Leyland Leopard 899

The chassis was manufactured in England by Leyland and exported to Australia in 1980. Only twelve of this style of chassis were manufactured by Leyland for export to Australia, this is number 6 of 12. Powered by a Leyland 11 litre Leyland 680 engine and a 5 speed pneumo-cyclic cyclic gearbox. It has a cruising speed of 90Km/hr.

Body was manufactured by Pressed Metal Corporation, their Australine design, in Sydney, in 1981 and is a unique step deck style. The complete bus was purchased new in June 1981 by Rover Motors Pty Ltd, Cessnock, NSW, where it was registered as m/o 899 and given fleet number 20. Its first charter trip was to the Sydney Fruit Markets.

The bus was one of Rover’s workhorses during the 1980s and 1990s where it did regular service work from Cessnock to Newcastle, the former BHP site, and Maitland. It was reseated from high back to regular bench seats in the early 1990s. In the last few years of service with Rover it was used as a school bus and on charters to events in the local Hunter Valley vineyards.

In 2006 the Leopard was sold for preservation and restoration. Considerable work was undertaken to the chassis and body prior to being generously donated to the Museum in 2020.

Specifications:

Engine: Leyland 680

Transmission: 5 Speed pneumo-cyclic cyclic gearbox

Body: Pressed Metal Corporation

Status:

Stored off-site