , Zimmer Biomet , Element Six , Symantec , AXA Partners , Lufthansa Technik , Mentor Graphics , RSA Security , GE Capital , Ingersoll Rand , Intel and Digital River . Eirjet 's head office
451-564: The Rolls-Royce Eagle/ ZF ;4HP500 Ecomat and the Gardner 6LXB/ZF 4HP500 Ecomat. The GM combination ran on Rockwell axles, the remaining powerpacks driving on Kirkstall axles. Steering was provided by ZF , suspension by Dunlop pneumatics, shocks by Koni and the air system by Wabco . Door systems on the early production models were made by Keiert of Germany with later buses having Deans Doors systems. SWF provided
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#1732798660335492-560: The Shannon Free Zone . Climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows, and there is adequate rainfall year-round. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is " Cfb " (Marine West Coast Climate/ Oceanic climate ). The highest temperature ever recorded in Shannon was 32.0 °C (89.6 °F) on 28 June 2018. Shannon is twinned with: {{|date=24 May 2023}} Cummins L Series engine The ISL 9 and current L9 engines are not related to
533-574: The 1990s, and new modern housing developments were built. Improvements to facilities in the town included the opening of a second major supermarket , Lidl , with the shopping centre being expanded by the addition of the "Skycourt" complex. The main road through Shannon was remodelled following the opening of the bypass of Newmarket-on-Fergus . New units continued to open in the industrial estates. Shannon town has six primary schools: St. Tola's, St John's, St Senan's, Gaelscoil Donnacha Rua, St. Conaire's (largest primary school) and St. Aidan's, including
574-684: The 366 double decker buses built by Bombardier. The first production bus entered service in late May 1981. KD 2 entered service the day before the prototype FFG built KD 1 from Donnybrook Garage on route 8 (Dublin City Centre – Dalkey). Production began to flow during the summer of 1981 and by August the KDs were entering service in force across the city. All of the CIÉ KD fleet was in service by September 1983. Most were to be found operating in Dublin but
615-672: The C-series engine architecture. The ISL engines were manufactured at plants in Rocky Mount, North Carolina and Darlington, England . In 2016 onwards, the ISL9 was simplified to L9 , though physically it shares no resemblance to the old L10 engine: The current L9 engine is a stroked version of the C8.3 engine platform, while the current M11 engine is a stroked version of the original L10 engine platform. In February 2023, Cummins announced that
656-470: The KD and KC classes) did not withstand Irish road conditions of the time. All were withdrawn and scrapped by 1997, although KE14 and KE35 have been preserved. The standard double deck bus offered by Bombardier was known in the CIÉ fleet as the KD type. Bombardier produced 366 double deckers between 1980 and 1983. 365 were right hand drive and all ended up in the CIÉ fleet while a solitary left hand drive bus
697-598: The KD type. The Cummins engine in the KC was a much more "European" engine with parts easier to source than for the Detroit Diesel engine, parts for which had to be largely sourced from Dallas , Texas. With exception of KC1 and KC2, which were badged as "Bombardiers", the rest of the KC Citybuses were badged "GACs", as by the time KC3 onwards were on the production line, Bombardier had sold their stake and interest in
738-599: The KDs came in 1995 when KD35 was withdrawn from Ringsend garage. Between 1995 and December 2000 the entire Dublin Bus KD fleet was withdrawn, with KD 284 the last withdrawn on 15 December 2000. The training school vehicles ran a little longer with KD 70 being the last to be withdrawn in early February 2001. The bulk of the Bus Éireann KD fleet was withdrawn during 1997 with one KD (KD 184) soldiering on in Cork until May 1999 when
779-479: The KE InterCity coach (which was built for InterCity, high speed driving). In late 1983, Bombardier (Canada), on foot of lack of international orders and a significant decline in promised orders from CIE, then withdrew their participation from the joint business with GAC, leaving GAC Ireland to take over the entire running of the business as a sole entity. This event occurred just at the end of KD production and
820-470: The L10 engine, but instead based on the smaller C-series platform with the 135 mm stroke of the C8.3 enlarged to 144.5 mm, together with 4 valves per cylinder, giving it 8.9 litres displacement. The L10 displaced 10.0 litres (610.2 cu in ), and was available in either a vertical form, for upright use in trucks and buses, or horizontal form, for underfloor use in buses and trains. The L10
861-609: The Rolls-Royce Eagle engine, one in 1981 (reg. no. 20 JZL) as a prototype for the UITP conference which was hosted in Dublin that year and another in 1982 as a hope for securing export orders for the Baghdad Transport Authority. 20 JZL became KD191 (191 JZL) in the CIÉ fleet in 1982 and no further export orders were made. CIÉ took the prototype bus built by FFG into its fleet as well as 365 of
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#1732798660335902-468: The Shannon plant were the 51 KE type intercity/touring coaches for CIÉ, built between 1980 and early 1981. Fifty were built to CIÉ's specification and one prototype was completed in time for the UITP conference in Dublin during 1981. Powered by the distinctive, noisy 2-stroke Detroit Diesel 6V-71 unit, they were plagued by structural problems from the beginning. The integral body construction (also employed by
943-483: The airport) was poor-quality terraced housing . Shannon was originally located in the parish of Newmarket-on-Fergus in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe , and at first a priest in residence of the airport served the population. In 1966 St. Senan's School was opened and Mary Immaculate Church was built on Corrib Drive. On 24 December 1967 the parish of Shannon was created. For a short period
984-517: The beginning of KC production. Production of the Shannon built KC class (KC2-202) began in October 1983 and the most notable change from the KD bus was the fitting of a 4-stroke, turbocharged Cummins L10-185 engine and a Voith D851 gearbox, which was more economical to run unit, which parts were cheaper and easier tl access than its wholly American counterpart, and from an enthusiastic point of view, this bus has its own distinctive sound, compared to
1025-581: The bus manufacturing operations of CIÉ several years earlier), leaving the Irish Government keen to re-establish bus manufacturing in Ireland. Aside from the midibus, all of these vehicles shared common body components, the most notable being large, inward-curving two-piece windscreens. The coach, double-decker and citybus were all fitted with General Motors Detroit Diesel engines, while the rural/school buses were fitted with DAF and Daimler-Benz engines respectively. The midibus, built in 1981 as
1066-597: The cities of Cork , Limerick and Galway saw regular KD operation. During the summer months for a number of years Waterford borrowed a KD from Limerick for the Tramore service. When CIÉ was broken up into operating companies in February 1987, of the 364 KDs still in operation (KD 317 was destroyed by fire in Donabate in late 1983), 338 went to Dublin Bus , the remainder to Bus Éireann . The first withdrawals of
1107-483: The county council. In addition, prior to September 2004, Shannon Development , a state-sponsored body had charge of many services normally provided by local authorities in Ireland . This gave Shannon a unique status in local governance. In September 2004 its situation was regularised when Shannon Development transferred its local government functions to Clare County Council . The company retains responsibility for
1148-479: The factory, with GAC taking sole control of the operation, which produced 201 KC type buses out of the Shannon plant. The KC type ran in general service with CIÉ / Dublin Bus / Bus Éireann from 1983 until 2001 and some of the strongest survivors went onto further service as school buses with Bus Éireann until 2005 when the entire KC fleet was withdrawn, some 22 years after they first entered service into CIÉ. In preservation are as follows: The first buses produced at
1189-528: The last passenger buses to be built in Ireland. A total of 226 KRs were produced, the last of which were completed by CIÉ themselves after GAC folded in 1986. Unlike the KE, KD and KC classes, the DAF-powered KR employed chassis construction, which proved to be more durable than the integral body by quite a margin. 2007 saw the last KRs withdrawn after more than twenty years in service. No KR class has been preserved yet, although survivors do exist in
1230-463: The loud roar from the Detroit 6V-71, which was an American engined, parts were expensive to obtain and the unit had very poor fuel economy being a 2-stroke diesel engine. The axles were also changed from Rockwell/GKN type axles to Kirkstall axles. The Dunlop "pneuride" suspension was retained and was the same type as the KD type, although the length of the KC bus was approximately 1 metre longer than
1271-475: The nearby village of Newmarket-on-Fergus . The 'planned' nature of this town did not necessarily result in a successful town. It was lacking in facilities, and the town's shopping centre was also of poor design. Shops fronted onto pedestrian malls that were originally uncovered, allowing estuary winds and rain to strike at shoppers. The early low-cost housing (tower-block flats located in Drumgeely , near
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1312-548: The new ISL9 engine was introduced to operate in this market segment, yet with a better power-to-weight ratio , by enlarging the piston stroke of the older C8.3 engine. The Cummins L10 also has a sister engine which runs on compressed natural gas (CNG). The engine was introduced in 1992 as the L10G before being replaced by the L Gas Plus in 2001 until it became the ISL G in collaboration with Westport Innovations in 2008, now based on
1353-519: The rest of the Bombardier/GAC fleet before or shortly after it entered service. KC1 was fitted with a supercharged 2-stroke Detroit Diesel 6V-71 engine and an Allison V730 automatic transmission. The axles were Rockwell / GKN axles and the general mechanical running gear was identical to the KD/KE type buses, although the gear ratios would be more like the KD citybus (slow moving traffic) than
1394-467: The same time. The idea behind the Bombardier/GAC project was inspired by a number of factors: The prototype Bombardier "KC" Citybus (of single deck design) was built in 1979/1980 by FFG in Hamburg, Germany. Although designated "V1" in the factory, it later received fleet number KC1 when entering service with CIÉ, and was allocated to Conyngham Road depot from new in 1981 to its final days in 1996 when it
1435-861: The wiper system and many electrical components. The bus was 9.6 metres long, 4.4 metres in height and 2.5 metres wide. The standard tyre size was 275/70R22.5, however the Baghdad example had 11R22.5 tyres. Bombardier began production of 'KD-class' double deckers for CIÉ under the build code 'DD' to their standard specification in 1981. These buses featured the Detroit/Allison/Rockwell driveline and were built as 72 seaters (45 upper saloon / 27 lower saloon) with dual door bodies. Bombardier built 364 double deckers to CIÉ's own specifications between 1980 and 1983, 363 of which were powered by Detroit Diesels and one solitary Cummins L10 powered (CIÉ KD 146) bus. Bombardier built two prototypes with
1476-560: Was Cummins's first competitive offering in the British bus market, as their earlier production had been too large and heavy. However, it had a troublesome introduction to the British market, with high oil consumption and sealing problems. By 1994, it had been developed into the M11 , and in 1998, Cummins ceased production of the old L-series engine. After the original L10 evolved into the M11 engine,
1517-570: Was built in the 1960s on reclaimed marshland alongside Shannon Airport , along with the Shannon Free Zone Industrial park . The residential areas were intended as a home for the thousands of workers at the airport, surrounding industries and support services. Population growth was never as fast as planned throughout the first few decades of the town's existence. This was partly due to the proximity of 'friendly' places to live, such as Ennis town and Limerick city, or even
1558-560: Was constructed for the Baghdad Transport Authority during 1982. The model was based on the prototype bus designed and built by FFG known as B1 (later this bus became KD1 in the CIÉ fleet) for CIÉ. The bus was built on an all welded integral design frame. The model was offered with a choice of engine/gearbox combinations, including the Detroit Diesel 6V71/Allison V730, the Cummins LT10/Voith D851,
1599-599: Was given town status on 1 January 1982. The town is located just off the N19 road , a spur of the N18/M18 road between Limerick and Ennis . It is the location of Shannon Airport , an international airport serving the Clare/Limerick region in the west of Ireland. It has a population of 10,256 as per the 2022 census , the second largest town in the county. Shannon is a new town . Spearheaded by Brendan O'Regan , it
1640-411: Was located on the grounds of Shannon Airport. The town is administered at a local level by Clare County Council . In 1982, the town was granted local government under town commissioners . In 2002, this body became a town council. In 2008, the administrative boundary of the town was extended. In 2014, in common with all town councils in Ireland, it was abolished and its functions were transferred to
1681-484: Was withdrawn. This particular vehicle differed from the other Shannon built KC type buses (built 1983–1986) as it was delivered in the tan (sometimes mistaken for orange) or the CIÉ coined "buttermilk" livery and unique "blue" interior as seen on prototype double-decker "KD 1", and the rest of the Leyland Atlantean / Leyland Leopard CIÉ fleet at the time. KC1 was later repainted into the 2-tone green as worn by